Showing posts with label entertainment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label entertainment. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Can Millennials serve themselves and the higher good? They are multi-tasking do-gooders so why not?



[Millennials: Born 1981-1996]

Millennials, who are they?

If you go by the many studies and analysis of the experts, the Millennials have been profiled in some rather interesting ways.  Acknowledging they were the first to be born in the era of technology, they seem to make the most use of it.  They are comfortable using technology to complete work.  They are digital natives yet understand the dangers of the digital world as well, like invasion of privacy, theft of ID, hacking of banking, credit cards, phones and databases with more of your personal records.

Between the Internet, social media, smart phones, endless apps, email and texting they can function almost 24/7.  Yet they also like being connected to real people through friends, associates, sharing experiences and seeking knowledge.


They were much more aware of the world affairs than previous generations yet they are smart enough to not lose sight of the various cultures and diverse perspectives and they try to maintain a high level of tolerance towards differences.  Typically, they have an open mindset and are more likely to accept others opinions and methods.

They are often multi-taskers who encourage teamwork, being involved, and being included.  They are willing to find a new path and curious to learn and develop.

On the negative side…


Some say they are lazy, narcissistic, coddled, even a bit delusional.  Certainly, they are somewhat more civically and politically disengaged and have materialistic tendencies emphasizing money, fame and image.

I have difficulty seeing how having an excessive or erotic interest in oneself and one's physical appearance, the definition of narcissism, could apply but I leave that to others.  They can definitely be confident, self-expressive, upbeat and receptive to new ideas and ways of learning.

However, the jury is still out on whether they are self-entitled narcissists or open-minded do-gooders.  One bad thing in common with other generations is the persistent climb in opioid overdoses and death by this group. 


Still, I believe our Millennial generation may be much farther down the path to success and salvation than those of us who think we’ve seen the light, yet remain stymied, with one foot in the Abyss.

When you stop to think about it, it is a rather disturbing conclusion to reach for those of the older generations like us who think we know everything.  Think of all the oddball attitudes we older folks find in the Millennial generation, reasons we may suspect they are a “lost” generation.


Imagine, a whole lot of them still live at home with their parents, long after college years.  When I grew up college was the ticket to get away from the confines of home.


Who ever heard of a younger generation that showed fiscal responsibility, did not want to spend their best years on the brink of financial ruin?  Who considered debt, whether from outrageous mortgages or multi-credit card debt, an unnecessary burden?  Who rejects the notion we must keep up with the Jones family?  In fact, who is the Jones family and why do we care in the first place?

The Holy Trinity - Coke, Cheeseburger and fries.
Why would a young person in their right mind be concerned about the food they ate and the effect that might have on their health when they reach our age?  Heaven forbid one might question the value of our favorite fast foods growing up, soda, (oops, forgot a classic, root beer floats), burgers and fries, the true American grit.

While we are working overtime shooting our mouths off on social media proving the rest of humanity is just plain wrong and dumber than us, Millennials long ago avoided debates which morphed to bitter battles between the witless in the heat of social media babble battles.  They use the Internet, smart phones and texting to communicate, learn, and grow.


Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on glitzy pop music stars and concert tickets or hundreds more patronizing the professional sports games with modern day gladiators, Millennials seem content with a conversation over coffee with friends.  How un-American.


They forsake news programs because they know it is not news you can use, and would not be caught dead watching the silly fireworks on the polarizing talk shows.

One wonders if most Millennials even know what a Kardashian is, the true color of Madonna’s undergarments, the latest flame of Taylor Swift, or what we are missing with the federal government shutdown.


They seldom debate politics because they have difficulty distinguishing which politicians and political parties lie the least, or they at least dislike conflict. 

Somehow, they think they know the hypocrisy of paying more for designer clothes when they are now made in China.

Often, they wonder how we can judge other nations as bad just because they are not more like us.  Cars are necessary when they cannot find a way to use bikes, buses or subways. 


To them broadcast television is bad because half the air time is spent with intrusive and sex filled commercials telling us how our life is not complete unless we buy what they are selling, and promiscuous sex is not high on their list.


They avoid pontificating to others, senseless debates, self-indulgence, digital addiction, and doctor-prescribed addictive medications known as drugs (except opioids) because they are health and wellness conscious.  That assumes they somehow escaped the obsession with medication dependence their parents might have imposed on them.

They know our healthcare system is broken, designed to keep us sick, exhaust our insurance coverage, suck dry our estates or inheritance, because profits are more important than people.


They see wars we are waging fought around the world, some since their birth, and wonder if we are really saving the world or just making ourselves feel good.

Along the way they have encountered the extreme liberal bias of college teachers yet often reject their propaganda, often choosing to be real Independents, or rejecting the voting system altogether by not even registering to vote.


Of course, they care for the environment but do not believe demonizing or destroying the economy, jobs, security and safety is a good path to success, it must be adopted slowly to be accepted.

We probably have difficulty understanding why they want to engage in face-to-face conversation, yet maintain civility and respect for opposing views, and staying emotionally stable throughout.


Often, they avoid television award shows because they know the awards are based more on the shallow themes and political views of recipients than brilliant scripts, exceptional acting, singing or entertaining.

Come to think of it, why did it take us a lifetime to start pulling the plug on decisive and senseless television babble and crass commercialization when the Millennials started out knowing it was wrong?


Maybe the Millennials are not the Me Me Me generation we feared they might be.  Perhaps their refusal to embrace hypocrisy and lust for wealth and power makes a lot more sense than being caught up in the wrong game.

It just might be that they sense something is wrong, very wrong, with the world they are about to inherit.  Could it be our own perception of the good life is flawed like they think?
Maybe we should stop trying to tell them we know what is best for them, when we know we do not, based on our miserable record while being in charge of the world.


I can only hope that in their opened mindedness and hunger for Truth they are open to the lost truths of Jesus and give them a try like we failed to do in our generation of stewardship of our religious, political and social institutions.  His message of the love of the Father was never meant to be hijacked by any government or religious institution for their sole use, but shared with all.


I just hope the Millennial search for Truth leads them to the message of the miracle of creation, to the faith, hope and charity toward all, and to the love of Father Creator for all souls, a message lost in today’s society.


Do not forget, when we have come and gone, the Millennials are the future.  It will be their turn to fix the mess they inherit just like us.  It is not our job to judge our successors, without fixing what is being inherited by them first.

Monday, February 27, 2017

The Oscar Recap - Oscar Blew it! - Coltons Point Times picks 17 of 24 winners! Oops Fake News just changed the Movie of the Year - the Games continue!

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In case you missed the Big Show the Coltons Point Times picked 17 of the 24 winners of the 89th Academy Awards.  I thought a 71% winning record was pretty good but after the La La Land crew went on stage and accepted the Best Picture Oscar the Academy belatedly interrupted the celebration by La La Land people and said La La Land did not win, but Moonlight won.


Was the Academy getting into the Fake News game with the wrong winner being announced, and did it have anything to do with the attacks on the Academy before last years Oscars of ignoring minorities?  While Moonlight was certainly good, there is something very suspicious about this kind of a major blunder in one of the most watched shows of the year and the most respected award show in the past.


Maybe it is time to drop the award shows since they all seem to be embroiled in politics and have lost their way as an entertainment medium.  I do not know of anyone who pays to see shows because of the politics of the actors and actresses and they seem to think being on the big screen acting gives them the right to act like the news media.


The choice between the two shows boiled down to Moonlight, a movie about growing up poor, Black and gay, or La La Land, "a musical with big numbers, intimate reveries and adult feelings, “La La Land” is a boy-meets-girl tale with early 21st-century rhythms (mostly good, even if its white stars are nestled, more self-consciously than naturally, in a multicultural world)" as Manohla Dargisn of The New York Times described it.


Box Office Receipts - La La Land $141 million - Moonlight $22.2 million


How about we let the public decide?  La La Land has earned nearly $141 million in domestic box office sales to date while Moonlight has earned $22.2 million.  I guess having six and a half times more receipts means nothing in terms of movie popularity.


Maybe Fake News is now here to stay and polarizing politics will destroy the movie industry as it did the news industry.  In the end it is the American public being played and that is not right!  Here is what other media had to say about the Oscar disaster.


Oscars Blows It: Gives Best Picture To Wrong Film; Chaos On Stage As ‘Moonlight’ Wins

16 minutes ago | Deadline | See recent Deadline news »
Moonlight won Best Picture after a complete mix-up on the stage in which Faye Dunaway read the wrong winner. It was thought that La La Land won to walk away with seven wins from its record-tying 14 nominations and producers Jordan Horowitz and Marc Platt even gave acceptance speeches before the mistake was discovered. It was a major upset for the top award of the night. Moonlight had gathered two awards — Best Supporting Actor for Mahershala Ali and Adapted Screenplay and… »
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Newswire: What the hell just happened?

19 minutes ago | avclub.com | See recent The AV Club news »
The Oscars made history tonight, though not exactly the kind of history it wanted to make. As Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway came out to present Best Picture, Beatty opened the envelope and took a lengthy pause before reading the winner—a pause that many, including Dunaway, took for some kind of tension-building/feeble old man shtick. And when he read the winner as La La Land, no one believed anything was amiss. Of course it was La La Land. This whole awards season, the narrative has been La La Land’s inevitable victory. And so, as the producers, cast, and crew came on stage to begin their well-rehearsed acceptance speeches, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
But then Warren Beatty popped back in—always with the Warren Beatty—and suddenly it was evident something had gone very wrong.
“This is not a joke,” said producer Jordan Horowitz. “Moonlight, you »
- Sean O'Neal
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Oscars 2017 live: Beatty and Dunaway announce wrong best picture winner for La La Land – Moonlight wins

Follow the latest news from this year’s Academy Awards, with updates from the Hollywood ceremony, the acceptance speeches, red carpet hits and misses, and awards announcements for the best films, actors and actresses
Oscar winners 2017: the full list
Oscars red carpet 2017 – in pictures
5.28am GMT
Related: Moonlight wins best picture Oscar – after Warren Beatty reads out La La Land
5.27am GMT
As fantastic as it was to see Moonlight win, those poor La La Land guys who found out mid-speech that the win wasn’t theirs. They’re still dealing with that:
Heads are gonna roll. You couldn't have a worse possible f-up if you tried. Team Lll still consoling each other in theater. pic.twitter.com/UUr6dlKF9S
Continue reading »
- Benjamin Lee, Hannah Marriott and Ellie Violet Bramley
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Oscars 2017: The 21 Best, Worst and Most Uncomfortable Moments

23 minutes ago | TVLine.com | See recent TVLine.com news »
Denzel Washington officiating a wedding. Seth Rogen breaking into an impromptu Hamilton performance. Oh, and La La Land incorrectly being named Best Picture. Those were just a few of the truly bizarre things that took place at the 89th Annual Academy Awards.
VideosOscars: Jimmy Kimmel Shreds Trump, Mel Gibson in Monologue — Grade It!
Late-night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel managed to do a decent job as Oscars host — which, if you haven’t repressed all memories of James Franco and Anne Hathaway’s 2011 hosting stint, you’ll know is no small feat. Sure, we could’ve done without his tired banter with frenemy Matt Damon, »
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'Moonlight' wins best picture at dramatic Oscars 2017


In a shock finale to Sunday’s 89th Academy Awards, the drama was named best picture moments after La La Landhad been declared the winner in error.


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Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Dancing Through the Years

Did you ever wonder what all those dances were you performed during your lifetime. Well we are going to present them to you so you can get lost in yesterday since there really isn't much going on today. Dance on with Judson Laipply as he shows you The Evolution of Dance on YouTube.com.



Now if you liked that one, wait until you see the famous Dancing Salsa Dog Dancing the Merengue. This dog has the moves proving that any dirty old dog probably still has it in him.



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Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Gone With the Wind 70th Anniversary

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The first and biggest blockbuster film from Hollywood, Gone with the Wind, opened in Hollywood 70 years ago tonight, December 15, 1939.



The Margaret Mitchell novel starring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh was one of many of the top films of all time released in 1939 and we have never experienced such excellence since.



Gone with the Wind won 10 Academy Awards, the most Oscars at the time and a record that stood for a decade.



To this day it has sold more tickets than any film in history and ranks as one of the top five films of all time.



It was memorable for spectacular scenes, glamorous production, exceptional casting and breaking barriers with major Black roles.



If you are like me you long for the era of movies when plots were meaningful, acting was professional and there was no need for sex and skin to draw an audience to the theater.



Oh yeah, ticket, popcorn and soda prices didn't hurt either. Well, at least my grandfather used to tell me that.