Movies versus reality

-=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- (c) WidthPadding Industries 1987 0\|723\|0 -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=- -=+=-
Socoder -> Question of the Day -> Movies versus reality
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 07:46
Afr0	I'm not entirely sure how to phrase this question, but something like; 'When do you think is the right time to draw the line between movies and reality?' should suffice. I used to think that Avatar was a great movie (I still think it's probably the best movie ever made) and thus, everything it spawned was also great. I was wrong. People are now coming out of the cinemas having watched Avatar for the third or fourth time with major depression, causing them to plot mass suicide on the internet. Normally I'm not one of those people who's very much against suicidal tendencies, but this is a bit too much, even for me. It's good that Avatar has affected these people in some way, but it's no reason to go kill yourself! Then there are the people who are seriously considering moving outside on a permanent basis, living with other Avatar fans in a tribal fashion talking the Na'vi language. If you want to see, go to this topic (it's now 30 pages long...). I intervened by trying to make them look at certain things in perspective at page 19, but they largely ignored me. Here's the post I wrote: 'Before ya'll go ahead with this, I think you should at least take a time-out (perhaps start a new thread when you're done) to figure out what you're really trying to do. So far, based on the initial few and last few posts (which are the only ones I've bothered reading), it appears as though: tsmukan ftu Eywa - Wants to create a country/nation full of Na'vis 'bartering' with the US from Native American soil supported by the government. Coyote - Is envisioning a camping/hiking trip every year to celebrate the release of new Avatar movies. Teio - Likes the idea of living outside/closed off from society for large parts of the year on a 250,000 USD piece of land bought along with others participating in this thread. Unil Txep - Loves all. Is somewhere in the middle of Teio and tsmukan ftu Eywa on the whole 'Permanent settlement versus hiking trips' issue (I'm not saying it's an issue, but it seems to be based on what you guys are saying). Urriuujìn - Thinks meat is yummy, but couldn't bring him/her self to kill an animal. Txontaw - Likes to lead and would like to be the leader of the possible permanent camp/settlement/tribe envisioned by Unil Txep. All of you seem to agree on one thing - meeting up and talking amongst yourself in the Na'vi language. That's about it, as far as I can see.' Needless to say, I pretty much gave up trying to convince them it was a bad and/or slightly far fetched idea. -=-=- Afr0 Games Project Dollhouse on Github - Please fork!
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 07:55
shroom_monk	A work of fiction is a work of fiction. Wanting it to be true will not make it true. Rather than getting worked up about what they don't have that a fictional world does, these people should be thinking about what our world does have that the fictional world doesn't (films live Avatar, for one ), because they'd probably miss it pretty quickly out in the wild. If they still find them selves dreaming of a world like Pandora, then they could just try and improve the Earth we do have, by using less energy, recycling more, or something. -=-=- A mushroom a day keeps the doctor away... Keep It Simple, Shroom!
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 08:28
JL235	Afro Needless to say, I pretty much gave up trying to convince them it was a bad and/or slightly far fetched idea. Why? Camping can be great fun. I used to go every year as a kid.
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 09:41
Afr0	Why? Camping can be great fun. I used to go every year as a kid. Well, after I wrote the post it turned out that even the guy who calls himself Coyote is keen on moving out, eventually. And it just makes me think of all the implications, such as: - How will you get land? AFAIK most land (certainly in the US) that isn't owned by private people is owned by the government. - You could buy land, but then people who decides to move in after the fact (which has been talked about), have to pay their way in or work their way in. - Even if people pay their way into the tribe, the original 'settlers' are still going to feel that they have more ownership since they were there first and did the initial payments. If they don't like someone, they'll probably try to get them kicked out. Money creates greed, money is a bad idea. - How do you learn what you need to learn to survive? You can learn some things by practicing camping in the wild first, but ultimately you'll have to kill animals, skin them, make bow-strings from their internal organs etc. That's not something that's learned in a flash. - How do you prevent inbreeding? The people in this thread have talked about basically fertilizing a new generation to establish the tribe permanently for the future. It won't be practically feasible unless you start out with at least 70 - 100 individuals. Even then inbreeding seems likely to happen at some point. -=-=- Afr0 Games Project Dollhouse on Github - Please fork!
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 10:41
HoboBen	The people in this thread have talked about basically fertilizing a new generation to establish the tribe permanently for the future lol, they wish!!! -=-=- blog \| work \| code \| more code
Sun, 17 Jan 2010, 11:57
blanko1324	Fandoms can be great things. Not only is it fun to be part of a group with the same common interest, but for the lonely few, it can fill that nasty hole in their lives, like the need for friends, or family atmosphere. However, starting an entirely new society is idiotic and I'm sure James Cameron has facepalmed a dent in his forehead. Stick with the normal annual conventions, you crazy Na'vi. -=-=- My Twitter
Mon, 18 Jan 2010, 05:25
CodersRule	I don't mean to be an asshole here, but it seems to me like people who watched this movie have never read a good book. I'll be honest here, I've never seen Avatar. But I understand when you don't want the plot to end. I guess everyone does. The first time you realize what you love is ending, you get hit hard. Real hard. You want more. That's what these people are obviously experiencing. Does that mean they've never been held like that before? Possibly. If they've never been held like that before, doesn't that mean they've never read a good book or seen a half-decent movie before? Most definitely. I just wanted to point that out. -- On the topic of Books/TV shows/Movies that you want more of, I just wish the "Avatar: The Last Airbender" show never ended. I wanted to see what happened next!
Mon, 18 Jan 2010, 07:42
Mog	Idiots. That's all i have to say. If they kill themselves over an overrated movie, they were not fit to live in the first place. Darwin awards for all! -=-=- I am Busy Mongoose - My Website Dev PC: AMD 8150-FX, 16gb Ram, GeForce GTX 680 2gb Current Project: Pyroxene
Mon, 18 Jan 2010, 20:40
Trollmann	Avatar was awesome, because of the 3D. I'm sure that without the 3D effect, the movie wouldn't have been this much of a success. Being called the best movie ever made, ridiculous. Anyway, if people want to kill themselves over it, I say go for it. The world is full of idiots already, I wouldn't mind if some of them /wrist or moved far away.
Tue, 19 Jan 2010, 10:32
spinal	[quote = Afr0]- How do you learn what you need to learn to survive? You can learn some things by practicing camping in the wild first, but ultimately you'll have to kill animals, skin them, make bow-strings from their internal organs etc. That's not something that's learned in a flash. How long have you needed to kill animals to survive in the wild? There are thousands of species of animal on Earth that survive just fine on a 100% vegetarian diet that don't even kill for territory. Just because we are human doesn't mean we have to go around killing everything we see. Also -- read K-PAX. -=-=- Check out my excellent homepage!
Tue, 19 Jan 2010, 10:51
JL235	Plus the majority of people who do live in the wild actually buy quite a lot of their food. They are very rarely truly isolated from mankind.