them and that and our center

The problem we have when we sit down and measure our ideals and vote is, unfortunately, the most glaring weakness we have as humans. We think about what we want, we think about who we’d rather have a beer with, and we think about nothing but next month or next year. That process almost makes sense – our community and environment seem exigent. Yet, it’s our greatest failure as members of a larger community. We aren’t voting for us. I’ve got no vote that I can cast at my age that will have any significant value on what happens to me in the next twenty years. An established position will remain established with minor invasions of inconvenience. My children, neighbors, friends, and myriad places in the World are what I’m deciding every election. If you’re able, and it’s a most difficult task, think about how you’d vote if you could remove yourself, body and soul, from the traumas of the day. Imagine a struggle for work, think about how we’ll deal with the issues beyond our border, wonder what it’s like to live in shadows as an immigrant – that’s what you’re deciding. Those are the choices you’re making. Make the effort to decide whether or not what you have is more or less than others, whether the optics you see life through are actually representative of our country and the people that struggle everyday. The funny thing is this: we don’t write the narrative, we only write the prologue. What we’ll read in twenty year’s time will be the rest of book, and if it turns out to be a crap read than we can only blame ourselves. To paraphrase someone, when times are horrible and life sucks, we tend to turn that those things that are most important to us – sometimes what’s most important to us isn’t anything close to what will remedy the ills.

On a lighter (sort of) note: Charlie Wilson’s War is a fantastic movie. I’m catching up on the grand films of last year and have given both Charlie and Michael Clayton a go. Michael Clayton was quite good. primarily for Clooney – and vaguely for Swinton – and I held it in higher esteem until I saw Charlie. There are three things about Charlie Wilson’s War that stood out. First, we get Hanks and Roberts holding down solid roles (Hanks more so than an undeveloped Roberts’ character). Two, we get to see the difference between really good actors and really great actors – Philip Seymour Hoffman is absolutely amazing. He has had so many minor roles that have exploded on screen (Boogie Nights, Punch Drunk Love) that the Oscar in Capote was no surprise. He’s probably better in this than Capote and I can’t even remember if he was nominated for it. After seeing Bardem in No Country I question his ‘supporting actor’ nod. Hoffman should have won if everyone was in the right category. And finally, I love Amy Adams. The roles keep piling up and the ability is mega. Her role in Junebug was stunning and this is simply more of the same. Great acting, great film…lots of laughs – strange as that may seem.

love to all.

t