Why I Belong to Netflix
I've become quite a fan of Netflix in recent months. I never expected to be one. The reason that I will recount inspired both my DVD rental habit and the appearance of this blog. I'm sure many people could tell similar tales.....
I don't often attend movies. Our busy schedules of work, kids and activities makes scheduling difficult. So when I do go (or did) I really want to enjoy the big theater experience. Scottsdale boosts a very large screen at a theater called the Cine Capri. The movie that is at the center of this blog was Babel.
I will not provide a review of Babel. Those can be found in abundance elsewhere--see Babel reviews . I was enjoying this intense film until the couple in front of us (in their early 60s) begin to engage in cellphone use. The first ring and answer ended quickly. Okay I said to myself. They must have missed the service announcement before the trailers asking all patrons to turn their phones off.
Then during a particularly climatic scene the phone rings again. Not only does the husband answer and engage in conversation but then passes the phone to his wife (the discourse clearly beyond his capacity to handle) who continues a lively conversation. The people to either side of them do not react. So through a series of noises I express my dissatisfaction which, to my dismay, goes unheeded. With only a few minutes left in the movie I decide to hold off on the full remedial education program until the film ends.
As the credits role 60ish cellphone abusers 1 and 2 gather their things to depart. I proffer a question. Would you like me to walk you through the use of your cellphone? Perhaps you missed the section that explained the use of either the OFF/ON button or the VIBRATE setting? Blank faces. Does the President of the United States need you back at the White House immediately? Surely you must have had to address something of extreme import to bother a good number of people in the theater with your cellphone calls? Blank faces.
I quickly saw that my civics lesson was not having the desired effect. At this point expletives were uttered. Not sure who exchanged the first one. Apparently the husband did not agree with my description of his wife and the bravado kicked in. Feeling like the very fabric of American society was in danger of unfurling I may have challenged 60ish cellphone abuser to a duel of sorts. In Arizona where the gun carry laws are liberal this can be a little risky-- see Gunfight at the OK Corral.
Through the intervention of my wife and some fellow patrons who were stirred into action by the righteousness of my cause, a disengagement of sorts was achieved. Cellphone abusers 1 and 2 disappeared into the throng. My wife was rather perturbed at me. It took a long explanation of how I was both defending her and her right to watch a movie uninterrupted, as well as the social contract entire. It is that social contract which enables the very basis of civil society.
I was a Poli Sci major at the University of Toronto. The hours I put into Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau spew forth in my explanation. Leviathan. Do we want to live in a world that is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short?" Of course not. I was making a stand for civil society.
As I drove home I pondered the potential outcomes of my challenge to the cellphone couple--the Enemy, as Hobbes would have referred to them. 1. They acknowledge the error of their ways. 2. The do not acknowledge the error of their ways but the crowd is stirred to action and is invigorated by my demonstration, carrying forth the message of adherence to the social contract. 3. A fight breaks out and both myself and at least the husband are arrested for some form of disorderly conduct. 4. The husband, maybe wife, pulls out his/her concealed gun and blasts away. R.I.P. Warren. It takes about 8 hours and a few shots to get a concealed carry permit in Arizona. You can see the rules at Blast Away.
Weighing the likelihood of each outcome I decided I would forgo the theater, barring some complex exceptions, join Netflix and invest in a really good home theater system. I would search out other opportunities to evangelize my thoughts on the importance of the Social Contract. Maybe hand out copies of Rousseau's book on the Scottsdale street corners.
I would also blog about it. Set up my 21st century soap box. A Social Contract. Asocialcontract.com
No excuses for the lag between incident and first entry. Its not like I was writing a magnum opus. But I've started.....You can decide on which side of the contract you stand.
Warren
I don't often attend movies. Our busy schedules of work, kids and activities makes scheduling difficult. So when I do go (or did) I really want to enjoy the big theater experience. Scottsdale boosts a very large screen at a theater called the Cine Capri. The movie that is at the center of this blog was Babel.
I will not provide a review of Babel. Those can be found in abundance elsewhere--see Babel reviews . I was enjoying this intense film until the couple in front of us (in their early 60s) begin to engage in cellphone use. The first ring and answer ended quickly. Okay I said to myself. They must have missed the service announcement before the trailers asking all patrons to turn their phones off.
Then during a particularly climatic scene the phone rings again. Not only does the husband answer and engage in conversation but then passes the phone to his wife (the discourse clearly beyond his capacity to handle) who continues a lively conversation. The people to either side of them do not react. So through a series of noises I express my dissatisfaction which, to my dismay, goes unheeded. With only a few minutes left in the movie I decide to hold off on the full remedial education program until the film ends.
As the credits role 60ish cellphone abusers 1 and 2 gather their things to depart. I proffer a question. Would you like me to walk you through the use of your cellphone? Perhaps you missed the section that explained the use of either the OFF/ON button or the VIBRATE setting? Blank faces. Does the President of the United States need you back at the White House immediately? Surely you must have had to address something of extreme import to bother a good number of people in the theater with your cellphone calls? Blank faces.
I quickly saw that my civics lesson was not having the desired effect. At this point expletives were uttered. Not sure who exchanged the first one. Apparently the husband did not agree with my description of his wife and the bravado kicked in. Feeling like the very fabric of American society was in danger of unfurling I may have challenged 60ish cellphone abuser to a duel of sorts. In Arizona where the gun carry laws are liberal this can be a little risky-- see Gunfight at the OK Corral.
Through the intervention of my wife and some fellow patrons who were stirred into action by the righteousness of my cause, a disengagement of sorts was achieved. Cellphone abusers 1 and 2 disappeared into the throng. My wife was rather perturbed at me. It took a long explanation of how I was both defending her and her right to watch a movie uninterrupted, as well as the social contract entire. It is that social contract which enables the very basis of civil society.
I was a Poli Sci major at the University of Toronto. The hours I put into Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau spew forth in my explanation. Leviathan. Do we want to live in a world that is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short?" Of course not. I was making a stand for civil society.
As I drove home I pondered the potential outcomes of my challenge to the cellphone couple--the Enemy, as Hobbes would have referred to them. 1. They acknowledge the error of their ways. 2. The do not acknowledge the error of their ways but the crowd is stirred to action and is invigorated by my demonstration, carrying forth the message of adherence to the social contract. 3. A fight breaks out and both myself and at least the husband are arrested for some form of disorderly conduct. 4. The husband, maybe wife, pulls out his/her concealed gun and blasts away. R.I.P. Warren. It takes about 8 hours and a few shots to get a concealed carry permit in Arizona. You can see the rules at Blast Away.
Weighing the likelihood of each outcome I decided I would forgo the theater, barring some complex exceptions, join Netflix and invest in a really good home theater system. I would search out other opportunities to evangelize my thoughts on the importance of the Social Contract. Maybe hand out copies of Rousseau's book on the Scottsdale street corners.
I would also blog about it. Set up my 21st century soap box. A Social Contract. Asocialcontract.com
No excuses for the lag between incident and first entry. Its not like I was writing a magnum opus. But I've started.....You can decide on which side of the contract you stand.
Warren
Posted by Warren Adelman at 12/22/2007 6:05 PM 
Categories: Cellphones
Tags: movies netflix social behavior
Categories: Cellphones
Tags: movies netflix social behavior
Warren-
I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment that civility has vanished in American society. The bigger problem is that there no longer is a "social contract" as you describe. A contract is defined, in part, as "a meeting of minds." Americans have affirmatively "opted out" of the contract so they no longer feel bound by the old contract you describe.
Instead, they are too self absorbed with themselves and their families -including their ill-bred, obnoxious off-spring -- with little concern of how their actions (and the actions of their "utes"- see "My Cousin Vinny") will affect others. And equally disconcerting is, when confronted with their transgressions, YOU are now the one who is in breach of their revised social contract.
This self absorption and abhorrent behavior is usually over trivial, mundane everyday events rather than something truly important. People such as you and I -- who are truly busy -- relish the escape the movies and similar venues offer to get away from real work and see the telephone calls as an imposition. Your sarcastic remark to the offending couple regarding the White House was surely lost on them, because I am sure the phone call was about something important such as their little grandson's Joey's regularity- which could not possibly wait till after the movie.
No, my friend, it is over. You are right to hunker down with your family in the comfort of your own home. As an old radio show talk host on WABC-NY, Bob Grant, used to say: "It's sick and getting sicker out there."
I shall return with a detail of my experiences of those who breach the "social contract."
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I await your return and your inventory of infractions. That being said, I retain hope.
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I agree, Mr. Adelman. People have completely breached the once impenetrable social contract. They routinely fail to fully perform their obligations of polite social interaction, service to others, and charitability. Despite this unfortunate state of affairs, I still remain optimistic that we can educate people like 60ish cell phone abuser about the basic contractual obligations they apparently either forgot or overlooked.
Having said that, I sincerely agree with Chief. We have become a society of self-centered, self-absorbed, egotistical jerks. Whether we chose to put down the selfishness and focus on what is really important could determine the outcome of more than your movie enjoyment. It could decide whether we survive as a society at all. Next time you see 60ish cell phone abuser, tell him to put down the phone and pay attention to the movie. There is more at stake than your movie watching enjoyment.
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While I do agree with your stance on these obvious offenders, I have to say that your decision to retreat to your own home to avoid further such annoyances and confrontations is somewhat troubling. Are you not violating that same contract by simply giving up and letting the cretins rule the theater? It would seem that any sort of irritation caused by social interaction--voluntary or not--should be addressed, not avoided. How can we, as a society, expect to enforce a social contract if we simply ignore violations, or worse, avoid social contact altogether? We need people like you in the theaters, restaurants, et al., leading those who might otherwise be too meek to speak up when such blatant disregard for the world around us is displayed.
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Mark
I think we have the beginnings of a movement. But have you ever noticed that when you stand up to these things in public you stand at least a 50:50 chance of being the one that the judge enrolls in anger management classes.
I have had similar experiences with cigars in non-smoking restaurants in non-smoking States. What irks me is that theater and restaurant owners do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to ensure the pleasant enjoyment of their venues by those who obey the social contract.
When I start a political movement I am emailing you
Warren
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