Ms. Smarty Pants Know It All

Rather than being yet another play-by-play of the Revolutionary Era, this book is more about the ideas of the Revolution and how those influenced the events that happened.

I really enjoyed this approach because it gave me a different way to experience the time. And now that I’ve heard the story this way, it seems to be the more legitimate way of looking at these decades.

For example, I think the Declaration of Independence received all of four sentences in this book. If there were more, it certainly didn’t seem like it. In other works, the Dec. of Ind. would get its own chapter, or a few pages at least.

But really, the Declaration was the culmination of the colonial protests. Thomas Jefferson wrote down in one place many of the principles and objections developed throughout the land. If a work of history did not cover these points before its arrival at 1776, then it is a sorely lacking project.

And if the points were covered, why rehash everything again? At this point, Wood explains the Declaration of Independence for what it was and does not explain all the points Jefferson put in there.

And he is able to do this clearly. Wood has a gift for explaining ideas and situations with brevity yet thoroughness. For example, I learned that the British insisted that their taxation powers were legitimized through virtual representation. The Americans rejected this position and insisted that only actual representation was acceptable and legitimate.

Wood also got across just how significant and important the idea of adding additional states as equal members was.

These are heavy ideas yet they are handled deftly, quickly, and things never got bogged down. There is one big glaring omission though. In my opinion, the controversy over slavery did not get the pages it deserves. I would have liked to hear more from him on this front.

But, and this is a huge point, it is remarkable that his biases, for the most part, cannot be seen here. When dealing with American heroes, it can be hard to avoid romanticizing or over-criticizing the Revolutionary generation. Everyone, including the British, gets a fair shake here.

The writing is not devoid of passion. It is simply interestingly matter of fact.

For those who may not enjoy the more chronological, events-oriented nature of historic study, The American Revolution is going to be a hit. One can really see the roots of American society and better understand how we are still dealing with many of the same things today. Our time is really not that different from what came before.

Audiobook Challenge: six down, six to go.

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This is a pretty interesting genre mash-up. It’s entertaining and quite funny in places.

I was originally going to just do a 15-word Review for this, but I think it should be noted that this is not for everyone.

The violence and language are very serious and involve one particularly young character in the movie. Although, I think the general message that superheroes are pretty messed up people mitigates this. I believe The Watchmen is given credit as the first major work that really brought forth this idea.

We may admire them and wish we could be as heroic, but seriously… How messed up do you have to be to go out in costume and fight crime?

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My read through the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list got me in the mood to see a couple more of the titles. I started with The Day the Earth Stood Still.

Even though it was made in 1951, the film still holds up. There are some laughable conventions of that time period’s filmmaking, but the special effects were pleasantly advanced. Sure, some of them were hokey, but I couldn’t figure out how they did some of the others. And there is always something gorgeous about well-done black and white.

The movie focuses on the landing of Klaatu, his robot Gort, and their big, giant spaceship. Klaatu has a message for all the peoples of Earth, but he’s finding it hard to get anyone to listen.

The main plot moves along very well and is filled with tight, dramatic scenes. There are also plenty of quick social commentary asides along the way that are still poignantly relevant today.

When faced with an unknown phenomenon, there are those who lash out with fear, those who use it to justify their already irrational beliefs, and those who seek to use it for their own personal gains. There’s a great moment when a reporter doing live interviews at the scene of the landing quickly skips over a comment that’s going to be well-reasoned and thoughtful in search of a more consumer-friendly soundbite of panic.

But there are also those who react to the spaceman with reason, patience, and withheld judgments.

Today’s sci-fi movies tend to go big. There are big explosions, big locales, big scope, and a big cast. The Day the Earth Stood Still shows how good storytelling can be when kept smaller. There are quick flashes to other countries around the world, but for the most part, this intergalactic thriller is kept at a local level and amongst just a few characters. Through this perspective, we’re better able to be involved and understand the stakes.

Spoilers below:
There are two ideas in this movie that made me especially like it. First, there is a strong religious component to the story. In order to move around the human world, Klaatu takes the moniker of Carpenter. The message he brings to Earth is essentially one of peace and pacifism. Even as he is hunted and threatened in his mission, he still tries to make sure that the ones who are trying to harm him will not be harmed themselves. And yes, there is even a death and a resurrection.

It’s not that hard of a mental challenge to simply make Klaatu an emissary from the Divine. And even if he was, he would probably just have as hard a time in getting his message out.

The second idea that blew me away takes place right at the end of the movie. All along, the benevolent alien storyline was pretty standard. I thought I knew exactly what the movie was going to do. Then, it pulls a switcheroo on me.

It turns out that Gort is not really a servant robot. He is essentially an overlord. Klaatu explains that the other planets turned their policing over to these all-powerful robots and violence or aggression is absolutely not tolerated. The penalty for being violent is death.

This is peace without choice. All through the movie, we’re pulling for the alien. We’re urging the humans not to fight him. But there, right at the end, I now have to think about armed resistance because the message is this: If Earth brings its weapons into space, Earth will be destroyed. If Earth will submit their policing to these robots, Earth will live in peace and enjoy the prosperity that comes with peace.

Wow, that’s quite an immense bargain. The aliens gained absolute security by giving up absolute freedom. That’s an intense heavy to drop and then fly off into the sunset.

1001 Movies You Must Watch Before You Die: 254

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