- Sep 22, 2013
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After seeing the Americana-exploration film Citizen Kane, I started thinking about the kinds of society attitudes that make for 'culture-based politics.' Will the Trump Administration serve as inspiration for any kind of 'dystopia-remedy storytelling'?
The biggest criticism Trump is receiving (already) is that he will be a watered-down version of the last economics-minded celebrity-president (Ronald Reagan).
What President Trump really needs is a 'pro-federalism Frank Capra' on his side.
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Jimmy was a hard-working idealistic reporter for the Washington Gazette given a special assignment to investigate the new inner-city children's water-paint center established by the prominent American celebrity Tom Cruise, star of the patriotism-themed popular films Born on the 4th of July and Lions for Lambs. The center was called the Washington Waterpaint Warehouse, and it was supposed to be a vehicle enabling its primary sponsor, Tom Cruise, to market the value of citizenry-engaged social activism as it relates to race-related poverty, free-speech, and pluralism. Cruise intended to prove that celebrities care about democratic values, since they endorse organizations/institutions personally important to them (e.g., Church of Scientology).
Jimmy took his notebook, his special gold Cross-pen, and his Nikon camera. He wanted to do a good job on the assignment, since he was up for a promotion. When he got to the Warehouse, he noticed multiple teachers-chaperones watching over about 30 inner-city minority children working on water-paintings. The supplies and licenses were all taken care of by the Tom Cruise Foundation (a new social outreach group devoted to the promotion of American values through philanthropy networks and politically-conscious media marketing). The Tom Cruise Foundation was the big social-outreach rival group to the Leo DiCaprio Foundation (another celebrity-established social activism group but this one devoted specifically and only to eco-activism).
Jimmy perused the colorful and delightful paintings of the various kids in the Warehouse that afternoon. He took pictures and spoke with the participating kids (all recruited with the help of social work groups and children's welfare organizations as well as the Washington Board of Education) as well as the teachers-chaperones who seemed very involved and dedicated to the work at hand (and no one minded the news reporters and cameras!). Tom Cruise was not present on that day, and Jimmy wished he was, so he could take good photos and snag a terrific interview. "C'est la vie!" Jimmy said. Jimmy walked around with his camera looking at the kids' paintings until he came upon a very strange little boy.
Jimmy noticed the young African-American boy with closely-cropped hair and a semi-decent white t-shirt painting what seemed to be giant policemen. The boy told Jimmy his name (Elijah) and explained he was interested in cops and what the world would be like if all cops were giant people (or at least very very strong). Jimmy noticed Elijah's painting --- the cops were painted navy-blue and were carrying night-sticks and standing around a bank, and they were all very very tall under a cool lemon-sky. Elijah explained that no one would ever rob such a bank, since the guarding policemen were too large to get around. Jimmy laughed and replied to Elijah, "It's true, the world would just feel 'safer' if cops were simply bigger/stronger!" Jimmy thought about the infamous crime spree of the brutish mafia ghoul Bane (a steroids-pumped maniac who confounded the D.C. police) and how 'giant cops' would have made everyone feel 'safer.'
Jimmy asked Elijah where he got the idea of 'giant cops' protecting D.C., and Elijah looked up at him eerily and replied, "Sometimes I think there's no such thing as God, since there's so many poor black people and crime in the city. So if there's no God, maybe what the world needs is just people who are specially chosen to be the best and most worthy cops!" Jimmy didn't want to look into Elijah's eyes and explain the social horrors of the Rodney King police-hysteria video catalyzed Los Angeles Race Riots of 1992. He didn't want to tell the young and optimistic Elijah about the 'psychiatric' value of police-inquisition study themed films such as Internal Affairs, a story about corrupt policemen. He wondered if all the media buzz created by the celebrity endorsement of Tom Cruise would actually get to these inner-city kids who needed (more than anything) simple 'enchantment' in a profit-obsessed America. Jimmy decided to hype Tom Cruise in the Washington Gazette as 'Captain Capitalism' (a Trump-dominion 'superhero').
====
The City of Lost Children (Film)
Yellow Journalism
The biggest criticism Trump is receiving (already) is that he will be a watered-down version of the last economics-minded celebrity-president (Ronald Reagan).
What President Trump really needs is a 'pro-federalism Frank Capra' on his side.
====
Jimmy was a hard-working idealistic reporter for the Washington Gazette given a special assignment to investigate the new inner-city children's water-paint center established by the prominent American celebrity Tom Cruise, star of the patriotism-themed popular films Born on the 4th of July and Lions for Lambs. The center was called the Washington Waterpaint Warehouse, and it was supposed to be a vehicle enabling its primary sponsor, Tom Cruise, to market the value of citizenry-engaged social activism as it relates to race-related poverty, free-speech, and pluralism. Cruise intended to prove that celebrities care about democratic values, since they endorse organizations/institutions personally important to them (e.g., Church of Scientology).
Jimmy took his notebook, his special gold Cross-pen, and his Nikon camera. He wanted to do a good job on the assignment, since he was up for a promotion. When he got to the Warehouse, he noticed multiple teachers-chaperones watching over about 30 inner-city minority children working on water-paintings. The supplies and licenses were all taken care of by the Tom Cruise Foundation (a new social outreach group devoted to the promotion of American values through philanthropy networks and politically-conscious media marketing). The Tom Cruise Foundation was the big social-outreach rival group to the Leo DiCaprio Foundation (another celebrity-established social activism group but this one devoted specifically and only to eco-activism).
Jimmy perused the colorful and delightful paintings of the various kids in the Warehouse that afternoon. He took pictures and spoke with the participating kids (all recruited with the help of social work groups and children's welfare organizations as well as the Washington Board of Education) as well as the teachers-chaperones who seemed very involved and dedicated to the work at hand (and no one minded the news reporters and cameras!). Tom Cruise was not present on that day, and Jimmy wished he was, so he could take good photos and snag a terrific interview. "C'est la vie!" Jimmy said. Jimmy walked around with his camera looking at the kids' paintings until he came upon a very strange little boy.
Jimmy noticed the young African-American boy with closely-cropped hair and a semi-decent white t-shirt painting what seemed to be giant policemen. The boy told Jimmy his name (Elijah) and explained he was interested in cops and what the world would be like if all cops were giant people (or at least very very strong). Jimmy noticed Elijah's painting --- the cops were painted navy-blue and were carrying night-sticks and standing around a bank, and they were all very very tall under a cool lemon-sky. Elijah explained that no one would ever rob such a bank, since the guarding policemen were too large to get around. Jimmy laughed and replied to Elijah, "It's true, the world would just feel 'safer' if cops were simply bigger/stronger!" Jimmy thought about the infamous crime spree of the brutish mafia ghoul Bane (a steroids-pumped maniac who confounded the D.C. police) and how 'giant cops' would have made everyone feel 'safer.'
Jimmy asked Elijah where he got the idea of 'giant cops' protecting D.C., and Elijah looked up at him eerily and replied, "Sometimes I think there's no such thing as God, since there's so many poor black people and crime in the city. So if there's no God, maybe what the world needs is just people who are specially chosen to be the best and most worthy cops!" Jimmy didn't want to look into Elijah's eyes and explain the social horrors of the Rodney King police-hysteria video catalyzed Los Angeles Race Riots of 1992. He didn't want to tell the young and optimistic Elijah about the 'psychiatric' value of police-inquisition study themed films such as Internal Affairs, a story about corrupt policemen. He wondered if all the media buzz created by the celebrity endorsement of Tom Cruise would actually get to these inner-city kids who needed (more than anything) simple 'enchantment' in a profit-obsessed America. Jimmy decided to hype Tom Cruise in the Washington Gazette as 'Captain Capitalism' (a Trump-dominion 'superhero').
====
The City of Lost Children (Film)
Yellow Journalism
