Polanski, AlabamaPink, And a Few Other Site Notes
By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under Trailers | Comments (23)
I’ve tried, for the most part, to avoid the Polanski flap, although I did a really poor job of it last week, when — as expected — the Polanski post turned ugly in the comments. At least, for the most part, it was thoughtful and intelligent ugliness. But man alive: People take their director rapists seriously — and who can blame them? I’m going to leave the issue alone after this post, but a reader has started a Facebook group, which is essentially a Petition to Rescind the Polanski Rape Apology.
It’s a Facebook group, so who knows if anyone will listen. Or care. But I do. And I thought that the essay in the group was well-written and, from where I stand anyway, spot on. Here’s a taste:
What I cannot understand is taking an active part in seeking to hold this man above the law and unaccountable for his actions. The community defined by the combination of riches, talent, and fame are notorious in the first place for getting away with crimes that normal people go to jail for — there has been a recent trend of starlets spending a day in jail where a normal person would have spent far longer. There is a supreme lack of self-awareness in signing a position whose purpose is to let another artist get away with a crime. It’s bad enough when a starlet gets away with drunk driving — what these people on the petition are up in arms about is the fact that a man is not getting away with rape. That makes this petition no more or less than a dressed up rape apology.
If you feel similarly, join the Facebook group. It can’t hurt anything, right?
And if you need a little inner rage to prompt action, check out the new trailer for Saw VI. That’s 6, for those unfamiliar with Roman Numerals. Six goddamn Saw movies. Six Halloweens in a row that we’ve been subject to these motherfucking movies. Can someone also start a petition to encourage people not to see these movies, so that we might get something else over a Halloween weekend that is otherwise dominated by Saw every stupid year?
And finally: A site note. And God this sucks to write. I absolutely do not want to be the asshole, but here’s the deal. Pajiba, at least in my mind, is a very different kind of site than other movie blogs. It’s more communal. It feel familial, in a way. People I’ve never met or talked to often send emails that are written as if we’ve known each other for years. And in a way, we have. I love that about the site. It’s fantastic, and I hope it stays that way no matter how big a site we may become in the future.
However — and damn this sucks — the charity marathons, and walks, and runs. I applaud the hell out of all of you who participate in these, who contribute money to them, and who show up to root on friends and family who run/walk in them. It’s amazing, and there are even those on staff who participate — I know TK is involved in a big bike race for charity. However, and especially of late (probably because it’s Breast Cancer Awareness month), we have been inundated with requests to link to readers’ donation pages. Because of both our liberal guilt and our desire not to let any of our readers down, we’ve occasionally linked to the donation pages in Pajiba Love.
However — with our extreme apologies — we can’t do it anymore. There are too many requests, and when/if we do link, and the plugs don’t convert into large donations, we feel even more guilty than we would if we hadn’t added the links in the first place — it’s the false hope of Pajiba effect. In short, it’s an uncomfortable position for us. We really want to do good, and to use Pajiba for good, but if we continue to link out to other donation pages, then our readers are either going to be tapped out or charity-blind. And to be honest, we want to save up our goodwill, so that maybe we can hit you guys up once a year or so for our one Pajiba cause — Lil A.
For instance, on November 16th, we are tentatively planning another Paheeba Day, in honor again of AlabamaPink. And on that day, all advertising revenue we earn will be donated to Lil A’s college fund, which is to say: We’re not asking you for money, but it’d be damn nice if you pad special attention to our many, many advertisers on that day.
Anyway, I apologize to those who, in the future, plan to hit us up for donation links. Unfortunately, we’re simply not going to be able to do it anymore.
Finally, don’t forget, folks: The Pajiba Movie Club returns tomorrow at 3 pm EST, with Night of the Living Dead. We look forward to your participation.
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Comments
Posted by: admin at October 5, 2009 11:16 AM
God dammit I forgot that tomorrow was movie club day! Must find DVD!
Also, I completely understand the issue you face with charities, donations and links. It's not a easy thing to do but if you do one you have to do them all.