Vanilla Ice Goes Amish

[HOTW]

Exactly. Anyone who is somewhat knowledgeable about Amish culture and religion will see three mockery in minutes. I watched the first season of Breaking Amish and was completely confused by why one of the girls had dark roots and such short hair if she was Amish. Once I found out they hasn't been Amish for years it all made sense. It's so insulting to the Amish. It's embarrassing to even be the same species as most of the recruits for those shows.

These people had a gas refrigerator in their kitchen and piped gas lighting in the home. Thats not the standard Amish way of life as I understood it. I also believed that baptised Amish would not be photographed due to either a prohibition of graven images or something about pride (thats what they told me on my 8th grade field trip to lancaster).

Also of note, when he went to shave there was a sink in the bathroom but no running water (and no mirror). Why install a sink with modern fixtures unless you only turned the water off to be fake amish?

[rward]

That is because it is out of character and they are not participating. The Amish Mafia actors and show has been busted wide open. Some of them may have been born into Amish families or have Amish relatives, but none of them, not a one, is actually baptized in the Amish Church. So they are not by the Amish definition adult members of any Amish community (must be baptized into the community as an adult). Baptized Amish who interview on camera for reality TV are shunned by their communities. They are literally removed from the life of the community.

These people are pretending to be Amish on TV. Frankly, these networks are making a mockery of Amish culture the same way they used to make a mockery of black culture through minstrel shows. Yes, the analogy is apt. They are producing what they think non Amish think Amish are like under all their restrictions. The Amish community is hardly above reproach, but like any community they should have their faults portrayed and described honestly and fairly.

The networks know that the Amish do not use the American judicial system. They can do this with impunity because the Amish have tied their own hands and cannot fight back in the only way that these producers understand--by hitting them in the pocketbook.

THe worst part is, no one will even touch the Amish puppy milling, which is actually newsworthy. No, we get show after show of innocent, naive, backwards religihicks- oh so cute!- and everyone tralalalas along, totally ignorant as to where their shivery chihuahua really came from. :pull-hair:

[2xx1xy1JD]

http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/amishmafia.asp

Snopes points out that the shows admits that they use "re-enactments". That would explain how they can film criminal acts taking place - it's all staged.

I'll tolerate re-enactments on the ER shows, where it's not possible to show things happening live and where the real doctors and patients can have input, but when we're talking about allegations of criminal activity taking place with the support of a community, it's not okay. Either there's a real issue which demands real investigative reporting and possible criminal charges, or you do a show for entertainment and call it fiction.

[salsa]

Bronson Pinchot and Vanilla Ice both at least seem to have a bit of actual carpentry skill. They may have washed up as musicians and actors, and so they need other ways to pay the bills. So they milk their backgrounds and get a couple extra minutes of fame.

And Dancing With the Stars was already cast. :shrug:

[Arete]

THe worst part is, no one will even touch the Amish puppy milling, which is actually newsworthy. No, we get show after show of innocent, naive, backwards religihicks- oh so cute!- and everyone tralalalas along, totally ignorant as to where their shivery chihuahua really came from. :pull-hair:

They wouldn't dare touch the puppy milling on that show because animal rights groups are not afraid of either courts or the press, and while it tends to be an axiom in Hollywood that there is no such thing as bad publicity, a lot of shows and movies put HUGE disclaimers on screen to state no animals were harmed or mistreated in production. That seems to be Hollywood's electrified third rail, touch mistreatment of animals for entertainment and you die.

Beside, to get close the puppy mills, they would have to be legitimately cooperating with actual practicing Amish that are a part of their community.

Slightly off topic, because we are so geographically close to some Amish communities (a few hours by car), when the puppy mill story blew, it blew sky high in this community. Newspapers, local news, pet shops having to put in writing that they did not acquire animals from puppy mills, etc. I honestly can't remember if it was carried nationally at all.

[paganhomeschooler]

HOTW is very correct. Different orders of the Amish have differing levels of keeping from modern convenience. Some aren't allowed to use buttons on their clothes and use straight pins to keep their dresses/pants on. Some use buttons and wear Nikes. We've got Amish friends who use generators and run fridges. Many have beautiful homes, though plain. The children have real toys to play with. I was pulled around in a Radio Flyer wagon by my Amish friends when I was a little girl. (Hit a damn bump in the floor and dumped me out on my head, too! lol)

One of my favorite stores in Amish Country had posted Vanilla Ice was going to be there several months ago. I had to work that day, or I would have gone down! lol My mom and I are actually heading down with my kids this weekend for our annual big shopping trip and yummy food. God I can't wait for that fresh baked bread! I don't know what they do to it, but it always tastes better from Amish Country.

[PennySycamore]

Arete Jo, one of my neighbors told me about the Amish and puppy mills. She's a police captain and an animal advocate. One of her dogs was in a puppy mill till she was about 7. Lucy was sold to a dog-fighting ring where she was used as a bait-dog. She was rescued and adopted by my neighbor after the dog fighters disposed of her.

[Arete]

Arete Jo, one of my neighbors told me about the Amish and puppy mills. She's a police captain and an animal advocate. One of her dogs was in a puppy mill till she was about 7. Lucy was sold to a dog-fighting ring where she was used as a bait-dog. She was rescued and adopted by my neighbor after the dog fighters disposed of her.

There was positively heartbreaking stories in our local papers (and some equally heartbreaking pictures) of the Amish puppy mills. Pet stores in our area were putting signed statements in their windows to the affect that non of their puppies were coming from the mills, which given our close proximity, a lot of people including me found unbelievable.

It is really a national problem and it is not just the Amish who operate networks of puppy mills. They got a well deserved bitch slap because you can't hold yourself to Christian standards that the "English" supposedly don't share and then run a "business" as vile and morally reprehensible as puppy mills.

Like a lot of closed religious communities, it is also suspected that the Amish have a far bigger problem with child abuse than their statistics indicate due to the fact that reporting to outside authorities will get you shunned in many of their communities. They've got real problems, but what is broadcast in shows like "Amish Mafia" is pure fantasy.

[HOTW]

There was positively heartbreaking stories in our local papers (and some equally heartbreaking pictures) of the Amish puppy mills. Pet stores in our area were putting signed statements in their windows to the affect that non of their puppies were coming from the mills, which given our close proximity, a lot of people including me found unbelievable.

It is really a national problem and it is not just the Amish who operate networks of puppy mills. They got a well deserved bitch slap because you can't hold yourself to Christian standards that the "English" supposedly don't share and then run a "business" as vile and morally reprehensible as puppy mills.

Like a lot of closed religious communities, it is also suspected that the Amish have a far bigger problem with child abuse than their statistics indicate due to the fact that reporting to outside authorities will get you shunned in many of their communities. They've got real problems, but what is broadcast in shows like "Amish Mafia" is pure fantasy.

A way around the "I don't buy from puppy mills" is to buy puppies thru a broker who of course buys from the puppy mills. One of the biggest operations is Hunte out of the Midwest-they transport their puppies in tractor trailers. One of my clients told me how her puppy came with a companion in it crate and music and when I told her her puppy came out of a Hunte tractor trailer(I knew where th epet store got its puppies) it just killed her to realize that her dog was from a puppy mill. You can represent yourself as ethical, it doesn't mean you are..