Avatar made me sick

I liked the 3D glasses, actually, pretty stylish.
I liked the whole hoop-la of putting them on at the right time and the anticipation of entering this new world of fantasy I had heard so much about.
But, honestly, I didn’t like wearing the glasses for long and I wanted to take them off. I didn’t really love the 3D effects, and I was disappointed; I had big expectations.
And now I see all these new movies coming out in 3D, too.
It is an amazing technology, that’s for sure. I can equate it to something like Hoover Dam. I marveled at it when I saw it - this massive concave wall of concrete capturing the mighty Colorado River - but I didn’t like it.
So, as with a dam, I am impressed with the technology of it, but not the purpose.
I’d rather leave the 3D to the quaking Aspen leaves outside my window right now and to that handsome man’s face standing in front of me.

The story line of Avatar was somewhat predictable, or maybe I just waited too long to see it.
The effects and the affect were powerful.
I was completely mesmerized that someone could have an idea inside of their mind and make it visual for the rest of us to see. Many times I have had dreams that were so amazing and magical, or so creepy and scary, and the images were completely detailed in my mind, but when going to explain it, or try to recreate it, I fail to get the message across and simply sigh, “if only you could have seen it.” For creating something truly dreamlike, this movie is a success.

I cried during the movie several times. I was moved first by the main character in his wheelchair. It reminded me so much of the hundreds of veterans that come out to Aspen every year to ski in all sorts of specialized equipment. There are Vietnam vets, some old and crusty, many with a drinking problem, and young young young (can you believe how young an 18 year old looks) Iraq or Afghanistan vets, drinking, in pain from nerve damage and not whole, many with missing arms and legs.
Seeing the paralyzed protagonist in the movie reminded me of all that is wrong with war, now and then.
The mentality of “us vs. them” perpetuates and nobody wins.
In so many cases, greed is God.
Who are we really serving?
And why?
That was certainly the case in Avatar, and to a sickening extreme.
But what made me so sick, literally nauseous after the movie, is that
it wasn’t that far from home.
I remember clearly and with such dread when George W. Bush announced the “Shock and Awe” campaign against Iraq in 2003 amidst staggering protests and deceit.
I watched as the imbedded reporters dramatized the story and the news played scenes of bombs over Baghdad again and again and again.
Ratings were huge!
I remember watching the Super Bowl the following year and getting this same sickness when I saw the Neanderthal fans and the over fed, animal-like athletes killing each other on the field. The two sides cheering and even beating themselves up, or their wives, depending on the plays from their team. The halftime show included a patriotic display of fireworks, – shock and awe – out on the field, as America sat divided against two teams - us and them.
And then, another televised event portraying a much more real “game” in Iraq, which people seemed to watch with less interest than the football game. And, of course, the compelling GI Joe Army ads in between both events luring more and more young people into a false sense of adventure and purpose.
The similarities of these two “games” kept me up thinking and wondering, and still does. We continue our War Against Terror and wait with anticipation for another clash on the football field.
We love this plot and Avatar is a classic exaggeration of it portraying “us vs. them” and “good vs. evil.”
The military machine and the corporation are bad in this case, and the people of Pandora are magical, unique and creative beings.
This movie exposes the human condition, in its most magical form -connected to nature and living symbiotically within it - and the exact opposite of that - seek and destroy.
As one character said in the movie, “When someone wants what you have, you become the enemy.”
We see these clashes time and time again – the massacre of the Native Americans in America, the Mayans in Central America, the Incas in Peru, the Aborigines of the jungles, the Tibetans against the Chinese, the constant wars in the Middle East, strip mining for gold over people’s homes in Virginia or polluting the water and air with coal and gas in Colorado, diamonds in Africa, precious metals in Indonesia or India, the walls built, the dictators, the extremists, the dolphins in Japan… In any case, The Natives - human, animal or plant - where ever, when ever, are moved out, enslaved or killed if hey get in the way of profit or the imperialistic or corporate idea of manifest destiny.
In Avatar, there is not too much fantasy in that part of the storyline.
We all can recognize that.
It makes me sick.
The people are killing the plants, the animals and the people of this planet. It does not make sense.
Many of us believe a change is coming, we hope and pray and work towards a more sustainable future, where we respect all living things and get past the policies and procedures that lead us to: coerce, control, conquer and “win.” We believe in diversity and in sustainability, in peace and love.
We also believe in business and the importance of technology, but not at the expense of our connection to the planet and to each other.
Avatar made me sick.
I recognized too many behaviors.
I don’t want the sacred balance of our home, planet earth, and the entire magical universe to be broken down into battles, big or small, of “us vs. them.”
I want to live in a world where people respect life.
It seems like we need a reset button, things are so far gone, interests too far vested to change, but I do believe we can make a difference and be more connected. And we don’t need an Avatar to do it.

We can do it.
We need to:
open our eyes.
We need to:
open our hearts.

What can we do?