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Humor, Movies

Match the GOP Candidate with the Futurist Movie

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Which futurist movie results if each GOP candidate is elected?


Newt Gingrich:

  • “The Road” — Bold new thinking, like removing government regulations against eating children.
  • Alternate scenario: “Zardoz” — Giant heads drifting around making strange pronouncements.

Mitt Romney:

  • “Demolition Man” — The moralizing is half-assed, but at least corporations are doing well.
  • Alternate scenario: “AI: Artificial Intelligence” — So much effort to build the perfect human, but it is never quite convincing.

Ron Paul:

  • “Mad Max” — Government is finally off our backs (and market forces are allowed to play out in the energy industry).

Rick Perry:

  • “Rollerball” — Corporations rule the planet, and Houston is recognized as a global power center.

Rick Santorum:

  • “The Handmaid’s Tale” — Order is restored to familial relations.
  • Alternate scenario: “28 Days Later” — It turns out all that rage can be spread by bodily fluids.

Michele Bachmann:

  • “The Stepford Wives” — Something is deeply wrong in suburbia.

Jon Huntsman:

  • “Silent Running” — Yeah, I don’t know what to say either.

(Thanks to JP and CK for ideas.)


Tyranny

The Constituency for Tyranny

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In futurist movies, the US has often fallen under some kind of tyrannical government — see, for instance, The Handmaid’s Tale.


Americans see themselves as deeply attached to freedom, but polling data consistently reveals a minority with at least some authoritarian inclinations.


A new Pew poll shows that:

  • Only 31% of Americans think that torture is never justified; 42% say that it is often or sometimes justified. Sixty-five percent of Republicans say that torture is often or sometimes justified.
  • Half of all Americans think that government wiretaps of suspected terrorists without court approval is “generally right;” 74% of Republicans say this.

These opinions are based on fear of attack; what more would be deemed allowable in more extreme circumstances?