Jesus Camp (or...how I learned who most to fear in our country)

"Faith is what credulity becomes when it finally achieves escape velocity from the constraints of terrestrial discourse...constraints like reasonableness, internal coherence, civility and candor. However far you feel you have fled the parish, you are likely to be the product of a culture that has elevated belief in the absence of evidence to the highest place in the hierarchy of human virtues. Ignorance is the true coinage of this realm. 'Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.' (John 20:29) And every child is instructed that it is, at the very least, an option, if not a sacred duty to disregard the facts of this world out of deference to the god who lurks in his Mother's and Father's imaginations."

- Sam Harris

I've seen the future of horror, and it's name is "Jesus Camp". After viewing this movie, I felt exhausted, frustrated, angered, fearful and utterly drained of hope for "Evangelical" Christians.

The movie starts with a prime example of woman "manning" a pulpit, speaking down to a room full of children, most of which have been dropped off by their parents. The large lady brags that the venue they're at holds 5,000 when it's obvious that it couldn't hold more than 500 and there is less than 50 there anyway. This sets up not only the movie, but the premise of Evangelical Christianity as a whole.

What's scariest to me is the Nazi-like way in which these people talk to, raise and prep their children. It's not funny, not in the least. You want something to fear? Fear your life, the life of your loved ones, anything you hold dear in the hands of these "people" and/or their offspring. They are training their kids to be militant, bigoted, self-absorbed, attention-starved, over-hyper, judgmental minions of "Jesus" who are "obedient" to the will of "God" when it's obvious what they really want is attention by the other so-called parents for having the child most oblivious to convention, social skills and a sense of reality.

Watch this movie at your own risk. I for one wish I'd never come across it. My faith in everything has been shaken, even in things not remotely related to this movie. The children are devoid of any manner's (ma'am, sir, please, thank you) and each have acting abilities beyond the subtle making it almost impossible to not to feel for them as victims of their own parents short-comings and social inadequacies. Feel for them that is until you notice their incessant pupil dilation and their tiring self-importance and lack of any compassion for anyone thinking differently.

Each person in this movie attempts to tackle issues that draw attention rather than one's in which their numbers could be helpful. Gays and abortion take the main stage (of course) and are supplemented intermittently with non-issues like creationism vs. realism (oops sorry, I mean science) and the parents take every opportunity to jump in front of the camera to brag about how great it is that their over-stimulated, under-educated children are going to grow up to be like them.

This movie pleased no one. It pissed off the people it was about and it scared the shit out of people who had no idea these obsessive fanatics existed. Of course the families involved don't know what to do with themselves so they promote the movie like rock-stars and ask you to go to their "sponsored" web-sites so you can see "their side" of the story and make plenty of donations while you're at it.

Jesus Camp was as objective as it could be when dealing with such opinionated and self-absorbed people bent on convincing you they are otherwise, and I for one am glad I saw it, if only once so that I now know who the REAL threat to our country, our future and our freedom really are.

"...in these places, religion has been the explicit cause of literally millions of deaths in the last ten years. Give people divergent, irreconcilable and untestable notions about what happens after death, and then, oblige them to live together with limited resources...the result is just what we see...an unending cycle of murder and cease fire. If history reveals any categorical truth, it is that an insufficient taste for evidence regularly brings out the worst in us. Add weapons of mass destruction to this diabolical clockwork, and you have found a recipe for the fall of civilization..."

- Sam Harris

Reviews:

3.5 stars out of 5 -- "Ewing and Grady cover the proceedings thoroughly....What the viewer primarily takes away from JESUS CAMP is the triumph of nurture over nature."
Box Office - Mark Keizer (10/01/2006)

"Directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady superbly capture the fervor....Disturbing stuff."
Total Film - Carmen Gray (11/01/2007)

4 stars out of 5 -- "Funny, sad and horrifying. Anti-fundamentalist rather than anti-Christian, this deserves to preach to more than just the converted."
Empire - Empire Staff (10/19/2007)

(((03)))

Vérités et Opinions (formatted Cl edition)

1. My birth certificate says I am the 2nd but my grandmother says that I am the 3rd.
2. I hate that no one uses their brains when behind the wheel of a vehicle.
3. The movie "Jesus Camp" contains more evil than anything I have ever witnessed (beware America).
4. I hate disrespectful children.
5. What I really mean is, I hate their parents.
6. The movie I have seen the most times in my life is Raising Arizona.
7. If you trust someone, you're lighting a match too near to a fuse. Don't be surprised at the explosion.
8. Never introduce your significant other to your friends.
9. The channel I watch most is the History channel.
10. I eat more rice than a person living in Asia.
11. I have been married once, on my current path that will be it.
12. I was a successful "On Air" personality and had a mid-day show and a block program.
13. A friend of my "significant other" has inspired more hate and contempt in me than any one person I've ever met in my 35 years. A close second would be no one. No one comes close to this piece of shit.
14. David Bowie is fucking brilliant and to disagree is not an option.
15. I had to take Scrubs off my DVR because frankly, it comes on too many channels far too often.
16. I say "off-ten" as opposed to "off-in".
17. I say "sam-un" as opposed to "sal-mun".
18. "I say I can't, but I really mean I won't."
19. I hate that a certain person who is a liar and manipulator has pretty much made me despise anyone remotely like them.
20. If you've "bought" someone as "your pet" you may need to be checked for retardation.
21. Did I mention you should never introduce your significant other to your friends?
22. If you think you're safe, your kidding yourself.
23. If I ever have children, I want to name my daughter, Amélie Erin Amyx and my son Orin Clay Amyx.
24. I probably never get to have kids as relationships have taken a turn for the worst and no one sticks things out anymore. Not to mention that nothing is defined and loyalty does not exist.
25. I have agoraphobia and am obsessive compulsive but the people in my life who know this to be true are the ones who refuse to accept and see past it.
26. Last night my baby brother graduated from high school. I was 16 when he was born.
27. My grandfather is a minister, but I am an agnostic.
28. I have no immediate cousins on my dad's side, but have 6 on my mother's.
29. I am an opinionated motherfucker.
30. Most of the time it's because I've put thought into things and am correct.
31. I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken.
32. A recently discovered new species of frog was named as Cochranella amelie in honor of the movie Amelie. A significant honor in the academic world, the scientist that described the new species stated: "The name of this new species of Glassfrog is for Amelie, protagonist of the extraordinary movie “Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain”; a movie where little details play an important role in the achievement of joie de vivre; like the important role that Glassfrogs and all amphibians and reptiles play in the health of our planet". This new species was described in the scientific journal Zootaxa in an article entitled "An enigmatic new species of Glassfrog (Amphibia: Anura: Centrolenidae) from the Amazonian Andean slopes of Ecuador".
33. There are two women where I work that are loud and attention starved and I think it's sad that people cannot see attention starved people for what they are.
34. I hate third wheels who destroy relationships for their own agendas and could give a fuck about the people they hurt and the lives they ruin. And I hate when one of the people involved in that triangle can't see it happening.
35. I hate small talk.
36. I can't stand people who do not say "please" or "thank you".
37. I.Q.'s are dropping more sharply than the movie Idiocracy predicted.
38. This very second, I am listening to a song called "You Were Holding an Umbrella" by the band Boris.
39. You really should get rid of the toxic elements in your life. They aren't a friend if all they do is tell you that you're stupid and then do the very things they claim your are stupid because of.
40. If you know someone who's happiness is defined by whether or not they are in a relationship, especially when they give merit to admittedly BAD relationships and therefore keep stepping in the same shit they stepped in before and ALSO feel the need to put you down for YOUR relationship, then for GOD SAKE, STOP HANGING OUT WITH THAT SAD FUCKING PERSON.
Truths and opinions
(((03))) (photo by Timothy K. Hamilton)

L'envie pour tuer, s'ELEVANT ! ! !

Urge to kill, RISING!!!
(Brandon Riza:Wise Cracker)

Agnosticism

I was asked this morning what "Agnostic" means and why it is that I associate myself with that way of thinking instead of the "Atheist" association. Here is why:

Agnosticism is the philosophical view that the truth value of certain claims — particularly metaphysical claims regarding theology, afterlife or the existence of God, gods, deities, or even ultimate reality — is unknown or, depending on the form of agnosticism, inherently unknowable.

Demographic research services normally list agnostics in the same category as atheists and non-religious people, using 'agnostic' in the newer sense of 'noncommittal'. However, this can be misleading given the existence of agnostic theists, who identify themselves as both agnostics in the original sense and followers of a particular religion.

Agnosticism can be subdivided into several subcategories. Recently suggested variations include:

• Strong agnosticism (also called hard agnosticism, closed agnosticism, strict agnosticism, absolute agnosticism)—the view that the question of the existence or nonexistence of an omnipotent God and the nature of ultimate reality is unknowable by reason of our natural inability to verify any experience with anything but another subjective experience.
• Mild agnosticism (also called weak agnosticism, soft agnosticism, open agnosticism, empirical agnosticism, temporal agnosticism)—the view that the existence or nonexistence of God or gods is currently unknown but is not necessarily unknowable, therefore one will withhold judgment until/if more evidence is available.
• Apathetic agnosticism (also called Pragmatic agnosticism)—the view that there is no proof of either the existence or nonexistence of God or gods, but since any God or gods that may exist appear unconcerned for the universe or the welfare of its inhabitants, the question is largely academic anyway.
• Agnostic theism (also called religious agnosticism)—the view of those who do not claim to know existence of God or gods, but still believe in such an existence.
• Agnostic atheism—the view of those who do not know of the existence or nonexistence of God or gods, and do not believe in them.
• Ignosticism—the view that a coherent definition of God must be put forward before the question of the existence of God can be meaningfully discussed. If the chosen definition isn't coherent, the ignostic holds the noncognitivist view that the existence of God is meaningless or empirically untestable. A.J. Ayer, Theodore Drange, and other philosophers see both atheism and agnosticism as incompatible with ignosticism on the grounds that atheism and agnosticism accept "God exists" as a meaningful proposition which can be argued for or against.

"Agnostic" was introduced by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869 to describe his philosophy which rejects Gnosticism, by which he meant not simply the early 1st millennium religious group, but all claims to spiritual or mystical knowledge. This is not the same as the trivial interpretation of the word, and carries a more negative implication for religion than that trivial interpretation.

Early Christian church leaders used the Greek word gnosis (knowledge) to describe "spiritual knowledge." Agnosticism is not to be confused with religious views opposing the doctrine of gnosis and Gnosticism—these are religious concepts that are not generally related to agnosticism. Huxley used the term in a broad sense.

In recent years, use of the word to mean "not knowable" is apparent in scientific literature in psychology and neuroscience, and with a meaning close to "independent", in technical and marketing literature, e.g. "platform agnostic" or "hardware agnostic".

Thomas Henry Huxley.

Agnostic views are as old as philosophical skepticism, but the terms agnostic and agnosticism were created by Huxley to sum up his thoughts on contemporary developments of metaphysics about the "unconditioned" (Hamilton) and the "unknowable" (Herbert Spencer). It is important, therefore, to discover Huxley's own views on the matter. Though Huxley began to use the term "agnostic" in 1869, his opinions had taken shape some time before that date. In a letter of September 23, 1860, to Charles Kingsley, Huxley discussed his views extensively:

"I neither affirm nor deny the immortality of man. I see no reason for believing it, but, on the other hand, I have no means of disproving it. I have no a priori objections to the doctrine. No man who has to deal daily and hourly with nature can trouble himself about a priori difficulties. Give me such evidence as would justify me in believing in anything else, and I will believe that. Why should I not? It is not half so wonderful as the conservation of force or the indestructibility of matter..."

"It is no use to talk to me of analogies and probabilities. I know what I mean when I say I believe in the law of the inverse squares, and I will not rest my life and my hopes upon weaker convictions..."

"That my personality is the surest thing I know may be true. But the attempt to conceive what it is leads me into mere verbal subtleties. I have champed up all that chaff about the ego and the non-ego, noumena and phenomena, and all the rest of it, too often not to know that in attempting even to think of these questions, the human intellect flounders at once out of its depth."

And again, to the same correspondent, May 6, 1863:

"I have never had the least sympathy with the a priori reasons against orthodoxy, and I have by nature and disposition the greatest possible antipathy to all the atheistic and infidel school. Nevertheless I know that I am, in spite of myself, exactly what the Christian would call, and, so far as I can see, is justified in calling, atheist and infidel. I cannot see one shadow or title of evidence that the great unknown underlying the phenomenon of the universe stands to us in the relation of a Father [who] loves us and cares for us as Christianity asserts. So with regard to the other great Christian dogmas, immortality of soul and future state of rewards and punishments, what possible objection can I—who am compelled perforce to believe in the immortality of what we call Matter and Force, and in a very unmistakable present state of rewards and punishments for our deeds—have to these doctrines? Give me a scintilla of evidence, and I am ready to jump at them."

Of the origin of the name agnostic to describe this attitude, Huxley gave the following account:

"When I reached intellectual maturity and began to ask myself whether I was an atheist, a theist, or a pantheist; a materialist or an idealist; Christian or a freethinker; I found that the more I learned and reflected, the less ready was the answer; until, at last, I came to the conclusion that I had neither art nor part with any of these denominations, except the last. The one thing in which most of these good people were agreed was the one thing in which I differed from them. They were quite sure they had attained a certain "gnosis,"–had, more or less successfully, solved the problem of existence; while I was quite sure I had not, and had a pretty strong conviction that the problem was insoluble."

"So I took thought, and invented what I conceived to be the appropriate title of "agnostic." It came into my head as suggestively antithetic to the "gnostic" of Church history, who professed to know so much about the very things of which I was ignorant. To my great satisfaction the term took."

Huxley's agnosticism is believed to be a natural consequence of the intellectual and philosophical conditions of the 1860s, when clerical intolerance was trying to suppress scientific discoveries which appeared to clash with a literal reading of the Book of Genesis and other established Jewish and Christian doctrines. Agnosticism should not, however, be confused with natural theology, deism, pantheism, or other science positive forms of theism.

By way of clarification, Huxley states, "In matters of the intellect, follow your reason as far as it will take you, without regard to any other consideration. And negatively: In matters of the intellect, do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable" (Huxley, Agnosticism, 1889). While A. W. Momerie has noted that this is nothing but a definition of honesty, Huxley's usual definition goes beyond mere honesty to insist that these metaphysical issues are fundamentally unknowable.

If you would like to know more, I urge you to look into it yourself as there are as many different opinions on Agnosticism as there are people in the world...if you know what I mean.

(((03)))

オフィス

神に感謝してく
ださい私たちが男性を世界の
リッキーGervaisが好きであるようにします！
(((03)))

Je veux une femme, pas quelque petite fille...

I want a woman, not some little girl...
(R:IWaW)

Apparently my "hatred" blog was unsettling so I took it down. I've opted instead to be very straight-forward about my hate and who the fuck it is directed at. Congratulations to the pieces of shit that have brought the anger back.

Blog to follow once it is conceived.

Fuck off,

Matt

Les Laitiers Morts

Sparky: "Well, hello, boys."

Rodney: "WE LOVE SATAN!"

Sparky: "Well, gotta go, boys."
The Dead Milkmen
(TDMm:S)

...there sho' nuff be a fire

Just so everyone knows, I don't see this Heat Wave ending anytime soon. So relax and enjoy, it's fer real.

(((03)))

Un amour comme le nôtre est l'amour qui est dur trouver

A love like ours is love that's hard to find
(((03)))

A visit to दार्जीलिङ्ग

The art of film making...what is it? Is it the angle by which you shoot your movie? Is it the vague dialog and artsy one-liners that make the audience both laugh and at another moment, cry? Is it casting actors that your average film-goer cannot name, but instantly recognize as someone they've seen before?

One thing it is almost always not, is unpretentious. This makes it almost impossible not to recognize when a director is trying too hard and this is most definitely NOT the case when it comes to the films of Wes Anderson. From Bottle Rocket to Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums to The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, the man is an unfettered genius of the trade in this writers opinion having shown a knack for not only beautiful cinematography, but also for perfection in excellent script-writing (collaborative) and for an almost surgical precision in dialog delivery, making him, one of my top 5 favorite directors and the one of the very few who has yet to disappoint.
This brings me to Wes' latest movie, The Darjeeling Limited. Wes has opened a new can of worms with this movie having collaborated this time with Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman (yes, his mom is Adrian from the Rocky movies, AND her maiden name IS Coppola...yes, THOSE Coppola's...hence the writing partner). Darjeeling... is a departure from his previous films, which if you think about it, makes total sense as the previous movies one and all really didn't have anything in common other than flow, visuals and in some cases, returning casts.

The movie takes place primarily in India but is preempted by a somewhat bizarre yet in some ways sexy rendezvous of Schwartzman and Natalie Portman in a motel room in France in the short film Hotel Chevalier which is shown prior to Darjeeling. This is by no means nessasary to see for the story line, but it does help to sort of know what's going on with Schwartzman's character and an added bonus...there's naked Portman. Need I say more? OK, now I've devolved into a 14 year old. Jeez!
Moving on, Schwartzaman meets his brothers in India played by Owen Wilson and Adrien Brody...two other actors I like a lot (despite Wilson's urge to continue with his adolescent "frat boy" movies). The three embark on a journey based on Wilson's character's "Itinerary" and what ensues is a voyage, not of self-discovery as much as it is of brother-discovery. Sound boring? Grow up! This is Wes Anderson and you know what you're in for! I spent a paragraph already telling you. Difference is, this is in India and doesn't involve a gigantic ensemble cast.

I found myself at times very moved by the premise involved and the execution by which Anderson shows how little brothers can have in common, yet how close and united they can be when the chips are down. It's beautifully done this film, and makes for an emotional and entertaining anti-adventure with the breath-taking locations acting as an uncredited 4th main character.

Is this my favorite Anderson film? I can't say that it is, but it IS in my top 5...HA! See the movie. If you're a fan, you will DEFINITELY love it!

(((03)))

J'aime cette fille

I love this girl
(((03)))

Il A Brûlé un Trou dans Mes Rétines

This weekend, other than hanging out with my cousin on Friday and with my girlfriend a bit on Saturday, I mainly did stuff around the house and as per Gypsy James, watched a LOT of television...HA! After all, it is what I do best.

So Friday Night got the next episode of BSG's final season and I have to say...I'm bored shitless with this season. I was so looking forward to it, but none of the grit and energy of the previous seasons exists here. There's plenty of drama and set up, but it's basically like watching the same episode drag on for hours. Much like knowing that a relative is going to die, but inevitably, they take their time doing so, thus prolonging the agony all around. I know that's a bit harsh, but so it sitting through this season. What a shame.

I also caught up on a little regular TV I had recorded. Episodes of The Big Bang Theory and Rules of Engagement are not just place holders for Two and a Half Men, these are funny, well-written, well-acted shows that mix potty-humor with wit and intelligence. Beware all you simple-minded, "I get frustrated when they talk about stuff that goes over my head" types. You may want to stick to your music channels and reality show fodder.

In the movie world, I finally got around to seeing Transformers which I've been on the fence about seeing since Micheal Bay has an uncanny ability to suck. While the CG in this movie is utterly mind blowing, he didn't disappoint in the "I've got to make this as cheesy as I can and be sure to ruin whatever credibility the movie might have had by throwing in slack-jawed, period-specific, corn-ball jokes that are SURE to permanently tag me as a script moron forever" category. Realistically, I enjoyed myself, and Shia LeBeouf was good, of course John Turturro ruled, but everyone else was just sort of there, delivering idiotic one-liners and over-acting. The woman that played LeBeouf's mother had some great "air-head/slightly drunk" comedic timing, but other than that...the speaking roles were covered in pure syrup. Pass on this if you wanna keep brain-cells, but if you want to just sit back and let the fantasy take you, check it out. This movie would have been awesome had it been in Japanese... then I could have just watched with sub-titles, never knowing just how bad the dialog is...shame on you Michael Bay...when will you learn?

Up next, I finally caught Spider-Man 3, (yes, I am a fucking sci-fi nerd of sorts, I wasn't ALWAYS 35 you know!) I'd also hesitated on this movie as I'd heard it stunk as well. And, while it wasn't as good as Spider-Man 2 (The Empire Strikes Back of the trilogy, of course) it had it's moments...as well as a WAY too drawn out story line and it's share of cheese. I have to admit, I liked it... Bruce Campbell stole the show though, and the only thing that out-shined him where the special effects, that to be honest at times looked like corners had to be cut. Sorry Sam, I'm still a fan though and am very much looking forward to what you'll be doing now that the trilogy is over. Please just don't go all "John Woo" on us...

I also picked up The Darjeeling Limited but didn't get to it because I noticed Pee-Wee's Big Adventure was coming on and I can NEVER resist that movie, especially at 5:15 in the morning, PLUS I'd really like to save an entire blog for a Wes Anderson movie...I'm sure you understand...
It Burned a Hole in My Retinas
(((03)))

You can't dangle the bogus carrot of possible reconciliation in front of me whilst riding some other donkey

"We recorded a whole bunch of new Spaced commentaries in Santa Monica yesterday. Edgar, Jess and myself, were joined by guest commentators, Kevin Smith, Diablo Cody, Quentin Tarantino and Matt Stone. This, together with brand new cover art will hopefully sweeten the blow for those completists who already have the region 2."

-SIMON PEGG, 23 March 2008

(photo by alistaith)

(((03)))