Earth Hour is a very nice gesture in support of the idea of environmental conservation, and to make everyone realize just how much technology has infiltrated everyday lives. It makes people think about just what life would be like were there no electricity for a mere hour, yet provides an experience that is quite a stark contrast to just what we're used to at that time when we do have electrical power.
However, I fear the gesture is very much like what V-day and Christmas have come to mean: A single feel-good day/moment, then back to the usual programming. In light of the demands of everyday life and the routines of work/entertainment, it becomes all too easy to forget about environmental conservation. It is too easy to waste electricity without realizing it. On a large scale, this may mean that the effect Earth Hour has on the big picture can be quite minimal.
Perhaps it would be better if Earth Hour were combined with a daily reminder. A constant presence of a meter, or even one of those cheesy stickers would probably work mighty fine in conjunction with Earth Hour. With enough awareness, it might even be Earth Hour all hours...not just during an artificial lights out hour, but a conservationist lifestyle incorporated into everyday living.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Soul Of Things
Things have souls. Even objects and constructs have souls. Without which, they would be but piles of dross. What is gold without the value people believe that it holds? What is air without its oxygen? What is a movie without its key scene?
When one censors a film, one must take care that they do not remove key parts that give it its true flavor. The censors must be careful that they do not reduce a show from one about fighting for one's ideals to one that merely glorifies violence. They should avoid creating a mangled piece that is without meaning or purpose.
What would V for Vendetta be, if Hollywood had decided that it would be fine to include the eucharist scene? What would it be like without Valerie's scene? It is well and good to portray a struggle against an oppressive authority, yet how is that struggle different from that of every stereotypical story of a rebel that succeeds against the odds? V was different by showing the State for what it was: Draconian, but also hostile to the sexual minorities and perpetuating the hypocritical lies and corruption that some religions promote in V's world. That much would have been lost had the two been removed. That is the soul of V. Without which, V would just be any other struggle-against-authority show, a rebel without a cause.
When one censors a film, one must take care that they do not remove key parts that give it its true flavor. The censors must be careful that they do not reduce a show from one about fighting for one's ideals to one that merely glorifies violence. They should avoid creating a mangled piece that is without meaning or purpose.
What would V for Vendetta be, if Hollywood had decided that it would be fine to include the eucharist scene? What would it be like without Valerie's scene? It is well and good to portray a struggle against an oppressive authority, yet how is that struggle different from that of every stereotypical story of a rebel that succeeds against the odds? V was different by showing the State for what it was: Draconian, but also hostile to the sexual minorities and perpetuating the hypocritical lies and corruption that some religions promote in V's world. That much would have been lost had the two been removed. That is the soul of V. Without which, V would just be any other struggle-against-authority show, a rebel without a cause.
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