Hollywood "Passionate"?

On the radio there's some talk of a new trend toward "religious themes" in Hollywood projects.

Fine.

There was a time when the religious community ruled the film industry in America. There were a lot of groovy flicks then, but also a lot of crap. Then the pendulum swung to a "godless" era when religion and faith (NOT the same things at all!) were ridiculed in film. Bad-guys were religious and good-guys had lots of uncommitted sex and shot bad-guys to death.

People who are uncomfortable with religion in real life have started making a stink about the "threat" of a return to prudish Hollywood production. People who are ridiculously enamored of religion are trumpeting the new awakening of faith in film.

I'm hoping that the "Passion" has simply shown Hollywood that making Judeo-Christian "friendly" films can be lucrative, and that will lead to greater DIVERSITY in what is made available to the public in entertainment. I want Hollywood to continue to make films like "Secretary" (with James Spader) ... and films lilke "Ben-Hur."

And there's ROOM for both!

WWMGD?

Well, after reaching my "saturation point" many, MANY years ago, I am "allergic" to religion. I have no problem with the concepts and participants. For a whole lot of people religion is helpful.

Having been involved in the "retail" side of religion, I am firmly convinced that religion really should be classified as "entertainment."

None of this to say that I "discount" religion. For a lot of people religion is, quite literally, therapy. And a lot of people make fun of "jailhouse conversions," but federal statistics (shared with me by an ex-fed-con) show that something like 99% of all convicts go BACK to prison ... and the majority of those who DON'T go back, got religion. I've known severely dysfunctional folk who have found ways to deal better with life by having some internal rewiring based on an out-of-self orientation found in Judeo-Chrisitian doctrine and dogma.

No matter how much most of us may find marketing Jesus to be ludicrous, there are people who are so involved in their religion that it only makes sense. People put up posters of Shania Twain, wear Stone Cold Steve Austin t-shirts, buy every CD put out by Bjork, own every DVD out with Charlton Heston in it, and wear Starfleet uniforms to regular meetings of local "ships." For some people, religion is not just their faith system, it is also their "hobby." It's what they ENJOY participating in beyond a nominal attendance of services. Hey, more power to `em.

But I would pay real $$$ for a "What Would Mel Gibson Do?" cap. That's funny!

Death Penalty

I don't "do" the death penalty. I can't throw the switch and I can't "ask" someone else to do it for me. Death is easy, living is hard, and entropy does not need my help.

At the same time, most of the people in prison should not be there. Smoked pot. Lied about insider trading. Didn't wear underpants. Whatever. Violent types need to be locked up and REFORMED (which locking up, in itself, does not do). Non-violent folk need fines and restrictions. Violents who have killed (and are likely to repreat regardless of offense) should get life, but all others need to take their "spanking," get help changing, then out again.

Way too much money, real estate and time goes into prisons.

Kitchen Capitalista

Just heard on radio today that Martha has contributed well over $100,000 (in the past) to Democratic candidates and causes. Hm.

A bitchy convicted felon billionairess ... and a liberal/Democrat. Hm.

One of the reasons I "graduated" from leftie/rightie Demoblican/Reprocrat is I got tired of being lumped in with people who repreat (and invent) witty sound-bites of extremism aimed at The Other Side. My baby bro is a libDem and thinks Clinton was one of the best presidents EVER and that both Bush's and Reagan were evil idiots who did NOTHING right or good. My uncle is a consRep and feels the same way ... about both Bushes and Reagan being among the best ever (okay, maybe not Bush the First) and Clinton, etc., being evil idiots.

Ya know what? The most evil president in the last century was Nixon, and he was more pathetic than evil. And, like it or not, we have never had a really stupid, "idiotic" prez. Sorry.

It's comforting and exciting to listen to and read educated/famous people who agree withour world view, and then to repeat what they say (and even add original spin-off sayings of our own!) in argument against The Other Side. I did it when I was a libDem, and again after I flip-flopped to the consRep (read: "Dark") side. It's part of the juvenile "I wanna fit in and I enjoy being passionately for/against something" mindset almost EVERYONE has at one point in there lives. Sadly, People like Rush Limbaugh and Molly Ivins never outgrow it. And neither do their fan-base.

So, when I note that Martha Stewart is a less-than-compassionate personal capitalist liberal, I am not saying that "ALL libDems are greedy bitches." Okay? Just wanted to point out that the Two Sides are far, FAR more similar than most media-addicts (and their pushers/suppliers) realize.

I was snorting about how "fitting" it is that Al Sharpton is still running (or meandering, really) in the direction of a Democratic nomination ... then I recalled Buchanon on the Republican side some years ago.

As the world measures time, America is quite the youngster. For a while it's okay for young people to poop their drawz and drool. Sooner or later, though, people need to grow up and move on.

Left alone, American people are more inclined to work out problems, leave each other alone, and even lend a hand where it is needed. Too bad our politics and our politicians don't REALLY "represent" these admirable American features.

If you are a confirmed rightie or leftie ... please consider stepping back and checking out the forest as a whole, and see if you might be more helpful by not attacking The Other Side. Try, maybe, if you don't already, promoting the real world people around you and let the caricatures in Washington D.C. (and struggling to GET to Washington) die from lack of attention.

11 Golden Dudes

"Lord of the Rings: They Wept Until They Passed Out from Dehydration" got a record-sharing 11 Oscars. I read it on the Internet this morning. Wow.

I have never been an Oscars fan, although I can see how many people might be and fault no one for it. It's a bit like being a NASCAR fan. Something about it just grabs you ... or not. The Academy Awards just don't hold my attention is all. (I am not interested in the subjective whims of a bunch of insiders.) I admit that I do pay attention (vaguely) to where the nominations go and which ones win in the top categories (like "Best Motion Picture Product Placement in an Animated Documentary(tm)") and I checked to see who got what this morning. I was hoping for Johhny Depp to get something for his exquisite turn in "Pirates," and I was curious about "LOTR."

So, my all-time favorite flick now has TWO co-record holders. I am slightly depressed by that, but just slightly. When "Titannic" matched the score of "Ben-Hur" I almost decided to mail month-old lettuce spores to the Academy as a terroristic threat. (I can't get my hands on "Ricin" and have no idea how a truck driver from Tennessee might ... although I met a Tennessee redneck at a truck stop who had the mental (in-) capacity to be the "Fallen Angel.") Regardless of how much a person might "like" "Titannic" it is just not that excellent of a film.

I am actually pleased that a non-mainstream film (mainstream being anything OTHER than fantasy/science fiction) got such broad recognition. I continue to submit that what was dorky geekhood 5 or 10 years ago is increasingly "mainstream" as post-boomers swell the rosters of consumerism, and this light-dozen awards for LOTR seems to confirm my opinion. And it was a marvelous film (if it was 45 minutes too long, and required WAY too many Kleenex(tm) for the sniveling, slobbering, snot-slinging characters).

But I wonder how many people will claim LOTR as their all-time fave film, own it on DVD and memorize lines from it ... and never seriously regard the FIRST 11-statue film, and arguably the best ... "Ben-Hur."

Oh. And the book was better (Ben-Hur).