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Pastimes : Let's Talk About Our Feelings!!! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Grainne who wrote (107138)	8/4/2005 9:15:27 AM
From: epicure	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 108807

It's sad when people get so confused about what science is. Whatever we propose in science should be testable, and I don't see how ID is testable. Nor, I think, should we be discussing religion in science, and treating it with the full measure of doubt which science requires we treat new hypotheses with. If we treat ID the way it deserves to be treated, I think we wouldn't be able to help shredding some kids' faith- and that's not going to be an outcome parents will like. On the other hand, if we have religious teachers treating ID with kid gloves, and being very reverential, then we might as well stop teaching science, and call it for what it is- religious education. Either way, what a loser issue. Just what education needs, more crap injected in to it.

To: Grainne who wrote (107138)	8/5/2005 10:39:24 AM
From: epicure	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 108807

I bet you would find this good viewing: Divine Intervention (2002)(Widescreen) Two lone drivers stop at a traffic light in Israel. One is Israeli; the other is Palestinian. After a few seconds, they catch each other's gaze, become transfixed, and, when the light turns green, forget to drive again. Chaos ensues behind them as the other motorists begin to honk and scream. It's just one moment in Elia Suleiman's sublime Divine Intervention, but he makes his intention crystal clear in this scene: The Mideast crisis is so absurd that it can only be communicated through farce. Winner of the Jury Prize at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, Suleiman's sad, witty, and occasionally meaningful film is most effective when you deconstruct the structure of the film, rather than meditating on political agenda. Let's be honest here, the mess in the state of Israel, doesn't seem to have a resolution anytime in the near future, at least not in this Zionist Jew's lifetime. During Cannes, Suleiman, who is from the largest Palestian town of Nazereth (65,000 people on just 2,750 acres of land) told the press: "My dream would be if Israel ceased to exist as an Israeli state, but became instead a state for all people." This type of vague comment is the ultimate problem with an otherwise great film: its solution to the cycle of violence is the last line in the film, "That's enough. Stop it now." And then what? Become a state for all people? How? The film is told in sets of short vignettes, and while the parts are lovely, the simpler notions, like the opening scene of a man dressed as Santa Clause and being chased by Palestian youths after having been stabbed in the chest, are far more successful. It's less of an overall attack on the Israeli occupation than it is a chilling reflection of lives that are so affected by day-to-day violence that it has become background noise. One neighbor throws trash onto another neighbor's property, only to have that neighbor give it right back and berate the other for being rude. A cab driver smiles at every person he drives by, while he swears at them under his breath. The shorts are funny in the wordless, absurd way Buster Keaton and Jacques Tati are funny. Like Tati, Suleiman favors extremely long, wide-angle shots that suggest a much wider frame than what we get to see. The ultra-distanced style makes us think about what is going on, which makes us think about what is going on in the Mideast, which leads us to wonder what it might all mean. What is it like to wait for something that might never happen? Why would people whose lives are inextricably linked treat each other so badly? A similar strategy governs the way the film is edited. The gags build in frequency, and Suleiman shuffles these like a croupier with a deck of cards. He'll show us part of an action, and then cut to something else before returning a few scenes later to take the story further. Only when a gag reaches its payoff do we see where it was headed. It's a technique that relies on the audience to put the pieces together, and the result is a film that looks like a classic silent comedy, but with the rigor and depth of an art film. The only recent film that looks anything like it is Roy Andersson's bizarre Songs from the Second Floor. It's pretty easy to see that Divine Intervention is a timely film, considering the state of the "War on Terror" and recent developments in the United Kingdom. Because of what's happening in the world, Divine Intervention is a rare opportunity to listen to someone who has pain about what is going on in his country, but has decided to pick up a camera rather than a gun. Especially now with Islamic leaders clarifying that's it is against Muslim beliefs to kill civilians, but refusing to extend this understanding to the situation in Israel. This film has the rare opportunity to change people's minds about the world. I can think of no higher praise for art. Koch's DVD of Divine Intervention is in anamorphic 1:85 widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. Koch's transfer is top-of-the-line. The audio is particular good in the music moments of the film, especially the unusual cover of Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell on You." The DVD has the US and French trailers of the film and a 45-minute interview with Suleiman. — JAMES EMANUEL SHAPIRO