Half Formed Thoughts

(All of these deserve their own post, but I do not have the motivation to put them out there as fully formed essays.)

1) The Hunger Games Discussion

2) Old White Guys and Reproductive Rights

3) Food Fascism

4) Zombies, The Upcoming Apocalypse and Sexual Violence

1) The Hunger Games Discussion

TEA and I have been talking about going to see The Hunger Games and I have been insisting that he reads the books before he sees the films. I called up TEA's mom (who is a great mom and an awesome person and while we are having a disagreement, at no point do I want to suggest that she is wrong, rather, we are of differing opinions) and talked with her about this. She was against TEA reading the books last year, while I thought TEA could handle them. Being a year later, I thought that TEA's mother would be more amenable to the film and book. I was wrong. She was concerned because she is understanding that it is "children hunting children" and while there is some of that, there is a lot more to the stories. However, you cannot say that to someone who has not read the books. They just would not understand. Taking a different tact, I asked her if she would be against TEA being assigned "Lord of the Flies" which she said that she would not be. She made some very legitimate arguments about why she did not want her child to see the film or read the book, throwing around the word barbaric, and wondering about the state of mind of anyone who would be interested in this series. So, I am not going to take TEA to see The Hunger Games and I do not suppose that he is going to read the books. It is disappointing that he is not going to be able to take part in this shared cultural event.

2) Old White Guys and Reproductive Rights

I have had a couple of conversations over the past week about reproductive choice and I made the statement that I have no right to an opinion. This is not to say that I do not have an opinion, (Safe, legal, rare.) but that my point does not matter. I am a single (and sterile) man. I am not getting anyone pregnant (nor do I want to...after a certain age, having babies is redacted----------------------------------------------------redacted. Sorry, if that offended you, but it is how I feel.). However, there are a bunch of men (and some women) who are elected to office that believe that their G*d has told them that the rights of a collection of cells outweigh the rights of the person that is acting as their incubator. That is their right. They are elected and the presumption is that they will vote according to their conscience in order to serve those who elected him.

I am an old white guy, I am past my breeding period, and it is none of my business to tell (or to preach) other people what to do with their bodies. Am I wrong for this belief or are those who are elected wrong?

3) Food Fascism

I have opinions about food. I am a huge fan a locavorism and knowing who you are buying your food from. If I ever spent the time working on this, I would talk (at greater length than I have already) about the necessity of an area having great farmers' markets. I have been to places that have Markets that people rave about (links withheld because I do not feel like being any more of a passive aggressive douchebag than I already am) that make me laugh with the paucity of selection. Yes, they are opinions, however, they do have some basis in fact. Food is a matter of choice though and people are entitled to their choices.

Then there are people like Mark Bittman who is actively asking for the government to interfere in our food choices. (For the record, I am so over Bittman and his sometimes peculiar obsessions with certain things. Yes, some people love him...I am not one of those people. If I want to read a pedantic douche write about food, I will read Alton Brown. At this point, I prefer Michael Ruhlman to either of the previous guys.) This strikes me as...less than sane. (Also, this was something that irked me yesterday, and then when Reason (yes, Reason) has something about this...well...fascism...I felt like I was going to burst with rage.)

I do not eat a lot of sugar and I do not eat a lot of processed food but I am not going to ask my government to insert themselves into my pantry and 'fridge. Most of the sauces that I make and love are full of butter and salt and tastier for it and if I were to have it every day, I would be horribly obese (instead of the moderately obese that I am now), but I do not because I have been educated on what is right, proper, and tasty.

Therefore, Bittman's obesity epidemic is not a problem with sugar so much but with education, and that is another topic for another time. However, Bittman is a fascist and his food is (and this is worse than than being called a fascist) largely boring for the bourgeois with little authenticity and less heart.

4) Zombies, The Upcoming Apocalypse and Sexual Violence

Are you over zombies yet? What about apocalypse scenarios? I have been continuing my obsessive consumption with "end of the world" scenarios and every one of them has the "rape gang" and I am wondering why.

Why at the end of the world would a group of men who is struggling to survive a sh*tton of other issues decide to use sexual violence to persecute their war on the survivors? There has to be a reason for this trope to be so common, and if I had the time and inclination, I would investigate it. My hope is that if the end of time did come among us, the rape gangs would be one of the things that the storytellers overestimated in the first place.

Are you ready for the zombie apocalypse?

Would you be able to survive the zombie apocalypse? Really? You think this? Take this internet quiz and find out. I'll wait.

How did you do?

Still confident that you will survive?

Well, NY Mag had a great group of articles on what to do if there was an outbreak in NYC. The feature includes sections on:

• Should you stay or should you go?
• Knowing Your Enemies
• What to Loot from the Met
• What to keep in your emergency bag.
• Where to seek refuge
• How the zombie brain works
• Who will in the war? (For which, you should prepare by reading World War Z)
• The Golden Rules
• What Weapons You Should Use

The Centers for Disease Control also has good information on what to do in the event of an outbreak. (No, seriously. That is really from the CDC. No, I do not know what else they were working on. Yes, they did kind of screw the pooch in The Walking Dead. I know, President Perry would never let this type of tomfoolery go on.)

The Weather Channel also provided information on "How to Weather the Zombie Apocalypse". Yes, I know they are taking it very seriously when they use an obvious pun.

So, why do I care?

Well, I want to convince HJ77 that she is ready for both versions of Dawn of the Dead as well as 28 Days Later as part of our Halloween festivities.