Grief

[Laurie Verge]

Jerry, once again I am agreeing with you (are you keeping score?). Our constant pursuit of "entertainment" and thrills that are thrown at us in violent - and often casual - ways are contributing to the mess that we ourselves have created by discarding values of decency and respect for human life.

[Jim Page]

(12-15-2012 10:10 AM)JMadonna Wrote:  I think a large part of these trajedies is due to the 'shock' philosophy now practiced by the entertainment industry.

What Jerry states here must be true. I don't favor censorship, but folks need to take a stand.

When I was a computer-coloring consultant for Marvel Comics back in the early 1990s, they sent a book to us to be color separated. It was called The Fool Killer, and it was just trash. I called the production manager at Marvel and said, "You know, I refuse to be associated with something of this nature. It's ugly and upsetting to no good purpose."

The woman at Marvel replied, "Hey; we aren't paying you to criticize our books. We're paying you to color separate them."

So I replied, "Oh, my criticism to you is absolutely free and you'll get the art back by FedEx tomorrow, un-color-sepped."

--Jim

[JMadonna]

The problem, as I see it, is that the entertainment media and our politicians are joined at the hip when it comes to finding scapegoats. They will, to a man, point to gun control laws as the culprit but will never point to their own rhetoric or behavior. People learn from what they see, not what they're told to believe.

[BettyO]

I agree with ya'll 100 % as well -

We as a nation have become deeply desensitized... too much crime and violence on TV; in music and in computer games as well as comics and some so-called "Graphic Novels".... and the current "Zombie" cult doesn't help either.... I think that when the Hayes Office went out, so did a lot of our Standards. I agree with Bill...one NEVER saw blood in a Roy Rogers or Gene Autry picture. Sure, they got shot, but you never saw blood or any horrific ramifications such as one sees today in most movies or TV shows. Our TV networks are rife with crime shows sporting murder, rape, child abuse, etc - all horrid subjects that don't need to be aired ad nauseum.....

How are we to save our children as well as the nation when we're forced to swallow this garbage as "entertainment?" I'm sorry, but killing by ANY standards (and that includes the senseless killing of animals as well) - does NOT make a statement --

There are seriously ill people out there who desperately need help - and just giving them "meds" is obviously NOT the answer. Yesterdays horrid tragedy, as well as all of the others along this line (i.e. Columbine, VA Tech, Colorado Movie Theatre, the Safeway Shopping Center shootings, etc.) have proven this. We need stiffer laws and mandates to protect ourselves AND our precious children and schools! These folk need to be properly evaluated and possibly put into facilities where they can live peacefully and get the care they need. Those with a history or potential for violence need not be out in society to wreck havoc on innocents -

[Christine]

An article in one of our newspapers spoke about the experiences of the family of Emilie Parker, 6, who was killed. She and her family are originally from Utah and will be returning here to bury their daughter with family and friends who have blanketed the city with pink ribbons in her memory wrote this:

"Grief, while heartbreaking, can also give rise to powerful acts of compassion. By the time Abraham Lincoln gave his second inaugural address on March 4, 1865, the American Civil War had claimed roughly 750,000 lives, resulting in 37,000 widows and 90,000 orphans.

"Why did God allow such devastation? It was a question Lincoln had pondered. Plus, there were many in Washington who wanted to punish the Confederates for all the carnage. Against that backdrop, Lincoln said:

"With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan — to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all nations."

One month later, Lincoln was assassinated. But those words — "with malice toward none" — live on.

"The following day, after authorities released the names of the victims, Robbie Parker was the first parent to speak to the national media. Without notes or a spokesman, Robbie choked back tears and expressed sympathy for the family of the man who killed 27 people and himself. "I can't imagine how hard this experience must be for you," he said."

While Evil is certainly present in our world, so is Goodness. Which gives me Hope.

[Gene C]

(12-19-2012 01:09 AM)Christine Wrote:  While Evil is certainly present in our world, so is Goodness. Which gives me Hope.

Thanks Christine, I couldn't say it any better.

[LincolnMan]

And there are many good people in the world. Never lose hope!

[Christine]

Here's some more hope:

"Violent video games are drawing new scrutiny in the wake of the Newtown elementary school tragedy. Some gamers are already giving them up … voluntarily.

CBS 2’s Lou Young met one seventh grader in Newtown on Thursday who was gathering a selection of his personal video games. He was getting rid of them for one reason and said he wants you to get rid of yours as well.
“All of it is kill, just kill as many people as you can without dying,” Max Goldstein said.

Each one is what they call a “first-person shooter,” a game in which the player looks at a digital landscape through the sights of a weapon and uses it on enemies.

They are among the most popular games on the market; violent, engaging, and, some say, addictive. In the aftermath of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Goldstein and his brother decided it was a digital world they could no longer embrace.

With his parents help he’s created a group called “Played Out” that uses the slogan “We choose not to play.” It urges fellow kids to ditch their violent games as well. Bins will be going up in Newtown on Friday.

“We hope people will drop off … and destroy them,” said Jackson Mittleman, Goldstein’s brother.

The adults are wondering why they didn’t think of it first.

“It’s just great. I think it’s just great the kids thought of something,” said Roberta Mittleman, the boys’ mother.

Goldstein said his goal is to reduce violent video games by a third in American homes."

I'm so impressed that these kids are being pro-active in helping other kids give up violent video games. The other day I spoke with an elementary school boy, and asked what he liked to do in his free time. He answered, "games." I asked what kind (thinking he meant games, you know like football, or baseball, or basketball or yahtzee. . .) and he said Halo and Call of Duty. I didn't know what they were, so looked them up. Video games. Mature rating! ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILD!!!

When my kids were little (the youngest is 15) the national discussions were often how many violent crimes or murders a child watched on TV or movies before he/she turned 18. Now the discussion should be how many violent crimes/murders a child commits while 'playing' these 'games.'

Hollywood is the first to call for gun control laws but heaven forbid anyone calling on Them to control the amount of violence they peddle in the guise of 'entertainment.'

[L Verge]

What an excellent post, Christine. And, wouldn't it be a wonderful Christmas present to America if all citizens took up this call to change the violent society that we have created.

[Linda Anderson]

We saw this billboard when we were coming home from the Milford Mall last night.

WE ARE SANDY HOOK

WE ARE LOVE

[Christine]

The Deseret News (Salt Lake) just published one of the most thoughtful, direct commentaries on the debate about violence in media:

"It is common for prominent individuals in Hollywood like these to throw their collective weight behind controversial causes like animal rights, global warming, abortion and contraception rights. Many in the industry also have championed efforts toward cancer research, disaster relief, food security and international human trafficking. But where is the movement for more humanity in film? Imagine the outcry among celebrities if a movie or game depicted a horse enduring brutal torture and murder. Instead of standing up for more humane treatment of humans, they defend their rights to creativity and free expression.

But rather than a free speech debate protecting the creative merits of violent entertainment, we should reframe the debate to focus on the needs of children. We orient our society around the rights, needs and pleasures of adults in just about every sense. It is time to come together to consider the minds of our children.

Children worldwide already face a tumultuous economic and societal future, yet they are increasingly exposed to human-on-human violence in movies or game simulations at astounding rates. Rather than top celebrities and entertainment companies selfishly straining to profiteer from simulated violence, why don’t actors, screenwriters, directors, producers and distributors of games and movies make the moral and economic choice to invest in and inspire the next generation?

Ironically, it is no longer edgy, avant-garde or even creative to push the limits on human depravity and cruelty in cinema. It is passé. So it should be the aim of creative leaders in Hollywood to use their protected freedoms to seek a new boundary, and rise to a new challenge.

But instead of proposing some new regulatory oversight, I appeal to the civic virtue of self-governance. A-list Hollywood celebrities should listen to their consciences, which undoubtedly are burdened by their profiteering from ultra-violent films targeting vulnerable youth. Thus, I echo Abraham Lincoln’s words to a conflicted nation, wherein he plead that society should “appeal to the better angels of our nature.” Similarly, the entertainment industry should redirect its collective creative brilliance to elevating and inspiring our children to achieve the highest ideals of humankind."

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/86557...ofits.html

[Jim Page]

(01-08-2013 11:43 PM)Christine Wrote:  The Deseret News (Salt Lake) just published one of the most thoughtful, direct commentaries on the debate about violence in media , , ,

Christine, that was a brilliant commentary and I wouldn't have seen it had you not posted it.

Thanks!

--Jim

[My Name Is Kate]

When like-minded people are in control of Hollywood, the music industry, the media, government, etc., it's pretty hard to get anything going in a different direction. And I certainly don't intend that as a slam against any particular political ideology (liberals or conservatives).

How did things get so far out of hand...?

[Bill Richter]

Christine,

Having lived as a Gentile (non-LDS Church member)in Utah or its environs, The Deseret News, the spokes sheet of the LDS Church, made a typical Mormon appeal to virtue. I salute them and wish we were as virtuous as they hope. OMG look at Harry Reid, Mormon elder and a kink in anyone's armor of virtue if I ever saw one!

[Gene C]

It all boils down to what you want in life and what your purpose is.
Do you focus on having a nice life, or
are you focused on having a nice after-life?

Since we are learning about Lincoln, the latter is what helped him deal with the loss of his son, and maybe some of the other challenges in his life.

Things don't work right when you don't follow the manufacturers instructions.