#No Context Crow No. 94

[corvidsofthedeep]

No Context Crow #94: Crow Gets a Call

Art by Corey Lee Marvin.

[mightyflamethrower]

Question:

If ALL white people can be held responsible for slavery and the Jim Crow era, two institutions that prevailed many decades ago, why shouldn't ALL Muslims' be held accountable for the terroristic acts of ISIS and HAMAS. Especially when we are speaking of acts that are occurring right now??

Don't get me wrong. I don't believe that they should be, but I don't believe it for the very same reasons that I reject the idea that ALL whites are responsible for racism.

The problem with CRT is not WHAT it teaches, but rather, what it fails to teach. Black History is taught without any sense of real context or proportionality.

They do not teach that during the period America was using slaves so were the rest of the world. The Chinese had slaves. Russians had slaves, Africans had slaves, and native Americans had slaves. Believe it or not......in some instances even slaves had slaves. The use of human chattel has a history that goes back tens of thousands of years. Slavery, during the first half of the 19th century, was practiced in virtually every notable nation on the planet. Ironically, the only exception to that was Germany. But....hey made up for it later. The only remarkable fact about American slavery is that WE outlawed it many decades before most other nations.

Of all the African slaves brought to the new world only 6 percent were brought to what is today the United States of America. The other 94 percent were sent to Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Central and South America. Brazil didn't outlaw slavery until 1890. And, you could still buy an indigenous person in Mexico as late as 1915. All of those countries were governed mostly by people of color. The hands of POSs are not clean when it comes to slavery.

We don't mind that people are being taught the truth. We just want them to be taught all of it.

Your thoughts??

[icemankazansky]

Which Fics?

I was tagged by @stusbunker to do some navel gazing. Enjoy.

Which of your fics…

…did you think would get a bigger reaction/audience than it got?

I was surprised by the reaction to Space Cases, but only in context. I wrote five stories for Yuletide last year, and since Space Cases was from the biggest fandom, I assumed it would be the most popular. It was not. It did well, but my most popular fic from last years Yuletide was Ship to Shore for Top Gun.

…got a better reaction than you expected?

Carry You. That fic just EXPLODED. I started it in May, and it already has just shy of 2700 hits, as well as 94 kudos and 94 comments. This is a THUNDERHEART fic, y'all. I know it's an AU, but this does not happen in my tiny fandom.

... is your funniest?

My humor is more of the dry, soft joke variety, but I always kind of liked the last joke in Love Game.

…is your darkest or angstiest?

A Brief History of Time (A Love Story)

…is your absolute favorite?

Come on. Everyone who's been paying even a little bit of attention knows it's Marrow.

…is your least favorite?

I don't have least favorite children. It gives them a complex.

…was the easiest to write?

…was hardest to write?

All of them.

…has your favorite lines/exchange/paragraph? (share it!)

It's Marrow again:

“Didn’t figure you’d come in today,” Crow Horse said. “I’m pretty sure getting shot earns you a day off.”

“I was off yesterday,” Ray said peevishly. “Most of yesterday.”

“The part of yesterday after you got shot?”

…have you reread the most?

Probably the Homecoming Series.

…would you recommend to someone reading your work for the first time?

It depends on what fandoms they're interested in. Top Gun, the Storm Series; Thunderheart, Marrow and/or Hunger; MCU, the weight of my heart is measured in carats, My Body, the Hand Grenade, I was an eagle, and you were a dove; anything else, just ask.

…are you most proud of?

Marrow.

Tagging: @boasamishipper @carlamlee @duranarchy-in-the-uk @academicgangster @victimofthemusic @hollyslowly @phospheneswhenyoureyes

[mst3kproject]

She Freak

Oh, boy, this is going to be a fucking delight.  If the 1932 movie Freaks were Invasion of the Saucer Men, She Freak would be Attack of the The Eye Creatures.  Freaks is a very troubling movie, but it does go to great effort to present the denizens of the sideshow as human beings who can be loving, greedy, heartbroken, or naïve as much as anyone else, and who find family in each other when the rest of the world rejects them – and must be very careful who they let into that club.  The horror of the story is derived as much from their predicament as from the fate of Cleopatra.  She Freak is… not like that.

A woman named Jade Cochrane works at a little diner somewhere in the south, quietly (and sometimes not-so-quietly) enduring sexual harassment from both the customers and her married boss.  Wanting more out of life, she quits her job and goes looking for work at a passing carnival, which she figures will at least allow her to travel.  From there she sets her sights on marrying Steve St. John, the owner of the freak show and the richest man connected with this community. Unfortunately for everybody around her, even this very moderate form of power corrupts Jade to the core, and after too much of her mistreatment, the sideshow stars take a horrible revenge!

The opening sequence is a bunch of carnival footage in which everybody looks bored, worryingly reminiscent of both Carnival Magic and MUZ.  Even worse, quite a bit of it is shot by somebody sitting on a moving ferris wheel or other midway ride.  I’ve never been able to enjoy midway rides because I get motion sickness (I can’t see J. J. Abrams movies in theatres for the same reason), so this was not a fun experience for me, even on my tiny laptop screen.  It goes on way too long, and most of it doesn’t even have any credits over it.  Crow would have fled to go throw up in a corner.

The moment I knew She Freak belonged on MST3K, however, is this shot:

What the hell does that sign say?  YHJCY A+ FTJB?  What does it mean?  Is it an acronym?  A secret code?  An in-joke? A message to or from aliens?  That would have fascinated Mike and the ‘bots.  They’d have built a whole host sketch around that sign.

She Freak is tooth-rattlingly bad in many different ways.  I don’t know what any of the people in it think they’re doing but it sure isn’t acting.  It’s relentlessly padded, full of pointless footage of putting the midway up, taking the midway down, putting the midway back up again, and carnival-goers wandering around looking dazed.  At one point we have to watch a stripper do her act, to a chorus of background hooting and applause that sure isn’t coming from the bored-to-shit audience we see.  Most of the film feels like nothing is happening, and then what ought to have been the entire plot is crammed into the last fifteen minutes.

The one place where there is a glimmer of competence is in a couple of quite nice directing choices.  There’s a scene where Jade leaves her new husband with his buddies and sneaks off to bang the guy who runs the ferris wheel, Blackie (don’t worry, he’s white. She Freak has a little person called ‘Shorty’, but to my relief it wasn’t tasteless enough to cast a character named ‘Blackie’ as an African American) that makes a very good use of shadows to tell us what’s going on in two places at once.  Pity the film stock is so crappy it almost ruins it.  I also liked how Jade’s scenes with Blackie have proper dialogue, while Steve woos her in a series of montages.  Jade wants to spend time with Blackie, while her marriage to Steve is something she goes through the motions of and gets out of the way.

She Freak really has no right to tout itself as a remake of Freaks, for the simple reason that it isn’t even about the sideshow.  The older movie had characters like Hans the dwarf and Daisy and Violet the conjoined twins, who were people with relationships and roles in the plot.  In She Freak we never even see the sideshow that so upsets Jade in an early scene.  There’s Shorty, the little guy in a cowboy hat who works for the carnival, but when we see him he’s acting like he’s Steve’s friend and assistant rather than one of the exhibits.  An armless woman and a few people in funny makeup appear at the climax, but we’ve never seen them before and we have no idea who they are.  Where the hell is the ‘Alligator Girl’ the banners promised?

It’s probably all for the best.  If there had been any ‘unusual people’ with major roles in the movie it would doubtless have treated them in a disgusting and exploitative manner.  But what’s on screen shouldn’t even pretend to be a remake of Freaks.

As the owner of the sideshow, Steve insists that he cares about his employees and considers them ‘human beings, just like you and me’. He tells Jade that many of them came from abusive homes, and that in his show they’re able to earn a living and be around others who won’t judge them.  This is a reasonably noble sentiment, but what we are subsequently shown is somewhat at odds with it.  Steve says his employees are also his friends, but he hangs out and plays cards with the other carnies, not with them.  When Shorty tells him that Jade is cheating on him, Steve slaps him like he would a misbehaving child.  This is not how people treat friends and equals.

You may have guessed where this is heading: in one of my favourite running complaints, yep, we have nobody to root for in this movie.  We’re probably supposed to like Steve, but he’s bland and his actions don’t agree with his words insisting he’s a nice, compassionate guy. The character from whose point of view we see the events is of course Jade, but Jade is the villain of the movie and we’re watching it to see her hubris destroy her.  That means the protagonists ought to be the sideshow people themselves, but since we never actually meet them, their revenge is meaningless. In this context they are not human beings, they are not characters, they are merely what Jade has been calling them all along: monsters.

(Shorty, by the way, is played by Felix Silla, who is the closest thing this movie has to a star. He was Cousin Itt on the Addams Family TV show.)

She Freak presents us with several reasons why we ought to dislike Jade.  She’s introduced working at the greasy little diner, where she turns down a date first with a customer and then with her boss.  The customer accepts this gracefully but the boss does not.  The scene tries to show us Jade as an uppity bitch who thinks she’s too good for other people, but her boss is such a slimy toad that we have to take her side.  She tells us how her mother married too young and lost any chance at her own dreams, and while Claire Brennan is a terrible actress, the story is one that inspires sympathy.  When Jade seizes on the carnival as her chance for escape she becomes downright pathetic.  I mean, how awful is your life if a travelling midway and sideshow seems like a step up in the world?

Of course, as the movie continues we find that Jade really is just a snotty bitch whose idea of ‘getting more out of life’ is having a rich husband to carry her bags when she goes shopping. She sees others only as what they can provide to her – Steve for money, Blackie for sex.  This attitude blinds her to others’ true intentions.  She is entirely oblivious to the fact that Blackie is an abusive bastard or that Steve honestly loves her.  The lesson of the movie seems to be ‘beware of women who want more out of life.’  She should have known her place!

This is a pretty nasty attitude towards women but there are other female characters who are treated a bit better.  Pat the stripper tried marriage and domesticity and didn’t like it.  She seems to enjoy working at the carnival and is gregarious and kind-hearted.  We’re invited to leer at her performance but she’s presented as much less trashy than Jade, who considers herself above such things. Pat continues to try to be a friend to Jade for as long as she can, and keeps giving her second chances long after it should be obvious that Jade isn’t interested in reciprocating her kindness. There’s also Olga the fortune-teller, who needed to support herself after her husband died.  The three of them even manage to have conversations that pass the Bechdel test.  In a movie called She-Freak that’s almost impressive.

The ending of She Freak is the only place where it really even seems inspired by Freaks.  The sideshow employees take their revenge on Jade, and we see her on display in the sideshow, licking a snake and wearing some unconvincing Harvey Dent makeup.  This is supposed to feel like justice, in that she has become what she most hated, but it’s been so watered down by the movie’s refusal to humanize the sideshow, or even to show us Jade interacting with them at all, that it has no power to horrify.  It’s a big letdown after the opening scene that promised us a horrible freak that was once a human being.  Why does her burned side have an elf ear?

Invasion of the Saucer Men was not a good movie, at all, but it still deserved better than Attack of the The Eye Creatures.  It’s up for debate whether Freaks was technically ‘good’ but it was an ambitious film with much to say about how human beings treat one another and about the eugenics movement of the 1930s.  In fact, the US National Film Registry considers Freaks one of the most significant films ever made, and it currently boasts a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes.  The fact that writer David Friedman claimed She Freak was a remake of Freaks just proves that, like the audiences who booed that film in 1932, he never bothered to understand it.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Heirs' property: how southern states allow white land developers to steal reconstruction-era land from Black families

Back in 2017, The Nation ran a superb, in-depth story on "heirs' property," a legalized form of property theft that allows primarily rich white developers to expropriate land owned by the descendants' of Black slaves.

Now, an in-depth Propublica investigation returns to the American south and its landgrabbing white grifters, with a piece that blends the personalities of the brave Black landowners who are willing to serve long jail sentences rather than cave in to legalized theft (brothers Melvin Davis and Licurtis Reels are two of the longest-serving inmates for civil contempt in American history, having spent eight years in lockup for refusing to knock down their ancestral homes).

To understand how heirs' property expropriations work, you have to place them in the context of Black expropriation, which starts with the expropriated bodies of kidnapped Black people who were enslaved, and continues through the ages: the (marshy or arid) properties deeded to formerly enslaved Black people who carefully worked the land and prospered until white mobs came and chased them away with arson, murder and threats; many of the ones who stayed were chased off with massive tax-hikes directed at Black landowners (in South Carolina, property taxes levied on Black lands went up as much as 700% in a decade; Hilton Head had thousands of acres of heirs' property and now it has fewer than 200).

As the remaining property owners began to die off, they were (correctly) mistrustful of white southern lawyers, so they did not draw up wills, leaving their family land to their descendants through a regime called "heirs' property," under the incorrect view that this would keep the land in the family. Instead, as those descendants flew Jim Crow only to find themselves frozen out of home ownership through redlining, they became targets for predatory wealthy land developers who could exploit the complex and unfair law governing heirs' property to seize and expropriate hundreds or even thousands of acres at a time.

The main system for doing this is called "partition": if a single heir with even a tiny claim to family land can be found and convinced to sell their title, the developer can use the courts to force a sale of the whole family property, and the "cash poor, land rich" people who live on the family land are unable to outbid their expropriators.  

This is exactly as bad as it sounds: consider Wendy Reed who lost her family home in Summerville, South Carolina because she was late paying a $83.81 tax bill -- the property was purchased for a mere $2,000 by a powerful local politician and resort owner named Thomas Limehouse (owner of a nearby luxury resort) for $2,000. Reed was unable to stop the sale by paying her $83.81 because her grandmother had died intestate.

The intersection of partition actions and unclear titles from intestate family elders is bad enough, but it gets especially toxic when mixed with an antiquated, discredited law called the Torrens Act, which allows would-be expropriator to pay a court-appointed lawyer to review their claim to a title and seize land without going through a full court procedure.

14 states have passed laws limiting evictions and partitions and many have repealed the Torrens Act, through model legislation called the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act, but eight southern states still support and encourage this kind of white-on-Black land-theft. One notable culprit is North Carolina, especially Carteret County, whose 70,000 residents are 94% white, but whose losers in heirs' property cases are 42% Black.

I've previously said that the difference between "grifters" and "con artists" is that "Grifters put on the veneer of respectability. A grifter doesn't pick your pocket, he gets you to sign a contract full of dirty fine-print. He buys off the judge. He operates out of a 'made town' where the cops are all on the take. The grifter doesn't mount a one-man performance piece. He constructs an immersive LARP in which all the trappings of law and order are present, but filtered through a dream-logic where if he has to pick your pockets, it's only because you don't respect the law enough to empty them voluntarily. A grift is what happens when a con-man hires a lawyer, or a judge, or a legislature, or the President."

In a companion piece, Propublica's Lizzie Presser shows how states can easily stem the tide of disposessions with commonsense legal tweaks. The fact that they don't do this tells you everything you need to know about whether this is an accident or a deliberate campaign of legalized theft.

https://boingboing.net/2019/07/15/made-towns.html

[basicsofislam]

ISLAM 101: The Basic Concepts of Islam: Part 5

The Concept of Morality

The concept of morality in Islam centers around certain basic beliefs and principles. Among these are the followings: (1) God is the Creator and Source of all goodness, truth, and beauty. (2) Man is a responsible, dignified, and honorable agent of his Creator. (3) God has put everything in the heavens and the earth in the service of mankind. (4) By His Mercy and Wisdom, God does not expect the impossible from man or hold him accountable for anything beyond his power. Nor does God forbid man to enjoy the good things of life. (5) Moderation, practicality, and balance are the guarantees of high integrity and sound morality. (6) All things are permissible in principle except what is singled out as forbidden, which must be avoided. (7) Mans ultimate responsibility is to God and his highest goal is the pleasure of his Creator. The dimensions of morality in Islam are numerous, far-reaching and comprehensive. The Islamic morals deal with the relationship between man and God, man and his fellow men, man and the other elements and creatures of the universe, man and his innermost self. The Muslim has to guard his external behavior and his manifest deeds, his words and his thoughts, his feelings and intentions. In a general sense, his role is to champion what is right and fight what is wrong, seek what is true and abandon what is false, cherish what is beautiful and wholesome and avoid what is indecent. Truth and virtue are his goals. Humbleness and simplicity, courtesy and compassion, are his second nature. To him, arrogance and vanity, harshness and indifference, are distasteful, offensive and displeasing to God. More specifically, the Muslims relationship with God is one of love and obedience, complete trust and thoughtfulness, peace and appreciation, steadfastness and active service. This high – level morality will, undoubtedly, nourish and reinforce morality at the human level. For in his relationship with his fellow men, the Muslim must show kindness to the kin and concern for the neighbor, respect for the elderly and compassion for the young, care for the sick and support for the needy, sympathy for the grieved and cheer for the depressed, joy with the blessed and patience with the misguided, tolerance toward the ignorant and forgiveness of the helpless, disapproval of the wrong and rise above the trivial. Moreover, he must respect the legitimate rights of others as much he does his own. His mind must be occupied with constructive ideas and serious pursuits; his heart must beat with compassionate feelings and goodwill; his soul must radiate with peace and serenity; his counsel must be sincere and courteous. The Muslims moral obligation is to be a vivid example of honesty and perfection, fulfill his commitments and perform his tasks well, seek knowledge and virtue by all possible means, correct his mistakes and repent his sins, develop a good sense of social consciousness and nourish a feeling of human response, provide for his dependents generously without extravagance and meet their legitimate needs. Nature and the world are the field of exploration and the object of enjoyment for the Muslim. He must utilize their elements and ponder their marvels, read them as signs of Gods greatness and preserve their beauty, explore their wonders and discover their secrets. But whether he uses them for utility or for sheer enjoyment, he must avoid waste and excess. As a responsible agent of God and a conscientious trustee, he must always be mindful of others who share the world with him and who will succeed him in the future. The moral principles of Islam are sometimes stated as positive commitments which must be fulfilled and sometimes as negative prescriptions which must be avoided. Whether they are stated positively or negatively, they are designed to build in the human being a sound mind, a peaceful soul, a strong personality, and a healthy body. There is no doubt that these are necessary requirements of the general welfare and prosperity of mankind. And to help man to satisfy these requirements Islam has, among other things, laid down the following regulations: 1. To bear witness to the Oneness of God and the Messengership of Muhammad in a meaningful committal way; 2. To observe the daily prayers regularly; 3. To pay the religious tax known as alms or the poor-due (zakah); 4. To keep the fast of the Holy Month of Ramadan; 5. To make a pilgrimage to the Holy City of Mecca at least once in his lifetime. The moral and social implications of these regulations will be discussed later in detail. Besides these positive measures, there are others which may be called preventive and precautionary ones. To protect man from insanity and degeneration, from weakness and indulgence, from indecency and temptation, Islam has prohibited certain things pertaining to food, drinking, recreation, and sex. Among these are the following: 1. All kinds of intoxicating wines, liquors, and spirits (Quran, 2:219; 4:43; 5:93-94); 2. The meat and products of swine (pork, bacon, ham, lard), of wild animals that use claws or teeth to kill their victims (tigers, wolves, leopards, etc.), of all birds of prey (hawks, vultures, crows, etc.), of rodents, reptiles, worms and the like, of dead animals and birds that are not slaughtered properly (Quran, 2:172-173; 5:4-6); 3. All forms of gambling and vain sports (Quran, 2:219; 5:93-94); 4. All sexual relations out of wedlock and all manners of talking, walking, looking and dressing in public that may instigate temptation, arouse desire, stir suspicion, or indicate immodesty and indecency (Quran 23:5-7; 24:30-33; 70:29-31). This Act of Prohibition is introduced by God for the spiritual and mental well-being of man as well as for the moral and material benefit of humanity. It is not an arbitrary action or a self-imposed intrusion from God. On the contrary, it is a sign of Gods interest in the welfare of humanity and an indication of His good care for man. When God prohibits certain things, it is not because He wants to deprive man of anything good or useful. It is because He means to protect man and allow him to develop a good sense of discrimination, a refined taste for the better things in life, and continued interest in higher moral values. To achieve this, good care must be taken of man’s spirit and mind, soul and body, conscience and sentiments, health and wealth, physique and morale. Prohibition, therefore, is not deprivation but enrichment, not suppression but discipline; not a limitation but expansion. To show that all prohibitions are acts of mercy and wisdom, two Islamic principles are worth mentioning in this connection. First, extraordinary circumstances, emergencies, necessities, and exigencies allow the Muslim to do what is normally forbidden. As long as these circumstances exist and to the extent that he cannot help the situation, he is not to blame if he fails to observe the moral rules of God (see Quran, 2:173; 5:4). Secondly, God has inscribed for Himself the rule of mercy: any who do evil out of ignorance, but thereafter repent and amend their conduct, will be forgiven; surely God is Merciful and Oft-forgiving (Quran, 6:54). In a remarkable, typical passage, the Quran has laid down the grounds and philosophy of sound moral conduct. The passage may be rendered as follows: O Children of Adam! Wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer; eat and drink, but waste not by excess, for God loves not the wasters. Say: Who has forbidden the beautiful gifts of God, which He has produced for His servants, and the things, clean and pure (which He has provided) for sustenance? Say: 'They are, in the life of this world, for those who believe, (and) purely for them on the Day of Judgement. thus do We explain the Signs in detail for those who understand, Say: The things that my Lord has indeed forbidden are: shameful deeds, whether open or secret, sins and trespasses against truth or reason; assigning of partners to God – and saying things about God of which you have no knowledge (Quran 7:31-33). The range of morality in Islam is so inclusive and integrative that it combines at once faith in God, religious rites, spiritual observances, social conduct, decision making, intellectual pursuits, habits of consumption, manners of speech, and all other aspects of human life. Because morality is such an integral part of Islam, the moral tone underlies all the passage of the Quran and the moral teachings are repeatedly stressed in various contexts throughout the Holy Book. This makes it difficult to devise any reasonably brief classification of these moral teachings according to their citations in the Quran. Every principle is mentioned many times in various contexts. It appears either as a single significant principle or as an element of a total system of morality, which itself is an element of a complete religious supersystem. In view of this, the following passages must be taken only as representative selections from the Quran, rendered and interpreted by human endeavors which, inevitably, fall short of the perfection of the original and complete version of the Book. Serve God, and join not any partners with Him; and do good; - to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, the needy ones, neighbors who are near, neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer (you meet), and what your right hands possess (captives, slaves, animals, birds, etc.): For God loves not the arrogant, the vainglorious; - (Nor) those who are niggardly or enjoin niggardliness on others, or hide the bounties which God has bestowed on them; for We have prepared for those who resist Faith a punishment that steeps them in contempt; (Nor) those who spend of their substance, (out of hypocrisy) just to be seen of men, but have no faith in God and the Last Day. If any take the Evil One for their intimate what a dreadful intimate he is! (4:36-38). Say (O Muhammad): Come, I will rehearse what God has (really) prohibited you from: join not anything as equal with Him; be good to your parents; kill not your children on a plea of want; for We provide sustenance for you and for them; And come not near to the orphans property, except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength; give measure and weight with full justice; no burden do We place on any soul, but that which it can bear; and whenever you speak, speak justly, even if a near relative is concerned; and fulfill the Covenant of God. Thus does He Command you that you may remember. Verily, this is My Way, leading straight; follow it; follow not (other) paths: They will scatter you about from His Right path. Thus does He command you, that you may be righteous (6:151-153). God commands justice, the doing of good, and kindness to kith and kin, and He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, that you may receive admonition. Fulfill the Covenant of God when you have entered into it, and break not your oaths after you have confirmed them; indeed you have made God your surety; for God knows all that you do . . . . Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has Faith, verily, to him will We give a new Life, a life that is good and pure, and We will bestow on such (workers) their reward according to the best of their actions (16: 90-91, 97). Invite (all) to the way of your Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching, and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious; for your Lord knows best, who have strayed from His Path, and who are truly guided (16:125). Who is better in speech than one who calls (others) to God, works righteousness, and says: I am one of those who bow in Islam. Nor can Goodness and Evil be equal. Repel (Evil) with what is best. Then the one between whom and you there was hatred will become as it were your friend and intimate! (41:33-34). Whatever is given to you (here) is (only) a convenience of this Life. But that which is with God is better and more lasting. (It is) For those who believe and put their trust in their Lord; those who avoid the greater crimes and shameful deeds, and when they are angry even then forgive; those who hearken to their Lord, and establish regular prayer; who (conduct) their affairs by mutual consultation; who spend out of what We bestow on them for sustenance; and those who, when an oppressive wrong is inflicted on them, (are not cowed but) help and defend themselves. The recompense for an injury is an injury equal to it (in degree), but if a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from God, for God loves not those who do wrong. But indeed if any do help and defend themselves after a wrong (done) to them, against such (persons) there is no cause of blame. The blame is only against those who oppress men with wrongdoing and insolently transgress beyond bounds through the land, defying right and justice. For such (oppressors and transgressors) there will be a penalty grievous. But indeed if any show patience and forgive, that would truly be an exercise of courageous will and resolution in the conduct of affairs (42: 36-43). If any do wish for the transitory things (of this Life), We readily grant them such things as We will, to such persons as We will, but in the end, We have provided Hell for them where they will burn, disgraced and rejected. And those who do wish for the (things of) the Hereafter, and strive therefor with all due striving, and have Faith, - they are the ones whose striving is appreciable (by God.). Of the bounties of your Lord, We bestow freely on all these as well as those: the bounties of your Lord are not closed (to anyone). (17:18-20) Take not with God another object of worship: or you (man!) will sit in disgrace and destitution. Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him and that you be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor. And out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: My Lord! bestow on them Your mercy even as they cherished me in childhood. Your Lord knows best what is in your hearts. If you do deeds of righteousness, verily He is Most Forgiving to those who turn to Him again and again (in true penitence). After render to the kindred their due rights, as (also) to those in want, and to the wayfarer. But squander not (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift. Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Evil Ones; and the Evil One is to his Lord ungrateful. And even if you have to turn away from them (the said people), in pursuit of the Mercy from your Lord which you do expect, yet speak to them words of easy kindness. Make not your hand tied (like a niggard) to your neck, nor stretch it forth to its utmost reach (like an irresponsible squanderer, if you choose either way), you will become blameworthy and destitute (respectively). Verily your Lord does provide sustenance in abundance for whom He pleases, and He provides in a just measure; for He does know and regard all His servants. Kill not your children for fear of want. We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you, verily the killing of them is a great sin. Nor come near to adultery; for it is a shameful deed and an evil, opening the road (to other evils). Nor take life – which God has made sacred – except for just cause. And if anyone is slain wrongfully, We have given his heir authority (to demand equal punishment or to forgive). But let him not exceed bounds in the matter of taking a life; for he is helped (by the Law). Come not near to the orphan's property except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength; and fulfill (every) engagement: for (every) engagement will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning). Give full measure when you measure and weigh with a balance that is straight. That is the most fitting and the most advantageous in the final determination. And pursue not that of which you have no knowledge (idle and useless curiosity); for every act of hearing, or of seeing or of (feeling in) the heart will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning). Nor walk on the earth with arrogance; for you cannot rend the earth asunder, nor reach the mountains in height. Of all such things, evil is hateful in the sight of your Lord. These are among the (precepts of) wisdom, which your Lord has revealed to you. Take note, with God, another object of worship, lest you should be thrown into Hell, blameworthy and rejected (17:22-39). We bestowed wisdom on Luqman: Show your gratitude to God. Anywho is grateful does so to the profit of his own soul. But if any is ungrateful, verily God is free of all needs, worthy of all praise ..And We have enjoined on man (to be good) to his parents. In travail upon travail did his mother bear him, and in years twain was his weaning. (hear the command), show gratitude to Me and to your parents. To Me is your final Goal. But if they strive to make you join in worship with Me things of which you have no knowledge (or do any wrong), obey them not; yet bear them company in this life with justice (and consideration), and follow the way of those who turn to Me (in love). In the end, the return of you all is to Me, and I will tell you the truth (and meaning) of all that you did O, my Son! (said Luqman): Establish regular prayer, enjoin what is just (and right) and forbid what is wrong; and bear with patient constancy whatever betide you; for this is firmness (of purpose) in (the conduct of) affairs. And swell not your cheek (for pride) at men, nor walk in insolence through the earth; for God loves not any arrogant boaster. And be moderate in your pace, and lower your voice; for the harshest of sounds, without doubt, is the braying of the ass (31:12-19) O you who believe! Intoxicants and gambling . . . are an abomination, of Satans handiwork. Avoid such (abomination), so that you may prosper. Satans plan is only to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of God and from prayer. Will you not then abstain? (5:90-91). But seek, with that which God has bestowed on you, the Home of the Hereafter. Nor forget your portion in this world. But you do good, as God has been good to you, and seek not mischief in the land; for God Loves not the mischief makers (28:77). These selections can be supported by many others from the Quran and the Traditions of Muhammad. In themselves, they are sufficient to portray the fundamental morals of Islam. These Islamic morals are unique in their nature under all circumstances. They are introduced by God not simply to be admired occasionally but to be enforced and effective. They are meant to help the individual to develop his personality and cultivate his character in the most wholesome manner, to strengthen his bonds and consolidate his association with God, the Source of all Goodness. Never were the Islamic morals designed to intimidate the individual and make him passive or indifferent. One example will illustrate the point. If a Muslim is wronged or oppressed, he has the free choice either to resist and retaliate in an equal measure or to forgive and entrust God with the results of his deed. He knows that he is authorized to take either action, and he equally knows that it is better for him to forgive. So when he forgives, he does so with his own free choice for the love of God. Similarly, when he retaliates he is not violating the Law or acting unjustly; he is defending his rights, an attitude which is a sacred duty in itself, and is helping the rightful authorities to establish order and justice. If Islam were to demand absolute forgiveness as some other creeds do in theory, many undisciplined people would be tempted to do wrong and exceed all limits. Likewise, if Islam were to demand only retaliation, as some other creeds uthlessly teach, there would be no room for mercy and patience nor for spiritual reform and moral maturity, in which case many fine qualities of man would subside and many moral potentials may never be actualized. It is common knowledge that the people who are taught to forgive under all circumstances do not, and probably cannot, practice their teachings, because it is not the interest of humanity in the long run, nor is it in the interest of morality itself. Likewise, the people who are taught to practice stern retaliation have little or no respect for human virtues and care less for moral values as universal rules. But Islam, the Divine foster of human nature, has given the right answer to human problems. To those wrongdoers who are looking for a second chance, who may improve or benefit by granting them pardon, forgiveness is recommended and preferable. But against those who might misunderstand the motives of forgiveness or be tempted to pursue the wrong course, equal retaliation is authorized. Thus, the attitude of the Muslim, in either case, is sound and beneficial. When he forgives, he pleases God, retains the upper hand and contributes to the reformation of the delinquent. And when he retaliates, he defends the right, establishes order and justice, and helps to arrest evil. Now, which is sound morality? The attitude of the person who is a ruthless avenger indiscriminately? Or the attitude of a Muslim who makes room for mercy and forgiveness, and who allows for extraordinary circumstances? And who is normally sound? The person who forgives because he knows that he is not allowed to retaliate? Or a Muslim who forgives while he is fully aware that he can lawfully retaliate? Which is real forgiveness? The one resulting from external compulsion and prohibition not to act otherwise? Or the one resulting from freedom of choice and freedom of action? It is no wonder that the moral principles of Islam are sound, unique, and adaptive. They are the instructions of God, the Source of all goodness and morality.

[arichhipster]

Extra! Extra! Life As a Movie Extra in New Mexico

(LIFE OF A MOVIE EXTRA...... Er, I suggest.... BACKGROUND ARTIST)

As I left the house, I glanced on the outdoor thermometer. It examine five under. Thankfully the car started out. Once on the street, as I approached my destination, in the nonetheless-morning darkness, I became off the primary street and observed the road of purple tail lighting up the hill's dirt music in the direction of the properly-lit tents above. Through the frozen tundra, I walk from the auto to the primary tent, greeted through warm smiles and friendly exchanges as I checked in, thankful that the changing room turned into amply heated https://new-solarmovie.com/countries After six previous workdays, the changeover from civilian to duration western garments turned into old hat now; long johns first, fast adding blouse, pants, each with severa buttons, suspenders, boots, jacket, work gloves and hat, all of the even as speaking to my fellow comrades. Next, stand in line to get grubby, as hair and makeup girls dirty you up. I look inside the mirror, thinking who that desperado is that's staring returned at me.

Finished, I throw my civilian jacket over cloth wardrobe, and walk returned outdoor into the frigid air, trying no longer to slip on snow, ice and cables as I slowly assignment towards the eating tent for some short breakfast and important hot coffee. People are often subdued internal, something to do with the numbing bloodless.

A closely jacketed woman with a headset steps into the tent and yells to us "The van is right here!" Begrudgingly we step returned out into the bloodless, slide into the vehicles and tour closer to the western town this is just beginning to emerge in the dawning mild. Crawl out of the van. If the temperature rises above freezing, the snow we are hiking through turns into a muddy mess later. Somebody yells "I see Props" and we go and outfit ourselves with our weapons and holsters. More salutations from bundled team contributors as you walk towards the protecting facility hoping for one ultimate cup of coffee which of course isn't always brewed but. Too overdue besides, you're needed for the first shot of the day. It's time to play make-agree with. You locate solace questioning at least Russell Crowe and Christian Bale appearance cold as properly.

You glance round at your surroundings and say. "Hey, here I am, status inside the center of a Hollywood movie, ready to play a gunman in an Old West town." There's simplest one character I recognize who would be silly enough to position up with these situations for so little pay...I MUST BE A MOVIE EXTRA (or heritage artist as we within the commercial enterprise choose to be called). Forget approximately my close-up shot, I thought. Just area me inside the warm temperature of the solar!

And so starts another day as a movie greater on a movie manufacturing set. Usually the climate situations are not so intense as this particular New Mexico January day changed into at the set of "3:10 To Yuma", but while they're...Properly, that simply provides to the story.

Given those conditions, why could one want to be an Extra? Is it for the cash...Hardly ever, although for many it's far a paying activity which human beings are finding tougher to come by in recent times. Is it for the hazard to look your face on the silver display, if most effective for a 2d? There's the carrot on a stick enticement, the opportunity of having a speaking component, which right now catapults you to a higher pay scale, and a cooler pair of sunglasses. The rumor whisperers proclaim, "You know so-and-so large call actor began his career as an additional".

How about the opportunity for a departure from the normal habitual, gambling a man or woman that's quite one of a kind out of your ordinary self?

Other reasons might be the social benefit the prolonged circle of relatives bond offers that develops amongst fellow extras who have worked together on preceding movie productions; the capability to have a look at moviemaking firsthand; and the ego enhance you experience when you receive a pleasant nod or salutation from a chief movie star. And sure, there is additionally an inexpensive paycheck and complimentary food.

For me, it's a majority of these reasons, and maximum veritably for the tales.

In current years, Hollywood has arrived with a vengeance in New Mexico, a country with a moviemaking records so long as the enterprise itself. When I first moved right here in '94 several movie and TV productions have been ongoing. A woman pal of mine told me about a casting name. I stood in line in the resort lobby till a person in casting took my Polaroid and asked if I turned into to be had in two weeks. One surprise smartphone call later, I turned into attempting on my new western cloth cabinet for the TV mini-collection "Buffalo Girls". I've been in most cases available ever considering the fact that.

Movie hobby quick lapsed into a lull during the late 90s; but, new tax incentives for the film industry (and our a lot less expensive hard work force) created a resurgence in moviemaking in the past 5 years. Today, whilst the tediously lengthy casting call traces and Polaroid headshots have given manner to new methods like Internet bulletins, digital pictures and e-mailed resumes, lifestyles as a further has remained highly the identical. One moment hasn't modified; the manner you experience after a long twelve-hour workday, having worked due to the fact earlier than sunrise to sundown; you are cold and tired, standing in line within the dark ready to return your wardrobe so you can check out and go home...All at once exhausted and gratified.

If you are trying to pursue history greater work as a full-time profession, my advice would be high-quality to hold your day activity. A bendy paintings time table (unemployed being the exceptional) is a prerequisite for running as a further. The nature of the enterprise is to be geared up to paintings at a moment's observe which is near not possible if you paintings a often scheduled task.

It's no marvel Hollywood enjoys working with us New Mexicans, and plenty of production human beings will gladly country this reality. The majority of extras I've labored with are a very courteous, amiable, uncomplaining, cooperative, tolerant lot, some distance distinct we are informed from our "large town" cousins lower back in LA. Of course, even within this high-quality group of New Mexico extras there are constantly those exceptions, the demanding standouts: The Braggart, whose alleged credentials are without problems challenged; the Movie Star Wannabee Schmoozer who's determined for the large danger, willing to dangle and cajole all of us who they assume will assist circulate them up the stardom ladder; and of path, every big group has at the least one chronic complainer. Fortunately, those individuals get weeded out quite rapid.

I appreciate the eclectic, unbiased, iconoclastic kind individuals who often gravitate to this bendy innovative line of work: the creative, impartial people (artisans, rock band roadies, jack of all trades); the worldly iconoclasts (hippies, vacationers, philosophers); the tough-working, generous blue-collar souls who love the hazard to act out special roles inside the movies; the destiny movie makers; the unemployed; the curious; the ones looking for a loving, worrying circle of relatives; musicians between gigs; ex-veteran pensioners; those folks who come from sad houses and economic conditions looking for escapism and happiness; the real cowboys; those pursuing movie production careers; the coolest souls whose honesty and wellknown kindness has harm them in the cruel, actual global of commercial enterprise; and those individuals stepping out in their recurring exercises.

Learning the Hollywood lingo is a part of the process's attraction: terms which includes "back to at least one", "that turned into extremely good--- permit's do one greater", "martini shot", "checking the gate"' "this is a wrap", "silence on the set"' "checking sound", and "Action!" For a veteran history artist, this film jargon coats you in a mantle it really is fun to put on.

What is an ordinary day on the set? Days are lengthy. While on some productions you are working an awesome portion of the day on set, regularly you're waiting in some preserving room or tent, possibly hours in length, 9 hours my document, before you are referred to as for a scene. During these off digital camera moments, it is as much as you whether to make the most of the waiting state of affairs either thru social conversations or through quietly analyzing a ebook, gambling playing cards or chess, ingesting snacks, or, as what came about after nine hours of waiting on the "Beerfest" film set retaining location, breakdancing and lap dancing. Otherwise, you may pick to whine, pout and be commonly uninterested in the revel in. That man or woman can constantly move lower back to paintings on the thrilling vocation of financial institution clerk.

Regretfully, as an additional you are stored broadly speaking within the dark as to the storyline and the way your small contribution applies to the context of the movie. Very little is told to you approximately the scene or what sort of person you are gambling, so regularly as an extra you tend to create your very own person tale. You pay attention "Action!" yelled so that you begin to pantomime your imaginary speak with others as you sit down at a desk or stroll down a street. Suddenly the director yells, "Great...That turned into exceptional, everyone" and the scene is over. This method your cognitive instincts for the scene were spot on tremendous, or your presence wasn't even on digicam so it didn't depend what the heck you have been doing. I examined this concept out on "Into The West" by using acting Monty Python fashion backward funny walks at some point of my history crossings, and the scene turned into perfect; just as I idea, not on digital camera.

A given truth but is when you are seen on digital camera, and you're not doing what the director needs, to your know-how or in any other case; a director's tongue-lashing can arise, plenty to your humiliated chagrin.

On the rare occasion a director, AD, AAD (assistant, assistant director) or casting director actually enlightens us film extras as to the context of the scene we are approximately to movie and its relevance to the screenplay, it is significantly liked and facilitates us get prompted and obsessed on our position.

We're the background coloration, an imperative function in the scene's final outcome. We complete the scene's surroundings by bringing "the set" to lifestyles, offering the social environment from which the principle actors play off of, in place of forcing them to paintings in a vacuum.

Sometimes one's first-time more enjoy can be hard. One negative woman on the set for "Wild, Wild West" fainted difficult after succumbing to the mixed results of August heat and suffocating corset. Stoically, she attempted again the following day, only to be nearly trampled by horses at some stage in the chaos scene. Never noticed her again after that.

There's an artwork to getting on camera with out being too pushy or apparent. Get stuck mugging the digital camera, and, like what occurred to a pricey friend of ours, you are fired instant, which of direction now provides an possibility for a person else. The vintage standby, the casting sofa, or trailer, or tent, can nonetheless paintings, as a minimum temporarily. I have also discovered that one's possibilities are substantially improved in the event that they work on a comedy, for there are actually higher screen opportunities for extras on comedies than in dramas. Mostly, however, the best manner, which is totally out of your manipulate, is having "the right look" that a director wants. Before you understand it, you're positioned in a scene prepared to confront Pierce Brosnan or Liam Neeson. Suddenly, the director yells "and...Action!

Sometimes your digital camera time might encompass a few exciting computer graphics and make-up. If you've got been painstakingly, grotesquely rearranged via makeup artists to play a zombie, augmented with horrifying prosthetics, it is able to only be you that recognizes yourself whilst your horrifying face debuts at the screen.

I did a particular double-take at the "Unspeakable" movie jail set after I walked past Dennis Hopper's head sitting on a table, after which Dennis Hopper himself exceeded me via within the corridor.

You might not experience the dramatic scene you are taking part in, while status in front of a computer graphics "blue screen"; but, your jaw-losing aghast reaction may want to measure your appearing competencies since you're supposedly responding to a robot monster achieving towards you, no longer a scraggly droopy-pants group member.

On the "Beerfest" movie set, the emphasis changed into whatever however actual beer in our mugs. First, production attempted an ineffective vacuum system designed to suck near-beer out of our mugs, frequently with hilarious outcomes. Next process turned into to digitize the beer into our empty mugs. We because the Irish beer drinking group took moderate offense at these methods in view that first, in fact, we would have out drank the Germans, and 2d, we should have without problems drunk real beers in report competitive time!

And with set layout it is excellent not to look too closely, for in the course of the ones dramatic funeral scenes, the somber cinematic mood is probably broken if the audience knew who is without a doubt written on those movie styrofoam cemetery tombstones like Yo Mama, Three Stooges and Jethro Tull.

In some instances the story in the back of the film is greater pleasing than the film itself. The city of Madrid become selected via Disney to represent the all-American town ready with white-wood fences, flora, lace curtains, heat nearby diner, and Chili festival. However, there aren't any white wooden fences here in actual lifestyles; extra accurately associated with black wood enamel, gauged through some of the locals' abusive usage of crack. The city's decor is more raw and cool, than homespun, seeing that its origin as a coal mining metropolis and later, a hippie haven. The diner, now a tourist enchantment, turned into built in particular for the movie and any actual local would say, "We do not need no stinkin' Chile festival!"

There is the symmetry connection with Disney that is also charming. Flying over Madrid, an old coal mining city inside the overdue 20s, Walt Disney became so captivated by way of the metropolis's twinkling display of Christmas lighting, the scene inspired him to years later create the Disney World Parade of Lights. Disney, the company, had lower back to pay their respects to Madrid, in their personal warped corporate manner.

On some of films our old prison has been used for more than one units, occasionally at the same time as an antique jail which includes on the film "Unspeakable". Over twenty years in the past, the old jail have been witness to a macabre, deadly jail riot massacre and siege. Even nowadays blood stains are still visible from that horrible occasion and tales ran rampant at the set about team member's character reports with ghost sightings and other eerie sensations.

I'll regularly listen people ask "How do huge actors behave--- are the rumors true?" I recognize our tabloid-pushed inquisitive minds need to accept as true with the memories of prima donnas, spoiled brat temper tantrums and privileged treatments; however, in truth, the actors I've visible behave in a professional, conscientious manner on the set. They pay attention attentively to the director's recommendation and vice versa. Some actors can be very personable with the extras, other extra remote, staying in person or reviewing their lines. Some actors are very secure, taking the off digicam moment to journey their horses or trip their bikes between scenes. Sometimes you overhear the actor's occasional disgruntled tone which a few manufacturing member tried to speedy assuage. Heck, you pay attention those tones from us all the time. It become difficult however to restrain from giggling or yelling "Martin, come on!" while Martin continually arrived on the "Wild Hogs" Madrid set with his bodyguard entourage, pushed in a Mercedes golfcart for the arduous 3 blocks from his triple-decker luxurious bus whilst a beautiful assistant carried a mini-fan to hold him cool.

The movie and TV industry has been so prolific at some stage in the Santa Fe/Albuquerque/Las Vegas place, your day by day distinctions among fiction and reality start to blur. The second felt surreal while, after having watched "Swing Vote", I left the film theater simplest to pass the equal grandstand featured in the film on Rodeo Road simply ten minutes later. Blink, look again, and there may be "Astronaut Farmer's" united states of america fair. South of metropolis there may be one rural stretch wherein I assume to come upon the simultaneous convergence of "Wild Hogs" bikers, Billy Bob Thorton's rocketship, and a rough-searching Colorado Volunteers marching regiment.

Even a avenue crossing on downtown Albuquerque's Central Ave. Takes on a new dimension when you have to be cautious of large Transformer robots stepping on you!

Not discounting the great current successes of so many diverse film and TV cutting-edge project topics made on this country, New Mexico's center essence nevertheless embodies the traditional American Western. Once you are fully outfitted in western garb, and you are taking the moment to absolutely embody your environment, a dusty, windswept street within the middle of a western metropolis, a very special feeling envelops you. Your mind can also flashback to youth fantasies, gambling a cowboy or gunfighter, remembering studying testimonies of the Old West or seeing your first wild west TV display or film. On western sets the heritage artists virtually appear to be our pioneer ancestors, a length of records which was honestly only some generations ago.

Pierce Brosnan turned into fascinated by how much our motley institution clearly sported long hair and beards, wore cowboy hats, chewed tobacco, demonstrated know-how of horses and guns, and who nonetheless slept in tents.

While at the set, youngsters fast modify and revert to less complicated pleasures. Townsmen tip their hats to women in bonnets at the same time as the gunslingers exercise twirling their plastic weapons, hoping to be issued real guns for the shootout scene.

Western movies generally tend to have the most tough climate situations, either blistering hot within the summer, blow-dried dusty inside the spring, and brutally bloodless at some stage in the wintry weather months, which perversely is the favorite season for maximum productions.

The western set can also be the most hazardous. A properly-skilled choreographer and horse wrangler coordinator is obligatory for, if ill-prepared, tragedy may additionally strike. Such have been the instances on the primary day of shooting on "3:10 to Yuma" wherein a horse changed into mortally wounded and rider critically injured, or the primary day of filming the Sand Creek Massacre reenactment on "Into The West" wherein severa horse accidents took place. And, during the filming of "Wild, Wild West", there are careless acts along with the dearth of notification to some forgotten extras that they had to clean the western set earlier than production blew it up. Fortunately, no extras were blown up! And they worry approximately animal mistreatment.

With the latest proliferation of film activity, many new faces have arrived inside the business, while most of the players of just ten years in the past have left the region or long gone on to other endeavors. Sometimes you have to permit own family members go away the nest. Except for the few envious ones, most of the people of us extras are pleased whilst a person from our extended circle of relatives receives a speakme element.

It's a profession wherein one minute you are ready to retire, especially after a grueling fourteen hour day, however then you definitely get the itch to get returned into it, for some other shot at stardom, for some other interesting story, and primarily due to the fact you leave out your buddies.

[whyblankiscoolhalloween]

Scary Movies for a Halloweenie: Les Yeux Sans Visage (10/6/17)

Les Yeux Sans Visage... the most elegant slasher film ever made. Now, before I go any further, I am totally open to the argument that this movie isn’t a slasher, but this is how I justify it: 1) some young women get slashed, 2) the brunette survives. That being said, the focus of this movie isn’t about slashing, but slashing plays an important role in the story. <-- and THAT being said, I don’t think any movie I watch in the slasher category will ever be better than Les Yeux Sans Visage. That’s “the eyes without a face” for non-francophones.

The plot: A car accident has left Dr.Génessier’s daughter, Christiane, severely disfigured- and he’ll do anything to make her look the way she used to. Literally. He and his assistant, Alida, have been luring young women who look like Christiane to their house so that they can attempt a surgery to replace Christiane’s face with the girl’s. There’s a lot more to the movie than that though, especially with the character of Christiane. Her physical and emotional journey is.. it’ll take your breath away. I don’t do spoilers in these reviews (at least I try) but don’t take my word for it, watch this film! I’m almost at a loss for words trying to describe how it ends- it’s a hopeless triumph, a victory woven into despair. Any fan of horror or otherwise needs to watch this movie. I don’t throw this word around lightly, but Les Yeux Sans Visage is a masterpiece of storytelling.

On a technical side, Les Yeux Sans Visage is the pinnacle of 60s horror. The editing is top notch as are the effects, costumes, performances- and what really pushes it above and beyond is the sound mixing. The soundtrack is perfection, but more importantly, so are the little details. The little sounds like dogs barking, a crow calling, doors opening are woven into each other perfectly, creating a tense ambience without distraction. Through subtle sound cues, there are some genuinely terrifying moments that are heightened immensely by light touches like a dog’s howl. These sound cues pay off in another major way throughout the piece, but again, no spoilers. Please go watch it; it’s on Youtube for free and only 94 minutes.

Just to reiterate, this movie is an outstanding piece of art. I’d almost describe it as a tragic visual poem, given its tempo and stylistic quality. It’s deeply affecting and has an incredible message of acceptance, internal strength, and overcoming. If only I did spoilers- I could write an essay about how impactful Christiane’s character is.

Favorite Line: “La mort doit se taire” - “the dead must stay silent,” a powerful line of dialogue and turning point for Christiane in the latter half of the film. In context, this line is a subtle revolt against the actions of her father and his assistant.

Rating: 1 new face for Christiane out of... listen the movie was really good, this rating is just fluff at this point.

Chances I’ll Sleep Tonight: So the soundtrack is outstanding, especially the opening theme, which is also the assistant’s theme. It plays when she’s out hunting for fresh faces. It’s also really catchy- I’ll probably have it stuck in my head all night. Not a great way to fall asleep- to the main theme of a psychopath.

[footyplusau]

Hogan diagnosed with testicular cancer

JESSE Hogan is awake following surgery for testicular cancer, with the Melbourne forward’s manager saying the operation on Tuesday afternoon went “extremely well”.

The 22-year-old will take indefinite leave to give him time to recover after the surgery to have a tumour removed.

Hogan is expected to make a full recovery and could return to football within two months, if his recovery goes to plan according to Melbourne doctor Zeeshan Arain.

Arain said the forward would be discharged from hospital as soon as Tuesday, given the surgery is only a day procedure.

Hogan’s manager, Matt Bain, sent a text message to Triple M radio, saying: “I’m in with Jesse now, he has just woken up. The operation went extremely well”.

“From a physical point of view of the operation and the recovery, we expect somewhere between four and eight weeks,” Arain said on Tuesday.

“But we’ll have to look back at how he’s had an interrupted year from a conditioning point of view, and also his psychological state.”

Arain said the early detection of the lump meant surgery was the appropriate course of action, rather than chemotherapy or radiotherapy consistent with other forms of cancer.

The small mass found in his testicle is suggestive of a seminoma, which is a type of cancer.

Arain said this form of cancer generally has an excellent prognosis and the swift action that was taken, and the fact the seminoma was in its earliest stage of growth, adds to the positive recovery period.

“He was very lucky,” Arain said.

“When they hear that it’s an early stage of cancer then their emotions flip around.

“It was really good that Jesse was able to come to us (the doctors) and we were able to follow through.”

General manager of football Josh Mahoney said Hogan underwent an ultrasound on Wednesday and was made aware of his cancer diagnosis on Thursday.

“Jesse underwent an ultrasound late last week which revealed a small mass in his testicle suggestive of a seminoma, which is a type of cancer,” Mahoney said.

“Jesse has also undergone a CT scan which determined the cancer has not spread to any other part of his body.”

Mahoney said in a statement earlier, “The club’s collective heart is with Jesse Hogan. This is clearly a very difficult time for Jesse and his health and wellbeing is the number one priority for us. 

“We informed the players of this on Friday and respected Jesse’s wishes to keep this information private up until this point.”

Hogan was a late withdrawal from the Demons’ round eight game against Adelaide and has played just four matches in 2017. 

He recently missed a game after his father Tony died of cancer.

“It’s been a really tough year for Jesse and all the things he has gone through,” Mahoney said.

“To have news like this has been really difficult.

“What we’re seeing is a young 22-year-old mature in front of our eyes.

“The way he was able to handle the death of his father, return to the club and the way he was able to handle himself and play the way he did was a tremendous effort.”

Mahoney said the club would continue to support Hogan where it can and said members of the young forward’s family would move to Melbourne to be with him during this tough period.

AFL CEO Gill McLachlan said he wanted to pass on the AFL’s care and concern for Hogan on behalf of the industry. 

“Our thoughts are with Jesse. We know he is going to have the best care and my understanding is that the diagnosis is positive in the context of bad news,” McLachlan said.

“Health and family are pretty much everything and it gives a lot of things a lot of context. He will have all the love and the care that he needs to recover quickly.”

Melbourne co-captain Nathan Jones revealed the players were told the news at Melbourne Airport before their flight to Adelaide last Friday.

Jones said the news about Hogan was used as a motivating factor ahead of the club’s 41-point win over Adelaide last Saturday night.

“It was definitely mentioned, particularly when one of our mates is facing some of the things ‘Hoges’ has faced,” Jones said.

“It was an opportunity for us to draw on some of that inspiration, particularly with how he’s handled himself and the adversity he’s faced. 

“It pales into insignificance the fact that we’re playing a game of footy and we’ve got one of our mates going through the stuff he’s been through. 

“Our best way of honouring that was performing on the weekend and making sure we keep a really positive vibe around the footy club and keep supporting him as well as he can.”

Teammate Jordan Lewis said co-captain Jack Viney had implored the players to remember how lucky they were to be playing before they ran out against the Crows last Saturday night. 

“It was certainly mentioned going into the game that one of our own is hurting back home, so if you are going through a tough time tonight dig deep,” Lewis said on Fox Footy.

“When ‘Vines’ mentions it just before you’re about to run out into your position … you take what you’re doing for granted sometimes and it certainly put things in perspective straight away.”

Hogan joined the Demons in 2013 as a 17-year-old priority selection and played VFL with the Casey Demons for a season until he was eligible to play.

He then missed 2014 with a back injury before making his AFL debut in 2015.

Hogan starred that season, kicking 44 goals in 20 games and winning the NAB AFL Rising Star Award.

He backed up with a solid season in 2016 kicking 41 goals, and overall has played 45 matches and kicked 94 goals. 

The post Hogan diagnosed with testicular cancer appeared first on Footy Plus.

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 Is the United States of America a post-racial society? Recently, in a critically-acclaimed horror film called “Get Out”, an African-American protagonist narrowly survives an encounter with a white family attempting to auction him off in a contemporary version of the slave trade. The film featured scenes of graphic violence perpetrated by the protagonist in order to escape their captivity. The movie was well received by critics and crowds, presenting a fresh take on the horror genre by inverting the typical race roles and making the fear-inspiring driver of the plot the specter of racism rather than a cliched murderous sociopath. The film may have resonated with some audiences as an accurate depiction of the horror faced by the potential victims of contemporary racism and a reversal of traditional, and disappointing, expectations for the genre (Rosenberg, 2017). One group of movie-goers, however, raised objections to the movie's premise and depiction of graphic violence, calling it racist against white people (Stoddard, 2017). This dichotomy of perspectives, between one assessment of the film as fair and appreciated and another which deems it blatantly unfair and divisive, underlies the importance of whether the United States is post-racial. In a society where race is no longer a relevant factor, a movie which targets a specific ethnic group to intentionally depict as villainous or inhumane constitutes an attack on a society which treats people fairly and equally. However, in a society where race is still incredibly relevant, a movie which gives disenfranchised groups representation in high-visibility milieus and content tailored for their unique needs and perspectives is a revolutionary and creative act in the face of oppression. Similarly, disputes about the fairness of affirmative action policies in higher education (Sherman, 2016), the legality of redrawing lines of political districts that appear to segment racial groups (de Vogue, 2016), and what interpretation should be exercised in evaluating perceived disparities in policing for neighborhoods with different ethnic compositions (King, 2016) all depend on the racial context, or lack thereof, that they exist in. The subject of race and racism has been an area of extensive inquiry in sociology. Race is a shared cultural ideology for organizing people into a social hierarchy based on shared elements of appearance, usually skin color and facial features (Clair & Dennis, 2015). Racism is prejudice on the basis of race from a person, persons of a hierarchically superior race or system designed to perpetuate the norms of that hierarchy (Marger, 2009). Prior to World War II, the study of racism was exclusively in the domain of interpersonal attitudes and animosities. After World War II, when the concept of race was evaluated to be a cultural construct rather than a biological fact, racism was examined as a social phenomena that extends beyond individuals (Clair & Dennis 2015). Today racism is understood by the fields of sociology, anthropology, and the sub-discipline of ethnic studies, to be a phenomena which can be embedded into structures and institutions and persist in replicating biased results in the absence of individuals acting with bias. As a result of this understanding, measures such as Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employment have been put into United States law to counteract in-built biases (Marger, 2009). Historically, the term 'post-racial' has been used in reference to the United States to describe a point in time where race is no longer a relevant social or societal factor (Wooten, 1971). It's contemporary usage is based on the claim that the societal bias has been reversed or otherwise eliminated due to actions taken at the governmental level to combat it (Cho, 2008). The idea gained contemporary popularity with the election of America's first black president, Barack Obama in 2008 (Dawson & Bobo, 2009). The question of whether America's population and institutions still harbor racial prejudice is then relevant to many different parties. It is relevant to academics who will have tor revisit, revise or remove portions of theory germane to racism in America. It is relevant to lawmakers, judges, politicians, and law enforcement, as the measures put in place to protect people from bias would no longer need to exist in a post-racial society, and might do harm rather than be beneficial. It is relevant to businesses, as it factors into the amount of consideration goes into the hiring and life-cycle of an employee. Most of all, it would be of tantamount importance to the millions of Americans who are fearful of being victimized by racist individuals and institutions. Members of all of those groups stand to benefit from knowing the current state of racial prejudice in the United States. This paper will seek to evaluate whether the United States of America no longer uses the concept of race to hierarchically advantage some groups over others. In pursuit of that, the following questions will be instrumental in finding evidence so that a conclusion can be formed on its basis. Do we see evidence of post-racial trends in positions of power? Does the media report in an unbiased way when the subject of race is involved? Does the society treat criminality and success differently in different racial groups? SUPPORT INFORMATION Alexander, M (2011). The New Jim Crow. New York, NY. New Press. Belcher, C.(2016,October). A Black Man in the White House: Barack Obama and the Triggering of America's Racial-Aversion Crisis. Water Street Press. Clair, M., & Denis, J. (2015). Sociology of Racism. In J. D. Wright (Ed.), The International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2nd Edn. Oxford: Elsevier. Delgado, R. & Stefancic, J. (2016, September) A New Southern Strategy of Multigroup Oppression: A Response to Standard White by Michael Morris.California Law Review, 7, 49-67. Retrieved from http://ift.tt/2qRvJpF Big Question: Does the current social climate indicate that America is post-racial? 1. Do we see evidence of post-racial trends in positions of power? A. President Obama may indicate a post-racial society. B. Donald Trump's campaign stokes the fire of racism by another name. C. Who voted for our President? 2. Is there evidence in the mass media? a. News reporting (bias vs realism) b.Representation in fiction (the authors are white, character race swapping) c. Social media trends (are race-based forums and groups prevalent?) 3. Does the society treat criminality and success differently in different racial groups? Draft Introduction Paragaph 1) Arguments for why topic question is important- efforts to combat racism should either be continued or stopped based on the current status of society Statistics or an intereting story to catch the reader's attention and lead them to think this is an important question- http://ift.tt/2pRH22M http://ift.tt/2msz3UR http://ift.tt/2pRJFBS http://ift.tt/28Q5xCt http://ift.tt/2pRZisU http://ift.tt/2aEtr5Z Paragraph 2) historical background definition of terms further statistics showing the importance fo the topic examples in the form of a story that draws the reader into the questions being asked Other necessary information for the reader http://ift.tt/2pRMFxQ Sumi Cho, Post-Racialism, 94 IOWA L. REV. 1589, 1594 (2009) http://ift.tt/2qRfcCr Paragraph 3) research question, three section questions Section 2_____ The media, in the form of popularly consumed audio, video, and literary work, has the power to influence people's ideas on subjects (Marger, 2009). It has been demonstrated, however, that media may only portray and support a population's pre-existing perspective (Marger, 2009). Given that, a good source of information about a population's ideas on the subject of race would be the representations of race on television, in the movies, and in the written word. Media which portrays one or more ethnic groups positively at the expense of others would bolster a conclusion that America is not post-racial. However, if those portrayals are biased in terms of racial representation due to actual differences in ethnic groups' behavior in society, as may be the case for the news and non-fiction movies or fictional accounts based strongly on actual occurrences, then that would lend support for a conclusion that America is post-racial. Less than a month after the election of president Donald Trump, a non-profit organization devoted to identifying, documenting, monitoring, reporting and actively opposing hate crimes and hate organizations, the Southern Poverty Law Center, released a report on “The Trump Effect” (2016). This report compiled data about race-based harassment in K-12 education that ensued, they claim, as the result of Donald Trump's election victory (“The Trump Effect”, 2016). However, what was omitted from the report were crimes and harassment committed against white students in that same time frame (Sperry, 2016). This phenomena of selectively isolating white people in reporting, either by omission or by focusing only on them in a negative light, has been identified by some as a media trend (Marcus, 2016). This instance is representative of a larger clash in interpretations of media, whereby this phenomena can be interpreted as evidence of an America where minorities have a large platform to express themselves (Marcus, 2016). If America were approaching being post-racial, that progress could be reversed through depictions of the society as still being biased (Marcus, 2016). This may indicate that America is post-racial. Idris Elba being cast in the lead role in the movie adaptation of Stephen King's Dark Tower series caused a backlash among the fanbase (Jaworski, 2015). The main character in the Dark Tower series is White and Idris Elba is Black, making the choice somewhat confusing to fans (Jawroski, 2015). This raises questions about media representation, as some fans claimed that the choice was made only to satisfy a desire for diversity (Jaworski, 2015). This is comparable to other instances of characters who are initially written as one ethnicity and then cast as another, such as the Ancient One in the film adaptation of Marvel's Doctor Strange. The choice to cast a White actress as an Asian character was one which received backlash as 'whitewashing', having White people play non-White characters (Yamato, 2016). However, when interviewed on the subject, the co-writer and director of the film, Scott Derrickson, defended the choice as an attempt to reverse the stereotypes written into the original character (Yamato, 2016). This motivation, while not adequate to appease fans, provides consciously made creative decisions as an alternative to malicious exclusion (Yamato, 2016). Both instances can be the result of attempts to satisfy diverse audiences (Jaworski, 2015). Social media sites have become hosts for discussions about politics, race, and news (Zhou, 2015). One use in recent history has been to highlight issues and start national conversations on them, as was the case surrounding BlackLivesMatter (Anderson & Hitlin, 2016). In light of research demonstrating inequalities on the basis of race, the topics of discussion can vary between racial groups (Zhou, 2015). However, social media allows people to communicate their perspectives on a national stage (Zhou, 2015). This, despite the fact that most people generally communicate with people in their geographic locale (Zhou, 2015) and that geographic segregation exists as the result of historically racist practices (Alexander, 2011). This national conversation can be seen as evidence of a higher social consciousness (Alexander, 2011). Black actors are playing roles written for White characters (Jaworski, 2015) and White actors are being used to buck stereotypes in representation (Yamato, 2016). News media contains a platform where minorities can have a voice at a national level (Marcus, 2016). There are ongoing national conversations between different groups on the subject of race (Anderson & Hitlin, 2016). These can all be interpreted as evidence towards a conclusion on America's potential status as a post-racial society. References used Anderson, M. & Hitlin, P. August 15, 2016. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from http://ift.tt/2aUetHw Paul Sperry, December 5th, 2016.New York post http://ift.tt/2g1cY1j Souther Poverty Law Center “The Trump Effect”http://ift.tt/2fyv1fd David Marcus The Federalist December 2016 http://ift.tt/1Wcbqzw Michelle Jaworski December 10, 2015 The Daily Dot http://ift.tt/2pRVDLB Jen Yamato November 2 2016 The Daily beast http://ift.tt/2qQZ6sa Li Zhou October 5,th 2015 http://ift.tt/2pRNfvK from Gmail via IFTTT