Red blood. More thoughts on the ecofascist snuff film, and the insularity of the politically correct:
This isn’t a joke for the benefit of you and me. No, this is a knee-slapper for those already committed to the cause. The subtext is, “Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could just get rid of these tiresome, inconvenient people?” That’s why they’re blown up without anyone trying to change their minds. That’s the joke: “Enough with these idiots already.”
How else to explain the fact that this thing went through the entire pre-production and filming process, was undoubtedly screened by any number of people — most likely including sponsors and PR people — and none of them said, “Are you nuts? We can’t go public with this.”
That’s the outrage here: not that they thought normal people would find it funny, but that the producers and sponsors clearly did think it was funny. It’s like one of those ugly inside jokes high-school cliques share that instantly become horrendous when outsiders find out about them. In their arrogance and insularity, they didn’t realize that their inside joke wasn’t appropriate for mixed company. Imagine Curtis’s horror when he discovered no one was laughing outside the green bunker.
One wonders if he’s learned anything from it.
“Green Fever”, not “Grenn Fever”, right?
Or is something going over my head?
Yes, just a typo. But it’s fervor, not fever.
The whole drama seems contrived, doesn’t it? Release a scandalous over-the-top video. Pull it immediately and issue perfunctory apology. Video goes viral and message is propagated. Mission accomplished. It’s the intentional verbal faux pas writ large.
Perhaps “Green Fervor”? Or maybe “Bob: The sound of one man laughing”
I haven’t watched it but the first thing that comes to mind is Monty Python skits about spontaneously exploding elderlies. Which I do remember laughing at.
Then there was the one about the “Walker Brigade” storming machine gun positions or something like that. Hilarious if you are as twisted as MP. Which I am 🙂
“The whole drama seems contrived, doesn’t it?”
These people aren’t that clever. They could have done what you suggest without all that high powered talent. The fact that they produced a high quality product (on the production values level anyway), suggests they really thought it was funny, and didn’t see the reaction they got coming. As Goldberg says, that’s the scary part.
Dale,
Did MP ever do that with children?
“first thing that comes to mind is Monty Python skits”
Yea, I’ve heard that they are defending this video with that very line of logic. Particularly, the scene in The Meaning of Lifewhere the obese man eats one last little mint after an enormous meal and then explodes sending blood and guts over everybody in the restaurant. Couple of things come to mind. When I was a kid and saw that on cable TV for the first time, my Mom was disgusted with the scene and made me turn it off. So, it was in poor taste even in the context of trying to be funny in an obvious comedy movie. Never mind the opinion that The Meaning of Life was probably one of the most unfunny Monty Python movies. Second, the fat man made the voluntary choice of eating until his side literally split. Or, the walker brigade was apparently some crack squad of cripples ready and ripping to bring it to the Jerries. The point being that these people made voluntary choices and are as a direct result dealing with the consequences. The victims in the blood splatter flick are making voluntary decisions and then having asymmetrical actions inflicted on them from some external decision making loop, “Let me press this littul bhuttun”.
Dale: watch it. It’s about as much like those Monty Python skits as terrorist suicide bomb attacks are. I’ve already said this, but I’ll say it again: the Python skits made fun of complacent, callous authority figures. The 10:10 video has the complacent, callous authority figures, the ones doing the exploding, as the heroes. They are: a teacher, a CEO, a group of footballers against one man, and a soundman in a studio whose victim (Gillian Anderson playing herself) is in the glass booth — that is, under his control. The people the 10:10 video makers are mocking are the ones who are being killed — students, office underlings, people in a position of powerlessness. It’s the Bearded Spock Universe version of Monty Python. And it’s not funny.
Remember, Green is Red!
It isn’t even authority figures though, it’s instant, self-appointed vigilante “justice” for the crime of failing to support the Green movement enough.
They’re at the stage where they fantasize about violence to “get our attention.”
At some point, “splinter groups” will try to get our attention by any means necessary. The real bombings will come–for our own good, of course.
How are they not clever? How could an armchair student of memetics know less about propaganda than the pros?
I don’t see how the production value plays into it — they could have made a low-budget version which communicated the same message in earnest. The production value certainly wasn’t wasted — everyone’s seen it “unofficially” now.
My point is that one of the best ways to propagate an idea is to make it taboo.
Titus, the message that’s being propagated isn’t the one they intended. That’s why it’s a charlie-foxtrot.
Since I was mentioned, and since I’ve said everything I have to say about the 10;10 video, I’d like to take this opportunity to direct Rand and his readers to this article, on the rusting, crumbling, diminished state of the US Air Force:
http://www.the-american-interest.com/article.cfm?piece=861
Clearly the Air Force is needed and must be supported. But how? By cutting taxes?
By the way, I frequently look in on this website:
http://www.realclearworld.com/
and I would imagine it would appeal to just about all of you.
“but I suspect that at least some object to the film because it is bad PR, not because they actually find it offensive.”
^^ QFT
I disagree. I don’t think the intendend message is the ostensible one — it’s the visceral one, and it’s propagating nicely. Also, I doubt you or I or anyone commenting on this forum are the intended audience.
PS: I’m fully aware of how batsh!t crazy that sounds, so I won’t belabor the point.
Video goes viral and message is propagated. Mission accomplished. It’s the intentional verbal faux pas writ large.
And what message is that? The message I received is that given the opportunity, they’d kill me and my family. My response to that message is to strengthen my opposition to them. If they wanted to incite hatred against themselves, then it seems they succeeded.
Hey Bob,
SQUIRREL!
Titus seems to think that the proper response to these people would be to ignore them and they’d go away. What Titus does not seem to understand is the fact that these people are not the sort of people who can be made to go away. They are popular and award-winning actors and directors, backed up by among other big names the actual British government. It’s rather too late to play the “oh you’re just giving them attention” game. They already HAD the attention. This is what they did with it. And it is BACKFIRING. On THEM. They made the mistake that a lot of celebrities do of thinking that since they have so many fans that their shit doesn’t stink. Oops.
There are times when the ignore-them technique is appropriate and works. (For example, any time a Muslim “spokesperson” starts squealing about discrimination because a news story about Muslim terrorists stated that the terrorists were Muslims.) There are other times when the proper technique to use to deal with something evil is to reveal it. It’s even better when the evil is revealed by its own proponents. The general idea about the people behind all this global warming hysteria is that “well, at least they mean well.” More and more their own actions are revealing that they really don’t. This should not be ignored: it should be displayed for all to see.
Titus, you’ve proved your cleverness; theirs, not so much.
Leland, Literally laughing out loud. Good one.
Also, I doubt you or I or anyone commenting on this forum are the intended audience.
I heard “Join us and comply – or die.” I rather expect I was supposed to hear exactly that. The fact that there apparently are people that heard-and will admit they heard– “We’re shockingly hip and funny, join us in our delightful quixotic quest!” is quite disturbing.
“Video goes viral and message is propagated. Mission accomplished. It’s the intentional verbal faux pas writ large.”
What message it that? Buy another case of ammo?
It’s all fun and games, until they realize that someone intends to do unto them as they’ve preached should be done unto others. Then they break their necks slipping in their own excrement.
The problem is, regardless of this mini movie advertisement, is that they are still out there relentlessly working to incrementally get their agenda established as law. We need to actively work against their goals on all fronts starting with teaching our kids not to buy the bull.