The Hunger Games

[AngelinaCat]

When do "our" Hunger Games begin; or are they already here?

In a way, I think they are already here. Certainly, our fixed incomes are not keeping pace with rising food and gasoline prices. I am literally picking up aluminum cans to sell. And since reading the first Hunger Games book, I am going around the yard, looking at the weeds, and seeing with newly opened eyes--edible plants. We actually do have the katniss plant on the river-shore.

We are up here in Morristown, TN at BIL's place, doing some work. They have wild chives, dandelions, and mint. I'll be bringing some of this home...

[justbroke]

When do "our" Hunger Games begin; or are they already here?

[AngelinaCat]

One thing I wonder about humanity is why we are so prone to voluntarily submit to such horrible treatment from our governments.

Take the Nazis for example. The Jews voluntarily allowed the Nazis to round them up and herd them to concentration camps like sheep being led to the slaughter. Most of them didn't fight back. Most of them didn't even resist. While in the concentration camps, many of them worked for the benefit of the German war machine, and when they were too weak to work anymore, they were killed. No matter how compliant they were, most of them ended up being killed in the end.

Maybe they didn't know any better. Maybe they thought if they went along with what the Nazis wanted and didn't give them any problems, they would somehow survive.

But we know better now.

If something like this ever happens to us, we need to fight back as hard as we can. At the very least do what Ghandi did by passively resisting, if you can't or don't want to fight back. Do not go gently into that good night, so to speak.

The Jews made it easy on the Nazis by voluntarily walking away from their homes and voluntarily getting on trains headed for their final destination.

Think how much more difficult it would have been for the Nazis if the Jews had fought back, house to house fighting, and when they could fight no more, the Germans would have had to drag them kicking and screaming all the way to their deaths. I wonder how much this would have changed things for them? For one thing, the surrounding German public would not be able to ignore what was going on right in front of their eyes. If the killings occurred right in the streets in front of the public, instead of far away in some concentration camp, they might not have the stomach for it.

Another way to look at it is what happened on 9-11. The passengers in the planes that hit the world trade towers just sat there passively as the hijackers took control of the planes. If they had all rushed the hijackers at once, sure some of the passengers might have been stabbed and died, but the majority of the passengers might have lived had they pounced on the hijackers immediately before the pilots were killed, and most certainly the hijackers' plans would have been foiled. The planes would have never taken down the towers.

Similarly, if the Jews had attacked the Nazis back all the way, they might have been able to make it so hostile for them, that they might have changed their plans and backed off, but most certainly they would have made it much more difficult for them to do what they wanted to do, and may have slowed down their efforts enough to save many lives from the horrible deaths of the concentration camps.

What I know from experience with debt collectors is that if you fight back and do not voluntarily give them your money, it makes it a lot harder on them, and most of the time they seem to give up and go on to lower hanging fruit.

I am working on a response. I just can't give it the proper attention and details right now. Suffice it to say, we are being 'coddled', 'dumbed-down' and 'spoiled' into submission.

[AngelinaCat]

I finally saw the movie, yesterday, and it was fantastic! Since the book is written in Katniss' POV, all you see when you read it is what she goes through as she struggles for survival in the Games, but the movie shows all that goes on outside the arena, like the gamemakers in the control room, and Haymitch talking to sponsors, and her family watching from District 12.

Since Jackie Collins worked on the screenplay on this movie, it makes this 'behind the scenes' other information in the movie more credible. I hope that she wll be working on the other movies as well.

I am curious as to how the arena in 'Catching Fire' is portrayed/presented...

[justbroke]

I'm gold that the next trilogy I should read is Divergent.

[GoingDown]

One thing I wonder about humanity is why we are so prone to voluntarily submit to such horrible treatment from our governments.

Take the Nazis for example. The Jews voluntarily allowed the Nazis to round them up and herd them to concentration camps like sheep being led to the slaughter. Most of them didn't fight back. Most of them didn't even resist. While in the concentration camps, many of them worked for the benefit of the German war machine, and when they were too weak to work anymore, they were killed. No matter how compliant they were, most of them ended up being killed in the end.

Maybe they didn't know any better. Maybe they thought if they went along with what the Nazis wanted and didn't give them any problems, they would somehow survive.

But we know better now.

If something like this ever happens to us, we need to fight back as hard as we can. At the very least do what Ghandi did by passively resisting, if you can't or don't want to fight back. Do not go gently into that good night, so to speak.

The Jews made it easy on the Nazis by voluntarily walking away from their homes and voluntarily getting on trains headed for their final destination.

Think how much more difficult it would have been for the Nazis if the Jews had fought back, house to house fighting, and when they could fight no more, the Germans would have had to drag them kicking and screaming all the way to their deaths. I wonder how much this would have changed things for them? For one thing, the surrounding German public would not be able to ignore what was going on right in front of their eyes. If the killings occurred right in the streets in front of the public, instead of far away in some concentration camp, they might not have the stomach for it.

Another way to look at it is what happened on 9-11. The passengers in the planes that hit the world trade towers just sat there passively as the hijackers took control of the planes. If they had all rushed the hijackers at once, sure some of the passengers might have been stabbed and died, but the majority of the passengers might have lived had they pounced on the hijackers immediately before the pilots were killed, and most certainly the hijackers' plans would have been foiled. The planes would have never taken down the towers.

Similarly, if the Jews had attacked the Nazis back all the way, they might have been able to make it so hostile for them, that they might have changed their plans and backed off, but most certainly they would have made it much more difficult for them to do what they wanted to do, and may have slowed down their efforts enough to save many lives from the horrible deaths of the concentration camps.

What I know from experience with debt collectors is that if you fight back and do not voluntarily give them your money, it makes it a lot harder on them, and most of the time they seem to give up and go on to lower hanging fruit.

[lotsahats]

I finally saw the movie, yesterday, and it was fantastic! Since the book is written in Katniss' POV, all you see when you read it is what she goes through as she struggles for survival in the Games, but the movie shows all that goes on outside the arena, like the gamemakers in the control room, and Haymitch talking to sponsors, and her family watching from District 12.

It's too bad we have to wait a year and a half for Catching Fire. That's going to be amazing!

[ValleYum]

I just broke down and ordered the trilogy from Amazon. The college is between sessions for about 9 days, and Mockinjay had not been returned before the break...

You deserve it! <3

[AngelinaCat]

I just broke down and ordered the trilogy from Amazon. The college is between sessions for about 9 days, and Mockinjay had not been returned before the break...

[ValleYum]

Running in the same genre as Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, 11/22/63 by Stephen King was really good.

The HOTtest books (and the subject of many Facebook discussions LOL) nowadays are the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy by E L James. Be warned, they are for adults only.

[justbroke]

I finally pushed myself to complete the trilogy. I finished at about 9PM after blazing through 7 chapters in one reading. If they end up writing and filming a screenplay for the 3rd book (Mockingjay), all I can say is that the special affects would be so good, that I'd go to see it just for the special affects!

Now what do I do? I need another book like that from the Kindle bookstore. Help me!

[AngelinaCat]

BTW, all of the Harry Potter movies were rated PG or PG-13. They were targeting kids with the movies. The books may have been a different story, but having read a couple of them, I tend to think that the young teen was indeed the intended readers.

Yes they were. I am a librarian and worked in the local public library when the Harry Potter books started coming out. The first two were duly cataloged and placed into the Children's Section. But from the third installment, on, they were placed into the Young Adult Section, which is the 'Teen' section.

[tobee43]

yes it did, it's a larger market for certain, and as i was saying it certainly didn't stop me! so i think i may have been a broader market that they got.

[helpmeout]

jb, interesting enough i didn't know it was actually a children's book. i suppose one looks like the triogy of harry potter which actually was never intended to be for children and look what happened!

that is a HUGE target audience one with a ton of money to spend, so i do understand why they did it that way.

helpme, yes, i understand, they were seeking an certain type of audience but that didn't stop us from going to see it!

But their targeting the younger kids and keeping it PG-13 allowed for more kids to see it.

BTW, all of the Harry Potter movies were rated PG or PG-13. They were targeting kids with the movies. The books may have been a different story, but having read a couple of them, I tend to think that the young teen was indeed the intended readers.

[tobee43]

The thing about Harry Potter is the seven books were released over a ten-year period, which means that children who were ten when the first one came out were twenty when the final installment was released. So, her writing had to mature along with her audience. It's funny to go back to the first book, after reading the last one. The language is so...babyish...in the beginning. I have to admit, it was a bit of a shock, in the fifth book, when Uncle Vernon dropped the word, "effing."

yes wasn't that quite brilliant of rowlings! sounds more like a master plan doens't it. i'm bad i didn't read them all either. i'm so tempted to get the audio books for long rides. i never have, but i think that would be interesting to see if it could keep my interesting, although, i guess it depends on the book.