Jasper Journal

I  recently saw an incredibly thought provoking movie called “In- Time.”  It starred Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried.  Once you see it, the idea will not get out of your head.

The premise is this: What if in the future, the currency were time instead of money? What if you only had a certain amount of time to live and if you used it up or  squandered it you would die? Everyone gets to live to 25, but after that, you only have a year.  You can earn  more time by working, stealing,  inheriting, gambling etc. But when your time runs out…. your life ends. Rich people are those with more time, and the poor barely have enough to live day to day.

Instead of money, bank vaults are filled with time dispensers. Loans are made of time, and you pay interest on the time you borrow. Charity missions give out time rather than money. To get to better parts of the country, you have to give up some of your time, which of course the poor cant do. The rich can afford whatever they want because it is paid for in time of which they have a surplus. Anyway,  thats the concept.

What drives  the movie is the love story that leads to a Robin- Hood like  adventure for Seyfried and Timberlake.  Once the film was over, we sat and talked about what a parallel this was to today, but using time as an analogy for money.  There were societal  insights that could be drawn as well about greed, poverty, excess, time/financial markets,  inequities etc. But it isn’t necessary to overanalyze the movie to come away with two things: first a top notch movie experience; and two the concept of time as something not to be wasted in life.

Do yourself a favor if you are looking for a very different viewing experience this spring,  go out and rent it. You will not be disappointed.   If any of you have seen it, I would be interested in your thoughts. I’ve embedded the movie trailer below.

Like many, I was saddened on Saturday night to hear of the death of singer Whitney Houston.  It is tragic when someone so talented is gone so soon. Having said that, I am beside myself with the wall to wall coverage of the life, death, friends, lifestyle, and career of Whitney Houston.

Our country is facing unbelievable difficulties and every network, including FOX , has made this the non stop story of the day. I could not watch any network without hearing some aspect of Ms Houston’s life or death.  And just when it looked like it might be temporarily over, we have breaking news from the coroner, or the police , each saying that they could say nothing.  But that didn’t stop the frenzied pack of reporters from asking questions that the people said they wouldn’t answer. It is a circus . Speaking of which, the family are considering the Newark arena that seats 18,000 for the memorial service.  Could this be any more out of control.

When I see this I think of the young men and women of the US Military  who give their lives in virtual anonymity in Afghanistan, Iraq, and many other outposts of America around the world.  Where is even a small tribute to their lives and their futures?  I believe we have misplaced our priorities. Those servicemen and women in my mind are the hero’s of today. They put their lives at risk daily for other people, and if they should die, they die without fanfare.

On a final note, did you see  the assembled throngs of show business luminaries pray, and bow their heads for Whitney Houston at the Grammy’s? I thought there was a separation of church and show business?  Liberal elites rail at religion in the military; religion at the Air Force Academy; religion in schools; religion in our courts; yet there is no problem with religion at the Grammy’s? Wow! And I didn’t see anyone object to praying did you ?

The hypocricy of the left is so self evident. From the feigned religiosity of the president, to the concern for religious freedom by democrat politicians.  Sadly I think Ms Houston’s death will also become a sideshow for liberal politicians.  Mark my words if we don’t have the Reverend Al, The Reverend Jackson, and maybe even the President himself at her memorial. No opportunity for self aggrandizement will go unexploited. Just saying.

I love reading the morning newspaper because I find little gems throughout that I otherwise would never have known about. Yesterday was no exception.

The first article that caught my eye was a story about the Russians successfully drilling down to a subglacial lake in the Antarctic. They reached the lake water at a depth of 12,366 ft. It was kept from freezing by the over two miles of ice on top of it, and they think it will contain living organisms that have been trapped there for 20 million years.

My immediate thought was a 1950′s,  black and white episode of Superman with George Reeves. It was called Superman and the Mole Men. The Mole Men  were little creatures who lived inside the earth and came to the surface after a deep well was dug. Clark and Lois were there reporting, but only Superman could save the Mole Men from  the  townspeople  who wanted to kill them because they were different. I hope the Russians are prepared for things to rise up from their drilling; but  somehow I dont think they got Superman during the cold war. We will have to warn them.

There was another article about the good people of North Dakota not giving up on saving the University of North Dakota’s nickname ” The Fighting Sioux.”  The NCAA is putting pressure on the school with  bans and restrictions  until they change what they claim is an insulting name. Sounds like an out of control bureaucracy if you ask me.  After I read this, I saw an interview with a native American on TV. He asked  how would we feel if there were school nicknames like the  ”Fighting Jews, ” or the “Fighting Negro’s.” I actually thought that wasn’t a bad idea?  He must have forgotten that little school in Indiana’s  nickname… what is it .. oh yes,  the Fighting Irish!

Finally, in a post Super Bowl prank, a company called Pawngo.com dumped 900 pounds of Butterfingers candy bars in the middle of  Copley Square in Boston. This was meant to mock Patriot players for dropping the ball in the Superbowl’s Fourth quarter. The company was fined, and apologized. My only surprise was that this wasn’t done by Giselle Bundchen!

Keep smiling, and have a great weekend! See you Monday.