I’m a little surprised just how little I care about this year’s Oscars. I’m genuinely glad to see that Spirited Away won best animated feature film, since it was hands-down the best film I saw all last year, but otherwise I really don’t give a damn.
Month: March 2003
I caught some flack the last time I quoted Wil Wheaton, but I think this post from his weblog is worth reading. It further helps to draw that very important distinction between supporting our troops and protesting the war — between hoping for our soldiers’ safe return and despising the evil men who would put them in harm’s way for the sake of profit and lies. A friend of Wheaton’s writes:
Like I said: Protest the war, Embrace the people. They are our brothers and sisters who have dedicated themselves to the service of our country. If they are used unjustly, blame the leaders.
And trust me, I do blame those leaders. Although this (which Wheaton also posts) seems like a great way to show support for the troops.
Over at Thudfactor, John writes:
Finally, if you are opposed to this war — or later, opposed to the actions of a Democratic president — when people say, “who are you to question the President? Who are you that he has to justify himself to you?”
You should say:
I am an American.
I am his boss.
If you forget that, you have already forgotten America.
I support our troops. I do not support this war.
Neil Gaiman pretty accurately sums up how I’ve felt for quite some time now:
I turned off the news at that point, feeling like I was living in a rather broadly written satire.
It’s a sentiment echoed by Tom Tomorrow in discussing this absolutely idiotic petition (which I have to hope is a joke):
Those of you who mockingly suggested this over the past few days may now understand the difficulties facing a satirist in times when reality so often surpasses satire.
Satire may not be dead, but it’s definitely seen better days. Personally, I’m a little tired of seeing political news links that need to be prefaced with the comment “No, this didn’t come from The Onion.” Satire is supposed to exaggerate society’s flaws, but instead it’s being dwarfed by them, by the sheer absurdity of the world in which we’re now living. When our nation’s leaders actually think renaming French fries is their top priority, it’s a little tough to find room for exaggeration.