AE, before you start trying to "turn things back on anyone", you should try using a bit of logic first yourself to make sure you don't make yourself look like a fool.
AE said:
if a person has anything profound to say why the hell do it at all unless you can reach a very high portion of the population???
Its just a waste of time I guess.
According to that logic, nothing ever said here on OTC has any real value because it doesnt reach many people.
The problem is your perspective. You started this thread by hailing Start Trek as a purveyor of profound philosophies.
My comment was simple. The critical thing about great philosophy is in its unspokenness. You don't NEED to reach vast numbers of people because great philosophy will seem so natural that it will be passed on almost autonomously - it'll spread through the population without anyone really trying to make it do so.
That will never happen with Star Trek. The proof is this very thread: that's precisely what you tried to do, and look what happened - nothing but ridicule. By bundling it up in that Sci-Fi geek show, they effectively kill off any chance they had of being taken seriously (especially since they're merely prattling off what thousands before them have preached). The low exposure is simply a further handicap.
Their philosophy vehicle is simply not powerful enough to pull the car. Therefore the mechanic needs to be fired, regardless of the skill of the driver or size of the gas tank.
A perfect corollary to consider would be the Jerry Springer show. He has an enormous viewer base, and he too tries to insert little bits of profoundity at the end of his shows - can he be considered a revolutionary philosopher? I doubt it. He screwed up because, due to the nature of the show, the people to whom he is speaking are generally the bottom-of-the-intellectual-ladder-type who wouldn't recognise profound thought if they had their heads shoved up its arse. Your writers screwed up because, due to the nature of the show, their viewers are not socially respected.
If you tried your "hey, you should check out this ______ (insert desired media here)____, it has profound philosophies", with say, a book, or a film, you would most likely be met with a much warmer response. Even "internet page" would be somewhat successful, though obviously still limited.
Speaking of internet pages, that brings me to your "attempt" at "turning it back on me".
You've missed there a critical characteristic, and that is that my posts AREN'T my attempts at enlightening the world. I very rarely start threads - the vast majority of my posts are ones that pull wholes in the ideas of others. In that respect, Squiggy is correct in noting that my posts reach 100% of those that they need to, and in fact reach all to whom they would be of any use. If I wanted
MY ideas to have on effect on the world, then quite plainly I would not start by posting on an Internet site.
Let's imagine, though, for arugment's sake, that I
DID post an enlightening thread on this site. Let's imagine that everyone on this site read it, and felt inspired. Then what happens? Those people pass my thought on to their friends, who pass it to other friends.. maybe they slap it in an e-mail.. sooner or later the whole world has at least read it. If my thought wasn't worth the time of day, it wouldn't get any further than this forum. But it least it would have a CHANCE. It would however be retarded of me to do that, if my aim was to reach the world.
If, of course, you want to argue that Gene & Rick's only aim was to enlighten Star Trek fans.. well that's fine. But then they're retards for being so limited in their outlook.
Just as I would be a retard if my only aim was to enlighten OTC forum readers.
Incidentally,
AlladinSane said:
So in your logic if I have a good idea with an interesting political view I want to share, to put in a movie, I better not make it I'm unable to do it in the Hollywood industry? Because if I do it in the independant circuit it won't be seen by a substancial number of people?
As noted above, movies are a much more viable mode of conveyance of ideas. And in fact, as Independant movies are, at least in principle, more associated with free ideas, and Hollywood tends to deal more in time-filling for the mindless masses, your idea would likely be BETTER received in the independant industry. If it's an eye-opening idea, word will get round, and your film will get seen by enough to make a difference.
It's hard to see this sort of renown ever making its way into a Star Trek episode. Hmmm?
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