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Jul. 30th, 2016 11:04 pm1. Saw the film Jem and the Holograms today, which was rather enjoyable. Far more so than expected, considering it bombed at the box office with lackluster reviews. Although to be fair, I've not really been paying attention. Can't remember the last flick I saw in the movie theaters...I think it may have been Star Wars: The Force Awakens? And for the most part, I've been ignoring reviewers.
Do I recommend the flick? Depends on what you are in the mood for, I suspect. It's nothing like the Hasbro cartoon upon which it was loosely based. And that's not a bad thing. The plot is about a young woman who suffers from social anxiety, whose sisters convince her to videotape herself singing a song. Before she can delete it, one of her sisters posts it to the internet. The song, which is about loneliness, goes viral, and a somewhat narcissistic and opportunistic record label talks her into signing with them. The record producer attempts to turn Jericka Benton, aka Jem into a brand, solo and mysterious. Ditch the sister act. (Which I found ludicrous, because anyone with half a brain could tell that the sister act was what made Jem work. You ditch that, Jem falls apart.) While filled to the brim with plot holes, there's some good songs in the mix, the actors can sing and act, and it says some interesting things about social media, marketing, and being true to oneself in this age of social media and mass marketing endeavors.
It's G-rated. No violence or sex.
2. Been staying clear of politics and political discussions lately, mainly because of:
* Sanders Supporters Protest DNC even after Bernie endorses Clinton
* America's Shadow : The Real Secret Behind Donald Trump.
Snippet from America's Shadow:
What to do?
The above in a nutshell is why I'm not giving into the temptation to debate politics. (I've deleted so many potential poltical posts both here and elsewhere.) Because when I debate politics, I find myself fighting the shadow with the shadow.
I will vote in November for Hillary Clinton. I hope and pray everyone else who can vote in the US does the same, but I won't tell you what to do. I won't beg. I won't debase the opposing side. I won't call you names. For that would be fighting the shadow with the shadow. And when you do that, the shadow wins.
I'll be honest. I don't like Ms. Clinton, I never have. I can't stand to listen to her speak. But I don't vote for good speakers for President, I never have. If I did, I'd have voted for Ronald Regan.
As for trust? I'm not sure I trust any public figure or authority figure. Leaders have to compromise and cater to a broad swafe of people.
I like to think I vote for the most qualified and best person for the job, for a leader. And I know without a shadow of a doubt in my mind that Hillary is a good leader, even if I don't happen to like her very much. But it doesn't matter if I like Hillary. We aren't going to be friends. I just need to know that she will strive to make the world a better place, and of all the people currently running, I believe she is the only candidate who can and will strive to do so.
Do I recommend the flick? Depends on what you are in the mood for, I suspect. It's nothing like the Hasbro cartoon upon which it was loosely based. And that's not a bad thing. The plot is about a young woman who suffers from social anxiety, whose sisters convince her to videotape herself singing a song. Before she can delete it, one of her sisters posts it to the internet. The song, which is about loneliness, goes viral, and a somewhat narcissistic and opportunistic record label talks her into signing with them. The record producer attempts to turn Jericka Benton, aka Jem into a brand, solo and mysterious. Ditch the sister act. (Which I found ludicrous, because anyone with half a brain could tell that the sister act was what made Jem work. You ditch that, Jem falls apart.) While filled to the brim with plot holes, there's some good songs in the mix, the actors can sing and act, and it says some interesting things about social media, marketing, and being true to oneself in this age of social media and mass marketing endeavors.
It's G-rated. No violence or sex.
2. Been staying clear of politics and political discussions lately, mainly because of:
* Sanders Supporters Protest DNC even after Bernie endorses Clinton
* America's Shadow : The Real Secret Behind Donald Trump.
Snippet from America's Shadow:
There’s a powerful way to explain the rise of Donald Trump that most commentators have missed entirely or undervalued. The standard line describes Trump as a bizarre anomaly. Beginning as an improbable celebrity candidate, he has defied all the conventional rules of politics, which should have been fatal. Instead Trump has swept all before him on the Republican side. Possessing a “genius” for grabbing the limelight, he continues to dominate the scene in ways no previous politician ever has in modern times—so the conventional view goes.
But in reality Trump isn’t bizarre or anomalous. He stands for something universal, something right before our eyes. It’s an aspect of the human psyche that we feel embarrassed and ashamed of, which makes it our collective secret. Going back a century in the field of depth psychology, the secret side of human nature acquired a special name: the shadow.
The shadow compounds all the dark impulses—hatred, aggression, sadism, selfishness, jealousy, resentment, sexual transgression—that are hidden out of sight. The name originated with Carl Jung, but its basic origin came from Freud’s insight that our psyches are dualistic, sharply divided between the conscious and unconscious. The rise of civilization is a tribute to how well we obey our conscious mind and suppress our unconscious side. But what hides in the shadows will out.
When it does, societies that look well-ordered and rational, fair and just, cultured and refined, suddenly erupt in horrible displays of everything they are not about: violence, prejudice, chaos, and ungovernable irrationality. In fact, the tragic irony is that the worst eruptions of the shadow occur in societies that on the surface have the least to worry about. This explains why all of Europe, at the height of settled, civilized behavior, threw itself into the inferno of World War I.
What to do?
If the shadow refuses to go back underground, which is always the case, what outcomes can we anticipate over the next six months? The present situation finds us trapped between denial and disaster. Denial is when you ignore the shadow; disaster is when you totally surrender to it. Without being at either extreme, right now many Americans feel the unsettling symptom of being out of control. Trump glorifies being out of control, and until this outbreak runs its course—which no one can predict—he will remain immune to all the normal constraints.
What to do in the meantime? A few things come to mind.
1. See Trumpism for what it is, a confrontation with the shadow.
2.Instead of demonizing him, acknowledge that the shadow is in everyone and always has been.
3. At the same time, realize that the shadow never wins in the end.
4. Find every opening to reinforce the value of returning to right and reason in your own life.
5. Don’t fight the shadow with the shadow, which means not stooping to play by Trump’s nihilistic rules—he will always be willing to go lower than you are willing to go.
The above in a nutshell is why I'm not giving into the temptation to debate politics. (I've deleted so many potential poltical posts both here and elsewhere.) Because when I debate politics, I find myself fighting the shadow with the shadow.
I will vote in November for Hillary Clinton. I hope and pray everyone else who can vote in the US does the same, but I won't tell you what to do. I won't beg. I won't debase the opposing side. I won't call you names. For that would be fighting the shadow with the shadow. And when you do that, the shadow wins.
I'll be honest. I don't like Ms. Clinton, I never have. I can't stand to listen to her speak. But I don't vote for good speakers for President, I never have. If I did, I'd have voted for Ronald Regan.
As for trust? I'm not sure I trust any public figure or authority figure. Leaders have to compromise and cater to a broad swafe of people.
I like to think I vote for the most qualified and best person for the job, for a leader. And I know without a shadow of a doubt in my mind that Hillary is a good leader, even if I don't happen to like her very much. But it doesn't matter if I like Hillary. We aren't going to be friends. I just need to know that she will strive to make the world a better place, and of all the people currently running, I believe she is the only candidate who can and will strive to do so.