Coopernundrums

Great Scott!

JayCooper — Wed, 02 May 2012 04:09:11 +0000

As I anxiously await the release of the new film Prometheus by the master film director Ridley Scott I started asking myself how many of his films had influenced my life. This list is long but I managed to narrow it down to a few. I present to you now my list of the best Ridley Scott films of all time.

No related posts.

Bumper Stickers Make Me Physically ill.

JayCooper — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:51:04 +0000

I don’t just hate bumper stickers. I despise them. Bumper Stickers Make Me Physically ill.

Do people that put them on their cars really think that a 4 inch x 12 inch piece of printed plastic is going to make me change my mind about some subject or make me think that they are better people? It literally destroys the value of a nice automobile. I understand the need to have one’s own soapbox from which to blast opinions. I have this blog so I guess I can’t fault them. What it does, however, is provide me with at target worth commenting on. Let’s chat about some of the less intelligent ones that I have seen.

First of all, we have the political bumper stickers. I admire the ability for someone to support a political candidate, but you must feel like a real dumbass driving around with a Gore-Lieberman bumper sticker today.

Next, we have religious bumper stickers. Some of these stickers really amaze me. I saw one yesterday that said “Pray the Rosary”. If you are Catholic, I suppose that is a good sentiment, but why does it need to be on a bumper sticker? If I am out driving and praying the rosary, then I would probably need “Jesus as my co-pilot” to avoid a terrible accident. Along those same lines, the WWJD stickers ask an interesting question. I will tell you what he would NOT be doing. He would probably not be driving around with a bumper sticker on his car that said “What would I do?”.

Moving on, you have the bumper stickers that try to teach me a lesson. Things like “Hang up and drive.” Let’s set aside the fact that it’s my right as a human being to drive and talk on the phone as long as I use a hands free device. Instead how bout I just squint or ride your ass while I concentrate on reading your bumper sticker. That sounds pretty safe.

Then there are these general sentiment bumper stickers. I saw one that offered a very simple sentiment today. It said “F$%k you.” That was all. Classy, I must say.

The last one is the nearly ubiquitous “My child is an honor student at XYZ school.” I hate to tell you, your kid may be an honor student, but you are an idiot.

“There’s a difference between a philosophy and a bumper sticker.” -Charles M. Schulz

Conservative Libertarian Atheist

JayCooper — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 03:23:23 +0000

I have heard it said that what makes conservatives superior to liberals is their religious faith—as if morality is impossible without religion and everything is indeed permitted, as the cliché has it. I wonder whether religious conservatives can spot the atheists among them by their deeds or, for that matter, by their political positions. I very much doubt it. Skeptical conservatives do not look into the abyss when they make ethical choices. Their moral sense is as secure as a believer’s. They do not need God or the Christian Bible to discover the golden rule and see themselves in others.

Skeptical conservatives—one of the Right’s less celebrated subcultures—are conservatives because of their skepticism, not in spite of it. They ground their ideas in rational thinking and (nonreligious) moral argument. Conservative atheists and agnostics support traditional American values. They believe in personal responsibility, self-reliance, and deferred gratification as the bedrock virtues of a prosperous society. They deplore the encroachments of the welfare state on matters best left to private effort.

Most Christians are not only social conservatives, but demand that their values be imposed on others as well. This is completely incompatible with being a libertarian. Believers have a strange desire to evangelize others in the hope they will become Christian, and to not let their children interact with anyone not acting like a Christian. That is an authoritarian point of view not compatible with being Libertarian.

I consider myself a proud conservative, libertarian atheist. Where social issues are involved I would indeed be closer to a Democrat’s views. From an economic/political perspective, I am much closer to conservative Republican views. I am pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, pro-gun, pro-evolution and anti-religion. I am for small government and anti-terrorism, but I am also anti-death penalty. I admire Reagan and Lincoln and think Carter and Obama are the worst presidents in the last 100 years.

The Man Who Waited

JayCooper — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 23:00:28 +0000

Quite a few years ago as I was flipping through TV channels as we males do I happened to run across an animated short. It was called ”The Man Who Waited”. It was a strange little film that was filled with fun and thought provoking imagery and ideas. At the time I had no idea that it had affected me at all. I just thought it was a fun cartoon with interesting narration and style.

Over time I thought about that film a lot and ended up doing quite a bit of research on it. I discovered that it was made by a Bulgarian / Canadian named Theodore Ushev. It is a re imagining of a short story by another famous author of oddities you may know, Kafka. You cannot watch this short film on YouTube or anyplace that I can find online. The films maker is very proud of his work and wants to keep it a a revenue stream. i don’t blame the fellow one bit. I can’t even find the script anywhere so I am going o paraphrase the original story with what I can recall of the film’s narration for your reading pleasure.

A man comes to the door of knowledge, seeking admittance. The door stands open but refuses to allow him to pass. The door tells the man that if he waits long enough, perhaps, someday, he might gain entrance. The man decides to wait. Time passes as he waits by the door. He reasons with the door, which listens to his pleas but still refuses to let him through. The man begins to form a sort of kinship with the door as he studies it and begins to grow old waiting. The door acknowledges his suffering and confusion, keeping the old man company– but still does not allow him to enter. “I only do this so that you will not abandon hope entirely,” explains the door.

Eventually, when the man is very old, after many years of waiting he senses that he will soon die. As time and age begin to close in around the dying man he summons the energy to ask one final question that has puzzled him throughout the many long years. “I have been told,” he says to the door, “that knowledge exists for all. Why then, if this is true, does it happen that, in all the years I have waited, no one else has ever come to the door of knowledge?”

“This door,” he says as the old man dies, “was made only for you,” and then closes.

Sources :

http://www.onf-nfb.gc.ca/eng/collection/film/?id=53918

http://www.ushev.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Trial

Live a Good Life

JayCooper — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:58:15 +0000

Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.

Marcus Aurelius

Giving Voice to the Villain

JayCooper — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:33:48 +0000

Villains are often overlooked in movies. Truly great stories need memorable villains. Sometimes the villain is so compelling that he or she even overshadows the hero. Some actors make better villains than others. I decided to make a list of actors that make great villains. Some have tried their hands at serious and even sometimes heroic roles. Where these actors really shine is when they are portraying truly immoral characters. Here is a list of my all time favorite actors, notable for their portrayal of villains.