It has received thousand's of hits since it's posting. In the video, the two year old toddler plays the part of Ferrell's landlord, come for the rent. She swears, drags around beer bottles and is encouraged into all sorts of not 2 year old behavior.
Is this right? You can view the unedited version of the video
here.
There is alot of debate going on regarding the creation of this video, and whether it is valid entertainment, or actually misusing a unwitting toddler for cheap laughs.
Yes, I giggled a bit when I first saw the clip. 2 year old Pearl is an absolutely adorable toddler. Her facial expressions, her curly blonde hair, everything about her just makes you want to pick her up and give her a big hug.
On the surface, the video seems essentially harmless. After all, Pearl is only 2 years old. She really has no concept whatsoever as to what she is saying. But, if you really think about it - is this the kind of behavior we want to foster in a 2 year old? Do you worry, as I do, that the popularity of this particular form of humor will now mushroom, as more and more parents rush to upload raucous film clips using their own children as tiny pawns in their effort to obtain their own personal 2 minutes of fame?
When my children were young, I as a parent, made every effort not to use swear words in front of them. We would cringe at the mere hint of something evenly remotely resembling "shit" or "damn" uttering from their innocent baby lips. Now it seems, teaching your child to cuss and carry around beer bottles, scream at the top of their lungs and indicate that they aren't drunk, just "buzzed" is acceptable entertainment fodder for the masses.
I, for one, feel this is wrong. Morally, socially and psychologically wrong. It sends a skewed message, and does nothing to enhance society as a whole.
I hope that this does not encourage others to follow in Will Ferrell's footsteps. I feel he has made a serious misjudgment of what is actually entertainment, and what is not.