I don’t remember riding to work this morning. I was that tired. It took exactly one half of a bottle of mountain stew before I could even complete a sentence. And I had already been awake for two hours. Why was I so tired, you ask? Well I went to bed after 10. Damn, I may be getting old.
The great thing about being up until well after 10 p of the m, was that I was watching documentaries as part of the DocUtah festival that I have been blabbering about for the past bit. We screened three films last night…
We watched a film called Fast Talk that dealt with college debate and how these people practice talking fast so they can get more points in the time alloted. I’m pretty sure this film could have been about any religious sect that believes in losing oneself in a trance. All you had to do was turn off the sound and watch them rock back and forth. The only question this film brought up for me, was whether or not anyone had ever passed out from lack of breathing during their three minute trance.
My favorite part, was a little side image that kept showing this one judge stuffing potato chips in his mouth, pure gold.
I would post a trailer, or website, or anything, but apparently this film doesn’t have one. The team, as well as myself gave this effort a big no.
The last film we watched was Little Town of Bethlehem. It’s about three men, all from Bethlehem who happen to be from three different religions and who are fighting the good fight through non-violence. The film is extremely well done (in my opinion) and the point is made.
And then we watched a short about drug addicted vets in prison. It was short, to the point and interesting. I wouldn’t say it was life changing. You can imagine the stories, thoughts and advice that these men would have to share without even seeing the film.
However, there were a few things that struck home for me. There were common things they had all lost; time, family, life.
Time, I can’t imagine doing nothing of value for 22 years, or 14, or 2. Of having no ability to determine what I would be doing at any given point. I really don’t see how locking these men up for that long is in any way benefiting society or our culture. It’s a waste.
Family. All these men had basically lost all ties to their family. One man had lost his son without ever having the opportunity to be there to help him try and not make the same mistakes as his father. As Kropotkin put it, there are always two sets of prisoners in a prison. The man behind the bars and the family who is not allowed to be with the prisoner.j
I don’t recall the name of this last film, but it stirred some emotions that I hadn’t felt before. I felt the were was a cost for the false sense of security our prison system provides are fallible society, and more than ever before I felt it was a cost I was no longer willing to pay. I think it may be time to look past the idea of punishment and find ways to constructively build a better society.
Moving on…
The Red Rock Bicycle Commuter Challenge for employees who are members of the Service Department is going quite fantastically. We are at day 22 and still running 100%. We will have that shower. By the end of the month we may really really need it.
It has also been brought to my attention that the Who are these guys? page is in dire need of an update. Well, Shelby I’ll get right on it.
As soon as I get some sleep.
Ride more. Leave the coffin at home.
Out.
Another good post. Would have been cool to see the films. Weather hasn’t been cooperating for my commutes, oodles of rain, and no proper rain gear. We did install a shower at work though, so that’s nice. Hope you guys get yours! Peace!