James Cameron's Avatar stirred up a lot of political debate after it was released last year. I found the political talk intriguing, but wanted to see it for myself.
Well, I finally did.
Stacy McCain had said at the time,"no sane man would argue with Debbie Schlussel," in reference to her scathing review of the movie as an uber-left, anti-capitalist screed.
But I beg to differ ...
- Bob Belvedere is a sane man, and he's well aware of what an idiot Debbie Schlussel is.
- Anybody who thinks Avatar is either anti-American or anti-capitalist, is a moron who needs to get their head examined.
First of all, Avatar is a great movie. Yes, the plot is simple and we've seen the story a million times before, but sometimes it's preferable to just be entertained. A person needs to relax once and awhile.
The movie isn't about America either, nor is it anti-capitalist. What it is, is anti-corporatist.
A big corporation wanted land that belonged to someone else, so they got their cronies in government to send the military in to use violent force and take it.
Now, if you think this represents America or capitalism, please STFU and go away. Because you don't have a clue what you're talking about.
On Aug. 27, 1776, British forces routed George Washington's novice army in the Battle of Brooklyn, which was fought in fields and woods where today the battle of Prospect Heights is being fought. Americans' liberty is again under assault, but this time by overbearing American governments.
The fight involves an especially egregious example of today's eminent domain racket. The issue is a form of government theft that the Supreme Court encouraged with its worst decision of the past decade -- one that probably will be radically revised in this one.
The Atlantic Yards site, where 10 subway lines and one railway line converge, is the center of the bustling Prospect Heights neighborhood of mostly small businesses and middle-class residences. Its energy and gentrification are reasons why 22 acres of this area -- the World Trade Center site is only 16 acres -- are coveted by Bruce Ratner, a politically connected developer collaborating with the avaricious city and state governments.
To seize the acres for Ratner's use, government must claim that the area -- which is desirable because it is vibrant -- is "blighted." The cognitive dissonance would embarrass Ratner and his collaborating politicians, had their cupidity not extinguished their sense of the absurd.
There's nothing American or capitalist about neglecting Natural Law and using violent force to steal property from someone else. That's what civilized people refer to as abusive tyranny.
Avatar isn't anti-Christian either. If you accept it as a story of fiction, which it is, you'll see it was the Na'vi who prayed and had faith in God. The sinners were the ones using machine guns to not only kill, but steal what they coveted.
Take your partisan blinders off people. Partisanship fills your brain with nothing but lies.
Good post CL. I haven't seen it yet. I did buy it and had good intentions to watch it this weekend, but I got caught up in a bunch of other things. I always keep an open mind when it comes to movies. You see I try to keep things in perspective. This is entertainment...nothing more. These are entertainers...nothing more. The court jester in medieval times was also an entertainer, and I very much doubt the King or Queen gave to much thought to their opinion on...well anything. This is why I usually don't care about the political message or stance of actors, directors, or producers because their nothing but the modern day equivalent of the court jester. And they’re here to entertain me.
I wouldn't be able to enjoy the music I like or much of anything else if I refused the products of people whose politics I disagreed.
"1.Bob Belvedere is a sane man, and he's well aware of what an idoit Debbie Schlussel is."
While I won't dispute your characterization of Schlussel, it would be well in the future, when discussing others' intellects, to spell your denunciations accurately. Particularly the word idiot.
Apropos of your larger theme, there are parallels to the 17th through 19th Century history of this continent, but not the ones you think. Reflect on this: American Indians, often described as helpless victims of the better armed, "vicious" Euro-Americans, did not accept that an individual could own land. Indeed, with only a few exceptions, they did not accept that land could be property. Most of the earliest, seminal clashes with Euro-Americans derived from that clash of assumptions.
LOL! I did spell that wrong, didn't I?
I thought about the Indians while watching it, but the corporate/military angle seemed more analogous to modern eminent domain abuse.
I liked the movie. I didn't think it was all that great (I saw it when it first hit the theaters, reviewed here: http://www.thepiratescove.us/2009/12/21/avatar-the-review/), but, well worth watching, and, I just didn't see all the anti-things that Debbie is whining about. Yeah, it is anti-corporatist, but, then, personally, I am not in favor of destroying the environment for the sake of a buck, either.
As far as the movie goes, I bought it when it came out, since it was only $23 for BluRay with a regular version included (gave that to Mom.) I figured I would only watch it once, but, actually, I have watched several times, and it has become one of those comfort movies, one you slap in when nothing else on.
Avatar is anti-christian because they prayer to things of this world, Not to Jesus. Praying to anything other than Jesus means nothing. Sory for being so blunt, but the truth is the truth. The movie itself (I saw it at the movies) visuals are good, but that is it. I also watched 2012 and must say that movie is a hoot at best. Please keep this in mind, man is incapable to fixing the problems he has created. Jesus will correct those problems and the result won't be pleasing to most people. Just read the Bible. Can man stop a volcano, earth quake, flood, snow, rain, and air? Jesus can.
I don't think the movie made the claim that man can stop a volcano, earthquake, snow, rain, or air. I don't believe something being non-Christian is the same things as anti-Christian. I'm just not that sensitive I guess.