The Age of Stupid

Film evenings begin with potluck refreshments and social hour at 6:30 pm,
followed by the film at 7:30 pm, followed by a discussion after the film.

THE AGE OF STUPID
by Fanny Armstrong

Although the perspective is set from the future like a science fiction film, the stories in this film are really about the world of today, about the choices we are making right now that will affect our children. Plenty of dramatic events have been going on in the last ten years. Katrina was a huge warning of what’s happening when climate goes berserk. Ocean temperatures rising produce more and more intense hurricanes. The war in Iraq was actually a “resource war.” Alan Greenspan said this and is quoted in this movie: the Iraq war was all about oil. The U.S. and in broader terms the whole western civilization is built on (cheap) oil. It provides cars and planes with fuel, it even produces “food” (be it full of pesticides and with few nutrients). The big problem is that oil corrupted governments, and they do absolutely nothing to stop the way our “civilization” is built. Humankind is committing suicide. We are definitively not homo “sapiens.” We have created the age of stupid. Although 99% of scientists say climate change is real, 60 % of the people think that if they ignore climate change enough, it won’t happen. We really face suicide.

This interesting movie gives an honest treatment of the complexity of the issues surrounding action on climate change. It acknowledges that it isn’t as easy as simply turning off the “carbon tap.” The aspirations of billions for a middle class life, the entrepreneurial spirit, the contradictions between what we need to do for a living and what we believe, and even the simple unwillingness of many to accept aesthetic inconveniences (even while expressing concern over the climate) are all featured, providing an interesting human face and counterpoint to the growing body of scientific evidence and urgency for action.

Wheelchair accessible around the corner at 411 28th Street

$5 donations are accepted