Carrying the Fire

Stranger Things

TV Show - Netflix

Verdict - You MUST watch it.

"... in Greek, nostalgia literally means the pain from an old wound.  It's a twinge in your heart, far more powerful than memory alone.”

Don Draper

This show is amazing.  From the opening scene to the final scene.  The setting is a midwest town in the mid 80’s  Times are different and if you grew up then you have that twinge, that feeling of what it was like to be a kid.  The atmosphere of the time frame soaks into undercurrent of each moment.  

But on with the show.  In the cold open we have four friends playing Dungeons and Dragons and having a great time.  Its getting late and they head home.  As the group dwindles Will Byers is left alone.  He takes a tumble and then realizes something is chasing him.  He frantically tries to make it home, to defend himself and then he’s gone.

After that we have a show that wonderfully balances drama, sci-fi, shady government agencies, superpowers, young romance, humor, despair, horror, hope, triumph and loss.  Thru the eight episodes you are sent on a wild ride.  The actors, child and adult, do a wonderful job of bringing you into their world.  

Luther

TV Show - BBC available on Netflix

Verdict - You MUST watch it.

Oh, I know. In order to get to the next level, you need a lot more points. And correct me if I'm wrong, but you need a... a boss. You need to kill a boss. Well, I'm the man at the end of that level, aren't I? I'm the man that's chasing you. I'm that boss. If you beat me, you get to play on.

John Luther

Man in the High Castle TV Show - Amazon Prime Video Verdict - Yes you should watch it.

This was a fantastic, if uneven show. The basic premise is "What would have happened if Germany and Japan won World War 2?"

Season one is ten episodes that expand on that idea. How would a Nazi government had oppressed the people? How would the Japanese have governed the west coast of America? What would the resistance look like? What strains would be on the governments of Japan and Germany as they split America in two in an un-easy alliance?

These thoughts and more are expanded on over the 10 episodes. We meet the characters that drive the show. We have Frank and Juliana a couple trying to live in the Japanese Pacific States. Their sisters come into the show and send these characters down a path that neither ever envisioned Joe Blake is a resistance fighter from the East Coast sent on a courier run in the first episode. He eventually meets up with Juliana and their fates become intertwined. Obergruppenfuher Smith, a Nazi leader in New York. He is a pure principled Nazi never questioning the Reich. He is ruthless, calculating and dedicated.

Also we see the Japanese Trade Minister, Chief Inspector Kido, Colonel Wegener, and the underground members of the resistance. The characters and their arcs are entertaining.

As for the title. The Man in the High Castle is the one the resistance is working for. There are film reels that show an alternate outcome of WWII, the Resistance is fighting to get these films to him in hopes that somehow it can rescue America and the world from the thousand year Reich. This is the plot point that rests under the show simmering in its ties to science fiction. If you are not a fan of sci-fi, don't worry its so tangential to that action that at times you forget about it. The show is based on the book of the same name written by Phillip K Dick who also wrote the source material for Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, The Adjustment Bureau, among others. The sci fi will come, but for now its resting the corner while you enjoy a 1960s period spy thriller.

Many popular screamers on the left love to shout 

“WE NEED A LIVING WAGE!” 

“$15!!”

OK

Have they, or you, ever stopped to realize that people working minimum wage have absolutely no skills, work ethic, or actual value to an employer.  Not all minimum workers, just some or maybe most?  

But these useless people exist.

I don’t have a debit card, but I have Android Pay.  McDonalds and Fareway are leaders in payment technology and accept tap and pay from both Android and Apple.  Its slick and easy.  Open the app on your phone, tap it to the credit card thing and voila!  Transaction achieved.

This morning I went to McDonalds.  I made my order and tapped to pay.  The idiot across from me just stared at me.  Literally, just stared.  I said “The screen says Waiting for Transaction to Process”  She continued staring.  “Do you have a button to push on your screen?”  “She looked shrugged and said no.

At this point a employee worthy of the CURRENT minimum wage would ask for help from the shift supervisor.  But no.  This gem just stared at me some more.  I just told her I was going to leave and I did.