Box office $'s down this summer...

I just read the article posted below on the dismal dollars pulled in from movies this summer. It caught my eye mostly because of John Cusack's rant over the weekend. I scanned the article, which was linked from Breitbart's Big Hollywood site. It has all kinds of reasons, bad movies, social media letting everyone know immediately that a movie was bad, higher ticket costs, etc.

I have a few reasons movies aren't bringing in the audiences that article author Paul Dergarabedian didn't list, probably didn't even think of when writing the article.

1. People like me whose movie attendance has declined as the rhetoric from Hollywood "starts" ratcheted up. We're putting our money where our principles are these days, paying attention and aren't going to support people who are contributing dollars and influence to those trying to destroy America. (see yesterday's blog)

2. People are hanging onto their money. Duh. If you have cable or a DVD player, you'll get to see the movie sooner or later if you care. Why spend $10, $15 or whatever on a ticket, plus the cost of overpriced (understandably) popcorn and sodas? At home you can spend time with your family, pause when you want to go to the bathroom and the popcorn is cheap. Have a few friends over and make it fun!

3. The messages in the movies aren't the kind that many parents want their children learning. I am personally so tired of the social engineering that's going on in movies... and television programs, in particular those cute little kids things they feed straight into the minds of our impressionable children.

4. We have better things to do. Been to a 9-12 meeting? a tea party rally? your local political party group meeting? watching Glenn Beck and thinking there are more important things afoot these days? paying more attention to the 'real world'? The elections this year are attracting much, much more interest than in the past. We're more involved, there's more at stake. Sure we all need a break from non-stop gloom, doom, working out butts off to save the country type activities, but we're more discerning now. Plus, I think many of us are spending more quality time with our families. Going to a movie is not a 'real' family activity -- you can't talk, interact, you can't comment when they push a Hollywood idea of the world at your kids...

I could come up with some more if I put my mind to it, but I am heading out the door in about ten minutes. After yesterday's article on Cusack and Dave Radio I had to comment... Have a fantastic day, register a new conservative voter and make it better than fantastic .

Summer 2010 box office: What went right, what went wrong (HWD)
By Paul Dergarabedian
The opening line of Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" sums up the summer movie season of 2010 most accurately: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." and so it goes as we hit a revenue record of $4.35 billion, yet find ourselves with the lowest attendance since 1997.
http://hollywoodwiretap.com/?module=news&action=story&id=51536

Cusak, Hate, Satanic Death wishes

John Cusack has gone of the deep end... the same deep end that many other libs have jumped into with open arms. He's called for a 'Satanic death cult center' at Fox News HQ, Dick Armey, Newt Gingrich, GOP, etc. on Twitter over the weekend.

Every time I see a mean-natured twisted comment or rant, get attacked, read the stuff that comes out of so many liberal / progressive type's mouths these days I wonder what happened to the peace and love the left has claimed as their mantle from the 60's forward.

I got into it slightly over the weekend with a local radio personality who tweeted some maybe-not-quite-so-Cusack tweets about Glenn Beck, but hateful none the less. One of his fellow DJ's joined the conversation, making it two from Dave radio. I retweeted a tweet from someone who'd seen the same comments I saw which attracted the DJ's attention, rightfully so since the tweet had his name in it ;-)

I don't do hate. I can debate issues with people who don't attack individuals, who don't wish for satanic death cult centers, who don't spit venom. Once I see that kind of anger I'm done, no point. I blocked the radio DJs, took their radio station off my presets in the car... and now I will never be able to watch a movie with John Cusack in it again. That's a sacrifice of sorts as I have enjoyed some of his movies, usually put them on the "going to see list" when he's in one.

It used to be you could watch movies and not know a darn thing about the people in them aside from fluff. It was great to get lost in a movie and sorta believe the actor could be the person they portrayed. Once Hollywood and music-types started opening their mouth and spewing hate it became impossible for me to transcend reality and get into some of their movies.

It's impossible to see a hate-a-conservative type playing someone in the military or a political type... or even in some cases a business person... and feel they're credible, ignore their well-voiced comments in opposition to the type character they're playing.

Since some of you are going to fuss at me and say that Cusack has been a long-time Obama supporter, left winger type, I'll have to admit that I don't hear most of the stuff they have to say until it hits the current Cusack-level. When it reaches my non-Hollywood following attention level, it's gotta be pretty rabid.

I watched a good portion of Glenn Beck's Kennedy Center thing on Friday night. It was nothing but good stuff, positive talk. On the sidebar there was a running commentary by viewers. A whole bunch of lefties and haters were making very nasty, snide, ugly comments about Beck. Personal stuff, attacks on his motivation, his personality, etc. Nothing of substance. Ditto the comments by the radio DJs. Just hateful stuff, personal attacks. It was interesting, as always, to see the same talking points being typed by the haters.

At least Cusak was original in his hate-mongering.

What's so weird is these same people who are slapping at conservatives for being racist, evil, horrible people are doing so in such a stinkin', evil, horrible, nasty way. Kettle black scenario, except they're talking about a kettle that's pretty shiny for the most part (yes, there are some uglies on the right side, too). But the hypocrisy of saying evil things and thinking it's OK is mind boggling. If I said the exact same things some of them are saying about a progressive, a liberal, a Democrat, or one of their icons, I'd be forever under attack and vilified. They say that stuff and the lib left pats 'em on the back. Skewed world.

So, OK, no more Cusak movies. Darn, darn, darn. He's cute and funny... oh wait, no, he's really not funny, I just saw who he really is via his Twitter messages.

I'm in mini-mourning. Because of a couple of stupid radio DJs I gave up my Dave radio station this weekend and now I'm choosing to give up John Cusak movies. Pretty soon the only people who'll going to movies will be progressives. At least I have a number of good rock radio station alternatives!

I've been reading all the articles and comments as to why various people think it's becoming so vicious. I think it's probably a combination of most of the factors I read. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts if you'd like to share.

I think social media is a part of it. We're anonymous and can vent our deepest, darkest thoughts. It's immediate so people can have a few drinks and then shoot off their mouth, no second tries.

It's more than just social media though, it's more than the main-stream media, more than the availability of news, more than the war... Did 9-11 trigger something or release something in us that was already there? Was it a trigger or just part of a series of events that brought us to this clear divide?

If we survived the next few years and history isn't re-written as they're trying to re-write it now, it will be interesting for our kids to look back at all the triggers. Those in the future will have much more information available to them about this time in history. We'll be able to chronicle thoughts that went out via blogs, facebook, twitter, etc.

John Cusack Calls for 'Satanic Death' of Fox News, GOP Leaders

Actor John Cusack went on a caustic Twitter rampage Sunday evening, attacking former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Fox News.

“I AM FOR A SATANIC DEATH CULT CENTER AT FOX NEWS HQ AND OUTSIDE THE OFFICES ORDICK ARMEYAND NEWT GINGRICH-and all the GOP WELFARE FREAKS,” Cusack tweeted.

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2010/08/31/actor-john-cusack-calls-satanic-death-fox-news-gop-leaders/?test=faces