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Dark City and the Beautiful Life, a Response to Matthiasrat
8 years ago
Glimpse The Thoughts of Jack the Beaver
A friend of mine (you can guess who by the title of this journal) wrote a journal I read while at work. The world has become a place of violence, politics are now a contact sport, and according to someone at the TSA bash, we're headed back to the violence of the 60s and 70s.
My first reaction was "Headed back? We're already knee deep in it."
I decided I had to write about it. I had to make my argument. People are rapidly becoming unable to appreciate beauty due to our politicizing everything. If we do not change, we will stagnate if not die off emotionally. I came to that conclusion while reading Matthiasrat's journal.
This journal though also got me thinking about a movie of all things. One of my favorite movies of all time and one I recently showed to my friend
tireaniwin. The amazing and amazingly underrated Dark City. Director's cut, not the cruddy theatrical version.
Thinking about Dark City made me realize what I was afraid of. Not the violence that seems to permeate politics, that has sadly been around since long before I was born. What frightens me is the increasing group think of those interested in politics and the more set in stone, us-them mentality that people seem to be affected with. And like Matthiasrat, I am afraid we are making everything political, and thus dividing everyone into us or them. We are becoming the Strangers.
Who are the Strangers? They are the main villains of Dark City. If you haven't seen the movie, this is your only warning. Spoilers follow. Alright, with that out of the way. The Strangers are parasitic aliens who are dying off. They've kidnapped hundreds of people and stuffed them inside a self-contained city in outer space. The question is, why are they doing this?
Well the Strangers exist as a hive mind. While individuals do exist in the hive, all of their thoughts and minds are linked. They are lead by Mr. Book, basically the conductor to their orchestra. They all share one goal, to survive. They think humans will give them what they need to survive. What they need is some aspect of the human sole, something never stated. The general theory is that they seek creativity, but I have a different theory. I think the Strangers are looking for beauty.
The Strangers have no...appreciation for emotion. They have know need for beauty. Everything they have, they have for its function. Everything in their shared existence works towards their goal, finding that element of the human sole which will help them survive.
In modern political groups I see the Strangers. When we turn everything political, we turn everything into us-them, we turn those who are not "us" into the enemy. Like the Strangers we keep them at a distance, we don't involve ourselves in them. If something bad happens to them we don't react. They are the enemy, emotions like pity exist only for those on OUR side.
Most tellingly the only time we see most of the Strangers express an emotion, it's anger. And what is causing it? The main hero, John Murrdoch, who is about to change their way of life. He is the one they seek for their salvation, and yet when he is brought before them, the Strangers argue he needs to die. Better to kill him than change.
The Strangers are the concept of Groupthink taken to the Nth degree. The goals of the individual do not exist, all is subsumed by the needs of the group. According to Irving Janus, in groupthink morality is never questioned. Any actions taken for the goal of the group are automatically assumed to be morally good. The Strangers have kidnapped a city full of people and see nothing wrong with experimenting on them. The Strangers must live, so all else is morally acceptable.
Finally in a group dominated by groupthink their are a few very important roles people fulfill. The Leader, in this case Mr. Book, who sets the goal for the group and never allows an outside opinion. When Mr. Book decides to let Mr. Hand get a memory injection only one Stranger speaks up. Mr. Book quickly silences him. Next up you've got the thought police, those most loyal to the leader and who keep the others in line. Here we see Mr. Hand and Mr. Sleep fit this role. They do what Mr. Book says without question, even if it might be harmful for them. Finally you've got the chorus, those who allow themselves to be guided by their leaders. Eventually they are all singing in unison.
When I see people allowing politics to creep into all aspects of their lives, I see them becoming the Strangers. Cold and impersonal, never questioning their views and allowing themselves to be lead by whoever they designate the leader of their group. I once made the mistake of disagreeing with a firmly Conservative friend over their views on...something. Honestly I don't remember. This individual, a very rational and fair minded man, went balistic at me for having the audacity to question their iron clad beliefs.
It frightened me to put it mildly.
And on the flip side I speak regularly to a far-Left furry college proffesor on Twitter. This is one of the smartest men I know. But every few days I see him go on a rant about how the Republicans alone are responsible for the extreme divide between the left and the right. When I give him examples of Democrats doing the same thing he never responds well.
In Dark City the Strangers rewrite people's memories to make them remember what the Strangers want us to remember. In the real world we rewrite our own memories to fit with our conformation bias: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/70.....ab2a9e67c4.pdf
Like Matthiasrat I used to discuss politics. I don't anymore, because of the extreme reactions I see from the Left and the Right. In the long run I see us becoming like the Strangers. No longer angry at those who are not like us. No instead we no longer see them as people. Just as things, things to be studied from a distance. I worry we may be close to that mindset already as we read articles of people trying to politicize Hurricane Henry. Yes really
So what do we do about it? Well in Dark City the Strangers are looking for some aspect of the human soul to save themselves from their own death. For me the aspect of the human soul they're looking for is the ability to understand and appreciate beauty.
While I was impressed by the Eclipse, that is not what I think of when I think of beautiful celestial events. I turn to the stars themselves. A sea of lights, burning for thousands of years, with beams hitting us a millennia after they first came off the star. I think of ice volcano on Ceres, spewing frozen chemicals into the dark of space. I look at Saturn, this vast and magnificent ringed world, and remember it can float in a bathtub. Yes really.
Then I look at our world. In the region of Jalapao, Brazil, you will find a vast desert of orange sand and lonely trees. What makes that special? In Jalapao the desert only exists at the top of the cliffs. If you climb down the cliffs, you find yourself in a dense forest. The desert is above the forest.
In Palau their is a lake with thousands of jellyfish, stingless, who literally light up when sunglight hits them. If you find that lake, you can swim among the stars.
In Madagascar their is a place known as Tsingy National Park. It is one of the most hostile land masses on Earth with millions of razor-sharp limestone spikes filling it. It is so dangerous we have yet to successfully explore it. And yet every time a team tries, they discover new animals found no where else on Earth.
I believe in God. I believe the ability to appreciate beauty is from God. I believe when we see these beautiful things and they stir our souls, the anger we hold fades away. Groupthink survives by creating a utilitarian mindset, where all things are secondary to the goal of the group. Beauty is what we appreciate outside of our goals, what inspires us and stirs us. In the face of true beauty groupthink fades away.
Because we won't agree on what is beautiful. Some will find one thing beautiful, others will find it hideous. But as long as we have the ability to appreciate beauty we can't be forced into agreeing. On some fundamental level if we find something hideous and someone else tells us it's beautiful, even if they're a part of our group we won't agree.
I find myself agreeing with
Heavensteed. Matthiasrat says one of the things he likes about this fandom is that it isn't political. But as Heaven Steed and I have discussed, it's becoming that way. You see politics appearing more in how people behave in the fandom, in the journals they write or the art that they post. We have furry Nazis now for God's sake. I never thought I'd have to write those words.
On the whole the fandom is very Left wing but with a notable Right wing presence. And increasingly those groups are making their voices heard and their hatred for the other apparent. So how do we counteract this? For me, I look for the beauty in both groups.
I find animals a testament to the Love and never ending creativity of God. And every time I see someone's fursona, I see the animal they identify with, I see that same love and creativity in them. And that is beautiful. The fact we have such a love for the natural world is beautiful. That we want to show our love for our favorite animals, or bring attention to under represented animals is beautiful.
So how do we not become the Strangers? We realize we can still appreciate beauty. We acknowledge it can be found anywhere, regardless of political orientation. And we look for it.
Look for beauty. Find your own distinct pleasures. And relish that you can still appreciate it. No politics can take beauty from you.
My first reaction was "Headed back? We're already knee deep in it."
I decided I had to write about it. I had to make my argument. People are rapidly becoming unable to appreciate beauty due to our politicizing everything. If we do not change, we will stagnate if not die off emotionally. I came to that conclusion while reading Matthiasrat's journal.
This journal though also got me thinking about a movie of all things. One of my favorite movies of all time and one I recently showed to my friend
tireaniwin. The amazing and amazingly underrated Dark City. Director's cut, not the cruddy theatrical version.Thinking about Dark City made me realize what I was afraid of. Not the violence that seems to permeate politics, that has sadly been around since long before I was born. What frightens me is the increasing group think of those interested in politics and the more set in stone, us-them mentality that people seem to be affected with. And like Matthiasrat, I am afraid we are making everything political, and thus dividing everyone into us or them. We are becoming the Strangers.
Who are the Strangers? They are the main villains of Dark City. If you haven't seen the movie, this is your only warning. Spoilers follow. Alright, with that out of the way. The Strangers are parasitic aliens who are dying off. They've kidnapped hundreds of people and stuffed them inside a self-contained city in outer space. The question is, why are they doing this?
Well the Strangers exist as a hive mind. While individuals do exist in the hive, all of their thoughts and minds are linked. They are lead by Mr. Book, basically the conductor to their orchestra. They all share one goal, to survive. They think humans will give them what they need to survive. What they need is some aspect of the human sole, something never stated. The general theory is that they seek creativity, but I have a different theory. I think the Strangers are looking for beauty.
The Strangers have no...appreciation for emotion. They have know need for beauty. Everything they have, they have for its function. Everything in their shared existence works towards their goal, finding that element of the human sole which will help them survive.
In modern political groups I see the Strangers. When we turn everything political, we turn everything into us-them, we turn those who are not "us" into the enemy. Like the Strangers we keep them at a distance, we don't involve ourselves in them. If something bad happens to them we don't react. They are the enemy, emotions like pity exist only for those on OUR side.
Most tellingly the only time we see most of the Strangers express an emotion, it's anger. And what is causing it? The main hero, John Murrdoch, who is about to change their way of life. He is the one they seek for their salvation, and yet when he is brought before them, the Strangers argue he needs to die. Better to kill him than change.
The Strangers are the concept of Groupthink taken to the Nth degree. The goals of the individual do not exist, all is subsumed by the needs of the group. According to Irving Janus, in groupthink morality is never questioned. Any actions taken for the goal of the group are automatically assumed to be morally good. The Strangers have kidnapped a city full of people and see nothing wrong with experimenting on them. The Strangers must live, so all else is morally acceptable.
Finally in a group dominated by groupthink their are a few very important roles people fulfill. The Leader, in this case Mr. Book, who sets the goal for the group and never allows an outside opinion. When Mr. Book decides to let Mr. Hand get a memory injection only one Stranger speaks up. Mr. Book quickly silences him. Next up you've got the thought police, those most loyal to the leader and who keep the others in line. Here we see Mr. Hand and Mr. Sleep fit this role. They do what Mr. Book says without question, even if it might be harmful for them. Finally you've got the chorus, those who allow themselves to be guided by their leaders. Eventually they are all singing in unison.
When I see people allowing politics to creep into all aspects of their lives, I see them becoming the Strangers. Cold and impersonal, never questioning their views and allowing themselves to be lead by whoever they designate the leader of their group. I once made the mistake of disagreeing with a firmly Conservative friend over their views on...something. Honestly I don't remember. This individual, a very rational and fair minded man, went balistic at me for having the audacity to question their iron clad beliefs.
It frightened me to put it mildly.
And on the flip side I speak regularly to a far-Left furry college proffesor on Twitter. This is one of the smartest men I know. But every few days I see him go on a rant about how the Republicans alone are responsible for the extreme divide between the left and the right. When I give him examples of Democrats doing the same thing he never responds well.
In Dark City the Strangers rewrite people's memories to make them remember what the Strangers want us to remember. In the real world we rewrite our own memories to fit with our conformation bias: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/70.....ab2a9e67c4.pdf
Like Matthiasrat I used to discuss politics. I don't anymore, because of the extreme reactions I see from the Left and the Right. In the long run I see us becoming like the Strangers. No longer angry at those who are not like us. No instead we no longer see them as people. Just as things, things to be studied from a distance. I worry we may be close to that mindset already as we read articles of people trying to politicize Hurricane Henry. Yes really
So what do we do about it? Well in Dark City the Strangers are looking for some aspect of the human soul to save themselves from their own death. For me the aspect of the human soul they're looking for is the ability to understand and appreciate beauty.
While I was impressed by the Eclipse, that is not what I think of when I think of beautiful celestial events. I turn to the stars themselves. A sea of lights, burning for thousands of years, with beams hitting us a millennia after they first came off the star. I think of ice volcano on Ceres, spewing frozen chemicals into the dark of space. I look at Saturn, this vast and magnificent ringed world, and remember it can float in a bathtub. Yes really.
Then I look at our world. In the region of Jalapao, Brazil, you will find a vast desert of orange sand and lonely trees. What makes that special? In Jalapao the desert only exists at the top of the cliffs. If you climb down the cliffs, you find yourself in a dense forest. The desert is above the forest.
In Palau their is a lake with thousands of jellyfish, stingless, who literally light up when sunglight hits them. If you find that lake, you can swim among the stars.
In Madagascar their is a place known as Tsingy National Park. It is one of the most hostile land masses on Earth with millions of razor-sharp limestone spikes filling it. It is so dangerous we have yet to successfully explore it. And yet every time a team tries, they discover new animals found no where else on Earth.
I believe in God. I believe the ability to appreciate beauty is from God. I believe when we see these beautiful things and they stir our souls, the anger we hold fades away. Groupthink survives by creating a utilitarian mindset, where all things are secondary to the goal of the group. Beauty is what we appreciate outside of our goals, what inspires us and stirs us. In the face of true beauty groupthink fades away.
Because we won't agree on what is beautiful. Some will find one thing beautiful, others will find it hideous. But as long as we have the ability to appreciate beauty we can't be forced into agreeing. On some fundamental level if we find something hideous and someone else tells us it's beautiful, even if they're a part of our group we won't agree.
I find myself agreeing with
Heavensteed. Matthiasrat says one of the things he likes about this fandom is that it isn't political. But as Heaven Steed and I have discussed, it's becoming that way. You see politics appearing more in how people behave in the fandom, in the journals they write or the art that they post. We have furry Nazis now for God's sake. I never thought I'd have to write those words.On the whole the fandom is very Left wing but with a notable Right wing presence. And increasingly those groups are making their voices heard and their hatred for the other apparent. So how do we counteract this? For me, I look for the beauty in both groups.
I find animals a testament to the Love and never ending creativity of God. And every time I see someone's fursona, I see the animal they identify with, I see that same love and creativity in them. And that is beautiful. The fact we have such a love for the natural world is beautiful. That we want to show our love for our favorite animals, or bring attention to under represented animals is beautiful.
So how do we not become the Strangers? We realize we can still appreciate beauty. We acknowledge it can be found anywhere, regardless of political orientation. And we look for it.
Look for beauty. Find your own distinct pleasures. And relish that you can still appreciate it. No politics can take beauty from you.
The only thing I actually disagree with you here is in your interpretation of my comment about the furry fandom. I never said I love the furry fandom because it is not political. I love it because it is not political by nature and that it has allowed me to make friends with many people whose life experiences are so different from my own and whose understanding of the world is so different from my own. It has forced me to acknowledge that I do not know everything and that I cannot judge all situations from my own limited experience. Politics has long been an issue in the fandom (look up the Burned Furs if you want to see how far back it goes), and there is definitely a strong Left-wing bias in much of the fandom that has made a toxic mix with Identity politics (and is the source of two of the friendships I lost). There are also pockets of right-wing furs in the fandom and I know a good number and count many among my friends. But I count many liberals among my friends too, as well as folks who fit neither description.
Politics does not have to be toxic but that seems to be the more common state of mankind throughout history. That there is this also in Furry is no surprise. But the interest in anthropomorphics by itself does not have a political nature. That is just part of mankind and what we bring to it.
Dominus tecum
I know what Burned Furs are because I spent one deeply unpleasant evening hearing about them. It's one reason I've never gotten as deep into the furry fandom as I would like to, because I can't get past that niggling reminder their are nasty little people who will abuse ideas I love and who will take away the beauty I see from this.
Out of curiosity, what would you add to my listing of beautiful things. What in the natural world or what created would you see as beautiful?
Other people being idiots never bothered me or took away the beauty of anything. It is up to me to determine how I will react to something, not them.
I try to find beauty in everything I can. Get me out into the natural world and there's beauty everywhere I look. Lots of beauty in the man-made world too and I marvel at quite a lot. My most recent journal might help gauge that.
Dominus tecum