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And You Thought Kinkos Was Good
The possibilities and questions are endless at this point.
3-D printing is progressing at such fast rate that it may become just another part of our daily lives within a decade. A heavy proposition for sure. What does it mean? It’s a perplexing dilemma. On the one hand, when LEGO forgets to put a single piece into a box set of Black Beard’s pirate ship from “Pirates of the Caribbean,” it would have been much more efficient to have had a machine at home that could have printed the missing gray piece in a matter of minutes for my nephew as opposed to calling the LEGO Store and getting it shipped from Denmark.
True story.
On the other hand, purchasing a machine that prints 3-D objects will undoubtedly reduce commerce in stores (offline and online), consequently hurting businesses that are run by our neighbors, friends and people who are just trying to make a good living. Society will become much more introverted, which is a dynamic that has positives like convenience, but is (currently) outweighed by negatives, such as the decreasing inclination to go outside to a video rental store.
What will be the landmark case be surrounding patents? How will businesses adjust to this evolution of people being able to make and/or copy-and-paste a wide-array of things themselves that are normally sold in stores? What will the quality of the printed objects be? What positive effects on society will it have? What negative effects on society will it have?
3-D printing is evolving into pivotal issues of need versus want and quality versus convenience (just two examples).
At least we don’t need special glasses to see all this coming at us…
America’s Odyssey for Sage Leadership
Rising star. Celebrity. Momentum. Trajectory.
These words have entered into our society’s vernacular as modern day prerequisites for achieving powerful positions. Specifically, political leaders on both sides of the aisle have followed this dynamic in pursuing what is presumed to be their “yellow brick road” to success and stature.
The question is where is that wicked witch hiding, ready to spoil the sunny ceremony?
There is no doubt there are some young, intelligent mayors, governors and congressional leaders around the country and in D.C. who have the potential to get elected to higher office in the coming years. However, will the results of an electoral victory paint a masterpiece in the making or reveal more of an illusion?
Regarding policy, there are a few exciting representatives and senators (it was very strange to write that, by the way). In this sense, “exciting” equates to big ideas and energy that a select few congressmen and congresswomen are bringing to the multitude of policy debates in our nation’s capital, as well as in state legislatures around the country.
And yet, there is an important distinction between discussing big ideas with widespread media attention and implementing and achieving success from big ideas. It’s the “talk the talk” versus the “walk the walk” paradigm.
The American people have heard all the talk (the mute button has overused it purpose), but now it’s time for some walking. It’s time not only in terms of leadership, but also electorally defeating specific political leaders and watching them walk away.
“[He or she] is a rising star within the ______ Party!”
Do you want to know what a rising star is? A rising star is a star that hasn’t yet made it to the “big show” in the gorgeous night sky of infinite grandeur. It has yet to reach its permanent place and is not prepared to steadily guide anyone lost who looks up to it for direction. Polaris, or the North Star, is always situated in its place, visible for anyone to see and rely upon. This glistening wonder in the darkest of nights is always ready to serve whenever needed.
“[He or she] has become an absolute celebrity in the ______ Party!”
Whether the problems revolve around debt, jobs, tax code overhaul, foreign policy (U.S.) or laying down a solid foundation for a broken city dragged down by poverty and crime (Newark, N.J.) or shutting down the government to defund Obamacare without the Senate majority and White House (a few GOP Senators) or reviving an entire state that has nearly incomparable sources of cash flow and natural beauty that have been spent/taken for granted (California), the country is yearning for experienced leadership and vision.
In other words, people are searching for trust. People, I will venture to say, want someone who is a master of politics, but who thinks and operates above that “messy swamp.”
People want a distinguished sheriff, not a hot shot cowboy.
In these upcoming elections, we need to ask the candidates (repeatedly) what concrete successes their policies have produced? What did they say were their ideas, how did they implement what they said they would and what were the outcomes? How do the outcomes apply to solving our current dilemmas?
We’ve seen plenty of flash, we’ve had plenty of celebrities and we’ve strained our necks from looking up at rising stars. Admittedly, I’m a fan of some of these rising stars. However, most all of them are still rising and have not yet earned a spot in the night sky of stars composed of firm power, imagination and certainty.
Trust > Trajectory.
We’ve endured a president who was a rising star and celebrity. How many of you trust him or the federal government he’s leading not to violate your privacy or to provide valid ideas to improve our lagging economy to create quality jobs or to project strength through his foreign policy?
Trust > Trajectory.
P.S. It’s usually rising stars who are too preoccupied with their own personal ambitions to answer a 3 a.m. phone call…or a phone call with dire warnings in the middle of the afternoon months before a heart-wrenching catastrophe.
Personal responsibility sure is a lost art from those who have been given the all-powerful paint brushes of America’s ever-changing masterpiece…or tragedy, depending on the artists.
From Christian Bale to…Who!?
“You read for a part, you feel good about it, you feel confident, then they cast Ben Affleck.”
–Richard Dreyfuss
“Really looking forward to seeing Affleck bring the depth and gravitas to Batman that he brought to Daredevil and Gigli.”
–Wil Wheaton
These were just two of the many instantaneous twitter responses to the news late last night that Ben Affleck has been cast to portray Batman in the “Man of Steel” sequel.
(insert the sound of air being let out of a tire)
The task of finding a suitable replacement in the post-Christian Bale era was going to be difficult and nearly impossible. But still, this decision is shockingly bad. There had to be a handful of other actors (it’s difficult to name names because the role should probably go to more of an unknown, like Henry Cavill) who could have at least filled the role enough to be believable on-screen and received the polite golf clap with a nod complemented with a, “not bad…” audible response.
Now, it’s just bad.
On one side, you have Henry Cavill who had the similarly impossible task of trying to be the, “man of steel” post-Christopher Reeve (Superman is always in the post-Reeve era by the way) and he did an amazing job. He escaped into the world of a new kind of Superman with a new kind of story and did a fantastic job.
He made everyone believe he was the, “man of steel.” Cavill embodied everything you’d want from a modern day Kal-El, Clark Kent and Superman (“that’s what they’re calling him”). Hopefully, there will be more jokes and flirting from Clark Kent to Lois Lane à la Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder in the sequel…
Cavill was quietly super with moments of familiar charm.
Conversely, Ben Affleck is not dark, edgy or conflicted. These are somewhat important characteristics for Bruce Wayne/Batman. When you watch Affleck on-screen on most occasions, you can see he’s acting and not escaping into the role. It’s going to be difficult to watch him convincingly embrace the persona of a willing billionaire playboy who has a dangerous night job fueled by raw and convoluted emotions.
Here’s a clip that shows the future Batman in action while in a suit.
Unfortunately, we all know this is just the tip of the iceberg for Affleck.
Movies involving superheroes are not simply about star power, but they hinge on character power as portrayed by great actors.
It’s a small, prestigious club. Many have tried, but only a few actors have truly “fit” their roles to give lasting, iconic performances.
Only time will tell, but when the bat signal lights up in a couple years, it may look a little different…it just may project “S.O.S.”
Jimmy's Daily Planet 