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MushmanTheManic
Stranger


Registered: 04/21/05
Posts: 4,587
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Television
#7977821 - 02/04/08 02:10 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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I find watching images produced by a cathode-ray tube of human beings acting out meaningless, trite situations disturbing, not entertaining. Why do people get so involved with images on a screen? Reality seems so much more interesting.
Its odd that people would rather observe someone else's boring, hollow life than live their own. Are people really that lonely and barren?
Or am I just fucking weird?
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Icelander
The Minstrel in the Gallery



Registered: 03/15/05
Posts: 95,368
Loc: underbelly
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Yes and yes.
-------------------- "Don't believe everything you think". -Anom. " All that lives was born to die"-Anom. With much wisdom comes much sorrow, The more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC
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Lion
Decadent Flower Magnate



Registered: 09/20/05
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Awesome thread. Sticky this shit. Hahaha.
-------------------- “Strengthened by contemplation and study, I will not fear my passions like a coward. My body I will give to pleasures, to diversions that I’ve dreamed of, to the most daring erotic desires, to the lustful impulses of my blood, without any fear at all, for whenever I will— and I will have the will, strengthened as I’ll be with contemplation and study— at the crucial moments I’ll recover my spirit as was before: ascetic.”
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backfromthedead
Activated


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Re: Television [Re: Lion]
#7977875 - 02/04/08 02:27 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Has anybody seen any of Google Current??
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MushmanTheManic
Stranger


Registered: 04/21/05
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Whats that?
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backfromthedead
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Google created a channel that is almost entirely viewer created. They call them pods. 3-7min long all uploaded by viewers. Kind of cheezy but a lot of progressive ideas being shared, imo.
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backfromthedead
Activated


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Its targeted towards a young audience. Mostly kids with cameras. I think Al Gore is the Chairman or something.
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MushmanTheManic
Stranger


Registered: 04/21/05
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Thanks, sounds interesting. I'll look into it.
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rubixcubies
porch monkey ferlyfe



Registered: 08/05/06
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can i make submissions or is it kids only? will it be censored? cuz honetsly in no way would anything i make get by censorship of anykind. especially al gores.
-------------------- i'm a very evolved ape you know.
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rubixcubies
porch monkey ferlyfe



Registered: 08/05/06
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because itd be great to blow those kidses minds
-------------------- i'm a very evolved ape you know.
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backfromthedead
Activated


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Let's do it, I'm down. Mostly 20 something year olds. I've always wanted to do a psilocybin as medicine and spiritual sacrament documentary.
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AlteredAgain
Visual Alchemist



Registered: 04/27/06
Posts: 11,181
Loc: Solar Circuit
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Quote:
MushmanTheManic said: Or am I just fucking weird?
Me too.
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TheCow
Stranger

Registered: 10/28/02
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I don't see what is so weird about it. Humans have been creating plays for a large amount of time, reading books, how is TV any different? Is it just that it is purely electronic?
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AlteredAgain
Visual Alchemist



Registered: 04/27/06
Posts: 11,181
Loc: Solar Circuit
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Re: Television [Re: TheCow]
#7978167 - 02/04/08 03:45 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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To me it's the rapid pace of imagery that turns me off. There is a difference between a stage play where you can view the full stage and a show where you only see that which the camera is focused on.
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OneWhoHasSeen
Temporal Anomaly



Registered: 11/20/04
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MushmanTheManic,
If you want to see the future of TV, read Ferinheit 451. Many have stated that the novel is about the evils of book burning, but Bradbury himself state that the book is actually about the fallacies of TV and how it causes us to become disconnected from reality.
People make entire rooms were all the walls are television sets, and they sit and watch instantly gratifying but lastingly meaningless programs. They watch it up until the moment of their deaths.
On the other hand, TV can be a wonderful way for people to open their imaginations. Yes, books benefit you more as your imagination and vocabulary are expanded, but nothing is more gripping then a good movie and TV is that medium.
Its true that TV can be mind numbing and decreases free thought, but in the right hands it can be wonderful. Ever had that movie that moved you to tears? A story can be beautiful no matter what medium it uses.
Hope this helps
-------------------- A Temporal Anomaly
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Lion
Decadent Flower Magnate



Registered: 09/20/05
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This is a cool, albeit bleak, song about television in our culture. Thought I'd post it here.
Chocking Victim - 500 Channels
Quote:
500 channels of a day-dream simulation help me to resent my life and raise my expectations. Locked into re-runs, your memories repeating, and all your ideals seem so self-defeating. For you and yours, the Pepsi generation, and when you're discontent, you change the T.V. station, And when you hate your life, no qualities redeeming, a million brainwashed zombies will always be heard screaming...
And when there is no hope, "I'll smoke some crack, I'll shoot some dope!" When there's no enemy, "I sit and stare at my T.V. and in my ignorance, I'll be a slave and sycophant!"
And in a perfect world devoid of all temptations, the good leftover crizack could unite the nations. But now the war machines are mapping our destructions with poisons overflowing in the chemical seductions.
And when there is no hope, "I'll smoke some crack, I'll shoot some dope!" When there's no enemy, "I sit and stare at my T.V. and in my ignorance, I'll be a slave and sycophant!"
With my credit and my bank, my mind will draw a blank. I'll block out history, and stare at my T.V. For me there is no way. 500 channels waste my life away, away...
-------------------- “Strengthened by contemplation and study, I will not fear my passions like a coward. My body I will give to pleasures, to diversions that I’ve dreamed of, to the most daring erotic desires, to the lustful impulses of my blood, without any fear at all, for whenever I will— and I will have the will, strengthened as I’ll be with contemplation and study— at the crucial moments I’ll recover my spirit as was before: ascetic.”
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EternalCowabunga
Being of Great Significance



Registered: 04/04/05
Posts: 7,152
Loc: Time and Space
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Re: Television [Re: Lion]
#7982619 - 02/05/08 01:06 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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I just made a long post and then it got deleted so I'll just put my two cents in.
I think "disturbing" is a good adjective to use, not one I'd ever think to describe T.V but it fits IMO. The reason why I find it is disturbing is because unlike plays or books, T.V has the ability to present the inner psychology of writers and directors and other people who work on the shows through editing and the use of depth and other tools.
These tools add more dimensions to what you're watching and thus they come closer to a more complete subjective reality. These realities are not based off a kind of Aristotelean logic but the combined idiosyncrasies of the writers, director, etc. Sometimes these people can have less than inspiring or intelligent perspectives (people often complain about a show actually making them feel dumber) and we sense this on a subconscious level. T.V does not give us as much choice in how we observe something because we are also given the inner psychology of the events unfolding and so we are the unwilling consumers of a reality we did not help create.
So yes, it is disturbing.
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Droz
Love of Life



Registered: 10/15/00
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Are you telling me you don't like movies like The Matrix?
-------------------- Evolution of Time.
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EternalCowabunga
Being of Great Significance



Registered: 04/04/05
Posts: 7,152
Loc: Time and Space
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Re: Television [Re: Droz]
#7982700 - 02/05/08 01:27 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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Quote:
Sometimes these people can have less than inspiring or intelligent perspectives (people often complain about a show actually making them feel dumber) and we sense this on a subconscious level.
Movies are a whole other medium and have a greater potential for being good art. TV can be good too, it's just that most of it is trash.
The closer you come to representing a subjective reality rather than something very straight forward and archetypal, the more one would hope that there is something of value in that person's mind. For an example of a movie that is completely worthless, check out "Meet The Spartans"
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Droz
Love of Life



Registered: 10/15/00
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Meet The Spartans is like mainstream comedy.. it's crap.
-------------------- Evolution of Time.
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Lion
Decadent Flower Magnate



Registered: 09/20/05
Posts: 8,775
Last seen: 3 days, 20 hours
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Re: Television [Re: Droz]
#7982796 - 02/05/08 01:48 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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What's also disturbing about TV is that it only exists to sell people things... There is absolutely no other reason for its existence. It is not art at all, it panders to the lowest common denominator in order to sell things to the widest range of people. And what does everyone want? A new plasma TV!
-------------------- “Strengthened by contemplation and study, I will not fear my passions like a coward. My body I will give to pleasures, to diversions that I’ve dreamed of, to the most daring erotic desires, to the lustful impulses of my blood, without any fear at all, for whenever I will— and I will have the will, strengthened as I’ll be with contemplation and study— at the crucial moments I’ll recover my spirit as was before: ascetic.”
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WScott
´ ɑ `▽ ᑲᓇᑕ



Registered: 07/31/05
Posts: 5,713
Loc: Nacada
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Re: Television [Re: Droz]
#7982811 - 02/05/08 01:53 PM (15 years, 11 months ago) |
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For those who have not seen it, one of the infamous clips from 'The Network':
I'm really not a fan of television these days. It isn't only the programming, which a lot of I think is nothing more than propaganda, desensitization and behaviorism but also its how big screen televisions are beginning to permeate more and more households as time goes on. I have a friend, for example, who already owns a big screen television.. but they are already considering investing in a larger version that can hang on their wall. At another friend's place before going out the other night, my buddies were commenting that the television we were watching at the time was crap. This being a 17" or so.. something considered to be perfectly fine only a few years ago. We're being told that new makes old obsolete when the 'obsolete' works perfectly well. And where do you think all the old televisions go that are thrown out? @#$%.
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Edited by WScott (02/05/08 02:01 PM)
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Diploid
Cuban



Registered: 01/09/03
Posts: 19,274
Loc: Rabbit Hole
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I put my TV in storage about three years ago and never looked back. Maybe it's time to put it on Ebay?
I do subscribe to NetFlix, though.
-------------------- Republican Values: 1) You can't get married to your spouse who is the same sex as you. 2) You can't have an abortion no matter how much you don't want a child. 3) You can't have a certain plant in your possession or you'll get locked up with a rapist and a murderer. 4) We need a smaller, less-intrusive government.
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MushmanTheManic
Stranger


Registered: 04/21/05
Posts: 4,587
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Quote:
AlteredAgain said: To me it's the rapid pace of imagery that turns me off. There is a difference between a stage play where you can view the full stage and a show where you only see that which the camera is focused on.
Not to mention, plays typically involve some sort of underlying theme or message. Sitcoms and "reality television" are just relatively hairless apes running about in mundane situations. Entertainment doesn't have to be intellectually lacking, but it seems like most of what they put on television is. Even when I watch the news, I feel like it is still just entertainment.
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