I watched the movie Equals a couple nights ago. It's your usual trendy post-apocalyptic, quasi 1984 style story, mixed in with the usual liberal theme of repression. Though now it would seem like liberals have turned on their once favorite president, John F. Kennedy. Particularly, it is in regard to the rather optimistic space race in which the United States worked hard to be the first country with a man on the moon.
For in this futuristic society, the goal of the society was to focus on exploration of Mars. Apparently, to be able to do this meant to purge feelings by use of drugs and genetic engineering to hibernate the portion of one's DNA that are somehow associated with such things and have something to do with social and intimate interactions. It is not necessarily that people are uncaring, but blocking such things and their development leads to inability to have, or at least process emotions. This leads to S.O.S., or Switched On Syndrome, where when feelings and dreams do come through, because they lack coping skills to deal with such things, they can become anxious, compulsive, and may eventually commit suicide. Others may seek out coupling, but, because such things are prohibited, this leads to being sent to the Den, which is basically an asylum that non-conformists go to and remain in until they finally commit suicide. Not to mention, if one gets pregnant from coupling, that pregnancy is aborted, which makes one wonder how such a society can possibly sustain itself when procreation is so oppressively discouraged.
This movie and its story are nothing new. Besides the style, one could argue this is essentially a postmodern Romeo and Juliet. Roger Ebert also points to the notion of the Vulcan society in Star Trek that also sought to purge emotions after some great war that left much of their planet uninhabitable. Consider that both the modern day Camelot of the Kennedy presidency and the first Star Trek series helped shape the 1960's and a vision of a future to come - one that was both an innocent inspiration and one that held the kernel for potential nightmares for a utopia gone wrong. Again, this is nothing new. More so, this notes a problem that comes from the lack of vision of the current generations, from the old and stale, burnt out former hippies that are in charge to the millennials that are sick and tired of all the nonsense, but too lazy to do much other than whine and complain. The generation of the current grandparents are the ones that started the revolt against a long term vision for the country in favor of the circus of drugs, sex, and rock n' roll. There is a certain irony that the very notion of 'free love' is what is bringing on a loveless society that is hyper-emotional and in an over-medicated dependency on drugs to control emotions, or at least attempt to numb the pain of them. The rock n' roll lifestyle is not working out for most people. Others seem lulled by the sports, either as competitors where the sport of choice is their prime goal in life, or as the arm-chair sportsman that pretends to call the shots, or criticize the bad form or play from the comforts of their own home.
Yet, where does this leave those of us that once dreamed about space exploration, or other long term goals that would make a greater impact in the world? Instead, abortion is not a tool used by the oppressors because sex and intimacy are discouraged, but rather because it is encouraged and the responsibility of having children is discouraged. It is still a tool of the oppressors, but more along the lines that ancient Rome was said to keep its plebs at bay by giving them the bread and circus and letting people revel in their inhibitions. In that way, they figured the dregs on society would eventually burn themselves out, either to eventually shape up and become a productive part of society, or to die in their vices. Either way, it was no loss to Rome. Likewise, it would seem, is the state of the modern world in how it seeks to again be fed bread and entertained by the circus, with any hope of a positive future for space exploration to be damned. For why consider putting all those billions of heads together in the world to work towards possibly colonizing the moon, exploring Mars, and beyond, when apparently it is much simpler to kill and sterilize people instead? Just let the people rot instead of dream of one day going out into the universe and possibly finding new worlds to inhabit and explore, or maybe find answers to questions that, for now, can only be speculated. Sure, science still tries to find answers to questions, but it is also used to enforce the status quo. Or maybe it should be said that bad science is used to affirm the things that society wants affirmed in order to continue the party and pretend that killing our unborn and teaching our youth that sex and gender doesn't matter and keep drugged up on a fantasy world where no one has to worry about consequences for one's actions, even if it kills you. Just keep the drugs, sex, and rock star lifestyle going, and everything will be fine, or will it?
It certainly is a morose sort of society when people get to the point of saying, "What does it matter? Hopefully I'll be dead before it all comes to a head."
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