Verbalism Personified

What I Will and Will Not Do

Three weeks. Three weeks of talking and outings. That's the result of what a chance encounter at a movie house does to people when they are busy making other plans.

So many things have been said and the long litany of history has been unfurled, enough to write tomes of multipart best sellers. And yet, there is so much left unexplored and uncharted. But if only we made time for things that we want in our lives. There are possibilities to be had and there are none to be realized all at once.

There isn't much time left for me. There are so many things to do and prepare for before the year is out. While yours moves into uncharted waters, you live your days and nights in spite of some obvious misgivings. Minor or major, who was wrong, who was right doesn't matter at all. What's important is how you spend the time that you have, with the people who care for you and with those who being harmony and value to your life.

Did I wonder about you? I won't lie to say that I didn't. However this is something that I will not do. Sometimes what we want isn't necessarily good for us. That sounds weird, I know. Would anyone conclude the reasons? Would anyone care? Maybe you do. And maybe you won't.

Am I that big a man to make you realize just what you need to do for yourself? Am I persuasive enough? Should I care at all? What I will do is offer you my friendship. For this is all that I can give you. This is all that I can give you.

posted by Teutoburg @ 11:16 AM 0 comments

Drive

The lead track from Automatic for the People, Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe open a sombre tone with one of the classic albums of the 90s.

Featuring a stripped down sound with nothing more than accoustic guitar, strings and Michael's unmistakable voice, Drive paints a dark and ominous path to oblivion.

posted by Teutoburg @ 10:04 AM 0 comments

Paradise Now

What goes on inside the mind of a Palestinian suicide bomber? Paradise Now sheds light on guarded territory as two young men from the West Bank city of Nablus, cross over to Tel Aviv in an attempt to send themselves, with as many Israelis as possible, to God.

Apart from the bloody history lesson and complex politics stiffling Israel and the Palestinian territories, Paradise Now is a story about two young men. While it may not change your opinion about the type of person who sets out to kill by strapping a bomb to their body, you will be forced to think about them, their families, their homes, their lives and their fears.

The two protagonists are auto mechanics Saïd and Khaled, who have been friends since childhood. They decide to go on a mission together and early in the film, they are tapped for a mission 24 hours in advance. This preparation period provides some of the film’s most fascinating insights. Each man is assigned a minder, who sticks with him throughout these hours as they return to their families to spend the night and say goodbye without letting anyone in on the secret.

Though the premise is bleak, the single light-hearted moment comes when the two men shoot their “martyr videos”. As indiscriminatory as suicide missions are, camera malfunctions do not bow to higher purpose which force the need for retakes. Khaled takes the opportunity in one of those retakes to throw in a personal note to his mother about where to buy at a lower price, a water-softening product that is advertised in the movie’s background media. Later we learn that these martyr videos, second only to collaborator videos, are hot rentals at the local video store. Saïd and Khaled are then given a 'make-over' before being wired up with bombs. Just before they embark on their one-way journey, they receive an inspirational send-off from the cell’s exalted leader.

Saïd and Khaled are not religious fanatics or rabid nationalists. In fact, bombers are rarely active members in the organizations who recruit them. While many mention the death of relatives at the hands of the Israeli army in their videos, not all are driven by revenge, nor are they motivated by a belief that they will ascend directly to heaven. Saïd and Khaled have heard rumors about Paradise, but in the end they’re not sure they believe them. They are just men with families who love them and who know nothing of their plans to die.

While the details are intriguing, it isn’t towards the second half and the end of the film that we learn more about Saïd's and Khaled's motives for going on the mission. Paradise Now throws a spin as each man has his ideology challenged by Suha, a returned expatriate and daughter of a sainted suicide bomber. Suha has come to believe that violent confrontation with Israel is wrong. While straightforward in her argument, these separate confrontations make both men question the very basis for the justification of their acts.

The bombing plan goes awry and is officially aborted. By that time Khaled, who seemed more enthusiastic of the two, had come to have second thoughts. And it isn’t until Saïd’s motives are revealed that we understand the despair that has been quietly eating away at him. The outcome is numbing. But for Saïd, not being able to see a way out of his situation, swallowing his need for retribution and accepting the love offered to him by Suha, is perhaps the greatest tragedy of all.

posted by Teutoburg @ 10:24 AM 0 comments

I will Fix You

"They'll fix you. They fix everyone."
- Robocop, 1987.

As far as off-the-cuff speaches made by politicians go, the one delivered by Prime Minister Lee in a televised speach would make a viewer cringe. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore remarked that he would have to spend his time fixing opposition politicians if more of them were elected into parliament. In addition to having to "buy my supporters votes", you can imagine political cynics, conspiracy theorists and the very opposition the Government is trying to 'fix', giving themselves congratulatory I-told-you-so's.

One can only guess as to why Prime Minister Lee had used the word 'fix'. Is it a reflection of his mind set or a veiled threat that his government will do whatever necessary to keep Singapore on the right path with minimum interference?

Prime Minister Lee's intensions may be well intentioned and sincere. However having to convey that sincerity to the voting electorate requires some finese and tact. Choice of words can either endear a voter to you or destroy hard won credibility.

This situation is no different. If Prime Minister Lee had offered that having more opposition members in Parliament would only 'distract' the government from addressing long-term issues affecting Singapore, that would have been self explanatory regardless of what the electorate may think about the matter. And any voting member of the public with half a brain will be able to see the hard won results for themselves. There is no point stating the obvious.

It isn't enough just to lead by example. Leaders must convey their intensions without inneuendo. It isn't the job of political commentators to second-guess what politicians are supposed to have really said. There may be some outrage directed at Prime Minister Lee for his comment and his statement may be retracted with an apology. However this episode may cost his government some at the polls.

posted by Teutoburg @ 10:26 PM 0 comments