A Clockwork Orange: Waiting for the Sun

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

 

 Society should not do the wrong thing for the right reason, even though it frequently does the right thing for the wrong reason.

 

 History has shown us what happens when you try to make society too civilized, or do too good a job of eliminating undesirable elements. It also shows the tragic fallacy in the belief that the destruction of democratic institutions will cause better ones to arise in their place.

Stanley Kubrick on “A Clockwork Orange”, an interview with film critic Michel Ciment

 

An obscure Texas political consultant named Bill Miller once said “politics is show business for ugly people”.  It’s true for the most part, aside from the consequences.  This is because the theatrics of politicians result in policies that affect the lives of others; often against the will of the governed. In books and movies, however, the characters are much ado about nothing. Until, that is, life imitates art.

So it is with the futuristic dystopian story of “A Clockwork Orange”.  Both the book, by the author Anthony Burgess, and the film by director Stanley Kubrick, serve as moral dilemmas and cautionary tales plumbing such considerations as free will, the duality of mankind, societal anarchy, and the ascendancy of an all-powerful state.

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They Live: Choose Before You Die

By Doug “Uncola” Lynn via TheBurningPlatform.com

Sometimes, during the summers, I like to stay up late.  When not reading or writing, I will usually resort to watching a series on television.  I enjoy series because the character development and storylines are far more in-depth than what is viewed in a mere two-hour movie; although I do watch them as well.  On HBO, I have experienced The Sopranos, The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, Deadwood, True Blood, and a few others.  On AMC, it was Breaking Bad and I still watch The Walking Dead. What I like about Netflix, however, is the ability to access a virtual cornucopia of diverse programming on any device; at home, on the road, and easily “un-paused” with the flick-of-a-finger anytime, anywhere, within the matrix.

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