Monday, August 13, 2012

The Decline of Western Civilization

This has been on my mind for awhile: boardgames for children should not involve poop or farts.

Two Decembers ago, Nathan and I were wandering our local Walmart and discovered two appalling boardgames, Gassy Gus and Doggie Doo. The first game involves a fat man in a chair. You feed him gassy food and try to avoid making him fart. According to the commercial on Youtube, it's a "blast" for all ages.

I'm not going to describe the premise for Doggie Doo. Just watch the commercial if you want to be disgusted.

Look, I'm not a prude. I grew up with a younger brother who was a farting machine, and to this day, I appreciate a good fart joke. But the line of decency has to be drawn somewhere, and I draw it at boardgames like Gassy Gus and Doggie Doo. What ever happened to checkers and chess? Or Monopoly and Clue? Do children really need fart sounds and fake poop to be entertained? What's next? Vomiting Vladimir? Snot-Nosed Susan? Nose-Picking Ned?

If I ever see the words "diarrhea" or "mucous" on a board game, I'm packing my bags and moving to a remote island.