One of the most contentious issues of our times seems to be that of children growing up too fast. 'Let kids be kids!' nervous parents squeal, seemingly helpless in the onslaught of skanky Bratz dolls and kiddie poll dancing classes, and terrified that their innocent offspring will morph into overdeveloped nymphettes. However, parental desire to shelter their children for as long as possible has always existed. Harking back a decade or so to when I was younger, the world seemed divided into two distinct groups- those children who were allowed to watch The Simpsons and those children who weren't. Parents who let the cartoon be aired in their homes were enviably cool, whilst those who didn't were strict to the point of dire embarrassment. (My parents were, unfortunately, the latter.) Whilst the content may have progressed since my childhood (Bart mooning his little yellow arse and howling 'Eat my shorts' now seems relatively tame in comparison with a Pussycat Dolls music vid) the principals have not- parents still try and shelter their children from what they believe are unsuitable influences, just as they have always done. However these days they might be doing it a little more often and a little more defensively.