"The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices to be found only in the minds of men. For the record: Prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own — for the children, and the children yet unborn... And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to The Twilight Zone."
"Aside from that, though, this PSA from The '60s — the oldest one in this video by far — outdoes every other one by a long shot. It's astonishingly progressive and respectful — it's actually kind of refreshing."
—Diamondbolt, "WEIRD OLD HEALTH PSAs!"
"James Cameron was YEARS ahead of his time... if you think about the most iconic parts of this movie that drives the horror and tension throughout the entire film are things we ACTUALLY debate about or struggle with today... When this movie was made the idea of "autonomous warfare" was a distant fantasy, and don't forget this was also made YEARS before columbine ever happened... fast forward almost 40 years later and today the US military has an entire, widely used sector of drone warfare both on the ground and in the air, and one of our biggest civil struggles is the advent of mass shootings by crazed gunmen.... this movie was essentially about both of those things through the lens of a tech noir thriller, which is probably one of the reasons why this masterpiece holds up so well and still feels so terrifying today.... perhaps even MORE SO today than it did in '84, because in 2020.... the concept and technology honestly doesn't feel that far fetched anymore."
—Phantom Savage on The Terminator's Tech Noir shooting scene.
"This rewatch was frustrating and somewhat infuriating.
Not because the film disappointed, no, it's still as funny and perfectly balanced as ever.
It's because, in over 30 years, the problems kids face because of self-centred adults haven't changed the slightest."
Not because the film disappointed, no, it's still as funny and perfectly balanced as ever.
It's because, in over 30 years, the problems kids face because of self-centred adults haven't changed the slightest."
— DirkH on The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club"A certain man once kept striking Socrates, the son of Sophroniscus, in the face, yet he did not resent it, but allowed full play to the ruffian's anger, so that his face was swollen and bruised from the blows. Then when he stopped striking him, Socrates did nothing more than write on his forehead, as an artisan on a statue, who did it, and thus took out his revenge. Since these examples almost coincide with our teachings, I hold that such men are worthy of emulation. For this conduct of Socrates is akin to the precept that to him who smites you upon the one cheek, you shall turn the other also — thus much may you be avenged; the conduct of Pericles and of Euclid also conforms to the precept: 'Submit to those who persecute you, and endure their wrath with meekness;' and to the other: 'Pray for your enemies and curse them not.' One who has been instructed in the pagan examples will no longer hold the Christian precepts impracticable."
—St. Basil the Great, Address to Young Men on Greek Literature, chapter VII (c. 359-364 CE)
, chapter VII (c. 359-364 CE)"X-Men is about civil rights. If you didn't get that, you didn't get X-Men.
Black Panther is about civil rights. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Black Panther.
Captain America literally fought Nazis. He is the embodiment of fighting the alt-right. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Captain America.
The Empire in Star Wars is fascist. The Rebel alliance is Anti-Fascist. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Star Wars.
Doctor Who was about an alien fighting for all of humanity in spite of totalitarian regimes. If you don't get that, you don't get Doctor Who.
Deadpool is queer. He's pansexual. Fact. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Deadpool.
Star Trek is about equality for all genders, races and sexualities. As early as the mid-60s it was taking a pro-choice stance and defending women's right to choose. One of its clearest themes is accepting different cultures and appearances and working together for peace. (It's also anti-capitalist and pro-vegan). If you didn't get that, you didn't get Star Trek.
Superman and Wonder Woman (and a whole host of other superheroes) are immigrants. The stance of those comics is pro-immigration and pro-equality and acceptance. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Superman or Wonder Woman.
Stan Lee said "Racism and bigotry are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today". If you're bigoted or racist, you didn't get any of the characters Stan Lee created.
The stories we grew up with all taught us to value other people and cultures and to treasure the differences between us. Only villains were xenophobic, or sexist, or racist, or totalitarian. I can't understand how anyone can have missed that.
If you're upset that there's a black Spider-Man, or a black Captain America or a female Thor or that Ms. Marvel is Muslim or that Captain Marvel was pro-feminism or any of the other things right-wing "fans" say is "stealing their childhood" you never got it in the first place. The things you claim are now "pandering to the lefties" were never on your side, to begin with.
If you consider yourself a fan of these things, but you still think the LGBTQ+ community is too "in your face", or have a problem with Black Lives Matter, or want to "take the country back from immigrants", then you're not really a fan at all.
Geek culture isn't suddenly left-wing... it always was.
You just grew up to be intolerant. You became the villain in the stories you used to love."
Black Panther is about civil rights. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Black Panther.
Captain America literally fought Nazis. He is the embodiment of fighting the alt-right. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Captain America.
The Empire in Star Wars is fascist. The Rebel alliance is Anti-Fascist. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Star Wars.
Doctor Who was about an alien fighting for all of humanity in spite of totalitarian regimes. If you don't get that, you don't get Doctor Who.
Deadpool is queer. He's pansexual. Fact. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Deadpool.
Star Trek is about equality for all genders, races and sexualities. As early as the mid-60s it was taking a pro-choice stance and defending women's right to choose. One of its clearest themes is accepting different cultures and appearances and working together for peace. (It's also anti-capitalist and pro-vegan). If you didn't get that, you didn't get Star Trek.
Superman and Wonder Woman (and a whole host of other superheroes) are immigrants. The stance of those comics is pro-immigration and pro-equality and acceptance. If you didn't get that, you didn't get Superman or Wonder Woman.
Stan Lee said "Racism and bigotry are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today". If you're bigoted or racist, you didn't get any of the characters Stan Lee created.
The stories we grew up with all taught us to value other people and cultures and to treasure the differences between us. Only villains were xenophobic, or sexist, or racist, or totalitarian. I can't understand how anyone can have missed that.
If you're upset that there's a black Spider-Man, or a black Captain America or a female Thor or that Ms. Marvel is Muslim or that Captain Marvel was pro-feminism or any of the other things right-wing "fans" say is "stealing their childhood" you never got it in the first place. The things you claim are now "pandering to the lefties" were never on your side, to begin with.
If you consider yourself a fan of these things, but you still think the LGBTQ+ community is too "in your face", or have a problem with Black Lives Matter, or want to "take the country back from immigrants", then you're not really a fan at all.
Geek culture isn't suddenly left-wing... it always was.
You just grew up to be intolerant. You became the villain in the stories you used to love."
— A post of unknown author, retweeted by Cliff Bleszinski.
by Cliff Bleszinski."As with all such finely honed topical songs, the cultural references have dated somewhat. However, Ochs's description of a liberal as someone whose politics are '10 degrees to the left of centre in good times, 10 degrees to the right of centre if it affects them personally' still resonates today."
— Billy Bragg, on Phil Ochs's "Love Me, I'm A Liberal" (1965)
"The economy of the late 1990s was booming, and the show reflected this in its targets for satire. This wasn't the usual Simpsons cynicism about big business in general, there was a greater focus on how businesses can encroach on our everyday lives. Season 11 can be pretty dated with its references, but in regards to this commentary, they were ahead of the curve."
"There is much we can learn from history. Usually, when we say that, we mean we can learn from the mistakes of our past. In this case, however, we must learn from its successes."
— Harper-Hugo Darling, about the Golden Orchid Society (founded c. 1644)
, about the Golden Orchid Society (founded c. 1644)