Winners, Losers And Playhouse Disney Ribbons

To get my daughter off my back today I plumped her in front of the computer to play Playhouse Disney. Nothing like watching their eyes phantasmorgorically (hey, if refudiate can be popular so can this) glaze over after two hours on it.

I kid social services.

Sorta.

In one of the games, she couldn't figure out how to move one of the characters; some rip off artist contractor named Handy Manny. As the game went on with the time ticking towards zero the pressure was on me to come through for her. I didn't.

Then came the square with "Congratulations: Your scored ZERO." I took it as "You Zero."

Natural paranoia aside, I did find it odd they would "congratulate" a person for what used to be termed as "failing." Not only that, out came Manny with a ribbon.

What kind of fricken message is that? You fail but you get a ribbon because you're a "winner" for participating?

We have serious issues.

Serious.

I fret and shutter to think how some of these kids who accept the ribbon will be in the real world somewhere down the future. "I know I didn't meet my sale targets but where's my ribbon! I need my ribbon!"

I took her off the game and proceeded to talk about winners and losers. I took a picture of Genghis Khan and said "winner." Ribbon for him. I drew a rudimentary a picture of Joan of Arc burning at the stake and said "loser." No ribbon. After, I led her outside on the porch and pointed to the neighbour meticulously cutting the grass and said "winner." Ribbon, yes. Then I pointed to myself and the brown grass below and said, "loser." Ribbon, no.

And so on. I stopped when I noticed a sense of fright began to set in on her.

She looked at me like a clueless cat only interested in food but that's ok. I think I got through to her.