{"id":1317,"date":"2016-07-20T17:07:11","date_gmt":"2016-07-20T21:07:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/pitstopforthespirituallybamboozled\/?p=1317"},"modified":"2016-07-20T17:15:17","modified_gmt":"2016-07-20T21:15:17","slug":"are-you-looking-for-pokemon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/pitstopforthespirituallybamboozled\/2016\/07\/are-you-looking-for-pokemon.html","title":{"rendered":"Are you looking for Pok\u00e9mon?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

<\/h4>\n
<\/iframe><\/p>\n<h4>So here\u2019s the thing: it seems to me that if you are not in on this\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon phenomenon, then you are alarmingly\u00a0pass\u00e9<\/em>!<\/h4>\nFull disclosure: I was not au fait <\/em>with it at all until it\u2019s ubiquitous presence on social media prompted my own research. And as the parent of a nine and seven year old (who as far as I know are not yet smitten with the craze), I\u2019m kind of intrigued (dare I say enchanted) by the whole thing.<\/p>\nFor the\u00a0pass\u00e9 <\/em>posse\u00a0<\/em>among us<\/strong><\/p>\nHere\u2019s a working definition of\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon: it\u2019s a collective noun which refers to creatures of varying shapes and sizes who inhabit their own wild universe. They are raised and directed by their \u2018trainers\u2019 (owners) who send them off on exotic adventures and, on occasion, into friendly battle with other\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon.<\/p>\nSimple enough; but where do they . . do their thing? Mostly on video games but, like any other craze, you can now find them on a TV series, in movies, playing card games, and . . well you get the picture.<\/p>\nHelpful or harmful to kids?<\/strong><\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1325\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/675\/2016\/07\/pokemon_go_encounter_screen_-_device_-_parkv3.jpg\" alt=\"pokemon_go_encounter_screen_-_device_-_parkv3\" width=\"153\" height=\"153\">When I read terms like \u2018sportsmanship,\u2019 \u2018respect,\u2019 \u2018teamwork,\u2019 \u2018compassion,\u2019 and \u2018friendship\u2019 as being qualities that the\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pokemon.com\/us\/parents-guide\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\" decorated-link\" rel=\"nofollow\">games<\/a> inculcate in kids, I\u2019m thinking, yes this phenomenon is well-intentioned and designed to help kids develop many skills and values.<\/p>\nNot only that, but the \u2018Play!\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon\u2019 network of activities (tournaments, movie viewings, art sessions, Championship Series events etc) are all designed to build community and establish friendships among players. And who can argue with that?<\/p>\nFinal word\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\nOkay it\u2019s a multi million dollar global industry, but in a world driven by electronic gadgetry and multi-media platforms (many of which are harmful and addictive), the\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon craze is far from the worst things my kids could be exposed to . .<\/p>\nSo if they show up some day full of this\u00a0Pok\u00e9mon thing that their buddies are all into. Well go for it guys! Sounds like it could be educational, character-building, and a lot of fun! For kids and parents alike.<\/p>\nCover Photo: YouTube Still<\/p>\nImage Insert: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.pokemasters.net\/new-pokemon-go-features-announced\/pokemon_go_encounter_screen_-_device_-_parkv3\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\" decorated-link\" rel=\"nofollow\">Pokemasters.net<\/a><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Taking a closer look at the Pokemon craze<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2586,"featured_media":1325,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[134],"class_list":["post-1317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-pokemon"],"yoast_head":"\n<title>Are you looking for Pok\u00e9mon?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Taking a closer look at the Pokemon craze\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/pitstopforthespirituallybamboozled\/2016\/07\/are-you-looking-for-pokemon.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Are you looking for Pok\u00e9mon?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Taking a closer look at the Pokemon craze\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/pitstopforthespirituallybamboozled\/2016\/07\/are-you-looking-for-pokemon.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Pit Stop for the Spiritually Bamboozled\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-07-20T21:07:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-07-20T21:15:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/675\/2016\/07\/pokemon_go_encounter_screen_-_device_-_parkv3.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gerard A. 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