I Respectfully Disagree

A New York Times Op-Ed pleas for mix raced parents to insist their children identify as black.

Mixed-race blacks have an ethical obligation to identify as black — and interracial couples share a similar moral imperative to inculcate certain ideas of black heritage and racial identity in their mixed-race children, regardless of how they look.

The reason is simple. Despite the tremendous societal progress these recent changes in attitude reveal in a country that enslaved its black inhabitants until 1865, and kept them formally segregated and denied them basic civil rights until 1964, we do not yet live in an America that fully embodies its founding ideals of social and political justice.

There doesn't seem to me any compelling moral argument here. And if there were, the argument seems to only apply to blacks, since the foundation of the argument rests on the issue of slavery and special injustices faced by black folks in America. I suppose I bring a different perspective being of mixed race Asian descent, but it strikes me that the continued emphasis on racial difference only slows the rate at which we can become a post-racial society -- which seems to me the end goal.

The dissidents in the old Soviet Union would often act "as if" they lived in a free society. That was their way of rebellion. I've always liked this attitude. Why not act "as if" we are in the post-racial society we all want and therefore make it a reality without getting permission from all who benefit from racial discord?

Slavery's Last Stronghold

I didn't know this. You don't hear "human rights" activists talk about this very much. Seems to me like it ought to top the agenda.

Logging

Film: Man Bites Dog

Hat tip, Andy. Brings up an interesting issue I blogged about before re: books - can you enjoy a book you don't finish? Can you enjoy a film you don't finish? I've watched 2/3 of the movie and enjoyed it, but do not feel like I need to finish it because in some ways, there is nothing more to see. There isn't a story. Just a camera crew following around a serial killer. It is funny, dark comedy, but I don't really sense a need to finish the film. Part of this, I'm sure, is watching at home on my computer.

Rough Crowd

Laying it on thick to Dwight Howard, calling him a drama queen, etc.

These reporters know these are guys in their mid-20s, right? It's a bit strange, how much we ask of these athletes.

Oh Boy

Alex Smith negotiating with the Dolphins. It seems the story is Alex Smith was insulted by the 3 year 24 million offer the Niners made. His side didn't respond. Then the Niners started pursuing Manning, now losing out to the Broncos. Now Smith is talking with the Dolphins (who would be dumb to sign him - how much is he an upgrade over Matt Moore, honestly?). I don't know how I feel about all this. Smith should be rewarded for his good work last year, but let's be honest, the guy has already pocketed a ton of money from the Niners that he didn't quite earn in his rookie contract. Now to come back and be insulted with the 3 year offer? I don't know. He played bravely in the Saints game, but didn't look like a world beater. Then in the Giants game, he didn't exactly lose it for us, but he didn't exactly win it for us, either. I'd like Smith to be the QB next year (although I must admit a tinge of excitement for the Peyton possibility) and see what he can do. Either way, we seem to be developing Colin Kaepernack for the future anyway...tough call all around.

Is The Rent Too Damn High?

Article and book suggests this is a policy issue, not simply a demand issue.

Logging

Film: John Carter

A mess of a movie. I don't want to pile on as much has already been said elsewhere. But I suppose it should provide some sort of lesson in borrowing -- one need not be influenced and copy from every single movie that precedes oneself -- it strives to be Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and every single James Cameron movie at some point or another. Methinks one ought to limit oneself a bit more and perhaps just strive to be The Last Crusade meets whatever, rather than all of it.

SoCal Housing

Most sales are short sales and foreclosures.

The bottom line is the market is hungry for cheaper properties however many sellers do not want to accept this fact so demand has shifted to short sales and REOs for the past couple of years.

As it should be.

And Why Not?

Woman marries herself. It makes perfect logical sense when you combine the narcissism of our present era and the cultural goal of propping up everyone's self esteem.

My favorite line in the article:

I believe everyone has the right to marry, regardless of sexual preference. For some people being alone is what feels most natural. Shouldn't they too be entitled to tax breaks?

Is it still called a tax break if everyone gets it?

And Why Not?

Woman marries herself. It makes perfect logical sense when you combine the narcissism of our present era and the cultural goal of propping up everyone's self esteem.

My favorite line in the article:

I believe everyone has the right to marry, regardless of sexual preference. For some people being alone is what feels most natural. Shouldn't they too be entitled to tax breaks?

So...is it still called a tax break if everyone gets it for what? Existing?

Elaboration

Tim Parks on whether to finish books (also linked via Andrew Sullivan re: plots).

One of the strangest responses I ever had to a novel of my own—my longest not surprisingly—came from a fellow author who wrote out of the blue to express his appreciation. Such letters of course are a massive pep to one’s vanity and I was just about to stick this very welcome feather in my cap, when I reached the last lines of the message: he hadn’t read the last fifty pages, he said, because he’d reached a point where the novel seemed satisfactorily over, for him.

In honor of this conundrum, I failed to finish the entirety of his article.

Neat Point

The tyranny of endings. I rather like this idea:

It is the pattern of the weave that we most savor in a plot—Hamlet’s dilemma, perhaps, or the awesome unsustainability of Dorothea’s marriage to Casaubon—but not its solution. Indeed, the best we can hope from the end of a good plot is that it not ruin what came before.

Fiction Lacking Topics

Interesting point and I agree - most of American life does not face moral challenges - and thus, there is little to write about.

Whit Stilman

He is the best at making the kind of inward-looking movies about privilege that I don't particularly like. The rich man's Noah Baumbach. An interview about Damsels in Distress. One of my favorite recent movie director quotes:

‘I think 12 years is the right amount of time between movies.’

Ha!

Logging

TV: 30 Rock

Jack plays a version of Settlers of Catan with the writers. Not quite as good as when James Franco plays D&D with the Geeks, but still fun. Also a nod to Game of Thrones, which has now been referenced in Parks and Rec, 30 Rock, and The Simpsons. Not bad for a show with one season under it's belt.

Po-lice

Chimps have policeman. Interesting.

The Comments

Deadline posted this new Davis Guggenheim/Tom Hanks video on Obama. I haven't watched the video, but I'm surprised by the vitriol on the comments. I imagine this being a sort of left-leaning website being a Hollywood trade site, basically, but the disgust with Obama is palpable. Then again, it is a comment section, so it is hard to make too much of it as it encourages the unhinged.

Darth Vader Resigns

And writes an angry op-ed to the NY Times.

Logging

Film: Sherman's March

Personal filmmaking. Just wanted to check out the beginning, but can't seem to turn it off.

Big Surprise!

Goldman Sachs employee writes disgruntled memo about the firm ripping off it's clients.

As if anyone didn't know this already...Goldman isn't the only one. Law firms, talent agencies, other investment companies, they are all acting in the interests of themselves and will do as much as they can get away with without being fired.

Taxes

Got my tax bill today. I'm paying a higher rate than Mitt Romney. I've decided I'm not in favor of "lower taxes" or "higher taxes." I'm in favor of making the tax code simpler and more just (in the common sense of the term). Because no one can honestly say that Mitt Romney should be paying a lower rate on his investments than I pay on my income. Especially because in theory - my work (screenwriting) - could lead to jobs (production jobs) - if done correctly. Certainly more American blue collar, middle class jobs, than whatever Mitt Romney's dividend payments lead to. Find me an economist who sells it otherwise and I'll show you a bullshitter.

Fajitas

In the quad core of Mexican food the fajita is the most under-appreciated. The taco and burrito, of course, are the two favored sons, eternally jockying for the top position. When I was a child, tacos held the sacred crown, but as I got into high school, the burrito slowly took over and now reigns supreme. Tacos have adjusted and had a rebirth with the more authentic, street style, and of course, the modified offshoot, the food truck/Korean taco craze, etc, to close the gap, but the burrito has almost entered a different echelon -- it might be more accurate to compare it with with the sandwich as a staple lunch food - at least in California. Like the sandwich, the burrito has it's breakfast form, and it should need no more explanation of the ubiquity of the burrito than the fact McDonalds offers a breakfast one.

I believe enchiladas occupy the third position. Enchiladas, I imagine, are a favorite of a certain subset of people and because of the melted cheese, are more popular than the fajita. There was a time when the fajita was a favorite of young people, when the sizzling hot plate came out of the kitchen, kiddies would giggle with delight as the server warned them to be careful. The promise of making one's own "fajita" with the peppers and steak and gauc, etc, was the promise of fun, the ability to craft to perfection just the exact ratio. What happened to those days? When was the last time you ever saw anyone order fajitas? Is it an age thing? Is the fajita an inferior dish than the enchilada?

I ask these questions because I've recently ordered the fajitas at La Fiesta Brava, a delicious little local spot over in Venice. What a dish! It comes as an enormous portion - easily enough for two meals - on a hot plate sizzling with peppers, onions, tomatoes, and whatever meat you order - steak, chicken, shrimp, or any combination thereof. The most amazing thing about the dish is how it changes while you eat it - like a glass of scotch when the ice melts. At first, you use the meats and veggies on top, throw them in your tortillas, add some avocado and a squeeze of lime and yum, yum, yum, eat it up. But you quickly run out of tortillas and although I suppose you can ask for more, I just pick up a fork and start eating the lower meat and veggies, which have been cooking on the sizzle plate. Something happens to this stuff down at the bottom. Is it the juice from the steak? They get cooked and gooey and deliciously flavorful, almost like you are eating a totally different dish. The flavor of the onion and the meat itself is so much tastier than the top.

Netflix?

What the hell is wrong with Netflix? I type in "Sea of Love" and cartoons show up. I type in "Cache" and the Haneke film doesn't come up. I type in "Wild Things" and Running Wilde the tv show shows up. This service is turning into shit. It's becoming like a TV channel. It used to be a video store. Someone else needs to exploit this opportunity...like a videostore. I'm thinking Blockbuster going out of business has made Netflix soft and stupid.

Logging

Film: Paranormal Activity 2 and 3

3 is by far the most interesting of the Paranormal films. They do a decent job in this series of expanding the visual grammar throughout, taking some camera conceits from the first, upping it in the second, and then upping it again in the 3rd. What's interesting about these movies, the more you watch, is the entirely different approach to filmmaking than say a "regular" movie. It all starts with the camera. In the more traditional approach to filmmaking, the one taught in film schools and modeled on the old studio system, it all starts with story and generally, story starts with character. Of course, throughout cinematic history, there are deviations from this way of making movies, but the storytellers, ie directors and writers and actors, undoubtedly come at it from character first. I suppose this comes from all the way back - Greeks and myths and Aristotle and Shakespeare and the stage to radio to film to tv. Not to say these films don't still employ storytelling or character, but it is more of an outside-in approach than an inside-out approach. Where is the camera? Why is it on? These are the first questions, preceding who is the protag and so forth. On first blush, it makes the more traditional film watcher think, jeez, this sucks or at least is rather clutzy in terms of storytelling. What the horror genre does, however, is replace the pleasures of narrative with the pleasures of fright and chills.

But now, with Chronicle and Project X, this visual language is being expanded into other genres. Strange days.