Now this here is *my* blog. And the opinions expressed within are mine and mine alone....
SOOOOOOOOOO
evidently only 2 things happened in the world today: some devastation in Syria and the announcement that Ben Affleck will play the role of Batman in the next of the Batman series of motion pictures.
well~ at least according to the memes on Facebook~ and isn't Facebook the new bible of information?
So there was this meme in FBlandia that showed Heath Ledger as the Joker with the words "hundreds get slaughtered in Syria, no one notices. But Ben Affleck gets cast as the next Batman and people lose their minds"....and I laughed.....I did ......and I thought it ironic.........
until I looked at my OWN FB posts for the day: Batman 7; Syria 0
and then before I pressed the 'share' button I wondered WHY? Why do I hesitate to share this admittedly funny meme?
For the Ginger~ the reasons are many
But Imma thinkin for the USA at large ~ at least a *few* will understand my reasons.
Here are the top 4:
1. Christian Bale is a hard act to follow
2. Ben Affleck (although he has proven to be a good father and partner and make beautiful babies) is REALLY not the actor to portray the iconic and revered Batman
3. Heath Ledger's tale is a sad and tragic one
4. I realize there are things happening in the world and in my very own country of origin that defy the realm of even imaginable (the Batman role notwithstanding)
and then I thought about it
and thought about it some more
and I realized that having survived what I consider to be more than my fair share of tragedy and horror: THIS is my reality today:
**I go to movies to be ENTERTAINED. It has been a great LONG time since I've been able to watch any sort of movie that hits a little too close to home~~~~ these include any movies with graphic portrayals of child abuse, rape, incest, torture, the death of a child or even the death of one so young via heart attack.
**I can't be entertained by these movies because I have LIVED them in REAL life and SURVIVED them.
**I didn't even watch "The Dark Knight" because I couldn't handle watching Heath Ledger's tortured portrayal on the big screen.
**When it was time for the Academy Award for 'Best Supporting Actor' I turned off the TV~ *knowing* what I did that no matter the posthumous awards~ nothing could bring him back. Alcohol, drugs and living with a daily war inside himself had killed him~ and you cannot come back from DEAD no matter how many awards they give you
**We can NOT even engage in a debate about who the fuck the next Batman should be without slinging insults at one another~~is being referred to as a "nerd" or a "comic book Nazi" a COMPLIMENT???
**I know that right here in the city I live, the state I live and the country I LIVE: women are treated as less than equal. The sex of who you love all too often dictates whether or not you are treated equally and given the same rights afforded others. People struggle with alcohol and drug addiction: and often DIE in that fight. The color of your skin, amount of money in your bank account and life choices YOU make and that are inherited affect whether or not you will thrive, just barely survive.......or die.
**At the time of the Oklahoma City bombing: I could NOT watch the news 'reporting' from the scene~ babies being carried out bloody~ parents who dropped their most precious cargo off to be cared for only to pick them up in body bags later~~ same with Columbine~~ same with Sandy Hook~ and ALL but ONE of these happened WELL before I held a funeral for my own child
**I cannot watch the daily news: including what is happening in Syria for too very long~~ because to do so paralyzes me.
This last one is perhaps the most important in this particular blog.
You see there are MANY other things that happened in the world today~~~ and even in the state and country in which I live. For example: an 89 year WWII veteran was killed by teenagers; a US soldier who massacred innocent civilians was sentenced to *just* prison; the POTUS made very *bad* decisions.....I'm certain somewhere a young person was bullied, someone took their own lives after facing such bullying, children starved to death and YES Syria is involved in a Civil War.......
And I have kept abreast of these things.......But I cannot watch them for too very long. It DOES NOT MEAN I DON'T CARE.
What it *does* mean to me is that for me to *see* what humans inflict upon other humans kills a tiny part of my soul.
I'm not saying that lightly. I really MEAN it. There is only so MUCH
And so it is *there* that I try to make a difference. I can NOT take on the world all at once~ I will not win.....and I may very likely push myself off my own cliff of sanity~ if I dance too close to THAT edge~ I'll fall in and never escape.
But I can teach my children tolerance. And love. And acceptance. And how to take responsibility for their OWN actions.
I can speak out against hate.
I can speak out against racism.
I can speak out against assaults on our RIGHTS that others have fought and died for.
I can fight for the rights of Veterans, underprivileged, women, gays and ANYONE ELSE who is maligned based upon being different than our society's 'norm'.
But most of all: I can practice what I preach.
I talk about who the next Batman will be and I can watch only movies I can handle. You see Facebook for me is a social media~ it is where I go to be entertained. Sometimes, I engage in a fight about social issues and sometimes I just scroll through messages and copy & paste stupid memes.
This does NOT mean I care *more* about who the next Batman will be than I do about innocents massacred in Syria or anywhere ELSE. It does not mean I fight only the battles I can win.
At night I do not pray that they will appropriately cast the next action hero......at night I pray that my efforts make SOME difference. At night I pray that my children are wiser than I am. At night I pray for women, children, gays, vets~ and ALL who are treated as 'LESS than' in their very own homes, cities and countries.
And so I will not post the Heath Ledger Batman meme~ because there's REAL tragedy there~ and it has shit to do with Syria or Ben Affleck. And making FUN of tragedy is something I hope I do not ever do....and if I mistakenly DO~ I hope to recognize it and make amends immediately.
For today I will hold my family close, I will practice what I preach.....and I will pray that I leave the world a *little* better than I found it.
Love and Light,
~Ginger
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