Gadfly!

Salesman:
For those who haven't seen it. See it or take a college film class, you'll see it then.

Four Bible salesman. The open road.  Fall in love with these men. Fall out of love with the world. The American dream. The American Nightmare. How do you sell the Holy Book? These guys have been doing it for more than twenty years and they still don't know.
You'll find out how scary honesty is.

Salesman was a revolution; both in film and in my head. Salesman is cinema verite: literally, cinema-truth. It revolves around the idea that if you put a camera in front of a person eventually they will forget that it is there and return to acting like their original selves.
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~~~~~This does beg the question if the people on Jersey Shore or Real Housewives of New Jersey actually act like ogres, since they do spend a majority of their waking lives in front of a camera.
probably not. no.
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I tried to contain the "New Jersey" as to not infect the rest of this post.
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Salesman is the perfect gadfly because it says so much without saying anything at all. While Micheal Moore's veins pop as his shrill nagging voice is slammed into that megaphone he carries everywhere, the Maysles sit quietly actually documenting. They pose questions by presenting the truth. Brilliant!

You can't shove an opinion at someone and expect anything but shut doors and closed minds. Documentaries don't document anymore, they tell, they shout, loading people with more facts to support their already bloated arguments. Do they change anyone? No of course not, everyone who went to see Moore's most recent garbage (french pronunciation for comic effect, always use french pronunciation when talking about film, the northward dwelling liberals love it.) already had an opinion before they even entered. The Maysles give you information and let you take what you want. So-crates asked the rich and powerful questions on those Greek stairs, some understood his message, most didn't. McCarthy stressed this; So-Crates never imposed his opinion on the people he questioned. The Maysles didn't either.

There had to be a couple people who left thinking.

 

Fact: Gil from the Simpsons is based on one of the characters in salesman.

Gil- "I need this sale, my wifes gonna leave me"

Car Salesman - "I'll take it from here Gil"
Gil picks up phone - "You should have seen me honey, I was so close to making a sale. Hey, who is that in the background? Awwww, is that Tom? I thought you were gonna leave him. No, no... dont put him on. Oh, hi Tom!"

XoXo

The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living?

The unexamined life is the life that is lead by most people, examination only leads to problems doesn't it. We question we get crucified, put to death, excommunicated from our church, our family, our friends. Are most people even capable of asking questions that invoke any thought? If the majority examined their life would they even find anything or would blank spaces frustrate them as they circled around questions they cannot possibly find the center of. The answer lies in the fact that we have denoted a profession to people who examine life; the philosopher. They are able to question and we are able to become enlightened through them. We (the majority) don't have the will power, brians, or enthusiasm for asking questions that will never be answered. Does this we mean we shouldn't expose ourselves to the unknown? Of course not, while it seems to me that it is a waste on a person who will never want to examine their existance, we should try to bring enlightenment and conciousness to everybody, give em' a nibble and see if the fish pulls. If so reel em' in. If not let them keep swimming. To often there is a misunderstanding between examination and imposisiton. Being forced down and choked as you shove your beliefs down my throat, which while might sound a bit harsh, is what people tend to do when discussing ideas. I think this stems from lack of confidence in their own beliefs. People become more adamant as they are less sure. Back to the examined life. Yes it's good. It's not for everybody, actually for few people. If you don't get it, you don't need it and shouldn't feel bad. If you are be as loud as you can about it. Read Man and Superman, at least until you fall head over heals for the rouge attitude and confidence of Jack Tanner. Just don't choke people, it's hard to know where the line between discussion and choking is.

XoXo

Eulogy:

The lifeless Lithuanian corpse before us is a young man by the name of Matthew Balzekas. He was confused by "it all". He died a teenager and that is what teenagers feel; anxiety.
Did he accomplish anything of significance? He was an eagle scout. That means something to some people, people he liked, working class people.
Did he accomplish anything? He had a band and made films. Were they of any value? No, but they showed signs. If only he didn't die so young, maybe he would have figured it out. Maybe if he didn't wallow away his time, knowing better but still watching television on his laptop and listening to music because the "other" was a couple footsteps away. Long footsteps that is, to a destination where he would only judge himself to harshly to garner any momentum.
Maybe if his family wasn't middle class american, born and bred.
Maybe if the blanket that shielded his whole life was lifted or burned in some sort of cataclysmic action his way of thinking would be more concrete.
Matthew lies here at six foot three and 180 pounds.
Matthew was fed three meals a day and given money to buy snacks if he wanted. His mother didn't keep track of money, she didn't need to, she had too much. The excesses of the sufficient had given him a reckless confidence to say anything he wanted to, without much thinking. He did have regret, probably the average amount for a white male. But who knows, no one really talks to each other.
He wanted to be part of people's lives. Faces that he had no more than names for confronted him in the hallway and gave way to feelings of loneliness. His friends were never good enough, searching for something more was something he liked to do. A higher goal? Perhaps. Maybe he strived for something beyond the high school rigmarole. If that was the case and it wasn't a defeating self martyrdom (one which after editing predominates this eulogy) good for him. His friend which he liked to call by his first name, but which we can not include in here so we will supplement it with the letter of which his first name started with, A, was a good man, a good young man that is. He liked A, he just wished that A liked rock music. Trivial in the light of both of their deaths. A and Matthew died on the same day, eulogies to be submitted on the same day, a Friday.
Matt would be glad he died on a Thursday night, one appreciated by all because of the heat that preceded it. Matt liked Thrusdays, they had the routine of a weekday with the feeling of anticipation for the weekend. There was peace and sereneness that sat upon a Thursday.
Matthew could have written more. He could have written a lot more. He wouldn't because he knew that sometimes there's beauty in leaving things unexplained. He liked life enough. It's sad that he died, that all american son of a bitch.