2012 Off topic thread(basketball,movies,etc whatever)

[SPX]

I saw it got good reviews and I thought I might want to see it.

Then I read those reviews and I thought, "No I don't".

I'll quote from an e-mail I sent a friend earlier today:


Well. . . I guess I'd at least have to say that it's the best Terrence Malick film that I've seen. Where as The Thin Red Line and The New World were just boring as shit, this one does have some compelling aspects.

The primary attraction are the visuals. Visually it's a pretty stunning film. In particular there's a 15ish minute sequence near the beginning that deals with the universe and the formation of the world. It is so awesome that I'd say that it's worth watching the movie for that part alone. I'm not even sure how he got some of those shots and it's clear that he went to some pretty crazy fucking parts of the world to gather some of the images.

Narratively, though, I'm just not sure what to think. There IS a story, primarily dealing with the relationship of a boy to his father. But it's not told in a conventional, coherent way. On one hand, you do kind of have a feeling about what is being conveyed, but then on the other you're kind of like, What the fuck is going on here? It doesn't tell a story in the same sense that, say, Zodiac or Jurassic Park (to pick two random examples) tells a story.

So what's the bottom line? I'd say see it. Even during the "narrative" portion of the movie (which is most of it), I found myself confused and wanting the movie to end . . . but also kind of drawn into it and paying attention without a lot of effort. Will I ever watch it again? Probably not. And if I do it will only be as a technical review for the imagery. But I didn't hate it and guess I WOULD throw it into that category of movies that everyone should see once.

[sbjj]

SPX, there is little doubt in my mind that the fanatics in Lybia and Egypt are pissed off because we are on Muslim soil. These people look at Arab(Muslim) land as one big territory. And a bunch of white christians carrying around weapons in their territory seems to not sit well with them.

UBL declared war on the United States when we landed troops in Saudi Arabia...It is a FACT. It is documented. He even went to the airways AFTER 9-11 declaring that Al Qaeda would cease attacks if the troops were withdrawn.

We have been invading countries like no one else since WW2. And then we wonder why the world is hostile toward us. And this shit will not end until we pack up, come home, and take care of our own. I mean honestly, how do we win this supposed war against them. Should we just Nuke the entire Middle East, or get out. Because anything in between seems like a slow burn and a waste of time.

[Ludo]

I'll stick with these:

[SPX]

We have been invading countries like no one else since WW2. And then we wonder why the world is hostile toward us. And this shit will not end until we pack up, come home, and take care of our own. I mean honestly, how do we win this supposed war against them. Should we just Nuke the entire Middle East, or get out. Because anything in between seems like a slow burn and a waste of time.

I guess I have mixed feelings about it.

I mean, were we just supposed to let Iraq invade Kuwait and do what it wanted?

The way I often feel about it is the Spiderman adage: With great power comes great responsibility. America is a powerful nation and sometimes we have to step in and help those who are less powerful. On the other hand, I do understand the sentiment about letting other cultures take care of their own problems in their own ways.

[Ludo]

I guess I have mixed feelings about it.

I mean, were we just supposed to let Iraq invade Kuwait and do what it wanted?

The way I often feel about it is the Spiderman adage: With great power comes great responsibility. America is a powerful nation and sometimes we have to step in and help those who are less powerful. On the other hand, I do understand the sentiment about letting other cultures take care of their own problems in their own ways.

[Svino]

I guess I have mixed feelings about it.

I mean, were we just supposed to let Iraq invade Kuwait and do what it wanted?

The catch is, Saddam basically came to us before his invasion and said, "You guys are cool with this, right?" and we didn't exactly say "no", so he had reason to think we would leave him alone.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2003/01/01/an_unnecessary_war?page=0,1

(Linked to page 2 of a 4 page article, since that's where the relevant part is)

He could believe this because we had fairly good relations with him previously. We supported him during the Iran-Iraq war; you've probably seen the video of Rumsfeld shaking his hand. A few conspiracy theorists out there regard this incident as Bush I "tricking" Saddam into invading so we could invade back, but most people just think it was a giant fuckup.

[poopoo333]

Dan Henderson vs Lyoto Machida is going to happen.

[Luke]

Dan Henderson vs Lyoto Machida is going to happen.

WTF, why?

[SPX]

I like that fight.

[zY|]

I like it, too. Especially if its 5.

[SPX]

I think Machida will win but you never know about Dan. He could land a bomb and any moment.

[SPX]

Anyone seen Triumph of the Will?

[zY|]

I've never even heard of most of the movies you mention.

[Luke]

Its a good match up but pointless. Somehow Jones got out of fighting Hendo and Machida and gets a 185 Belfort instead. Both Hendo and Machida already fought for #1 contender status, so................

[Ludo]

Its a good match up but pointless. Somehow Jones got out of fighting Hendo and Machida and gets a 185 Belfort instead. Both Hendo and Machida already fought for #1 contender status, so................

Who did Machida fight for #1 contender status when he just got choked out by the champ? He shouldn't be one fight away from a title shot after being finished the way he was by the champ, especially when all he did was beat Ryan Bader post hype train derailment.