Social Media Stampede

A youtube video, which I’m not able to embed:
Disclosure - Sky Sent - Anael

I’ve spent the last 24 hours (off and on, of course) researching crop circles. I guess being the wife of a farmer gives me an extra edge on crop circlemakers, and I’m not referring to extraterrestrials. I’m talking about humans who love to mix geometry and tomfoolery. While I’m enough of an Aquarian to appreciate the idea of aliens arriving at night like faeries to stomp down designs in the wheat, I’m also a fan of the human imagination.

Apparently, crop circles were the brainchild of Doug Bower and Dave Chorley.

“One summers evening in 1978 after several pints in the Percy Hobbs, Doug Bower and Dave Chorley were taking the air on a bridle path on the Longwood Estate, near Cheesefoot Head. They were talking about UFOs. Bower (who used to live in Melbourne, Australia) recalled a case in Queensland, where a UFO had reportedly ascended from a swirled nest of marsh-grass. ‘What do you think would happen if we put a nest over there?’ Bower joked to Chorley, pointing to a nearby wheatfield. ‘People would think a flying saucer had landed.” Jim Schnabel - Round in Circles

“The nocturnal pastime of circle making was made popular by the work of two Hampshire-based artists, Doug Bower and Dave Chorley. For over 12 years their simple circle sets attracted the interest of scientists world-wide. During this time other artists began to make them, eventually superseding them, and continued a chain reaction - mutating from the UFO lore from which it still suckles and, in turn, nourishes - to become what is arguably the most mysterious ‘tactile-paranormal’ phenomenon this century. In 1991, Doug & Dave’s claim to original authorship created an atmosphere well known to theological sociologists; that discomfirmation can lead to strengthened belief. Consistent with previous millennial activity, the religious use of pseudo science to plot our destiny has reached another high… the circles have become signs and portents of our time.” Source: circlemakers.org

With plenty of evidence that humans are making crop circles, why do some people insist on believing that they are the work of extraterrestrials? Why is it so difficult to believe that the human mind and imagination are capable of producing such beautiful works of art?

If an ancient civilization could produce this, using rocks and sand:

and if a colonial American woman with limited resources could design this:

or any other of millions of examples of artistic human endeavor could be accomplished, why is it necessary to look outside of our own world for genius?

Give yourselves a pat on the back, humans.

Since re-subscribing to Netflix with the “three at a time” option, we’ve been watching a lot of movies. And because I have to severely limit the chick flicks, I find myself leaning toward two genres: war movies, and thrillers. The interesting thing is that films about war now make my husband very uncomfortable; in fact, he refused to watch one film centered around the war in Iraq. I have to admit that I find myself viewing these films from a more emotional or empathic place. Even World War II films have the power to evoke some kind of cinematic bond between me and the mothers of celluloid soldiers.

So it was with some uncertainty that I popped in a DVD last night of the film In the Valley of Elah, which stars Tommy Lee Jones as the father of a modern day soldier just back from Iraq, and Charlize Theron as a policewoman who helps investigate the son’s disappearance and death.

One of the critical reviews of the movie at Netflix stated that the movie “centers around Tommy Lee Jones’ persona, and that’s why it works.” I found that to be very true, because Tommy Lee Jones appears to me to be someone who has suffered greatly. His face looks like it should belong to a farmer from Nebraska instead of an actor…or even to a man who sacrificed himself and the lives of his two sons in service to his Country.

It’s easy to see the anti-Iraq war sentiment. But what is really remarkable about the film is the very true portrayal of the effect of the war on young men. The attitudes, the words, the laughter over things I would consider sickeningly morbid are things I’ve witnessed myself when visiting with my son and his Army buddies. It’s their way of coping with the reality of the things they have seen and the friends they have lost.

Anyway, great film, and if you’re a Tommy Lee Jones fan, a must-see. It made getting this new photo from my son tonight, very poignant.