COVID Dystopia: Black Lives Matter

Posted on by Thor

The Black Lives Matter shot is a straight forward pan down the street towards the White House. D.C. Mayor Murial Bowser is screen left. It is a fast pan and I had to pause long enough to give people a chance to start reading Black Lives before the fast camera move. The shot still might be too fast, but that is true of most of the shots in the film. This isn’t a leisurely stroll , but a fast paced fever dream. The shot feels complete.

Yesterday I was editing the 30 second trailer for the film, and the computer crashed while it was open. This morning I opened up the complete edit of the entire film. A window opened asking if I wanted to save the file that was open when the computer crashed. I accepted, of course I want to save every version of the film that I had worked on.  I just discovered that the 30 second trailer overwrote the entire long edit of the film. WTF.AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhh!!!!!!!!! The shot shown here had to be re-edited to get it to work correctly.

The convoluted way Adobe Premiere Pro force saves files has been a major problem throughout the process. I now have to go over a much older version of the film and start making repairs. Adobe updated the software and many scenes moved partially off screen. The programmers must have decided ti change  the way X and y coordinates are calculated. This will waste an entire day to recover and is par for the course for Adobe.

Coward’s Coup

Posted on by Thor

Donald Trump called followers to Washington D.C. for a “Wild” time. He had been feeding then lies about how his election had been stolen for weeks. When Trump incited his protestors at the White House, he claimed he would walk beside then to the Capitol where ballots were being counted and confirmed. However when he go off the stage he slipped away to watch the protest unfold on TV fro the comfort of the White House.

Trump likely considers the seditious coup attempt as a win. He celebrated the unfolding violence like a football fan cheering on his team. His cult followers succeeded in forcing their way into the capitol and they all walked away to brag about their exploits in various D.C. hotel lobbies. Few protestors were arrested in the capitol the few arrests that did happen came afterwards because of a curfew instated by the mayor of D.C. Muriel Bowser.

Senators and congressmen were whisked away just moments before the cambers were breached. On congressman knew the head of the National Guard in Maryland and he called for help. Help would not come until approval was granted from higher up, namely the presidential office. Hours passes with no such approval but Mike Pence finally stepped in to get troops on the ground. Violent insurrection works, and Trump and his followers will try again. Protestors are only concerned that they didn’t do more damage to the democracy. Rumors circulated that they wanted to hang Mike Pence and a noose was hung from a gallows outside the capitol building. Terrorists had zip ties to restrain any legislators they found. It is pure luck that legislators escaped a far worse fate. Trump was hoping for authoritarian control of the government but the cult followers didn’t know what to do once they got inside the capitol. The anarchy had no focus, much like the POTUS’s own disjointed approach to everything.

Some Capitol police simply invited the terrorists into the Capitol while others held their ground at all costs. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund said late Thursday January 14, 2021 that he would resign, hours after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for him to be fired for the extraordinary security failure. Senate Sergeant at Arms, Michael Stenger, and House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving, will leave his position as well. But what about the instigator in chief? Will Pence invoke the 25th Amendment that would remove the POTUS from office? Pence might want to run for president in 2024 so he needs the support of the lunatic fringe. Peloci want to impeach again but can that happen in 12 days? I doubt it. Many Republicans still back the big lie that the election was not fair. Even after facing possible murder by an angry mob, they hold tight to the lie that caused the sedition.

Live pipe bombs were found outside the DNC and RNC and weapons like lead pipes and even fire arms were used. A Capitol police office died from his injuries. Thankfully these terrorists are not smart. They filmed themselves commuting their crimes with their cell phones. Dan Rather made a great point, in that it would be much harder to identify these idiots if they wore masks. Of course it was a man from Florida, Adam Christian Johnson who had his photo taken as he walked of with House Speaker’s lectern. Arrests are happening all across the country now since so many shared their crimes on social media. Trump has already invoked the punishment for destruction of Goverment property, it is a $250,000 fine and, ten years imprisonment. I hope everyone who entered the Capitol gets that sentence. Of course the largely mask less protest will become the latest super spreader event, allowing the virus to spread across the country.

In 1923 Adolph Hitler had a failed coup attempt in Germany with no major consequences. He spent 8 months behind bars, during which time he dictated Mein Kampf, his political autobiography. Ten years later he took power in Germany. If there is no consequences for Trump, insurrections like the one at the capitol will continue. Twitter shut down Trump’s account permanently but far more action is needed. Inciting violence against the government hasn’t happened since the civil war. It is not a time to turn the other cheek.

Black Lives Matter Plaza NW

Posted on by Thor

The Mayor of Washington DC, Muriel Bowser, wanted to remind Trump that Black Lives Matter, so she had it painted on the street in giant letters over two city blocks leading up to the White House. It stops just short of the church which the POTUS used as a promotional prop when he had troops, parks officers, secret service and unmarked corrections officers tear gas peaceful demonstrators as well as clergy and parishioners so he could have his picture taken in front of the church with a bible in hand. The street was renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza NW.

Trump has finally built himself a wall by adding high chain link fencing all around the white house and expanding that perimeter to include Lafayette Park. He has walled himself in from the rest of the country who are up in arms about racial injustice. Secret service moved the president into a bunker below the white house on the first evening of protests where fire were set around the city. The president claims he was only inspecting the bunker.

Muriel did not approve of Trumps moving troops into her city as a show of force against protestors against police violence against black Americans. The Pentagon confirmed that approximately 1,600 active-duty troops from North Carolina and New York were flown into the D.C. area. Police forces and National Guard vehicles are used to block 16th Street near Lafayette Park and the White House on June 3, 2020 in Washington, DC.

“The deployment of federal law enforcement personnel and equipment are inflaming demonstrators and adding to the grievances of those who, by and large, are peacefully protesting for change and reforms to the racist and broken systems that are killing Black Americans. Furthermore, I continue to be concerned that unidentified federal personnel patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C. pose both safety and national security risks,” the the mayor added. Trump responded with nonconstructive and hateful tweets. No surprise there.

Seeing the mayors Black Lives Matter street mural made me smile for the first time in days. She knows that art can make an impact. Pentagon Defense Secretary Mark Esper flip flopped several times caving to Trumps demand for troops but ultimately ordered several hundred troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to return home to Fort Bragg in North Carolina. Protests are still going on around the country but some tensions have eased since the officers responsible for the murder of George Loyd are now under arrest. However videos are surfacing every day of police brutality towards peaceful protestors and journalists. Change is needed.