50 Years of TV: Five shows

We recently commemorated fifty years of television. I thought I’d mark it by writing about the five shows that I found memorable. (The order resembles chronology).

Picket Fences (1992-1996) (David E. Kelley) - It is probably the first legal drama that I watched. It dealt with issues in an aptly named American small town “Rome”. I would be quite interested if the series was released onto DVD.

The X-Files (1992-2003) (Chris Carter) - Moving on to the only Sci-fi show on my list. While I quite liked it, I didn’t quite get to watch all of the nine seasons. On the whole I think the first three seasons where the best, but do plan (one-day) to finish watching all nine seasons, and see how the story arc concludes.

The Practice (1997-2004) (David E. Kelley) - Continuing on the legal theme, The Practice was set in a Boston legal practice, it dealt with a large array of contemporary issues in a serious manner. Like Picket Fences, another show I’m looking forward to the DVD box sets to come out.

The West Wing (1999-2006) (Aaron Sorkin) - No secret to anyone regularly reading this blog that The West Wing is my all time favourite TV Show. It is the most even on the list, and had it all in terms of character, dialogue, and plots. It is quite the contradiction, incredibly real in the issues and themes of the stories, and what we would like American to be.

House MD (2004- ???) (David Shore) - I am quite enjoying this medical drama, it is well scripted and acted. The show has just begun its second season - it will be interesting to see the direction the show goes. Along with Bones, it is one of my currently regular TV shows.

The honorable mentions go to Mad About You, Seinfeld, The Simpsons and Bones.

Musical Murmurings (updated)

I posted a couple of days ago about a forthcoming Brooke Fraser release. I
thought I'd make a post of a few other murmurings that had caught my ear.

Damien Rice - 9 (due November)
The Frames - The Cost (released in Ireland, due out here early 2007)
The Killers - Sams Town (released early October)
Interpol are in studio, release is slated for 2007

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Cheer, Cheer the Red and the white ...

I need to say something about Paul Roos. Last night the Swans beat Fremantle to make it into the 2006 Grand Final and they will play West Coast. Fantastic job! He took over the Sydney Swans late 2002, and since then, they were beaten Preliminary finalists (2003), Premiers (2005), and Grand Finalists (2006).

Another great season for the Sydney Swans, and congratulations to Adam Goodes, who won the Brownlow Medal (the Best and Fairest player for the 2006 Season).

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The Twilight of Atheism

I went to the Smith Lecture tonight. The Smith lecture is put on by CBF (with CASE, and The Fifth Estate), and aims to provide an opportunity for a Christian public figure to present his or her perspective on a subject relevant to the life of the city.. Our speaker was Professor Alister McGrath (Professor of Historical Theology at Oxford University), who spoke about the Twilight of Atheism. I quite enjoyed the lecture, so here are some my notes.

McGrath began by detailing three main objections to theistic faiths.

1. Religion leads to evil
2. God is a consoling delusion
3. Science has disproved God

1. Religion leads to Evil

There is a degree of truth to this statement, but question is this capacity different for other world views. It seems that intolerance has come from both theistic views (for example the Spanish Inquisition), and through atheism (Stalinism). So from the same stimulus both good and bad can come.

Freud calls religion a pathological disorder, but there is a (very complex) and tenuous link between religion and well-being. (Of 100 studies, 79 showed at least 1 positive correlation, only 1 showed a negative correlation, and the remaining 20 painted a complex picture).

2. God is just a delusion

Feuerbach (1804-72) argued that God is a projection of human longing – we invent God to fulfill a need, but this is not an argument against theistic views, as the argument works against both the theist and atheist – both the aspiration to believe (or disbelieve) is the fulfillment of a desire. (I found the comment that atheism could be a “wish to escape judgment for their deeds" (Milosz), interesting.

3. Science disproves God

Faith is blind trust, and cannot justify itself by evidence - Anything worth knowing can be proved from science (Dawkins)
Science cannot answer childlike questions of why we are here, and what does it all mean? (Medawar)

The world can be explained in both an theistic and atheistic way, nature doesn’t push either way. Science cannot answer the question of the existence of God. Darwinism is equally compatible with theism and atheism. Science it seems does not push towards atheism.

As there is no position of certainty; each individual looks for the explanation which explains the data best. For example; CS Lewis’ famous quote (paraphrased) that God is "the light by which I see all else" or Dawkins, who states that the world is exactly how we would expect if there was no good, no evil.

Post-modernity

In a sense religion is identity giving, as people begin to seek “spiritual” answers.

Some of the concluding comments, and answers to questions:

Evolution does not provide a basis for morality.
Secularism is position of faith; has no vision, suppresses the vision of others; accepts the fruit (social action, community involvement), but not the roots.
Reason can not take us all the way, we take hold of our “best fit explanation” by trust (faith).
Faith can engage with reality, and hold its own.

Perhaps not surprisingly McGrath did not provide a compelling argument to believe in the Christian God but rather argued that the position of atheism is as much a position of “faith” as Christianity.

All things considered it was quite an interesting lecture, and I’m quite looking forward to reading McGrath’s book. I’ve quite enjoyed the two lectures I’ve been to this week. I've quite enjoyed the intellectual stimulation.

... now that i have seen ... I am responsible ... faith without deeds is dead..

Albertine

I'm quite a fan of Brooke Fraser, this song, a preview from her new album due out in December, is beautiful. Her voice combines beautifuly with the rhythm of the music, and the heartfelt lyric, to show the urgency she feels. [Thanks Marty]

Sports Shorts

Well its September again, football finals time. The Sydney Swans are into the Preliminary final (against either Fremantle or Melbourne), after another 1 point win. Win or lose Friday week they've had a fantastic year. It was good to see that their form was rewarded in All-Australian selections.

The other excitement this week is the beginning of the UEFA Champions League. Am realling looking forward the seeing the best players on the field again.

Another week gone…

* Updated to include link to article on Sydney Anglicans website.

Busy, but lovely weekend – Friday night Fi and I went to King Street, and found a fantastic Vietnamese Resturant, then Saturday, I found a suit, went to the airport and said farewell to Fi’s parents (they are off to Malaysia for a holiday) and had dinner with my parents (celebrating Mum's Birthday and Father's Day), on Sunday, I got my wedding ring. :-)

Last night, I went to the CASE Seminar - Religion, terror; film: reflections on 9/11. It was a fascinating look at the place and role images have taken. Greg Clarke began by looking at the place of images in Christian thought. One of the things I was thinking about, was when Greg asked us what came to mind when he said ‘justice’ all the responses where pictures. I got thinking as Jesus often taught with images, parables. (my mind was drawn to a number of images and the "I am statements" from John’s Gospel (I am the Bread of Life, I am the Light of the World, I am the Good Shepard). Perhaps we do think in pictures?

Justine then gave a fascinating overview of how 9-11 has been seen in popular culture, and spoke particularly about United 93, World Trade Centre, The Falling Man, and the fictional War of the Worlds. Lara has posted her comments here.

Staying on 9-11 for another moment; in terms of cultural responses, I really liked the West Wing episode Isaac and Ishmael (Season 3), and how it attempted to deal with the questions and issues.

Though, I think its the French film 11-09-01 which reasonated the most with me. The film give 11 directors (from 11 nations), 11 minutes and 9 seconds and 1 frame to respond. The highlights for me were the films from France, India, US, UK

UK – centres around a Chilean man based in London penning an open letter (and parts are sung) of ‘solidarity and sympathy’ with Americans in the wake of 11-9. Telling them that September 11 is a date that they both share, as 11-9-02, would be the 30th Anniversary since the overthrow of Allende’s Government in Chile – 11-9-72, and the first since the US’s bloody Tuesday.

France – a relationship breakdown plays out in New York, with the collapse of the towers in the background. The women in the scenes is deaf, so while the TV news show footage of the planes, the women is writing a letter about how she is going to leave her partner, before he leaves here, and in the climax of the scene her partner [who acts as a tour guide for the deaf, and was working near the twin towers] comes in, covered with the dust of the towers.

US – a man, talking with his deceased wife, shows the simple things of life, then at the climax of the piece we the light comes through the window, and the flowers on the mantelpiece are seen to come alive, (at the moment, I assume the tower falls), but he also remembers or realises that his wife is dead

India – The films is centered the true story of a Middle Eastern man, living in New York, and is family. Through the course of the short film the man moves from terrorists to hero. The film highlights the fears that those of Arab descent would be living with in the time immediately after 11-9. By virtue of his appearance neighbours move from feeling sympathetic to suspicious to scared, but in the film the man runs to the scene, to help survivors. And it is with this the film concludes, beautifully spoken in a eulogy. It also highlights a negative aspect of the US.

Of the others, not many of them really stood out to this degree, as I can’t really remember the details as vividly as for the four I’ve mentioned above.

And the final of the eleven pieces is one which I found hard to watch, but it seems to be making the point that War is perhaps to man, what killing is to the snake, it is natural, and instinctive, or in another way – war will always be with us. The film showed us a man who essentially thought he was a snake. I found the film quite difficult to engage with. I really like the idea of the project, its interesting seeing how people respond to the film within the context of their cultures, and it is kind of interesting watching the different ideas used in the creation of these short films.