Some thoughts on Haiti

The events in Haiti have left me just like many others leaving feeling distraught and helpless. Short of donating money and, for those of us who can, leaving for Haiti to lend a helping hand, there doesn’t seem to be a lot more we can do.

I have been struggling for the last week to come up with words that reflect both the deep pain I feel at the suffering of those in Haiti as well as the deep joy I feel in seeing the world come together, as yet again, the worse sufferings is making the best shine out of the hearts of countless millions who are praying, donating  money and even risking their lives to help.

Yet at the same time, I can’t help but ask – in typical Sahar fashion, some of you might think – how we could have acted sooner to allay some of the suffering in Haiti. While we cannot control the movement of tectonic plates, we can ensure that those living in areas of great danger are housed in buildings that are not about the collapse even on a good day. I would be very interested to know how many lives could have been saved and how much suffering could have been alleviated if Haiti had been a industrialized nation rather than a developing country.

The other thing that has me deeply worried are signs that corporate greed might be tainting the selflessness of the abovementioned countless millions of people. I do not unfortunately as of yet have the know how to identify for myself such signs, but have been reading reports by such people as Naomi Klein (author of The Shock Doctrine) and wondering what can I do to help prevent such an injustice from happening again.

On Naomi Klein’s website we can find the following article, written on the 18^th of January: US “Security” Companies Offer “Services” in Haiti, By Jeremy Scahill: “The Orwellian-named mercenary trade group, the International Peace Operations Association, didn’t waste much time in offering the “services” of its member companies to swoop down on Haiti for some old fashioned humanitarian assistance disaster profiteering. Within hours of the massive earthquake in Haiti, the IPOA created a special web page for prospective clients, saying: “In the wake of the tragic events in Haiti, a number of IPOA’s member companies are available and prepared to provide a wide variety of critical relief services to the earthquake’s victims.”

While some of the companies specialize in rapid housing construction, emergency relief shelters and transportation, others are private security companies that operate in Iraq and Afghanistan like Triple Canopy, the company that took over Blackwater’s massive State Department contract in Iraq. For years, Blackwater played a major role in IPOA until it left the group following the 2007 Nisour Square massacre.

In 2005, while still a leading member of IPOA, Blackwater’s owner Erik Prince deployed his forces in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Far from some sort of generous gift to the suffering people of the US gulf, Blackwater raked in some $70 million in Homeland Security contracts that began with a massive no-bid contract to provide protective services for FEMA. Blackwater billed US taxpayers $950 per man per day.

The current US program under which armed security companies work for the State Department in Iraq—the Worldwide Personal Protection Program—has its roots in Haiti during the Clinton administration. In 1994, private US forces, such as DynCorp, became a staple of US operations in the country following the overthrow of Jean Bertrand Aristide by CIA-backed death squads. When President Bush invaded Iraq, his administration radically expanded that program and turned it into the privatized paramilitary force it is today. At the time of his overthrow in 2004, Aristide was being protected by a San Francisco-based private security firm, the Steele Foundation.

What is unfolding in Haiti seems to be part of what Naomi Klein has labeled the “Shock Doctrine.” Indeed, on the Heritage Foundation blog, opportunity was being found in the crisis with a post titled: “Amidst the Suffering, Crisis in Haiti Offers Opportunities to the U.S.” “In addition to providing immediate humanitarian assistance, the U.S. response to the tragic earthquake in Haiti earthquake offers opportunities to re-shape Haiti’s long-dysfunctional government and economy as well as to improve the public image of the United States in the region,” wrote Heritage fellow Jim Roberts in a post that was subsequently altered to tone down the shock doctrine language. The title was later changed to: “Things to Remember While Helping Haiti.”

Shocking, isn’t it.

And while I don’t have the answers, I do have faith that people, now more than ever, would be willing and ready to arise and stand in the name of justice in Haiti, so that the consequences from last week’s earthquake will be limited to the physical consequences of said quake and not become limitless as the economic suffering subsequent to the application of the shock doctrine to yet another helpless country in such a time of need.

I’m going to try getting in touch with Naomi Klein to see if there are any concrete actions that we can make. Until then, sharing this information would be the first step. The second step would for us to inform ourselves and to start a conversation within which hopefully we can soon discern the actions that we can take.

The Prosperity of Humankind

I just read an awesome quote that goes so well with my previous musings that I had to share it with you:

“The standard of truth-seeking this process demands is far beyond the patterns of negotiation and compromise that tend to characterize the present-day discussion of human affairs. It cannot be achieved – indeed, its attainment is severely handicapped – by the culture of protest that is another widely prevailing feature of contemporary society. Debate, propaganda, the adversarial method, the entire apparatus of partisanship that hand long been such familiar features of collective action are all fundamentally harmful to its purpose, that is, arriving at a consensus about the truth of a given situation and the wisest choice of action among the options open at any given moment.”

From: The Prosperity of Humankind

Review: Supernatural, Season 5, Episode 10: Abandon All Hope

I have to admit that I was dreading watching this episode a little bit for two reasons. First of all, it’s the last episode before the Christmas hiatus, which will last well into January 2010 (how can you do this to us, Kripke?) and second of all, an episode from a TV show covering a war between Heaven and hell that is entitled “Abandon All Hope” doesn’t bode well, wouldn’t you say?

But I finally got over my willies (and had enough spoilers on my Tumblr dashboard) and finally watched this episode. Then it took me quite some time to get my act together and review this episode. It was kind of nice to have “Supernatural review” on my to-do list for an extra two weeks before yielding to the desire to write it up. It’s going to be a hard couple of coming weeks, that’s for sure.

The opening scene was quite intriguing, and builds right into the little bit of precious information Becky (our unlikely informant) gave the boys last episode — that Crawley has the Colt. Speaking of which, Crawley was rather brilliantly portrayed by Mark Sheppard, wouldn’t you say?

It’s obvious that a lot of work has been done by the boys, Jo, Ellen, and Castiel since the last episode, which is great, because this leaves a lot of room open for books going over the action between episodes. And no, I am certainly not talking about fan fiction. I went there once, and I never want to go there again (sorry, guys).

It’s also obvious from the very beginning that, although Supernatural’s typical banter and one-liners are going to be present in this episode just like in any episode, the jokes are over; it’s time for some serious Apocalyptic action.

There were a couple of things that were a little intriguing about this episode, and that make me wonder if, on one side, Supernatural might be running out of steam (I know, I dared), or if the writers are taking us somewhere we are not expecting and these are the foundation blocks of a future that is quite different from what we are expecting.

For one, there was the blatant display of homophobia at the beginning, when Crawley asks the banker to seal the deal with the typical kiss. It seems like the writers are having a bit too much fun with some fans’ obsession with slash fiction. Becky was awesome; last episode’s joke was also funny. But seriously guys, give it a rest. Most Supernatural fans are not into Wincest or slash, and we’d like for some other jokes to be laid on us.

Then came the rather big mistake, and a very atypical one for the Winchesters: the devil’s trap under the rumpled rug. I’m sorry, but that really didn’t fly. I can understand that Sam and Dean are on pins and needles, I can understand that they are more vulnerable to making mistakes, but even I wouldn’t have made that mistake were I a rookie on my first hunt. It was a rather lazy and/or sloppy way for the writers to make sure that Dean and Sam were caught. They should have let Crawley walk into the trap, then the other two demons would have caught the Winchester brothers (that’s a mistake they could have made, i.e. not seen all the sentinels), and then another demon could have come and freed Crawley. That type of mistake on behalf of the Winchester brothers would have made a lot more sense than a rumpled rug. Yes, I’m sneering a little bit here. But Supernatural writers have consistently set the bar high, so any slip – however small – is hard to take.

Despite that blunder, the scene of the Winchester boys with Crawley was interesting in more than one way. On the one hand, there was this little gem of an exchange:

Crawley: Do you know how deep I could have buried this thing (the Colt)? There is no reason you or anyone should know this exists at all. Except that I told you.
Sam, incredulous: You told us.
Crawley: Yes. Rumours. Innuendo. Sent out on the grapevine.

In TV land, this reminded me immediately of the ‘African Internet’ that was referred to in The X-Files’ season seven premiere by Amina Ngebe when Scully was surprised at the fact that the secret she asked others to keep made its way seemingly around the continent. In real life, it makes for an even more poignant exchange in a day and age when we, the public, are stuck in what seems to be a massive marketing campaign on a global scale to make us believe certain things that’ll make us act in ways a relatively small group of people want us to act.

The other thing I found interesting in the scene with Crawley is that, rather than being a source of despair, what he said fills me with hope. For the first time, I can see how the tide can be turned. Crawley is turning against Lucifer to ensure his own survival – there can’t be much trust left there. Therefore it’s certain that other demons have had the same thought – that they need to stand up to Lucifer to ensure their survival. There is rancour and disunity within the ranks of hell just as there is within the ranks of heaven – things are starting to even out. Not just that, but perhaps the oddest and unholiest of alliances can be made: everyone against Lucifer, be they humans, demons or angels. Now that would make for some awesome TV.

Unfortunately, it brings me to something I didn’t find that awesome. I found it odd that Castiel would choose his last night on earth to do shots with Ellen (or with anyone else, for that matter). Wasn’t he traumatised enough last time, when, on another night that might have been his last on earth, he followed Dean into what he himself referred to as a ‘den of iniquity’?

Despite this, Castiel is turning out to be one of the most intriguing characters in the series. These blatant contradictions in his character are just as intriguing as they are annoying – perhaps even more so. His faith in God remains firm, despite some major shake-ups, and yet he went to a bordello and now is doing shots.

Quite unsettling, yet, in light of the above mentioned unholy alliance, perhaps it makes sense – that Castiel, who might be starting to understand the various shades of grey and exploring some of the things he previously wouldn’t have, but whose core faith has yet to be breached, could become the figure bringing together seemingly diametrically opposed groups of people.

However if Castiel is going to become such a figure, he really needs to get his facts straight. How did he not know about the Colt not being able to kill Lucifer? For that matter, how come no one knew about this? Weren’t we told previously that no one can kill Lucifer but one of his kind? I’m really going to have to go through previous seasons’ episodes to figure out how this happened.

The scene with the Impala rolling into town followed by Ellen’s truck reminded me a lot – appropriately so, perhaps – of the episode “The End”. I have to admit that this is where my blood pressure (and probably that of thousands of fans) started skyrocketing, especially when it became obvious that the Winchester brothers rolled into town with no weapons in their hands or laps other than their cell phones. Seriously? What are you going to do if you’re attacked, call 911?

And for that matter, why did Dean and Sam only get Ellen and Jo to walk into battle with them? Between Ellen, Dean, and Bobby, I’m sure at least a couple of hunters would have been able to make it to the battle. Time is of the essence, yes, but come on, not even two or three hunters are near the area?

Another mild incongruence that bugged me a lot was when the Winchester brothers chose to separate themselves from Ellen, Jo, and Castiel. You’d think that, just as they are closing in on Lucifer, they would want to keep the troops (and consequently their strength) together. Then again, I’m no hunter.

The scene with the reapers was quite a treat, a perfect, creepy-without-trying moment. The superimposition of the street as Ellen and Jo saw it with the way Castiel was seeing it, filled with immobile Reapers, was something straight out of a B-movie. And while Castiel walked amongst the Reapers that only he could see, I was reminded of that moment in the Matrix when Morpheus is explaining to Neo that life can’t be only about what we see, taste, hear, smell and touch, for if it were so, life would basically be limited to a series of neuroelectric impulses. Doesn’t it make you wonder what reality really is? Doesn’t it make you wonder what there is with you right here, at this very moment, that you can’t see?

You probably do — or you wouldn’t be watching Supernatural!

Castiel walking in on Lucifer in another B-movie worthy moment, when the audience is screaming at the screen “Don’t go there!” but he does anyhow, gave way to another thought-provoking conversation. I find it fascinating and scary how Lucifer manages time and again to turn every truth and every argument to suit his needs in a seemingly logical way. In this case, Lucifer is actually trying to convince Castiel, Mister faithful-to-the-end himself, that they are on the same team. He bases his argument on the fact that they both rebelled against Heaven and therefore are seen in the same way by the other angels. Talk about a lazy and badly built argument, as this conversation is built on a basic yet important flaw in Lucifer’s logic. He mentions Castiel’s self-interest as being the reason why they should join forces. This clearly demonstrated that his logic is based on self-interest rather than on love for humanity, as an angel’s logic is supposed to be based on. Hence his entire logic is terribly undermined right from the beginning.

I can’t possibly finish this review without mentioning Jo’s death. Ah, Jo. Talk about the youngest being the bravest and the wisest:

Jo: Stop. Guys, stop. Can we uh, be realistic about this please? […] I can’t fight. I can’t walk. But I could do something. We’ve got propane, wiring, rock salt, iron nails, everything we need […] To build a bomb…
Ellen: No, I, I won’t let you! [...]
Jo: (smiling) Mom. This might literally be your last chance to treat me like an adult. You might want to take it.
Ellen: (crying) Well, you heard her. Get to work.

So often we focus on the amazing acting skills of Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki that we tend to forget the skills of the actors (or in this case, the actresses) portraying some of the recurrent characters. Alona Tal and Samantha Ferris (can I get a w00t w00t, Canada!) did an amazing job, making the entire sequence (from Jo’s mauling by the hellhound to the explosion of the hardware store) poignant without going into the cheesiness and awkwardness that can sometimes permeate these scenes.

It’s also funny (in a I-have-a-tear-in-my-eye kind of way) how mothers are at the same time so strong when it comes to their children and yet so weak, and how well their children know them. In an instant, with only a look, Jo guessed that her mother was planning on staying with her in the hardware store. In retrospect, it’s a good thing, since Jo took her last breath before detonating the bomb. But this was something they couldn’t have predicted, and the question begs to be asked: was Ellen’s sacrifice needed? After all, she’s a hunter and could have continued fighting alongside Dean and Sam.

Perhaps if she was strong enough to live without Jo, it wouldn’t have been needed. But it is probable that after first losing her husband and then her daughter, Ellen’s ensuing grief and possible resentment could have become a liability. So perhaps she didn’t only decide to stay with her daughter because she wasn’t brave enough to live without her; perhaps is was because she was brave enough to sacrifice herself too, since she wouldn’t be able to contribute anything more to the fight.

While it was rather obvious from the beginning of the episode that this could not be the time when Lucifer would die (he needs to live another four to six months until the end of the season, after all), I couldn’t help but wonder what this episode would do to Sam and Dean’s still relatively fragile relationship (as compared to what it was pre-Ruby). I think that the boys are definitely on the way to becoming closer than before; Sam has really changed, and Dean is finally letting go (barring the occasional still-bitter one-liner). And although I know Lucifer’s arrogance will be one of the reasons for his downfall, I can’t help but wonder at his supreme confidence:

Sam: [looking at the men standing around] What did you do? What did you do to this town?
Lucifer: Oh, I was very generous with this town. One demon for every able-bodied man.
Sam: And the rest of them?
Lucifer: [gesturing at the pit he's been filling in] In there. I know it’s awful but, these Horsemen are so demanding. So it was women and children first. I know what you must think of me Sam. But I have to do this. I have to. You of all people should understand.
Sam: What’s that supposed to mean?
Lucifer: I was a son. A brother, like you, a younger brother, and I had an older brother who I loved. Idolized, in fact. And one day I went to him, and I begged him to stand with me. And Michael… Michael turned on me. Called me a freak, a monster. And then he beat me down, all because I was different. Because I had a mind of my own. Tell me something Sam, any of this sound familiar?

Just like he was trying to plant the seed of doubt in Castiel’s heart earlier, here he is, trying to do the same with Sam. And I think it’s good that this is happening; just like Castiel is smart enough to see through Lucifer’s convoluted and deeply flawed logic, Sam has acquired a lot of perspective in the last two years and this interaction will cement his newfound mental stability and maturity. Again, another reason to not abandon all hope.

And I must mention that Mark Pellegrino’s Lucifer is an awesomely creepy performance that I am not likely to forget anytime soon.

I don’t know how I feel about the ending. I like that it was solemn and silent, and that not a single word ruined the moment. But I don’t understand why Bobby burned the picture. Wouldn’t you want to keep the last picture of two hunters who courageously died during battle?

On that delightfully cheerful note, I leave you, dear reader, but not without tickling your brain a little further (to make sure you make it all the way until January’s episode for the second half of the season to begin). Let’s ponder the question: do we need to abandon all hope, as this episode’s title seems to want to encourage us to do? While the situation does seem pretty dire, there is a relatively little but extremely important point that, after reflection, is bound to make you do anything but abandon hope.

Lucifer, as Dean and Sam watch, horrified, as the possessed men fall down dead: What? They’re just demons.

This adds on to a point that I made earlier. Crawley’s position shows that there is already disunity within the ranks of the demons, who are turning against their creator – i.e. Lucifer. This point is taken further during Castiel’s conversation with Meg, and driven home with Lucifer’s obvious disregard for the creatures he has created.

It’s going to be so fascinating to see in upcoming episodes the demons having a crisis of faith. Then it’s really going to give Castiel, Bobby, and the boys an edge, because there is nothing worse for an army than disunity. On top of that, I find it highly unlikely that someone as arrogant as Lucifer would ever believe that the demons he’s created would ever dare turn away from him. And that will probably contribute decisively to his demise.

Last point that just might boggle your mind: Satan doesn’t really exist. Satan is an angel gone rogue.

And with that, I bid you farewell until January.

Some great moments:

Castiel: The demon Crawley is sealing a deal. As we’re speaking, it’s… going down.
Dean: Going down? Ok Huggie Bear, just don’t lose him.

Crawley: So, the Hardy Boys finally found me.

Dean: And why exactly would you want the devil dead?
Crawley: It’s called survival. But I forgot, you two are at best functioning morons.
Dean: Yeah, well you’re a functioning… morons, moron…

Crawley: To him (Lucifer), you’re just filthy bags of pus.

Crawley: So why don’t you take this and kill the devil.
Sam: OK. Er… You wouldn’t happen to know where the devil is perchance? (…)
Sam points the gun at Crawley’s head and pulls the trigger – but the gun is empty.
Crawley: Oh yeah, right, you’re probably going to need some ammunition.

Dean: Sam Winchester having trust issues with a demon. Well, better late than never.
Sam: Well thank you for your continued support.
Dean: You’re welcome.

Dean: Hey.
Jo: Hey.
Dean: So… dangerous mission tomorrow.
Jo: Mmm.
Dean: Guess it’s time to…eat, drink, and…you know…make merry.
Jo: Are you giving me the “last night on earth” speech?
Dean: What?
Jo: What?
Dean: No.
Jo: No.
Dean: If I was, would, uh…w-would that work?
Jo: No. Sweetheart, if this is our last night on earth, then I’m going to spend it with a little thing I call “self-respect”.
Dean: If you’re into that kind of thing.

Bobby: I’m gonna need something to remember your sorry asses by.
Ellen: Always good to have an optimist around.
Castiel: Bobby’s right. Tomorrow, we hunt the devil. This is our last night on Earth.

Lucifer: I hear you came in an automobile. How does that feel?
Castiel: Um… Slow. Confining.

Dean: This is great. We’ve only been in town for 20 minutes and we’ve already lost the angel up our sleeve.

Bobby: Devil’s in the details, Dean.

Sam: Last words?
Dean: I think I’m good.
Sam: Yeah, me too.
Dean: Here goes nothing.

Lucifer: You’ll have to excuse me. Midnight is calling, and I have a ritual to finish.

Violence against women and global climate change – yes, there is a link I promise!

It was the 20^th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre yesterday (December 6^th), and while it’s great to see an increase in awareness and desire to end violence against women, I can’t help but wonder at the futility of any subsequent policy if we, the people, don’t take ownership of them to create not only a violence-free environment around the women in our society, but also (and perhaps especially) to create an environment that eliminates all factors leading to violence (being shoved at in the metro, being told off rather nastily at work, being treated badly because one ‘only’ works as a waiter, etc, etc).

Fact of the matter is, violence against women mostly happens within the domestic setting, and is a reflection of unresolved issues the man has. However, laying the blame on the men is a narrow-minded way of thinking. Truth is, the blame starts from that man’s childhood, from any abuse he might have witnessed, from the lack of nurturing he might have gotten, from lack of education related to how to express his frustrations in a healthy way, from lack of true connections, from lack of understanding on behalf of those around him…

And going around accusing one another of who was responsible for what doesn’t help, either. I would think that rather, if this rise in awareness and desire to eliminate violence against women was channeled into understanding how every act we perform every day has a butterfly effect, be it positive or negative, then we would create the conditions within which feelings, emotions or situations that usually culminate into violence against women would find other channels to dissipate themselves in.

By the same token, there has been an exponential rising in awareness with regards to the sorry state of the environment (thank you, Al Gore) and yet, at the level of day to day life, little change is being observed. Just sit outside a Starbucks and count the number of one use cups you see trotting out of there, or count the number of cars that are left idling on the street.

There seems to be a certain laxity when it comes to taking ownership of these problems. My question is: why? Do people really feel that helpless? Or are they so distracted by the rising tides of materialism that they don’t have the time to do what they could do to help with these two situations (and many others)?

Let your heart burn with loving kindness, even when seeking justice

I think it’s pretty obvious by now that I believe in the power of the masses of humanity, and that I am seeking to apply this conceptual framework to my day to day acts. Now some of these applications are still humble, and others are off the track, but I do think that were everyone to start trying out together, reflection on their results and consulting to learn from each other – well, you know what I think!

So here is a little something I feel strongly about, and I thought hey, why not.

There is, quite unfortunately, a lot of discrimination that still goes around, even in ‘civilized’ countries likes ours’. Walmart had such an incident, the full story of which you can check out here.

In short:

Employees at the Niles, MI Wal-Mart store accused Paolucci of shoplifting some Bic lighters. Although he produced the receipt, they refused to back down, insisting that the two men go to a “detention room”. The employees, using vulgarities and hostility, frightened their special needs kids. (South Bend Tribune)

Paolucci said that while he and Hitchcock were attempting to calm down the boys, the employees ordered them to enter a “detention room” for questioning. Fearful of what might happen behind closed doors, he and Hitchcock refused to enter and asked to speak to a manager.

“Some guy came up and said, ‘I’m the manager,’ then turned around and left,” Hitchcock said.

Paolucci said he and Hitchcock then asked store personnel to call police. Within minutes, deputies from the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department’s Niles Township Patrol arrived, pleasing Paolucci who said he thought a few questions and a review of the store’s videotapes and computer records would quickly resolve the matter.

He said he was shocked when he was immediately handcuffed, without a question being asked, and placed in the back seat of a squad car. Hitchcock wasn’t handcuffed but also was placed in the back seat of a second squad car.

At this point in time, money tends to speak. As consumers, we do hold power, and yet we don’t use it nearly enough. So my suggestion is this: when such blatant incidents happen, why not send a little something like this to the corporations HQ?

Dear Sir; I am extremely distraught at the followinf story regarding one of your stores: http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/2009/11/07/16449. As a Walmart Customer, I would like to know what Walmart is doing to ensure such terrible treatment never happens again, as well as how the family will be fairly compensated for the trauma they went through. Thank you for your time, YOUR NAME, YOUR CITY/STATE

If enough emails are received, they are going to start worrying about their bottom line, and that might make them do something about it – like a no-discrimination policy. It might not be the best case scenario (that would be a loving acceptance of everyone), but it could be a first step.

And then we will be able to consult about how to ignite the spark of love for all our fellow humankind.

I searched and I don’t quite know if I found

Journalism is being revamped, and that’s awesome. Seriously, how else are we going to be able to think for ourselves if our main source of ‘trusted’ information can’t be trusted anymore? Yes the Internet provides for an amazing wealth of information, but let’s be honest – it would still be nice to have news networks we could 100% trust.

And while the industry is doing it’s part, I’d like to offer a humble reflection on what I think the part of the public should be. After all, at the end of the day, newspapers have to sell to remain viable.

First, I think we need to wean ourselves off our addiction to sensationalism. There certainly is a thrill to watching a newscast following, say, a balloon in the sky with supposedly a little boy in it. But wasting an entire day to this, especially when it turns out to be a hoax, doesn’t seem to be the best use of one’s time.

Just saying.

Second, we need to develop an interest in not only watching the news, but understanding it and acting upon it. After all, what’s the use of listening to report after report of what is going wrong in the world if we don’t understand why it’s happening and are not taking steps to contribute positively to making the world a better place?

Third, we have to learn to identify underlying biases, because let’s be honest: everyone has them, and even the best of journalists cannot help but inject some of their own selves into their reports, however faint the mark might be.

Fourth, we need to learn to share our personal analysis’ with each other, for the simple reason that we are not able to read every single bit of news about every single thing that is happening in the entire world. If we build a network of interested people who are able to read everything about one little subtopic analyze it systematically and present their analysis’ in, for example, a blog (look at the coincidence) – seriously, how awesome would that be? And we don’t have to have huge, scholarly presentations. Just look at the amazing work websites like Crooks & Liars are doing, and the work that shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are doing. Let’s bank on these successes already!

Fifth, we need to be able to stop fighting with each other, trying to prove the others wrong, and learn to consult with each other. The truth is huge and we can only hope to solidly grasp a certain part of it. Were we to share or opinions, might we not come to have an even more solid understanding of the truth?

Everything is alright? Really?

I am always curious to meet the person behind claims that the world is doing OK and that we are not in need of a massive transformation of the very meaning we give to life – and everything related to it.

Then again, perhaps I can understand; it’s not easy transforming. If we could talk to caterpillars, I’m sure they would feel a little anxious before coccooning themselves, even if it is to become a butterfly.

Supernatural: Taking it another step further

For those of you who, like me, don’t watch Supernatural only because of its inherent awesomeness, but also because of a fascination with all things paranormal and supernatural, here is the URL of a fellow blogger’s work in compiling material and his personal thoughts on the topic: http://www.thesupernatural.info/. It compiles not only reviews and thoughts on the actual show, but also material related to the various monsters and phenomena featured on the show. It’s really worth your while if you’re interested in the show, in the paranormal or in both.

New Moon: Here we go again!

And it’s back: Edward Obsession, and, concurrently, my fascination with Edward Obsession. I have been (obviously enough) reading a lot about the subject, and here is a little something my good friend Chelsea (my partner in starting up Geek Girls Anonymous) sent on the subject. It’s well worth the read.

Massawyrm drops trou and offers a moon of his own to THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON!!

Hola all. Massawyrm here.

Bella Swan is one of the most detestable, obnoxious, mentally unstable characters in modern American literature. She is a character so over the top that she borders on satire; and were she some sort of Holden Caulfield-like, deliberately unlikable character written with the intent to openly mock the ideals of modern romantic literature, she would be acceptable, if not perfect for the part. But Stephanie Meyer isn’t that self-aware. Instead, she has woven together a cloyingly insufferable romantic saga – a junkfood and cheesecake epic, if you will – centering around a woman who revels in, nay celebrates, how damaged she is. I dated a girl like Bella once. Thank god they make medication for girls like that now.

(…)

That’s not to say that I don’t understand the attraction. TWILIGHT is soap opera; neutered soap opera scrubbed clean of indecency to be sure, but soap opera none the less. In the place of the lurid we simply find the supernatural. And Meyer has found a way to turn the dark, shadowy world of the vampire into the pink frilly lace and teddy bears of a little girl’s room, creating a vampire archetype so bad it will stand for generations as an example of how badly classic monsters can be re-invented.

The review I wrote of the first film almost one year ago to the day still stands, and all of its critiques hold true for me for this mangled mess of a movie. Its attempts at creating a mythology are embarrassing at best, clearly lifting from sources that themselves were not the originators while occasionally creating an idea of its own only original for the sake of being so stupid no one else thought to put it in print. The romance is juvenile, over-sentimentalized and never truly shared with the audience and feels more akin to middle school romance than the concept of courtly love it often pretends to evoke. If you felt that Stewart and Pattinson lacked real chemistry before, just wait until you see how little time they spend together in love in this film. Sure there’s a few moment of canoodling meant to be tender, but there is still absolutely no meat to their relationship, no spark. Making matters worse is that when Pattinson leaves the picture for a while, we are treated to a second act that is merely a rehashing of the second act of the first film with a new love interest, complete with very similar lines of dialog and some of the exact same concepts.

(…)

And just as that comes to its inevitable conclusion, with Bella once again being the prized pony in the show, her boyfriend re-enters the film and we’re presented with a classic Casablanca problem. Does Bella run off with the dangerous soulless vampire who she is terrified of growing old with (because, really, if you thought Bella wasn’t shallow enough, adding in nightmares about growing old and unattractive with an unaging boyfriend will seal the fucking deal) or remain with the dependable, barrel-chested, good natured guy who has been looking out for her since minute one. Let’s see, dangerous guy, comfortable guy? Dangerous guy? Comfortable guy?

Yeah. By hour four of this terrible series, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that Meyer is going to make the wrong choice, and she does it again here. But not before rolling out a series of relationship clichés and a third act with the stunning lack of a climax. Seriously. Two hours and ten minutes and the movie has NO CLIMAX. It just ends, punctuated by one of the most hysterical final lines in cinema history. People about fell out of their seats, laughing at the last moments – even women digging the film. It was so bad friends of mine couldn’t make eye contact with one another without bursting into tears and doubling over.

Read this awesome post in its entirety here.

Review: Fringe, Season 2, Episode 7: Of Human Action

What at first seems to be a relatively simple corporate espionage kidnapping and extortion scheme turns out to be a brilliantly intricate tale of family deception. Paralleling the lie that Walter Bishop and his son are living, James Carson, a top Massive Dynamic scientist, has been telling his son an alternate version of the truth. And as the episode concludes, we find out that the truth that Tyler thought he had found out was not even close to the real truth — i.e. the Massive Dynamic truth.

Many, including myself, have understood from the beginning that while Fringe held a lot of potential, it had to get over a couple of initial hiccups to become awesome. Some have been dealt with, and others not. I seem to not be the only person very happy to see it blooming wider open with every episode (even if it seems to somewhat stall at times). In my opinion, “Of Human Action” demonstrates how far the show has already come, and gives me great hope for the end of this season.

The opening scene is very reminiscent of yet another X-Files episode, “Pusher” (season three, episode 17). Police officers drive, hellbent, to a parking lot, where three individuals are in a car: two adults and a teenager. The adults are forced outside of the car – and this is where things become a little “Pusher”-ish. One police officer starts walking backwards until he falls off the parking lot’s ledge, and another one shoots her fellow officers before turning the gun on herself.

But this is where the similarities end, for where “Pusher” was about an individual with a brain tumour who had acquired the ability to control others, the person to control other’s actions here is courtesy of none other than Massive Dynamics’ scientists. And once again, we realise that Nina Sharp is in on it, far more than she lets on.

I am now convinced that Nina Sharp is using everyone for her own agenda. While it seems that she is only doing it out of loyalty to William Bell, I’m certain she will end up betraying him, too, because while her own agenda is probably intricately linked to that of William Bell’s, it will somehow be different because of some fundamental yet seemingly small difference.

“Of Human Action” really was a great episode. The plot was advanced indirectly, a brilliant ploy making the experience all the more interesting. We don’t know how Peter will react when (if) he finds out he’s from the other world, but we have an idea of how Tyler reacted when he found out about what he thought were his real origins. We don’t know what her role is, but we do know that Nina Sharp is incredibly good at lying and manipulating, even to Broyles, with whom she is romantically involved. We also know that her connection with Bell, who is in the other dimension, isn’t solid; some sort of interference has occurred which makes the messages she sends him all the less certain to reach their destination.

The pacing of the action increased substantially from the previous rather slow ones, and the writers had more than one trick up their sleeves. The visuals were great — from the first shot from above of the police officer and Fringe Division looking down to the shot of Peter and Walter at Massive Dynamics, we were treated to both typical and atypical visuals. One particularly striking scene was that of the FBI agents moving in on the abandoned hangar. We were tuned into what the agents and Fringe Division could hear wearing the headphones, and it lent an air of tension and slight confusion to a scene which was otherwise visually simple.

This episode makes me wonder what else Massive Dynamics is up to, since their blatant lack of respect for human life is made all the more apparent in their creation and use of the Tylers. This particular storyline has great potential for more than one interesting ethical dilemma concerning the needs of the many versus the rights of the few. For example, the Tylers (brief X-Files flashback here – remember when Mulder walked into a room filled with clones in tanks?) had to be created to experiment if mind control would work so as to prepare our side for the imminent invasion promised a couple of episodes ago. Does it warrant such  horrific, lifelong experiments (and necessary lies)?

Of course this episode of Fringe wouldn’t be complete without a couple of Peter/Walter and Walter moments:

Peter: Walter, remember that conversation we had about personal space?
Walter: I’m bored.

Walter [briefing the FBI agents]: Do not remove them under any circumstances. If you do, you may die a gruesome and horrible death. Thank you for your attention, and have a nice day.

Walter: That was quick thinking. You proved to be more resourceful than I give you credit for.
Peter: Is that supposed to be some sort of compliment?

Walter: Don’t be ridiculous. You were abducted. Of course you need crepes.