Did last night’s Oscars represent progress or stalemate?

Photographer: Francesco Marino

The Oscars wasn’t all that last night. Many who showed up looked as if they were obligated to show up. Everyone looked too serious and when they smiled, their smiles lacked joie de vivre. And with the exception of Steve Martin, others were not all that funny. But this is nothing compared to the awards given away.

Some may agree and others may not but the Oscars needs to add a new category: the humanities award. Yes, some movies and actors won for films and roles that were important in terms of individual struggles and the nation by nation struggles. But what about the films that dealt with the major issues that have a tremendous impact on today’s world. Problems that if left unchecked, may actually wipe out humanity in the long run and create an atmosphere where there’s no freedom and no voice for the people - a world where a handful of corrupt will be making decisions for humanity.

Unfortunately though, the majority don’t want to see the truth. Their only concern is the symptom and not the disease. The Oscars did just that. It gave the ultimate award to the movie that was a symptom of a gigantic disease. Simply put, you can’t go into lands where people have made a home, kill their families and children, steal their resources, rob them of their livelihood and expect them to be subservient and not fight back. Avatar saw the disease and exposed it for what it was – greed, corruption, hunger for power and an insatiable appetite for wealth and expansion. Because at the end of the day, the affluent will continue to control the world and the rest of humanity will be their slaves. It is said that ¾ of the world population works to keep ¼ of the world population wealthy. Thus, for a substantial change to take place, it is more important to focus on the cure for the disease rather than the symptom.

With that said, two major films that were more important than everything else made in 2009 were Food Inc. and Avatar. For those who do not understand why these two films represent a huge chunk of corruption in our world, it’s crucial to read, read and read and understand the world in its entirety and not just “the homeland where one lives.” For those who are in tune, bravo for knowing exactly what’s going on. And yes, history shows that this is all nothing new but if no one cares, the cycle will never be broken and what we label as “progress” will be nothing but a “stalemate.”