Episode III

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Saw it I did.

Unimpressed I was.

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About Funky Dung

Who is Funky Dung? 29-year-old grad student in Intelligent Systems (A.I.) at the University of Pittsburgh. I consider myself to be politically moderate and independent and somewhere between a traditional and neo-traditional Catholic. I was raised Lutheran, spent a number of years as an agnostic, and joined the Catholic Church at the 2000 Easter Vigil. Why Funky Dung? I haven't been asked this question nearly as many times as you or I might expect. Funky Dung is a reference to an obscure Pink Floyd song. On the album Atom Heart Mother, there is a track called Atom Heart Mother Suite. It's broken up into movements, like a symphony, and one of the movements is called Funky Dung. I picked that nickname a long time ago (while I was still in high school I think), shortly after getting an internet connection for the first time. To me it means "cool/neat/groovy/spiffy stuff/crap/shiznit", as in "That's some cool stuff, dude!" Whence Ales Rarus? I used to enjoy making people guess what this means, but I've decided to relent and make it known to all. Ales Rarus is a Latin play on words. "Avis rarus" means "a rare bird" and carries similar meaning to "an odd fellow". "Ales" is another Latin word for bird that carries connotations of omens, signs of the times, and/or augery. If you want to get technical, both "avis" and "ales" are feminine (requiring "rara", but they can be made masculine in poetry (which tends to breaks lots of rules). I decided I'd rather have a masculine name in Latin. ;) Yeah, I'm a nerd. So what? :-P Wherefore blog? It is my intention to "teach in order to lead others to faith" by being always "on the lookout for occasions of announcing Christ by word, either to unbelievers . . . or to the faithful" through the "use of the communications media". I also act knowing that I "have the right and even at times a duty to manifest to the sacred pastors [my] opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church, and [I] have a right to make [my] opinion known to the other Christian faithful, with due regard to the integrity of faith and morals and reverence toward [my and their] pastors, and with consideration for the common good and the dignity of persons." (adapted from CCC 904-907) Statement of Faith I have been baptized and confirmed in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I, therefore, renounce Satan; I renounce all his works; I renounce all his allurements. I hold and profess all that is contained in the Apostles' Creed, the Niceno- Constantinopolitan Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. Having been buried with Christ unto death and raised up with him unto a new life, I promise to live no longer for myself or for that world which is the enemy of God but for him who died for me and rose again, serving God, my heavenly Father, faithfully and unto death in the holy Catholic Church. I am obedient to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. That is, I promote and defend authentic Catholic Teaching and Faith in union with Christ and His Church and in union with the Holy Father, the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of St. Peter. Thanks be unto Thee, O my God, for all Thy infinite goodness, and, especially, for the love Thou hast shown unto me at my Confirmation. I Give Thee thanks that Thou didst then send down Thy Holy Spirit unto my soul with all His gifts and graces. May He take full possession of me for ever. May His divine unction cause my face to shine. May His heavenly wisdom reign in my heart. May His understanding enlighten my darkness. May His counsel guide me. May His knowledge instruct me. May His piety make me fervent. May His divine fear keep me from all evil. Drive from my soul, O Lord, all that may defile it. Give me grace to be Thy faithful soldier, that having fought the good fight of faith, I may be brought to the crown of everlasting life, through the merits of Thy dearly beloved Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Behind the Curtain: an Interview With Funky Dung (Thursday, March 03, 2005) I try to avoid most memes that make their way 'round the blogosphere (We really do need a better name, don't we?), but some are worth participating in. Take for instance the "interview game" that's the talk o' the 'sphere. I think it's a great way to get to know the people in neighborhood. Who are the people in your neighborhood? In your neighborhod? In your neigh-bor-hoo-ood...*smack* Sorry, Sesame Street flashback. Anyhow, I saw Jeff "Curt Jester" Miller's answers and figured since he's a regular reader of mine he'd be a good interviewer. Without further ado, here are my answers to his questions. 1. Being that your pseudonym Funky Dung was chosen from a Pink Floyd track on Atom Heart Mother, what is you favorite Pink Floyd song and why? Wow. That's a tuffy. It's hard to pick out a single favorite. Pink Floyd isn't really a band known for singles. They mostly did album rock and my appreciation of them is mostly of a gestalt nature. If I had to pick one, though, it'd be "Comfortably Numb". I get chills up my spine every time I hear it and if it's been long enough since the last time, I get midty-eyed. I really don't know why. That's a rather unsatisfying answer for an interview, so here are the lyrics to a Rush song. It's not their best piece of music, but the lyrics describe me pretty well.

New World Man He's a rebel and a runner He's a signal turning green He's a restless young romantic Wants to run the big machine He's got a problem with his poisons But you know he'll find a cure He's cleaning up his systems To keep his nature pure Learning to match the beat of the old world man Learning to catch the heat of the third world man He's got to make his own mistakes And learn to mend the mess he makes He's old enough to know what's right But young enough not to choose it He's noble enough to win the world But weak enough to lose it --- He's a new world man... He's a radio receiver Tuned to factories and farms He's a writer and arranger And a young boy bearing arms He's got a problem with his power With weapons on patrol He's got to walk a fine line And keep his self-control Trying to save the day for the old world man Trying to pave the way for the third world man He's not concerned with yesterday He knows constant change is here today He's noble enough to know what's right But weak enough not to choose it He's wise enough to win the world But fool enough to lose it --- He's a new world man...
2. What do you consider your most important turning point from agnosticism to the Catholic Church. At some point in '99, I started attending RCIA at the Pittsburgh Oratory. I mostly went to ask a lot of obnoxious Protestant questions. Or at least that's what I told myself. I think deep down I wanted desperately to have faith again. At that point I think I'd decided that if any variety of Christianity had the Truth, the Catholic Church did. Protestantism's wholesale rejection of 1500 years of tradition didn't sit well with me, even as a former Lutheran. During class one week, Sister Bernadette Young (who runs the program) passed out thin booklet called "Handbook for Today's Catholic". One paragraph in that book spoke to me and I nearly cried as I read it.
"A person who is seeking deeper insight into reality may sometimes have doubts, even about God himself. Such doubts do not necessarily indicate lack of faith. They may be just the opposite - a sign of growing faith. Faith is alive and dynamic. It seeks, through grace, to penetrate into the very mystery of God. If a particular doctrine of faith no longer 'makes sense' to a person, the person should go right on seeking. To know what a doctrine says is one thing. To gain insight into its meaning through the gift of understanding is something else. When in doubt, 'Seek and you will find.' The person who seeks y reading, discussing, thinking, or praying eventually sees the light. The person who talks to God even when God is 'not there' is alive with faith."
At the end of class I told Sr. Bernadette that I wanted to enter the Church at the next Easter vigil. 3. If you were a tree what kind of, oh sorry about that .. what is the PODest thing you have ever done? I set up WikiIndex, a clearinghouse for reviews of theological books, good, bad, and ugly. It has a long way to go, but it'll be cool when it's finished. :) 4. What is your favorite quote from Venerable John Henry Newman? "Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt." 5. If you could ban one hymn from existence, what would it be? That's a tough one. As a member of the Society for a Moratorium on the Music of Marty Haugen and David Haas, there are obviously a lot of songs that grate on my nerves. If I had to pick one, though, I'd probably pick "Sing of the Lord's Goodness" by Ernie Sands.

10 thoughts on “Episode III”

  2. JonathanR

    Actually, Obi-Wan’s reply to Anakin’s “Bush moment” was stupid.

    What, the dogmatic Jedi don’t believe in absolutes? What a bunch of crap.

  4. theomorph

    Hm.. I thought it rocked. It’s pretty much the only movie I’ve ever seen where there was a legitimate, monumental perspectival difference and I couldn’t just fob it off as a “cheat” or by saying the characters were just idiots.

    Palpatine’s argument for embracing the dark side (great leadership requires enlightened ecumenism) was brilliant, as was the confrontation between Anakin and Mace regarding the fate of Palpatine. Padme’s wondering whether she was still on the right side of the conflict (and Anakin’s McCarthy-style reaction) was great, as was Obi-Wan’s reply to Anakin’s George W. “If you’re not with me, you’re my enemy” Bush moment. This movie displayed an impressive willingness to play with the high-minded motivations of hated people, and with the possibility that “good” people can (and often do) fail to win the war of “hearts and minds” against the persuasive rhetoric of their enemies (“So this is how democracy ends; to thunderous applause”). As well it sets up another subtle moral of the whole six-movie story: when good people fail at diplomacy and negotiation, perhaps their only recourse is to form a rebellious faction to use violence against greater powers.

    As for the alleged problems of special effects, digital animation, etc., I think ultimately one must sit back and recognize that even though Star Wars represents another universe (er, “a galaxy far, far away”), cinema is deception, and crude deception at that. Who doesn’t watch The Empire Strikes Back, near universally recognized as the best SW flick of them all, and think, “I know that big worm is just painted foam rubber, and that the Millennium Falcon is just a plastic model, but I’ll buy it for the sake of the story”? What’s the difference between that and watching one of these newer movies and thinking, “I know 3PO is just a computer animated figure in a computer animated droid factory, but I’ll buy that he’s still the same character (whose “lot in life” is to “suffer”), for the sake of the story”? Movies with special effects portraying the impossible will always involve this kind of cognitive dissonance. Personally, I think that’s half the fun.

    Star Wars didn’t get really interesting to me until I cranked that critical tendency up to eleven (which, of course, is “one louder”) and started watching the films as layered and multi-faceted discourse experiencers instead of just regular flicks. For instance, I think it’s far more interesting (and profitable) to give Lucas the benefit of doubt and say, “Okay, Obi-Wan and Yoda say nothing of ‘midichlorians’ in episodes 4, 5, and 6. Assuming they aren’t just idiots who forget things, why would they not say anything? How would it change the story if they did? Why would an author choose this course?” Maybe that’s too critical and postmodern for some people, but it really pays off for me.

    Anyway, I’ll stop now, ‘fore I turn your blog into a Star Wars forum. 😉

  5. theomorph

    I don’t think it’s so apparent that the Jedi defined the “Light” and “Dark” sides of the Force. Presumably the Force predates the Jedi, and the films tell nothing of how the Jedi order originated within this Force-imbued galaxy far, far away.

    Aside from that, I don’t see this absolutist dogmatism in the Jedi, either. At least in these prequels, it seems like the Jedi spend all their time compromising, muddling through, and trying to persist in a difficult and ambiguous situation. Meanwhile, our friend the Sith Lord Palpatine is busy carving his path without any hesitation, compromise, or deliberation at all.

    Taking the six films together, I think prequels actually set up the idea that neither the “Light” Jedi order nor the “Dark” Sith have their stuff together. Ultimately, it turns out that “bringing balance to the Force” leaves the galaxy with a lone, half-Jedi who is about as interested in the discipline of an institutionalized order as his father was. Which is why I find Revenge of the Sith so interesting, particularly in our own cultural context which has, for the last couple decades, considered Star Wars like it was some kind of unambiguous, Good vs. Evil, Light vs. Dark mythology, when really it’s far more subtle—the conflict itself, between “Good” and “Evil” is ultimately self-destructive. What is the galaxy at the end of episode six? Probably pretty much the same as it was at the beginning of episode one, except now the power structures, both sacred and secular—Republic, Jedi, and Sith—have been smashed.

    In that context, I think it’s quite reasonable to take Obi-Wan’s reaction to Anakin’s for/against dichotomy not as a representation of the Jedi as they have been, but as the beginning of his own reassessment of the situation, which leads him ultimately into the resigned, self-sacrificing Obi-Wan of episode four, and the shifting “point of view” Obi-Wan of episodes five and six.

    Anyway, I’m probably in the minority with my interpretation here, but that hasn’t stopped me before, has it? 😉

  6. Kevin

    I must admit I was a little disappointed with the new STAR WARS movie. I guess my biggest criticism is that it seems to be terribly unfocused. The problem this time isn’t Lucas’ usual problems, dialog and acting. I wouldn’t call the dialog or acting great, but like Ep. IV I think it wasn’t embarrassing and served the story. The problem this time is usually Lucas’ strengths as a director, structure and editing. We have these great scenes of Palpatine trying to seduce Anakin, which are inter-cut with Yoda and the Wookies, or Obi-Wan fighting Gen. Grievous. What purpose does this serve, none as far as I can tell. Lucas spends so much time on the Wookies and Gen. Grievous it means that the end of the movie feels like its been cut down. There is potential for some powerful stuff there, which really isn’t because it feels so short. Lucas just dosen’t give it the time to be powerful. Like I said, I’m disappointed. Its not a bad movie per se, but tell you the truth, I liked Ep. II better on my first screening.

  7. Funky Dung

    I’ll second the “stupid” motion. The whole scene was entirely inconsistent with the Star Wars universe and served only to make a political statement. “Only the Sith deal in absolutes” is wholly wrong: Jedis often *do* deal in absolutes and the Sith usually *do not*. It’s pretty apparent that the Jedis decided what elements of the Force were light and which were dark – an absolute distinction. The Sith, however, avail themselves of whatever is of utility to them.

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