Friday, February 20, 2009

thinking is a good idea.

Equilibrium
Wall E
Minority Report
Bruce Almighty
Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
The Matrix

I'm lazy. I don't always think things through to their end result or logical end. For example, if I were so consistent as to make it a habit, it would be natural to see awful situations in light of God's goodness. But I'm not and I don't. Not always. That is, perhaps, one of the things I like best about movies that DO incorporate this principle, like the movies I listed above.

Don't take for granted that things are what people say they are. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. You don't REALLY want everything you ever wished for. Don't make decisions/allowances (they may or may not seem extreme at the time) without taking into account where you'll end up.

I like it when movies present the viewer with extremes that are the consequences of every day choices, little slip-ups, decisions to take the path of least resistance.

Of course, with our new president and articles like this and this, I've been thinking more about the political ramifications. The government has only as much power as we've given it, but will use every bit of power that it has. Who's to stop it when we realize that it's been given enough power - due to the fine print and the obscure meanings and convincing us that convenience is more important than the life of another - to force us to do things we never meant? Worse yet, what if people never realize it? It's like a ship full of morbidly obese people who haven't stood in years but instead accept as reality the sugar-coated talk about food, pleasure, and commercials placed in front of their eyes. They might wake up enough to stop listening to the "do what feels good" shite to turn off the screen, but their muscles have long atrophied beyond being able to DO anything about where they are and where they're being lead.


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