Umesono
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- Posted: Mon, 27 Feb 2012 06:05:55 +0000
TheSituationist
Umesono
TheSituationist
Umesono
TheSituationist
Umesono
Entertainment originally was intended and does preserve culture. Specifically cultural ideals which is why there often is a element of romanticism. Like just look at the story telling culture around Greek mythology. I doesn't get more romantic than that but at the same time those stories serve as indicators or what the culture valued at that time.
Granted some modern day romantic novels/comedies leave a lot to be wanted but there are some great ones out there than have creativity and thought behind them and people can relate to them because they say something about the human condition. And who knows, maybe some people can relate to those silly, purely-for-enjoyment romantic comedies. Who care's if they're accurate or not and I don't think any one person has the right to say what someone else should enjoy or not. Just because aspects of our modern day entertainment are commodified, doesn't mean the whole thing is. You can't throw the baby out with the bath water!
Also in regards to your weeabos thing and people who make misconceptions about Japan or whatever based on anime, you have to remember a lot of those people are young kids. Give them a break, most will grow out of it. I don't know if you've noticed by at certain age, kids love to become obsessed and totally immersed in something from the entertainment culture. Also I don't think the creators or animes always intend to send a message about Japanese culture via the anime, so if you can watch anime (as I feel I do now) with a little more maturity than a young kid, I think you can safely enjoy them for what they are. By and large I think most people can enjoy anime responsibly.
You do have a very good point. Personally, I feel expression should be free. I feel every single god damn aspect of life should be free. However, I want expression to be a means of communication rather than a means of experience. In a society where direct experience exists, why would there be a need for proxy experience? Perhaps I am a bit of a hypocrite because I do enjoy video games. But then again, John Zerzan, a prominent anarcho-primitivist was caught was Smucker's jelly. However, I would rather be a world-traveling, free-loving hippie. The only problem is that I am a slave. The bourgeoise are more effective at getting you to work by getting you to stay in one place. I do not mind people watching anime. Perhaps I mind enjoy an anime or two myself in the near future. However, if you prefer anime to directly lived life, shame on you.
Sure there's not substitute for real life experience. And I'm sure there are some minority out there who live vicariously through various mediums of entertainment including anime. But entertainment also serves a purpose of escapism. The escapist quality of entertainment today revolves around that fact that we can for while distract ourselves from the stresses or issues in our own lives and be immersed in someone else's plot or the fact while I may never want or be able to experience X I can get a sense of what X would be like via entertainment (such as movies, animes or music). I don't think there's anything wrong with this, if we didn't have a means of escapism in Industrialized culture we'd likely all go insane with stress.
Also I think today's culture is a lot more complicated than the bourgeoise-proletariat dichotomy used in the past. You're not a slave by the way. Even though there is the macro structure of our society that has certain institutions in place that perpetuate the system we have now, you also have your individual free will and agency to decide if you want to continue with the system or not. There isn't much stopping you from saving up some money and quit you job and go do your traveling hippie thing. You can't deny to some degree you are actively choosing to stay within and participate in this system. And to some degree, yes it is because we believe/ or actually do need certain material things to function in this society but you obviously cannot say you are brainwashed into it. At the end of the day, you have your agency make decisions according to how you see fit. Don't get me wrong, I would actually love a simpler way of life but the fact is I wake up every day and make the choice to continue in this society as it exists. And if a little entertainment can make me feel better about that personal dilemma for a while, then I'll take it.
Of course you could just resist society. But that would create isolation which the end of it is the very reason for resisting society. It wouldn't change s**t either. Capitalism was the thing Marx hated the very most of all, however, he didn't just leave it. He tried to change it.
http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/kropotkin-peter/1895/settlement.htm
Perhaps some relevant information. It's not too long, it's only about slightly longer than everything I've said in this discussion so far.
Now you're talking like there's only one type of society. I meant what is stopping you from moving to a different country or region where there no capitalism? Even in socialist countries there is entertainment. And frankly look at the past societies that have tried socialism, didn't turn out too well did they? Not saying capitalist societies don't have their problems, but socialism is harder to employ successfully. And frankly, on a personal note I would never go for outright socialism. If you think capitalism is controlling you have no idea what socialism can and has lead to.
Never said I liked that variety of state socialism. I hate Stalin's variety of communism about as much as I hate our own society. You see, I am an anarchist. I believe in the system of ANARCHO-communism. But there is no such place I can move to. Somalia hasn't fully realized the power of mutual aid and how it can fix up that hellhole and set an example for the rest of the world. Exploitation not only comes from our bosses but also politicians of any sort. Had Russia foregone the Lenin step, maybe the country wouldn't have had all its poverty due to the Russian Civil War and the Cold War.
What in god's name is anarcho-communism? Who coined that? Isn't anarchy by definition a rejection of organized government? I have to say I whole heartedly reject your ideal political view. I'm not sure what the appeal is...
