Ever wonder why 50 Cent had beef with Ja Rule, and then The Game? What about Jay-Z and Nas? Better yet, why do you think Michael Moore makes his films so edgy and names them things like “Fahrenheit 911?” How about all those starlets who just happen to always end up in front of the camera during a meltdown? Well let me help you out, its either because of money or because of attention, and often the latter leads to the former.
So I don’t understand why it is that some people, groups and institutions even give certain issues that they disagree with a moment of their media attention. You think these groups would know better since the ire that followed the release of “The Passion of the Christ,” or at least by the release of “The Da Vinci Code.”
If I can make a mildly disparaging comment before continuing: In my high and mighty opinion most Americans are either largely socially unaware, or are at least largely apathetic. So by having a group speak out against an issue, that same “ignorant” populace only pays more attention to the issue when they wouldn’t normally pay attention to or understand it in the first place. In short, such boisterous objection only has the opposite effect from the desired effect a group wishes.
More specifically, there is a movie that is purported to be anti-God coming to a theatre near you. Of course religious groups are coming out of the woodwork to protest the movie. That is to say that these groups are doing exactly what the movie promoters want; promoting the movie for free. So effectively the religious groups are helping the movie get all the publicity it needs to spread the message that they are so afraid of getting out.
So what good does it do to protest in this fashion? And I should point out that I’m not one who is against protest. I have even participated in a few in my short years on Earth. But certainly I’ve learned that some things are best just left alone and some things are better left unsaid; they do not become significant until someone makes them significant. And I believe that is often the case with the attention-craving
Approaching this topic from a different angle, as I understand it one of the major arguments in the movie made against God and organized religion is that it is controlling and does not allow one to think independently. Well, by protesting the movie without ever watching it, doesn’t that demonstrate exactly what the movie is saying? How ironic that these religious groups and leaders are becoming the embodiment of everything negative that the movie is saying about them.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, if there is indeed a God, that entity needs no human substantiation. And if God is who many believe Him to be, wouldn’t he want each individual to watch such a movie and make up their own mind about the implications of it?
You know what I think? I think anyone who likes the previews and finds them interesting should go out and watch the movie. I mean, how else are you going to know what you’re protesting against? You may find out that you actually agree with the movie, or that you just enjoy it whether or not you agree with its contents.
So everyone, hear me loud and clear when I say this: When in disagreement choose your battles wisely because seriously, some things just aren’t worth protesting.
-Maelstrom
1 comment:
Until I read the last two words of paragraph 5 I did not know what this all was about. And that was paragraph 5 of 8-1/2. Could you please give more of an introduction next time?
A friend of mine read the book and she (~30 female) said the movie is not even half as atheist as the book. (She said it was made that way to appeal to the american population.) Now, I read from your blog that religious people disagree with it. It makes me think and wonder and really interested to see the movie. But then again, makes me conclude that we religious people do not allow any other oppion than ours. Hmm.
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