By now you have most certainly heard about the train wreck that is Dora the Latina Whore and her makeover. I definitely heard about it because apparently if you make it publicly known that you hate the big-mouthed brat, lots of people will send you information about her. Which is FANTASTIC!

For reals.

If it weren't for awesome peeps and their mad emailing skills, I would have totally missed all the hoopla. It seems that the very second the vague silhouette of the "Tween Dora" showed up, people got their panties in a wad. The blogosphere quickly filled with rants and complaints and even a petition demanding that Mattel leave Dora alone.

Every second of it made me laugh. And wonder.

Why all the concern?

Y'know, there was a time when I actually *whispers* kind of liked Dora. She started out as an independent little gender-bending kid who didn't care if her clothes matched, if people stared at her for talking to a monkey, or if her adventures were a bit silly. Then she slowly morphed into something a bit more "girlie." Her eyes magically sprung longer lashes, she started doing princess stuff, and her wardrobe took a decidedly girlie turn.

I wasn't a fan of the minor revisions.

And so, I ended the Reign of Dora in our house. I banned her merchandise. I deleted her from the DVR. I gave her a big ol' shove and *poof* she was gone.

At first, Alexis was very unhappy with me. We're talking about Category 5 tantrums because there was no Latina Whore to play on the TV.

My response? "That's nice." I'm the parent, and I decide when a character's ability to annoy me has outweighed that character's ability to be a productive member of society. Considering I paid a lot of money for a piece of paper that says I speak Spanish, I know I'm the one who should be teaching my kid a little Spanish. Not some ridiculous TV character.

So, I don't really get all the uproar over Dora "growing up." If you don't like her new look, don't let her into your house. And if a kid gets mad about it? Grow some cajones, yo.