Poor Hollywood Conservatives

I recently began perusing Big Hollywood. It's a blog of Hollywood conservatives that complain about how liberal the film industry is. I haven't even heard of most of the posters, though I do know Dirk Benedict. He was Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica (the one that sucks) and "Faceman" from the A-Team. He's also starred in such gems as Earthstorm and Recon 7 Down. Benedict recently wrote a screed decrying how Starbuck is now portrayed, brilliantly, by Katee Sackhoff. Sackhoff just so happens to be a girl. Benedict is horrified at this slight, because obviously there is no way that humanity's best fighter pilot could be a tough-as-nails woman.

Now the point of this post isn't to complain about conservatives. That's exactly what they want you to do. I'd be just another liberal blogger trying to stifle a conservatives right to free speech. Big Hollywood has every right to publish the opinions of Hollywood's conservatives. In fact, I've rather enjoyed following the site. I disagree with almost everything they say, but it's entertaining to watch Big Hollywood's assortment of writers scrambling to find anyway to demonstrate that Batman as portrayed in the The Dark Knight is a paragon to the conservative cause. Hey, good for them. I think Batman is about as close to apolitical as any superhero could possibly be, but I'm certainly willing to hear and evaluate the views of those that argue otherwise. To the Big Hollywood crew, Clint Eastwood is God. Jerry Bruckheimer is a hero of the people, and Charlton Heston was the epitome of all things American. They actually have been really upset about President Obama's decision to ban torture because it's so effective on 24. Seriously? You guys, 24 is a TV show. I'm sure it's very good, I have a lot friends that watch it and swear by it. My argument isn't with 24, but with those that use it as a tool to argue for torture in the real world. The point of this post is merely to point out the excessive whining that Hollywood conservatives engage in and the victim mentality that they embrace. These people are just like Sarah Palin. They enjoy portraying themselves as victimized Americans struggling against the God-Hating Liberal Gay Empire. What they don't realize is that American films (for better or worse) actually contain numerous conservative themes. For instance, many films depict the triumph of the individual over the corrupt masses. Films like the Rambo series revolve around a lone hero that rises up to correct the wrongs of the world. Another conservative principle that is frequently espoused in contemporary film is the "rags to riches" story. Case in point, The Pursuit of Happiness. As long as you work really hard, you will become very rich and successful, race or socioeconomic status are no barrier to your development. I sort of liked The Pursuit of Happiness because I thought it was well acted and very touching, but I mostly hated it because I couldn't shake the feeling that the movie was sanctioned by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Don't take that as an indictment of any of these conservative principles. I might be a liberal, but most liberals value individualism. In my humble opinion, individualism is more of an American value, than a conservative principle. However, I recognize that this most cherished of American values had its roots in the conservative thought of John Locke and Edmund Burke. In the end, that's why I think Big Hollywood is kind of a sad venture, because their basic premise is false. Sure many actors, directors, and screenwriters are liberals but that doesn't mean that conservatives in Hollywood are an oppressed minority. I think if Hollywood conservatives spent more time watching American films and television series (other than 24) they would be happy to see that many of their esteemed values and principles are expressed everyday.