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20/20 Filmsight - Film Criticism by David O'Connell

Film Criticism by David O'Connell

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An Inconvenient Truth pulled from class by angry parents

January 30th 2007 04:50

It seems that parents have to be vigilant in protecting their kids from all sorts of unseen menaces... lurking paedophiles, drugs, Dungeons and Dragons and Liberal Propaganda.

Hmm? Oh yeah, Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth was pulled from a Seattle class when angry parents decided it was too much propaganda to be force fed in the school system.

Actually, I do agree with the school's decision... while I haven't seen the movie, I'd be surprised if it was totally objective. But then again, even research findings contain quite a bit of bias.

The parent at the head of the angry mob is Frosty Hardison. Seriously, the guy's name is Frosty. That would've been sweet growing up - around Christmas, people would be nervous that you'd turn into a flesh-eating snowman.

Well, good ol' Frosty rounded up other easily-riled parents and gave Gore's movie the golden boot.

In Frosty's letter to the school board:

"You will not teach or show that propagandist Al Gore video to my child, blaming our nation — the greatest nation ever to exist on this planet — for global warming,"

Yeah! The Greatest! Sorry, Australians, but you're a distant second. We-ell, maybe third after the UK, since they sent more troops to Iraq.

Hey, Frosty, it IS getting a little warm, though. Any thoughts about that?

[Frosty] is an evangelical Christian who says he believes that a warming planet is "one of the signs" of Jesus Christ's imminent return for Judgment Day.

Er, yeah. Frosty'll be all over that shit, man. He'll be laughing in his air-conditioned home as the Rapture burns the pagans and heretics and 'queers' and 'Negros' and beatboxers in something similar to burnt bacon.

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Comments

40 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by Brenton

January 30th 2007 06:11

Dr Spin
Tales From The Other Side
Blip Blog
Gadget Museum

I think we all know Legoland is the greatest nation in the world.

Comment by Nina

January 30th 2007 07:08

I agree that it probably shouldn't be shown in a classroom as I doubt it would be objective. However, the way they have gone about the outcry does nothing for their cause.
A simple

'I would prefer a documentary that showed both sides of the argument'

rather than

'my country is teh greatest!!!!11!!1!The heat will burn teh sinners!!1!!!111eleventy-one!!'

would be more effective.

By the way, I love the comic strip.

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 07:59

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

oh theres better, it was pulled from some christian schools because it was showing the earth to be more than 6000 years old.

Anyway, those with the 'america is the greatest thing ever and you are a terrorist if you so much as think that the tomato's here go bad after an hour in the trash bin' attitudes are sadly more common there (relatively speaking) than other countries.

hey, youc an be patriotic, but be critical, I mean I'll die for Australia, but damn well i need a good reason

Comment by Damo

January 30th 2007 08:04

I agree with the school's decision but Frosty sounds like one angry snow bunny.

Nina's comment is correct about a two sides of the story approach but how is it done?
Do we have Al Gore vs some Industrialist?

If Frosty keeps going on about Rapture he may melt.
Why are they so upset about what so called 'Lberals' do if it is all going to end soon.

Love the cartoon.

Comment by Always Eighteen

January 30th 2007 08:21

Always Eighteen

I might name my child Frosty.

I liked Inconvenient Truth, and it certainly has made a lot of people finally aware of the danger of global warming.

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 10:27

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

If he's so patriotic why not give him a gun and let him go fight the wars?

Same to dick cheyney, the man who was so scared of getting conscripted into the army that he filed 5 defferments of conscription forms from the time he was eligble to the time he couldn't be conscripted.

Yeah, funny how all those who start wars and claim patrioticism would cry if you slapped them in the hand.

Comment by Lilla

January 30th 2007 10:36

From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop

Cib,

I agree with not scaring young children with concepts that they cannot control makes perfect sense, Grade 7 is only twelve or thirteen years old, isn’t it? Is that is too young for the ‘theme’ of pending global disaster? I would think young adults able to absorb themes found in MA movies upwards, more appropriate?

Having said that, it doesn’t seem to be Frosty’s problem though, does it? Reading the article, it seems he made all the right moves in stopping this (because of age), for the wrong reasons (misguided information, religious and political bias?) – that means he’s unwittingly made his daughter a political pawn too, doesn’t it?

Frosty, frosty, frosty… tisk, tisk.

I can't help but wonder what will happen if - as we speak - the courts rule against the Bush Administration and the EPA wins its case, proving conclusively that humans have added to Global Warming and Climate Change through the pollutant known as CO2. How young will it be then, to educate children – to tell them – oops, sorry we made a really big boo-boo … and you’re generation is going to fix it somehow, thinking caps on?

I'm not going to even mention the 10th Session of the IPCC Working Groups Report about to be handed down in Paris, again all reporting that ...yep, human induced CO2, caused by vaporising coal and oil into the atmosphere, has in fact added 2 degrees to the global climate heating it up, when in fact we should be heading for another Ice Age. Whilst that might be a good thing, CO2 is not, as it invites unreliable apocalyptic conditions in weather by destabilising the chemical composition of nature.

There are two type of creatures on this earth that exemplifies erratic misguided human behaviour of Frosty’s type - that is the Lemming – which this is not, (well maybe until he gets it himself and starts running for the hills!), or the Ostrich... hmmm, that sounds good, Frosty the Ostrich ...

Surely he’s a carrot short of a full snowman.*lol*

I could go on, but none of that silliness really irritates me as much as people, who comment on something they haven’t seen themselves, like Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth. I’m no expert here, but for the record: it is a totally impartial film that doesn’t accuse one single corporate soul of a single foul deed … but, it does show how an industrialised civilisation [like ours], has impacted on the planet upon which we stand and could well be considered historical?

Ignoring that fact?

Well, we’re back to Frosty the Ostrich and Lemming Ice Sculptures melting in the hot sun … but, it makes sense not to teach children the truth too, doesn’t it. Keep ‘em ignorant … better they worry about Jesus and Judgement Day filled with hellfire and brimstone … yeah, that feels better, don’t want to worry them?

Great Post!

Lilla

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 10:40

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

Whats wrong with telling a 13 year old kid about global warming?

more wrong to not tell him/her.

Comment by Lilla

January 30th 2007 10:48

From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop

Ahmed,

Nothing wrong with it in moderation.

An inconvenient Truth would be scary to a child of that age, as it shows the horrific consequences of what the full impact of the mess that we've created could be - which of course - is still largely, undefined ... scientists have no real guide to go on, only computer models, which like computer programs use unresounding logic to function.

If this is equal to that, then this will go there, do this and do that-type of things...

None of it is conclusive, because Mother Nature is not logical nor predictable and that throws all the modelling you like, out the window...

I believe this film was rated for mature audiences and should stay so, although if the law changes as a result of the current court case, then, well ... no doubts it will be integrated into the education system throughout the world...

Comment by Brenton

January 30th 2007 11:05

Dr Spin
Tales From The Other Side
Blip Blog
Gadget Museum

M is a reccomendation only.

13 i think could handle it.

One of our best classes was Legal studies. Our teacvher was skeptical of everything. He showed us Michael Moore fiulms, then films against Michael Moore.

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 11:27

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

quite the opposite Lilla, the environment is logical and precise down to the minutest detail, it is our failings as humanbeings for not being able to make a true simulation.

Comment by Bryn

January 30th 2007 12:20

Horrorphile

I need to see this film.

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 12:24

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

Extremist conservative 'patriotic' fools need to see it, they need to be tied down to a chair and continually shown it, sure thing the first 300 run throughs they'll keep denying it, but by 666 they'll start seeing the logic.

ironic, our own integrity is keeping us from doing to them what they'd do to us in a second.

Comment by Sisi

January 30th 2007 12:45

Bryn I'm with you, I don't think I have much to comment without checking the movie out first

Comment by DuskDevi

January 30th 2007 12:45

Rugby World Cup 2007

Well...it is called 'An Inconvenient Truth'...

Just out of curiousity...did Frosty The Slowman not see the irony?....his name...his rant on what?
Did his brain melt?
Front Lobe-al Warming.

Bet you his kid plays some nasty Xbox/PS2?whatever game full of blood and guts and....Gore.

Sheesh.

(...I'm willing to bet that Al could be Pres on the back of this)

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 12:52

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

it's too alte for him, Fox nicked that title off him, Conservatives made the recounting nearly impossible.

These people, they are idiots, in every meaning of the word. They swallow bullshit baseless news from their propoganda arm (ie Fox news) and just push bullshit as fact.

Case in point: Senator Obama, the Muslim Radical, a christian all his life, belonging to a church since 1998, having been raised by a christian family and never meeting his father (a so-called radical muslim) until he was an adult, his father? An athiest.

Yet after Fox was compeltely humiliated by CNN, they went into stubborness mode claiming those who actualy did the research were liberals, well, ok, if they were liberals, thats fine (though thats also baseless), but tell us, did they actaully research before coming up with conclusions?

Well here is the article anyway:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0701270205jan27,1,3148984.story?coll=chi-opinionfront-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true

I wrote about it on my blog, can't remember were, the above pretty much sums it up.

Comment by Mrs M

January 30th 2007 13:04

Mum's Word

I can't stand ignorant parents. They're a menace.

Love & stuff
Mrs M

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 13:12

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

I think they are funny, when they call you ignorant

seriously, they are so not good at it, yet they think they know something, they are so stupid, I have no idea how they do such a good job of convincing people otherwise.

It isn't like they are just dumb, it's that they've closed their minds off of everything, whatever doesn' tagree with them is wrong. Thats just pretty stupid, with people like that, you don't give them leeway, just ignore them. They are a dying breed anyway, soon they'll start inbreeding to survive (which they already have, like with teh westboro baptist church).

Comment by DuskDevi

January 30th 2007 13:25

Rugby World Cup 2007

Ahmed...there are people like that everywhere, even on Orble.

We are all guilty of acting like this...ALL of us at one time or the other have thought, that which we do not agree with is wrong.

Doesn't make it right.

Comment by Ahmed

January 30th 2007 13:29

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

I'm talking about people who make it their careers to be stupid and dumb.

Like, lets say you like the colour yellow, alright? Thats well and good, and lets say you hate anyone who doesn't, and think they are stupid.

Then you extend it, you think anyone who does't like the sun, or yellow flowers, or yellow cars, or bananas or anything to do with yellow is stupid and ignorant.

Thats collectively annoying.

Comment by Bhumika

January 30th 2007 19:01

Political Minds

no wonder US is lagging behind India, China in higher education. americans complain about their jobs being shipped away..i guess time has come for them to realize that with there attitude towards science this was long time coming..

Comment by JohnDoe

January 30th 2007 20:03

Film & TV on DVD

i find it amnusing that this guy acknowledges the fact we have a problem and there is definetly Global climate change happening, yet his conclusion instead of approaching it scientifically is completly mythical......

I also wonder if telling his kid that god is punishing the world and its all going to end because we are bad people wouldnt psychologically damage the child more than global warming.

Comment by Cibbuano

January 30th 2007 21:34

Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak

Thanks for all the comments - seems that this is an issue that draws a lot of ire.

I think we can all agree on one thing though: Calvin and Hobbes is awesome. Or Calvin and Hobbes are awesome. At least, I should say, Calvin is awesome, and Hobbes is also awesome, but the comic strip named 'Calvin and Hobbes' is, finally, awesome.

I haven't seen Gore's movie, and I'm a little hesitant to do so, as I know it'll make me furious.

Comment by Francis

January 31st 2007 00:02

Passionate Apathy

Yes, it's "propoganda" that carbon dioxide blocks IR radiation from re-radiating out into space. It's "propoganda" that the ice sheets are ensmalling themselves. In fact, there isn't actually anyone by the name of "Al Gore" at all- his alleged existence is just more Liberal propoganda.

Hey guys- let's see how much abuse we can pour onto a Class-M planet before we break it! It'll be fun!!

Ahmed posts:

Oh, that's merely the setup to the joke. The punchline is that they then go on and make people who have actually served in the military out to be cowards or unpatriotic or some such nonsense.

Lilla posts:

I agree with not scaring young children with concepts that they cannot control makes perfect sense, Grade 7 is only twelve or thirteen years old, isn’t it? Is that is too young for the ‘theme’ of pending global disaster? I would think young adults able to absorb themes found in MA movies upwards, more appropriate?

I must disagree. I was a Cold War child; I knew from around the age of seven or eight that the USA and USSR could devestate our whole planet with a fraction of their arsenal, and that I may well be part of the Last Generation. Understanding how fragile our world and our species grasp on survival was never did me any harm. One could even say it helped me realize how precious life is, and how beautiful our own living Earth is, how deserving of our protection it is.

Kids are stupid for a variety of reasons, but one easily correctable one is that they need to be "protected" from information and education. Yes, some of them may not "get it." Some of them will, though- why hold back the whole class just for the sake of a few that might find it a bit of a stretch?

Comment by Cibbuano

January 31st 2007 00:07

Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak

Francis, I think there's something to be said about the delivery of the material. Instilling children with an appreciation of nature, and with values of conservation are great, but I'm not sure we need to give them fear.

Referring to the Cold War, we got our own propaganda about that... my history teacher wrote the books that we used, and after the collapse of the Soviet Union, he told us that they would rewrite them to make the Soviets seem less dastardly!

Comment by Francis

January 31st 2007 00:28

Passionate Apathy

Cibbuano posts:

Yeah, the fear will come naturally once they realize just how badly we've wounded our only homeworld. Maybe if enough people get enough fear for our future we'll actually do something.

Yes, I remember the propoganda; Us = Good, Them = Bad. Thing is, Mutual Assured Destruction wasn't propoganda- both sides openly admitted it was their core strategy.

Comment by KylieW

January 31st 2007 00:45

Celebrity Obsession

Let me guess, Frosty also doesn't want the school to teach his kids about evolution, because that's a load of crap. Frosty will be happy to come and take the class and tell the all about how God created the world in 7 days. I'm sure good ol' Frosty has a theory about how it is that dinosaur bones are way older than the bible claims the world to be!

I doubt the movie is unbiased.....but then it's hard to even find any documentary without bias.

Frosty sounds like an ignorant moron!

Comment by Drew

January 31st 2007 03:05

The movie is not with political bias only class bias. . if you make more than 50million dollars a year than the movie is against you. because likely you will have gotten their by exploiting the earths resources for your profit without regard.

ALSO never ever comment on a movie paper or book without reading or watching it. just like you wouldn't write down a will for someone else through an intermediary person.

Comment by Adrian

January 31st 2007 04:31

Philosophy Blog

Actually, I do agree with the school's decision...

Hey Cibby,

I think I'll be the lone voice here that disagrees with the decision.

Nothing wrong, in my opinion, with showing propaganda or one-sided media -- and then discussing the truth of it. If I were a teacher, parents would come screaming to me about the old anti-Semitic Nazi movies I fed their kids during history lessons.

Comment by Ahmed

January 31st 2007 04:43

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

Maybe we can also teach kids that 1 1 doesn't equal 3 while were at it.

Comment by Steve 2

January 31st 2007 23:54

Um...they pulled it because of this guy??

Comment by Cibbuano

February 1st 2007 00:26

Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak

well, Frosty led the charge, but there were quite a few parents that complained..

Comment by JessOw

February 1st 2007 03:05

The Tack Room

It worries me that so many comments here suggest that the science behind global warming is inconclusive. I have an environmental journalism degree that educated me all about objectivity regarding this issue. It is possible to speculate on the causes of global heating, but the results of it are scary and are evidence enough that natural biodiversity is shrinking, species are shrinking, lakes are shrinking. An Inconvenient Truth is a remarkable movie - political stances aside - because the evidence is planted before our faces to see, and there is nothing like seeing for believing.

Comment by Ahmed

February 1st 2007 03:29

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

Thats so true JessOw.

I used to look at all these documentaries about global warming and the like, not to mention photographs of ice glaciers melting and falling apart right in front of our own eyes (unnaturally of course) it is kind of hard to think of it as anything other than artificial. It just isnt natural.

The saddest part is capitalism doesn't exactly encourage forward thinking, if a fraction of the money spent on the Iraq war thusfar was spent on research into hydrogen as an alternative form of power we would be seeing the possibility of hydrogen powered cars within the decade.

As humans we are so intelligent, it isn't that we can't stop global warming, we can, and it won't affect our lives at all (or much thereof), but the few that run the world (you know who you are) just wreck it for the rest of us.

Comment by JessOw

February 1st 2007 03:58

The Tack Room

I always have this image in my head of a future species reading books and teaching about us in their schools. They would be learning about all the warnings we had, about all our supposed intelligence...

It's embarrassing to think about it really.

Comment by Ahmed

February 1st 2007 04:01

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

Well in my opinion 50 years from now people will still be in denial adn there would be controversy when kids are taught about how the fact New York is surrounded by extremely high walls because sea levels ahve rissen from melting ice bergs...

Comment by JessOw

February 1st 2007 14:49

The Tack Room

but I bet Ahmed it will still be "the greatest country God ever..." bla bla...!

Comment by Ahmed

February 2nd 2007 01:02

Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks

nothing wrong with saying your country is the greatest ever, heck, I think australia is a great country, I just don't say that because of it it's immune to making mistakes/screwing up the planet...

Comment by Pinaz

February 25th 2007 11:45

Your text goes hereYour text goes herefirst of all, children MUST be aware of how people greatly affect global warming.. oh, and frosty, your planet IS the greatest contributor to global warming.. i mean, you change your cars every year, how wasteful is that.. anyway, my point is that children must be fully aware and the parents must help them understand.. if not, you're helping them destroy themselves.. (a saying.. search it in one of the 4 gospels).. anyway, you must not be boastful also in saying that you have a great country for you can only say that if you have great leaders nd great folowers with hearts that cares for one another.. btw, usa is a big country, the bigger the population is, the more the contribution is to global warming..[/B]