WHITE MAN'S FEAR: THE UGLY TRUTH OF THIS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

Please read the following opinion as a blanket indictment of those who refuse to see:

The Talented Mr. Ripley, book by
Patricia Highsmith (1955) and film directed by Anthony Minghella (1999), involves a young man stalking and studying a successful wealthy man's every move to, in essence, become him. For a millennium, white Americans like Mr. Ripley, have aspired toward the top of the world using any means necessary to

(Matt Damon, The Talented Mr. Ripley)

get there. Some have succeeded, others have failed, but the "old boy network" hasn't buckled, until eight years ago with the election of President Obama.

Those who have vilified our president have revealed their dismay that a black president could flourish--readers have you seen the surging economic numbers, lately? President Obama did what others were unable to achieve: his policies and advisors ended the Great Recession and invigorated a stagnant economy, a highlight of many other accomplishments. Moreover other people of color have made in-roads, e.g., Senator Corey Booker (D-N.J.), once mayor of Newark and a role-model for turning around a seemingly hopeless urban community. He overcame and continues to face insurmountable obstacles. Many others, however, who've have striven toward financial or political apexes have been thwarted by established rules that favor the elite, opportunities are rare.

Blinded by racism, insecurity or both, some of the detractors alluded to above were happy to join Donald Trump's circus train. These denigrators wish to return to a time when minorities had little say in the future of our country. For example, women began their long, unending journey toward parity after obtaining the vote, with the unspoken understanding that to succeed in a man's world they should act, dress and behave, like a successful, heterosexual white man. Only recently has that begun to change where women in all colors, preferences, shapes and sizes have made significant in-roads from Oprah Winfrey to Sonia Sotomayor. Yet, equal pay and an equal voice remain troubling sticking points.

Case in point, several years ago, as a temporary worker in the corporate offices of a scenic design company in New York State, I was warned not to discuss any topic considered to be "political," even during my lunch break, with other employees because the company's higher echelon had made it known that the majority of executives were Republicans. In essence, if I'd supported their politics, which they didn't hesitate to broadcast, I'd have a chance of being hired permanently. Needless to say, other minority groups were often overlooked as potential employees.

Looking at the larger picture, the GOP right and its supporters, see anyone knocking on the gates of their private club, including immigrants, as a threat to their way of life and the future of their children's.

In contrast, so many liberal friends throw-up their hands in disgust at the current presidential election. How did Donald Trump become the Republican Party's candidate? The answer, to me at least, is simple: fear. Many men and some women see a woman, a Democrat, and the most-qualified candidate ever to run for the highest office, a.k.a. Hillary Clinton, as threat to the establishment.

(Taming Corporate Power, The Guardian,
Nicola Jennings, illustrator - Google Images)

Vladimir Putin seems to agree, as do those allegedly apolitical reformists from Wikileaks who've released Clinton's private e-mails that weren't meant to be seen publicly (Is anything sacred anymore? This could happen to anyone seen as a threat to the status quo) . And why hasn't Trump's private server been hacked?

Breaking the glass political ceiling brings consequences, and, Hillary Clinton being within days of winning the election has elicited unprecedented attacks by those working to see her stopped. Those whose predecessors put the glass ceiling in place. What's worse, there has already been talk from Republican leaders that they will forestall any Supreme Court nominee Clinton would name for her entire first term.

But its the economic stagnation from overpopulation, meteoric technical advances, climate change and greed that the white, male elite has supported for decades which has led to fewer opportunities for the working class, e.g., to achieve the American Dream. As with Adolph Hitler's rise mainly white men, and some women, have become blinded by false promises of a potential demagogue, Donald Trump, who has no qualifications to govern (Atlantic Magazine, Meyer, 2016). The fear that Trump incites taps into the intrinsic dread among the uninformed who want easy answers to difficult questions and looks to blame other groups for their insecurities.

(Fast Company/Chaos - Google Images)

What's more, let us assume that these conservatives worst predictions become realized. Minorities, get empowered and white men must relinquish their tenuous grasp. Well, though racial/gender strides have been made, I'd estimate that it could take decades before any major turn-around would occur. Only problem, what will be left for them or and/or the struggling working and middle classes, the disenfranchised, the disabled and the forgotten who were ignored by the Republican-controlled Congress during Obama's presidency and the Congress and George W. Bush during his?

For Native Americans, the stand-off in support of the Standing Rock Sioux against the pipeline (#NoDAPL)--their sacred burial grounds have already been bull-dozed--represents a potential environmental catastrophe. The pipeline has been deemed a safer alternative by the so-called experts than shipping oil via trucks ("Do your math," re spillage, guys!).

A planet decimated by global warming, famine at an unparalleled rate, techno-terrorism, limited open space, polluted drinking water...The policies forged by the industrial revolution and capitalism which have run amok, with little regard for planet Earth, will doom our country; our global village. Economically, "redistribution of wealth" for those who have been suppressed for centuries, may never happen; their time in the sun may never come.

Of course, other ethnic groups have conservative supporters that believe their moral values will be threatened by left-wing politicians, but I've been happy to observe many have seen the light and have switched their allegiance to Hillary Clinton. And some white Republicans, women in particular, have also understood how dangerous electing Donald Trump would be.  

So, yes, narrow-minded White Americans (whether they be the working, middle or upper class; men or women) and others who support their conservative, border-line extremist agenda; right-wing Europeans, and potentates across the globe should be shaking in their boots: because down in the depths of their consciences they know who's truly to blame for their fear.

TRAIN OF THOUGHT

"Why don't you write about..." Yes, friends offer their advice as to topics for my blog, experts proffer reasons why a blog should focus on one topic, and my over-active mind has an abundance of suggestions. This week, more than most, I've been flummoxed. My eureka moment happened five seconds ago as the ideas kept chugging--train travel, a la Wendy.

Americans rarely get to enjoy an immersive experience riding along the rails. Amtrak does provide sterile comfort in its Acela cars. In contrast, summer 1982, my friend and I rode a British Rail Sleeper train from London to Edinburgh (ed-in-bruh or ed-in-buh-ruh, Quora.com). A night journey leaving at 22:30 (10:30 pm), we didn't have much time to admire the locomotive. And being a morning person, I could barely keep my eyes open until widened by the train's interior. Our attendant led us to our cabin. No sliding glass or metal doors: the polished oak portal with its brass handle invited us in as the uniformed gentleman provided the necessary details about our sleeper and the w.c. down the corridor.

(Caledonian Sleeper Train compartment -
Google images)

I took dibs on the upper bunk and gladly climbed up wearing my (then) Lanz nightgown and thrust my feet under the hospital-cornered sheet and blanket, preparing myself to relish the joy of being lulled to sleep by the train's motion imagining "clickety-clack, clickety-clack."

After the engine lurched the locomotive forward, later that night I got a wake-up call, literally and figuratively. Unbeknownst to either of us, the sleeper was also a mail train. With every break squeak and lunging progression, my circadian rhythm went amok: think of Stephen Glass vs. Brahms or in current music circles, Foo Fighters vs. John Legend. So in time, I surrendered to the experience and tried to count the number of stops until my body acquiesced. Two hours, give or take, sleep and then the train came to a complete stop.

That moment brought relief, like the easing of the steam engine, pure silence, eyes leaden and heavy, "Ah, at last!" I thought.

"Knock, knock!" The firm announcement that our attendant, I'd believed, had wanted to enter.

A "One moment, please," from me, in behalf of my friend, and we scurried to collect ourselves.

With his delightful, somewhat bemused West End accent, the gentleman, instead, remained outside the door and gave us a genuine wake-up call of 7 am, along with "Ladies, breakfast will be served in ten minutes." My favorite part of the trip as he entered with trays carrying our continental meal--Earl Gray tea, crusty rolls, English, and orange marmalade and jams.

In short time, we freshened up using the in-cabin sink and then joined the queue for the loo (Couldn't help that one, a recovering Anglophile).

When the conductor came along to give us our disembarkation time, my normally cranky self after little sleep, felt disappointed. I wanted to stay longer to absorb every detail now revealed in daylight. Not to be, as the attendant reminded us politely, we had to leave. Cheers!

(Class 56 diesel loco - Google Images)

PROFESSIONALS, FRIENDS & ACQUAINTANCES, please support my weekly blog with a one-time or weekly contribution. I hope to parlay this blog into a paying gig. Please click on link and send what you can. Thank you! paypal.me/WShreve71 Funds will go toward marketing, publicity of blog and soon-to-be published third book.

For more information about the Shadowwater series and how to contact me directly, access: www.shadowwater.net

WHAT MAKES A GREAT DISASTER, MOVIE?

Inserted the comma above on purpose. Foremost, the disaster should catch our attention. Why should we care unless the depiction shows a "true" event? Second, any actor, take B movies from the 50s e.g. This Island Earth, can react but to make the audience care about their character and their imminent peril requires talent.

(Google Images)

                   

Having sat through or watched at home many films in that action sub-genre, I have compartmentalized the hits and misses. Writers and directors rarely portray real-life catastrophes with historical accuracy, having to insert enhanced or fictionalized scenes that heighten the suspense. Case in point, Deepwater Horizon (2016), where the filmmakers chose to put in the opening titles, "Based on true events." Smart decision as that statement gave the director liberty to add more explosions, imperiled characters and daring rescues which may or may not have actually occurred.

(Google Images)

Still, Deepwater Horizon succeeded where many disaster flicks have failed--it grabbed me from the beginning and didn't let go until the final rescues. The actors, including Mark Wahlberg as the site engineer, Mike Williams, has come a long way as a performer and for this film at least perfectly cast, keep the momentum building. Even those less-emphasized rough-necks, whom we only glimpse intermittently, pulled me in and made me care.

(Google Images)

Other outstanding performances included Kurt Russell as Mr. H., Kate Hudson, whose been underused for years, as Mike William's wife, John Malkovich's calculating BP well-site leader, and Gina Rodriguez, the rig's only woman who steered the "helm" of the platform which could be maneuvered when needed. Each of these actors found an arc in their characters, surprising us at unexpected moments.

Blending the action and the portrayals seamlessly takes an experienced hand, and although delighted the actor Peter Berg helmed this story (an actor's director) I believe the realism went amok at the story's climax. Confession: I have some familiarity with oil rigs, what I learned from living in Singapore and briefly dating an engineer, and, my boyfriend, a retired 30-year fireman who later provided his viewpoint, sat next to me. Therefore, I had higher expectations of the movie's realism than others may have. You will need to see the movie to judge for your yourself how realistic the action-sequences were toward the movie's end.

Despite this, Deepwater Horizon moved me. Very difficult these days, as I've become more inured and cynical. No matter the rationalizations and attempts at objectivity, however, and, having followed the aftermath on the news and read about the real disaster's unfoldment, the loss of any crew working on that rig could've been prevented had the workers' lives been paramount in the BP camp.

Some have objected to the movie not citing the historical, environmental aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy. Within the movie, the director, Berg, did show overt examples--gushing oil out of control spewing into the stratosphere, a seabed plunged into darkness; a seabird in agony--trickles yet harrowing nevertheless.

The devastating ecological consequences of BP's negligence, as I see it, should be told on the big screen as a separate drama, so that audiences can process and absorb the gravity of what they have seen without cutting the tether to the initial man-made cataclysm.

Pull in your gut and go see the film, Deepwater Horizon. The somber images will linger in your mind, the tragedy will burn your senses, but the heroism of the rig's crew will give you hope.

PROFESSIONALS, FRIENDS & ACQUAINTANCES, please support my weekly blog with a one-time or weekly contribution. I hope to parlay this blog into a paying gig. Please click on link and send what you can. Thank you! paypal.me/WShreve71 Funds will go toward marketing, publicity of blog and soon-to-be published third book.

For more information about the Shadowwater series and how to contact me directly, access: www.shadowwater.net

I SALUTE YOU, AVA DUVERNAY!

Grabbing an opportunity to combine two passions, film and social justice, as I write today about Ava DuVernay. If unfamiliar with her name, she directed the Academy Award nominated bio-pic Selma (2014). In her film, DuVernay unveils the riveting story of Martin Luther King's crusade to end voter-discrimination against blacks in Alabama. 

(EW-Google Images)

Gayle King, CBS This Morning, highlighted in a recent interview with DuVernay, that the director became the first woman-of-color to have her film nominated for Best Picture. During their discussion, Ava DuVernay articulated her opinions about women's and, in particular, African-American women's struggles to be accepted in the male-dominated industry. Notably, DuVernay voiced her dislike of the word, "diversity," "too medicinal," and preferred "inclusion," more emotional, thus more effective. "No one wants to be excluded," DuVernay added when speaking about society and the film industry. When I heard her declaration I clapped my hands and said to myself, "Bravo!"

(Google Images)

More overt is how African-Americans exclusion from fair treatment in criminal justice compelled DuVernay to direct a timely documentary, the soon-to-be-released The 13th (2016), about racial disparity an equality, especially in prison sentences. Nowhere could you find a more topical commentary about the hidden injustices toward people of color. Ask a black man if he's ever been pulled over by a police officer for a "trumped" up reason, or, if he'd been sent to jail overnight or longer when a white male wouldn't have been. One clearer example, is the recent trend excluding young, white privileged males from having to serve little or no time for rape convictions when young, black, impoverished males, under similar circumstances, are incarcerated. DuVernay has boldly gone where few women, let alone African-American women, have ventured to expose the inequities of imprisonment.

Just as important, DuVernay reveals how black women have received unequal treatment. Sadly, I suspect few theaters will show this documentary. Fear and discomfort will avert movie-goers from seeing the film. Let neither of these reasons prevent you from attempting to watch it.

Ava DuVernay does have a future in the business. By having a "diverse" portfolio of directing/producing/writing credits in film and television (including directing Wrinkle in Time (pre-production and an episode of Scandal, for example) and a background as a publicist and promoter, I expect DuVernay will continue to break barriers.

Cracking the film industry, takes perseverance and resolve; challenging the criminal justice system requires audacity and conviction. Ava DuVernay has the cajones to do it all.

If you haven't seen the movie, Glory, it's available on Blu-Ray/DVD and the song of the same name, which won the Academy Award (for Common and John Legend) is available via all music formats. Follow the link for the music video: GLORY


PROFESSIONALS, FRIENDS & ACQUAINTANCES, please support my weekly blog with a one-time or weekly contribution. I hope to parlay this blog into a paying gig. Please click on link and send what you can. Thank you! paypal.me/WShreve71 Funds will go toward marketing, publicity of blog and soon-to-be published third book.