10 February, 2008

Getting the Hell Out of the Taxi to the Dark Side


I won’t make this a movie review, although I will say that Taxi to the Dark Side is a powerfully moving film on how we came to be a country that not only tortures, but seems to think it’s ok – necessary, even.

Once the film was over, I felt a wide range of emotions from rage to despair. Like Forrest Gump when he starts to run, I felt a compelling need to just walk. To clear my head. To put what I had just seen into the context of my life. Luckily, my movie companion didn’t question my need to just move my feet and struggle through what I had seen.

Which brings me to the idea of getting out of the Taxi before it erupts in flames and engulfs all of us.

On my inaugural post here, I’m not posting any answers. In fact, I don’t even have the time this afternoon to go into much more detail. But I wanted to take a minute to launch this blog today in order to provide a forum to collect these thoughts, direct my thinking, and seek some concrete alternatives. Join me, if you wish, and let’s channel this into something productive if we can.

1 comment:

Aaron Lander said...

Thank you to the people who created this film and those that distributed it. Rage-filled would be the best word to describe my demeanor through most of this film; followed be the urge to sit in the middle of the sidewalk and openly weep.

This is what has become of our country? We the people allow wiretapping, torture, extraordinary rendition, preemptive attacks, and now we are an occupying force in two countries. Where is the United States of America to help put down this global threat to Liberty and Justice? Oh…wait. This is the United States of America. Funny, I almost didn’t recognize the flag in the background, with all the atrocities in the foreground. Never mind, I’ll just go back to shopping and hope that makes the world a safer place for the economy.