Avatar

[Joe Allonby]

A very small under-funded country.

On Mon, Dec 28, 2009 at 6:58 PM, Humberto Torofuerte
<strongbool at gmail.com> wrote:
> I mean think about it...for all the money spent producing this movie,
> we could've invaded another country!
>
> On Sun, Dec 27, 2009 at 9:47 AM, Thomas Beshear <tbeshear at insightbb.com> wrote:
>> I don't doubt it; I've known some members of the military and they have a
>> wide spread of political opinions. But ads like the one I saw are promoting
>> a type of military culture that's potentially dangerous to democracy.
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Joe Allonby" <joeallonby at gmail.com>
>> To: "Thomas Beshear" <tbeshear at insightbb.com>
>> Cc: "Joseph Tracy" <brook7 at sover.net>; "pynchon -l" <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>> Sent: Sunday, December 27, 2009 12:23 PM
>> Subject: Re: Avatar
>>
>>
>> Don't mistake the commercials and the TV coverage of "heroes" for
>> reality. I'm constantly surrounded by "military types". The sterotype
>> is unfair. A buzzcut does not equal a lobotomy. Don't forget Veterans
>> Against the War and similar organizations that are springing up today.
>> Combat veterans have a unique and valuable perspective on what an
>> imperialist foreign policy means up close and personal.Some of those
>> men and women might really surprise you.
>>
>> On Sun, Dec 27, 2009 at 12:10 AM, Thomas Beshear <tbeshear at insightbb.com>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> I agree. It's a message at least some people will absorb. And it's needed.
>>> Among the commercials before a movie I saw today (it wasn't Avatar) was a
>>> spot for the National Guard, complete with martial music, "24"-style
>>> graphics, and plenty of scenes of camouflaged badasses "protecting
>>> freedom."
>>> If Avatar can make a few kids question that message, all the better.
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Joseph Tracy" <brook7 at sover.net>
>>> To: "pynchon -l" <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>>> Sent: Saturday, December 26, 2009 11:29 PM
>>> Subject: Avatar
>>>
>>>
>>>> Avatar is the Ist full length imax 3D film I have seen. It was quite a
>>>> ride if not exactly a bold venture into the unknown as storytelling.
>>>> Lotta
>>>> silly shit in here, but I think the Newitz review is too harsh and too
>>>> narrow as a cultural lens. This is about civilization's war on tribal
>>>> cultures , not dark skinned people. Also it ignores the fact that a film
>>>> of
>>>> mass appeal is taking an openly subversive position on the role of the US
>>>> corporate/military/ colonial/ mercenary nexus. Nothing was disguised and
>>>> I
>>>> saw military looking fellows walking out after the movie shaking their
>>>> heads and looking disturbed. For me that justifies the many weak points.
>>>> This is not pure escapism, and I hope it has some disturbing effects on
>>>> the culture, particularly on youth.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> We really do live at a time when the last traces of tribal cultures are
>>>> being extinguished along with vast swaths of the planet's complex
>>>> ecosystems. All done in pursuit of the rocket fuel of infinite
>>>> consumption.
>>>>
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