February 17, 2008
African-American Presidents in the Media
While discussing the Democratic primaries at work, I came to an amusing epiphany: African-American presidents as portrayed in Hollywood are actually treated fairly poorly. They are often portrayed as Presidents in crisis situations. While you could argue that the movies are playing African-American presidents in a positive way (many step up to the plate quite successfully in their plots), I find it easy to see veiled racism -- why is that whenever a president in a movie is just some talking head in the background (like, say, Contact), they're caucasian, but when the president is portrayed in a situation in which America is in Great Peril, they are African-American?
Take my most recent favorite, Idiocracy. President Comacho, five time Ultimate Smackdown champion and porn superstar, is president. Race: African American. Distinguishing characteristics: Beefy, brawny, virile, extraordinarily short on brains. State of America: in deep decay due to genetic degradation. I'll say that again, when America is in deep decay due to genetic degradation, an African-American is portrayed as being leader of the state. Yikes! It sounds as though William Shockley had some role in the movie.
Next on the list is the television series 24. I gave up watching television on about 12 September 2001, but from what I hear this show has an African-American president. The country is in deep chaos due to repeated terrorist attacks on the United States. Hm...a pattern is beginning...
Then we have Deep Impact. Race of President: African-American. Distinguishing Characteristic: Played by Morgan Freedman (I mean, c'mon, who doesn't like Morgan Freedman? If the man announced his candidacy, he'd give Obama and Clinton heart attacks, and then he'd probably win). State of America: Country in crisis (actually, world in crisis). President must choose to save 0.5% of the US population while the other 99.5% will die in a meteor strike. The Onion is even running an editorial on this one.
That said, I did caucus for Obama in my state...
Well, I dont remember seeing american movie with woman as president...
Posted by: David on February 27, 2008 12:12 AMPost a comment
Further back...
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Previous Trips...
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Hiking Mount Whitney, 2007 
Spring Break in West Virginia, 2005
New Year's in Paris, 2003-2004
Coming to America, 2003
Protesting in Berlin, 2003
Prague Bier-Tour, 2002
Dresden, 2002
Recent Reading
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The Curve of Binding Energy
John McPhee follows famous physicist Ted Taylor in this piece that was -- and probably still -- ahead of its time.
Originally published in 1973, McPhee outlined the coming security and environmental issues surrounding the plutonium enrichment processes. For the most part, though, McPhee invites the reader to draw his or her own conclusions, although he does point out the ease with which any number of people could obtain the material (though not necessarily the manufacturing prowess) to make an atomic weapon.
The question still sits in my mind after reading -- are we being too paranoid, or not paranoid enough?
Rated 
by reid
on October 01, 2007
by reid
on October 01, 2007
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Zodiac
Zodiac touts itself as an 'eco-thriller,' and it is just that. Told from the first-person perspective of ST (or Sangamon Taylor), the book recounts a roughly six-month period of his life busting big corporations for violating environmental laws.
Not the tree-hugging political activist type, ST is equipped with chem labs, scuba divers, maps, and an organization (GEE International, the Group of Environmental Extremists) that masterfully brings the press into the fold to scare the public with the very real dangers posed by illegal dumping. It's sort of a Sierra Club member's wet dream -- a band of ecowarriors that actually get things done.
ST finds something odd happening in Boston Harbor during his tale: a new form of pollution that could poison everyone on the planet in a matter of weeks. His quest to uncover exactly who and what is causing the latest spike in toxins goes all the way up to the President of the United States, and could end up costing him his own life.
While a neat and fast-paced tale, the novel drags on a bit toward the end, begging disbelief from even the most forgiving sci-fi folk. While not as good as his latest offerings, it's still a great read for those that enjoy a good Stephenson novel (or even those who don't).
Rated 
by reid
on July 17, 2005
by reid
on July 17, 2005
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Cat's Cradle
A few years ago, I attempted to woo an online datee, and she immediately criticized me for my politics. I protested the war on Iraq, which was "a shame." She defended her position of complete noninvolvement by standing behind Vonnegut.
It may seem odd to open a review that way. My assumption is now not that she was an idiot, but that she had only read Cat's Cradle, and only with a rather odd viewpoint.
Cat's Cradle looks at a cold-war world where the personifications of religious, political, and scientific single-mindedness collide to destroy the world.
Vonnegut tells a masterful tale, but it makes me wonder what one person's indifference would do to prevent us from all dying? So for now I will continue to unblindly stop unjust wars, even while I'm only reading.
Rated by reid
on July 17, 2005
by reid
on July 17, 2005
Criminy, Lad! How hilarious! What brought this on, since yer not even a telly watcher.......?
Just back from Land of Flowers, where all men have no memory and all the women are fat and wrinkled.
-Crotalus
Posted by: Crotalus on February 18, 2008 07:19 PM