we don’t take kindly to social ignorance…… June 13, 2008

I am a big fan of South Park.  It is a well written show that critiques current events, politics, and society, while also making you laugh.  The fact that its animation and that the main characters are 9 year olds allows the show to get away with presenting controversial subjects.  I enjoy using them as a point of reference as readily as I would any academic article, book, or news show.  

In fact, in my Junior year of college I took a seminar on international relations (which I hate, but it was required) and I made a point every week of referencing a South Park episode (or sometimes even Family Guy or the Simpsons).  My professor didn’t like that at all and she took me aside after class one week and told me I had to stop using them as points of reference and that I should watch the news or read the paper instead.  I of course politely told her that I refuse to watch the news and that shows like South Park deserve just as much credit as the shows that can be seen on any news station.  

I have refused to watch any news channels after Anna Nicole Smith died and they had non-stop coverage of every little detail.  They had to interrupt the Anna Nicole story to bring up quickly that there was a suicide bombing in the middle east.  Because obviously Anna Nicole is the more newsworthy story.  I needed to know what drug combination killed her, or who her baby’s daddy was, why should I care if a whole group of people died because of a politically/religiously motivated bombing?  As long as the news was reporting crap then I could keep using “crap” like South Park in my arguments.

Needless to say, I kept on bringing up those South Park episodes and my professor slapped me with an A- at the end of the semester (which my conspiracy theorist mind is convinced she strove to find a way to do this to me every class I had with her since freshman year). 

Anyways, in continuing with my string of posts regarding race issues in this country, I figured I would provide you with some links to some racially themed episodes of South Park.  If you’re a fan of the show you have probably already seen them but I suggest that you watch them again, as they portray some of the points I have been trying to make.  If you’re not a fan of the show yet I would urge you to check out some episodes.  The show’s website has made available all 12 seasons for free streaming online so they are pretty easy to access.  You can find them all here.  

I think its important to expose yourself to all kinds of information and media.  Shows like South Park help to facilitate a forum for dealing with otherwise offensive issues in a way that also makes us laugh, and therefore seem less offensive.  They definitely deserve the same reputation as other programs on TV, as one that challenges the way people and society behave as a whole.  

The links below connect to the episode guide for each respective episode.  It provides a brief summary of what the episode is about, clips of key ’scenes’, as well as the link to view the full episode.  Please check them out and enjoy!!!

here comes the neighborhood

chef goes nanners

with apologies to jesse jackson

goobacks

I couldn’t help but wonder….. May 30, 2008

Today the Sex and the City movie opens all across America.  I am what you would call a fan of the show.  I have seen all six seasons and more than once.  I’ve laughed and yes, even cried during an episode or two.  I am however, extremely pissed about this movie coming out and I have several reasons for feeling so.

The first would be that I felt the series ended exceptionally well.  It concluded in a way that there really is no need to find out what happens after.  As far as I am concerned this film is just an attempt to make more money off of a very successful series.  That kind of crap always pisses me off.  They are trying to force more out of something in an attempt to make more money and I feel that projects like that often take away from what came before.

The second is that I find tremendous issue with the fact that the premise of the movie revolves around Carrie marrying Big.  I in fact can say that I HATE that plot line.  The relationship between Carrie and Big carried through the entire series and it had its ups and downs.  They were both getting older and had both experienced their issues with commitment.  Big had been married twice before and Carrie had attempted to get married but found she couldn’t go through with it.  I enjoyed the end of the series because despite it all they found each other again and in a way seemed to understand that their relationship wasn’t the fairy-tale romance that every girl (minus a few of us of course) thinks is going to happen to them.  I enjoyed the show because it was real.  It showed that relationships aren’t always like they are in the movies or romance novels but yet here they are turning it into that very same thing!

By now I am sure you are all starting to understand my aversion to the concept of marriage.  I have always felt this way in my life.  No one ever believes that I truly feel like I do not ever want to be married.  There is honestly only one person in my life that has ever made me feel that maybe someday MAYBE I would like to enjoy that type of celebration.  But even that fact irritates me a little.  One boy comes into my life and I feel a little high from the chemicals that the so-called feelings of love release in my brain and I drop some of the most important things that I believe in, going against my principles simply because someone else made me happy for awhile.  Well luckily that situation ended and I was able to return again to the world of sanity and logic.  I feel that marriage is not something that is really needed in today’s society.  It doesn’t really serve any purpose other than the fact that it makes people “happy”.  Anyways I’m losing my point….back to why this movie is pissing me off…..

The third is that so many girls/women are so god damn excited for it.  I can’t think of a worse movie genre other than the “chick flick”.  There are very few of them that I can even sit through.  I like to see things explode.  I like laughing at stupid sexual humor.  I like seeing aliens battle predators, robots, laser guns, spaceships and ridiculous visual effects.  I like movies about comic book heroes.  And I HATE when they throw a love story into the mix of them.  I am all for gratuitous sex scenes at the conclusion of a crazy fight scene…..but all this love crap?  Honestly?  If you’re going to have a genre of the “chick flick” or “romantic comedy” leave the mushy love crap in those horrible movies, stop polluting the rest of the film world.  

Why do females give into these fairy tales?  Do we honestly still think about being a pretty pink princesse rescued by a prince charming?  Its absolutely absurd and the more we peddle this crap to our daughters and each other the more you will see females searching for something that just can’t exist anymore.  I see it as a major source of unhappiness for women and a source of conflict when they actually find themselves in a relationship.  If you want to be saved, save yourself.  IF I do ever decide to raise a child (most hopefully through adoption rather than childbirth) I don’t think I want to expose her to the silly world of Disney princesses and bullshit fairy tales that give us the hidden message that we should just look pretty and wait for a big strong man to come and take care of us someday.  I think that we as women as a whole need to examine our “culture” and start to make some changes, primarily by leaving behind the notions fed to us in films such as these.

[*If you're a female (or a male secure about himself enough to appreciate strong, intelligent women) reading this I would look into a series of books called "Girls to the Rescue" by Bruce Lansky.  They are a collection of stories about females being the heroes.  They were written/collected by a father who was bothered by the fact that none of the stories he was telling his daughter were teaching her to be strong and independent (and props to him for noticing).]

And finally for those who know the show somewhat well:

The fourth and last reason is that I am a Samantha (with some tom-boy Miranda qualities thrown in).  I don’t like relationships.  I’m sexually experimental and I am most happy having sex “like a man”, that is with a lack of emotional attachment.  I’m independent and like to stand on my own.  This movie is mostly going to center around Carrie I am sure and all of the above mentioned bullshit that I find issue with.  I never enjoyed the weird fashion, the “fabulous” times they had at ridiculously expensive restaurants and bars, or did I ever find most of the men they were with exceptionally attractive.  I enjoyed the writing and the fact that the show embodied what women do talk about when they are together and the everyday issues that they can face in the world, especially when it comes to sex.

In the end I will most likely end up seeing the movie, but needless to say my expectations are not very high……..