if you explain what you mean by this question i'll probably most definitely have an answer

In my opinion, no. Children's morals decline only if and when their parents' morals decline.

No, the moral decline of our children is caused by the adults who represent the elite/standard of behavior in society.

Maybe you should read them and make an opinion based on solid reason. I'm so sick of people judging things just because their parish tells them to when they obviously have no idea what they are talking about. "Thou shalt not judge"? Apparently not.

No. Bad parenting is responsible.

Yep. That and dumb parents like you.

No. That is all fictional!

No, you are.

Yes. The last time I had anal sex with my girlfriend while smoking marijuana, I couldn't stop myself from screaming incantations I'd heard from Harry Potter. *rollseyes*

In a roundabout, guilty-by-association way. Kids, instead of being raised by parents are being raised by TV, movies and other media.

No, they aren't. What? Do you think kids watch Harry Potter and then all of a sudden their "morals" are kaput? And when you say morals, I suppose you mean your particular religious beliefs? It would be just as logical for me to say that the bible or the koran are responsible for moral decline in kids because they are an affront to Zeus. If you think the movies are really that bad, and I assure you, they aren't, just don't take your kids to see them. Why pay for them to go to the cinema and be exposed to propaganda when they can just be brainwashed at home, free of charge?

Yes, it is one of many contributing factors.

What do you see as the morals behind Harry potter?

No. Parents will look to place blame on video games, TV, movies or what ever, to take blame away from themselves. It is a parents job to teach morals, not Harry Potters.

Do not be silly ....how can a movie be responsible for our kids behaviour? Family is always responsible for what kids do and say...parents always reflect their children and thats why nowadays kids are getting worse ... parents do not act as parents any more.

Oh yes, there's nothing more terrible than "our" children watching FANTASY based movies with intelligent story-telling, involving main characters that are seen fighting evil and are loyal and helpful to their friends.

So, here we go, now we have to blame Harry Potter for the parents' lack of parenting skills

Um... no. Is this a serious question?

Yes. Yes they are. thats if by harry potter films, you mean the parents

When did these come out? And no problems up to that point. Moral decline of children starts with the moral decline of parents - maybe a few years before movies let alone Harry Potter.

no, if you really think that then don't allow your children to read it or view it, this really is one of the most ridiculousquestions i've seen on here

Well, being as the Harry Potter books preach the "power of love," which is what I thought Christians were preaching as well (preaching, anyhow)... Ummmmm no.

Far from it. The Harry Potter books actually have some deep Christian themes in them, as far as I'm concerned. The witchcraft is ancillary to the story in the same way that fantasy is ancillary to the story in The Lord of the Rings (written by a devout Catholic) and Narnia (written by one of the greatest theologians of the last century). I started noticing about book two that the young witches and wizards were celebrating Christian holidays, which I found odd, when nearly all English children's stories these days have been sanitized to Winter Holidays and Spring Break. And then I found it odd that Dumbledore kept telling Harry his greatest weapon was love. I began to suspect that Rowling was creating a Christ-like figure in Harry, and just couldn't tip her hand in a series that was so dependent on suspense. But sure enough, Harry has to sacrifice himself and in doing so, frees everyone he loves from evil. No, I think what is responsible for the moral decline of children has a lot more to do with what is going on in schools, what is going on in the home, what they see on television (just the ads in primetime are enough to ruin a kid), the lack of any social structure like churches or service organizations, the lack of playing together in the neighborhood and learning to sort things out, the lack of parental supervision, the easy access to the internet and all the horrible things on it (from porn to the anarchist's cookbook)....I don't think they need Harry Potter to decline.

I hate when I can't tell if someone is joking or not. But, after looking at some of your comments here, I can see that you're pretty serious. Well, it doesn't matter what the Bible says about witchcraft, because, believe it or not, the world does not revolve around the Bible. In fact, I could cite you more examples for the Bible causing "moral decline" than I could for Harry Potter.

The moral decline of our children has to do with parenting (or lack thereof). The Harry Potter phenomenon actually got kids to love reading..that is a good thing. Violent video games,movies,television shows..parents who indulge their kids' every want, while ignoring their moral character..that is what you should decry..not some books. Just my opinion of course. :)

I suppose you haven't seen any of the Harry Potter movies or read any of the books on which they are based, so I'll tell you a bit about them. The books were written as children's books, but they are so well written that they appeal to people of an incredibly wide age-range - I'm over sixty and I thoroughly enjoyed all of them. In the same way as The Lord of the Rings (which also contains elements of magic) they tell stories of the never-ending fight between Good and Evil. In time-honoured tradition Good prevails over Evil, so I don't understand how anybody with an ounce of independent thought can possibly come to the conclusion that they can be responsible for a decline in moral standards. Indeed, quite the reverse is the case - the books and movies reinforce positive moral standards of honesty, loyalty and the defence of the weak. I suspect that your question is nothing to do with moral standards, but is more the unthinking response of a fundamentalist Christian to a work of FICTION that contains elements of a form of witchcraft, despite the fact that the witchcraft is as obviously fictional as the witchcraft in the Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Anderson.

Why Harry Potter and not ourselves? Is it easier to blame someone fictional as they cannot defend themselves (not being real and all) or is it just because we can't bring ourselves to blame, well, ourselves.

I would say quite the opposite. Besides the movies are based on books and if a movie encourages a child to read more, then I am all for it.

I believe that ultimately parents are responsible for the behaviour of their children.

can't get one past you! children were so perfect before Harry came along and now they are all in league with Satan!

No, it is the Hip-Hop---Rap culture, that is solely responsible for the decline and absolute decadence of American youth.

No. Would you prefer your children watch Passion of the Christ? That's good, child-friendly tv there.

Harry Potter movies aside, where is this "moral decline" you speak of? Just wondering where you get your information from. Because I thought the younger generations were more philanthropic, more egalitarian, and more environmentally conscious than us oldsters.

No but this book is

Gee, let's examine which values in the HP books have negatively affected children. Could it be the loyalty that Harry, Ron and Hermione share? Could it be the loving, supportive nature of the Weasley family? Could it be the bravery of the main characters as they face evil? Could it be the genuine love of animals displayed by Hagrid? Could it be the story of a lonely orphan boy who grows into a man of integrity? Are those the themes you are referring to?

Shouldn't you demonstrate something about that "moral decline" first?

no, they teach childrem to deal with life in a mature manner that they can understand, kids who were young when the first book came out, have progressed through puberty, dealing with real life issues from decent role models. I am a religous person and I don't see a magic realm as a threat to God's word; if this is why you asked this question you would do better becoming more attune with your own spirituality.

No. The Harry Potter books and movies show the conflict between good and evil, right and wrong. The moral decline of our children comes from bad parenting. From parents that say one thing and then break their own rules and set a bad example for their children to grow up with. Children learn spoken word, but they learn more by what they seeing being done.

I shouldn't think so, but the first few are no great gift to cinema.

How could they possibly be? Do they, or any other books raise our kids? . Also, how long has this moral decile of yours been going on?

The moral decline is due to lack of parental guidance. Lately, as in several decades now, the family has taken a lower priority standing than say career of the mother etc. When the family unit is broken, that's when you have a downward spiraling effect of morals in society.

Oh, please! Why don't you wackos concentrate on keeping order in your own house instead of telling people what to think, do, say or read? The world would be a much better place if you did. And if want a book that's a detriment to morality, look at your Bible for the clues

Its responsible for part of it. The other part is the Governments refusal to add sermon and prayer to the school system.

yes, darn that black magic hahaha

I don't think there's been a moral decline in children... there's more been a moral decline in the parents.

Actually, I think the moral decline of our children can be directly related to the adults they are around, that teach intolerance and hate, often hiding it behind the Bible as they do.

No, however did you come to that conclusion?

Nope,it's how you give parental guidance to them, counts a lot. Potter movies have made childen think out of box. Moral decline occurs when they see you doing immoral stuffs at home.Home is the centre of their "Moral" education where parents are the teachers,tutors and guides,all bunched in one.

Why on earth would they be? I hate you.

you are definitely on weed crabsawser. HP is beast!!!!!

I've seen alot of movies that are alot worse than Harry Potter.

It isn't entertainment's job to raise your children, it's yours. Don't blame Harry Potter, blame yourself, or God.

No. We, the parents, are.

Absolutely not. Quite the opposite in fact. The heroes have all the moral and character qualities a want my children to take for their own.

No, it's mostly 50 cent and P Diddy.

Please, do we REALLY need to blame Harry Potter? Surely the so called moral decline of our children can be traced to something more substantial. Next, we will be blaming Ozzy for teen suicides!

Are they rumored to be? Someone explain this to me. Obviously, my answer is NO because that makes no sense to me.

Oh no...not THIS again...!

No, we, as parents, are responsible bor the moral decline of our children.

No, it's the PARENTS who let their kids watch movies like that :) I don't care if it's PG or not, my kids aren't watching that crap.

yes

No! What a silly question. The true cause of our moral decline is the use of the metric system.

thank you

No, sorry azz parents are responsible for any moral decline in our children.

No but they're responsible for American children rediscovering reading, which all the teachers and "no child left behind" couldn't do.

No, of course not, how silly...responsibility for the moral decline of your children (not mine, fortunately for me, I raised mine correctly and they are all vry successful and productive members of society) rests solely on the parents. The Potter series, as GeorgeGee states, is responsible for the increased interest our children have in the written word, and that is never a bad thing. Hugs, GeorgeGee!

About as responsible as Judas Priest, the videogame Doom, slicked black hair, indoor plumbing, and just about any other scapegoat people have found throughout history.

You cannot blame books and movies for the downward spiral our culture has taken. If you MUST blame someone, blame the ppl who kicked God out of the culture. It was only a small step from getting rid of His authority to ignoring that of gov't, teachers, and parents. It's all about sowing and reaping.

No UFC, MMA and Twilight are responsible not harry potter god. Harry potter is way better than any of the 3 things i mentioned before it.