Spam is an endless source of amusement. Today’s spam brought a message from “Delmer Foreman” with the subject line: “Is your skills about to expired?” Well, Delmer, they ain’t expirated, but you really do are pointing out the needs of keeping them currentized.

I also got one from a “college co-ed” who is taking “honers classes.”

A friend sent me a link to the Shaping Youth blog on “media and marketing’s influence on our children.” In a recent post, Amy Jussel, Founder and Executive Director for Shaping Youth, takes Target to task for an advertising campaign featuring the Target bullseye logo positioned between the spread legs of a male model, and points to “the tasteless toddler tee Hooters Girl in Training” as examples of overt and inappropriate sexual content in advertising. (It’s unclear from the post, but tThe shirt does not appear to be  is not sold by Target.)

I have a six-year-old daughter, and I am appalled at the cheap tawdriness of the merchandise marketed to her. In the clothing departments of nearly every major retailer, girls can find a wide selection of slutware — tight, low riding, hip hugger pants; skimpy halter tops; Madonna-esque outerwear that looks like lingerie; and so on.

Move over to the toy section and you’ll find Bratz, a collection of slutty dolls deliberately designed to look like they are high and stupid. Nice role models!

The problem for boys is similar, but not sexual. That’s because boys are not supposed to look sexy. They are supposed to look cool. The proliferation of camouflaged clothing in the boy’s department is nauseating. The message: War is good. War is cool. I’ve seen first graders show up at the elementary school in full camouflage with boots. What are parents thinking?

It’s all part of the sexing up of America. It’s good to see articulate, informed voices like Shaping Youth. What can the consumer do?

• Boycott inappropriate products and retailers
• Spend a little more and shop better retailers that don’t contribute to the problem
• Write letters to retailers expressing your distaste for these products
• Start a blog
• Don’t buckle to pressure from your kids
• Recognize that Target, Wal-Mart, Mattel, and the other trash mongers are not good parents. That’s your job.

The alternative is to dress your girls like hookers and your boys like mercenaries and then wonder why we turn out violent and oversexed.

Spotted this in the mall in Capitola, California today:

Note that only Clinton is referred to by her first name, and that all candidates are counting down to victory, an historical impossibility but a great way to sell calendars.