Battlestar Galactica: The Plan

We recently watched The Plan, a film offshoot of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica television show. As fans of the show, we enjoyed it; it added some details and filled in some plot holes from the regular series. Someone who has never seen the show, on the other hand, would probably be lost.

The BSG franchise has many tragic elements, and The Plan focuses on several; genocide, betrayal and mistrust feature prominently. They continue to be eclipsed, however, by the sense of sadness I feel about the end of the series.

Next on the schedule is a re-viewing of Battlestar Galactica: Razor. After I watched it for the first time, it crystallized my view that in the series, the humans are the bad guys and the Cylons are actually the good guys. Seasons 3 and 4 added this refinement: the Cylon "skinjobs" (who look like humans) are also bad guys, leaving only the robot-like Centurions to be proper protagonists. Razor is much more accessible to non-fans, and I'm curious if any have seen it before seeing the rest of the show.

Chivalry

This afternoon as I poured microwave popcorn into my wife's bowl first, I had a new thought. As with many things, if you have to do it, doing it doesn't reflect positively on you. Behaving in the manner of a gentleman towards a lady only matters if you might not have done so. In addition, making chivalry a matter of gender misses the point. It's better to be nice unilaterally, not out of social obligation.

Banning Compensation Decreases Supply

In the United States it is against the law to buy and sell human body parts. As a result many people who need an organ transplant die before a donated one is available.

In Canada, it is now "illegal to pay donors for sperm." As a result there is now a shortage, and sperm is being imported from the United States.

Is profit really worse than shortages that lead, in some cases, to death? I don't think so. People should be allowed to sell their body parts, pre- or post-mortem. It would solve many problems and save many lives.

Four women, adultery and superglue

This story has been in the news lately: four women ambushed a cheating husband, punched him in the face and glued his private parts to his belly. One of the women was his estranged wife and another was a married woman he had had an affair with.

What bothers me about this story, in addition to the obvious, is how it contrasts with the stereotypical domestic violence situation, which is no laughing matter. If the genders were reversed and four men had glued the genitals of a cheating wife they would not be free on $200 bail right now and 57% of New York Daily News readers polled would not be cheering.

This is news because of the unusual details. What should be news is our reaction to it.

Why Does Love Always Feel Like A Battlefield

This week the song "Battlefield" by Jordin Sparks was on So You Think You Can Dance, and I was struck by the lyrics. The singer asks, "Why does love always feel like a battlefield?" The answer: because you're doing it wrong.

Romantic relationships prompt conflict. Loving someone means letting them have their way, even when your way is better. Then you can take it to the next level: each partner competes to put the other first. As a result each person's needs are met.

People not in a relationship call this "being whipped."