Mr. Angel. Unfortunately, youth is hard-headed--I know I sure was back in the day! I don't know if you've ever read one of the 6 Charlie Chan novels? However, they are more on par to what his counterpart (as I call him) Sherlock Holmes has become in the public eye: That being respected. Charlie Chan, would undoubtedly have remained as infamous as Holmes, had Hollywood and world situations (WWII) not played a hand in his demise.
Anyway, here are a couple of aphorisms from the novels (vs film) you might use when your young friend are criticizing Charlie:
1. "The tongue of age speaks with accumulated wisdom and is heard gladly, but the tongue of youth should save it's strength" (The Black Camel, 1929)
2. "The ignorant are never defeated in argument" (Charlie Chan Carries On, 1930)
And if they're REALLY getting on your nerves:
3. "The guest who lingers too long deteriorates like unused fish" (Behind That Curtain, 1928)
PHEW! Your texts are marathons! But, I definitely agree. Yes, thinking is evidently a burden today. What passes for "entertainment" underscores your analysis. The style today is to GRAPHICALLY spell out everything rather than have viewers fill in the blanks with their own minds. It's very sad, and this mental laziness permeates our current culture today.
Like the little Dutch boy, we can only plug the growing number of leaks in the **** with our fingers...but, eventually, we run out of little Dutch boys and fingers.
