Revenge of the Sith and Bush's Rhetoric
Saw RotS. Loved RotS. Then went out and rented the first three episodes + documentary and special features. Got high and watched 'em all again.
Man, what a good story-teller George Lucas is. I saw Episodes I-III in a whole new light after having seen RotS (and those other two not-so-good ones, too I guess...)
Now, I'm not smart about movies, and I'm not knowledgable about them either. Consequently, I won't pretend to have anything very interesting to say about RotS qua movie. (Except I will say that it's a bit exhausting. No time for reflection or breath-catching in this one... It's like they came up with too many spectacular visuals to cram into one flick, but decided to fly the characters all over the Galaxy to show 'em all to you anyway.)
I WILL say that it's very funny that the right has got their collective panties in a wad about the movie. Anakin does say "If you're not with me, then you are my enemy." That is, indeed, (a) rougly equivalent to "If you're not with us, you're against us," and (b) a very dumb thing to say. But it doesn't get any dumber just because it is said by someone who is in the process of going over to the Dark Side. It's a dumbass thing to say, and it would remain a dumbass thing to say even if Yoda or Obi-Wan had said it. The right seems to be complaining that the line is put in the mouth of a bad guy...but they seem oblivious to the fact that it's not a line you could plausibly put in the mouth of a good guy. That's the kind of thing that bad and crazy guys say, and in a work of fiction--in which the characters are in large part constituted by the things they say--it is saying something like that that constitutes the character's badness. Were Yoda or Obi-Wan to say something like that, it would either constitute a major narrative SNAFU or it would be a sign that they were going over to the Dark Side.
Folks on the right should quit whining about the fact that Anakin said it, and focus on the much more important fact that BUSH said it.
But I guess I'm just again showing my true colors as a member of the reality-based community...
Saw RotS. Loved RotS. Then went out and rented the first three episodes + documentary and special features. Got high and watched 'em all again.
Man, what a good story-teller George Lucas is. I saw Episodes I-III in a whole new light after having seen RotS (and those other two not-so-good ones, too I guess...)
Now, I'm not smart about movies, and I'm not knowledgable about them either. Consequently, I won't pretend to have anything very interesting to say about RotS qua movie. (Except I will say that it's a bit exhausting. No time for reflection or breath-catching in this one... It's like they came up with too many spectacular visuals to cram into one flick, but decided to fly the characters all over the Galaxy to show 'em all to you anyway.)
I WILL say that it's very funny that the right has got their collective panties in a wad about the movie. Anakin does say "If you're not with me, then you are my enemy." That is, indeed, (a) rougly equivalent to "If you're not with us, you're against us," and (b) a very dumb thing to say. But it doesn't get any dumber just because it is said by someone who is in the process of going over to the Dark Side. It's a dumbass thing to say, and it would remain a dumbass thing to say even if Yoda or Obi-Wan had said it. The right seems to be complaining that the line is put in the mouth of a bad guy...but they seem oblivious to the fact that it's not a line you could plausibly put in the mouth of a good guy. That's the kind of thing that bad and crazy guys say, and in a work of fiction--in which the characters are in large part constituted by the things they say--it is saying something like that that constitutes the character's badness. Were Yoda or Obi-Wan to say something like that, it would either constitute a major narrative SNAFU or it would be a sign that they were going over to the Dark Side.
Folks on the right should quit whining about the fact that Anakin said it, and focus on the much more important fact that BUSH said it.
But I guess I'm just again showing my true colors as a member of the reality-based community...
posted by Winston Smith at
9:52 AM
5 Comments:
Winston: best take on the "with me or against me" fuckfest I've yet seen. Kudos!
"A coalition partner must do more than just express sympathy, a coalition partner must perform. That means different things for different nations. Some nations don't want to contribute troops and we understand that. Other nations can contribute intelligence-sharing... But all nations, if they want to fight terror, must do something.
"Over time it's going to be important for nations to know they will be held accountable for inactivity. You're either with us or against us in the fight against terror...This is an evil man that we're dealing with, and I wouldn't put it past him to develop evil weapons to try to harm civilization as we know it. And that's why we must prevail, and that's why we must win."---GWB, November 5, 2001
Not so much Darth Vader as the Little Red Hen.
I had to follow the link to remind myself of the Little Red Hen storyline:
... little red hen who lived on a farm. ... friends were a little black dog, a big orange cat, and a little yellow goose. ... found some grains of wheat. "I can make bread from this" ... "Who will help me plant the wheat?"
"Not I," said the little black dog.
"Not I," said the big orange cat.
"Not I," said the little yellow goose.
[repetitious refusals to help in various tasks]
"Now, who will help me eat this bread?"
"I will!" said the little black dog.
"I will!" said the big orange cat.
"I will!" said the little yellow goose.
"No, you won't! I will do it myself!" yelled the little red hen. And she ate the bread without any help at all.
------
There are definitely some accurate parallels to GWB here -- the hen doesn't actually bother to tell anyone her plan from the start, for instance. Makes no attempt to use reason to persuade her "friends" to go along with her. Yells at people she's irritated with. And finally, behaves in a vindictive and gluttonous fashion instead of taking a stance of true Christian charity.
And tvd didn't think I had a good grasp of allegory. :)
Well done, Mr. Mallette. To quibble would be ungracious not to mention uncharitable. ;)
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