The Hollywood Reporter scooped Tinseltown with the news that Walt Disney Studios is ditching the dreadful Chronicles of Narnia motion pictures, a smart move on Disney’s part. The first Narnia picture, about four British children who choose to sacrifice themselves in a Judeo-Christian fantasy, was overbearing religious propaganda, the second was a watered-down Christian parable and the violent, thinly veiled series never fit Disney’s brand of clean, honest, and upright family movies; Christian production company Walden Media’s Narnia pics existed for the moralizing, not for the story—the latter being a sacred Walt Disney rule that often drives Disney success (see Disney’s superior Eight Below). Disney Chairman Dick Cook, who discussed killing Disney’s deal with Narnia’s Walden Media—Hollywood’s epitome of artistic mediocrity—in my 2005 interview, knows a stinker when he sees one. Excellent call, Mr. Cook. Don’t be surprised if Twentieth Century Fox, which seeks and sponsors faith-based pictures, picks the Narnia nonsense up and watch for religionists to lash out at Disney—or at anyone who rejects Narnia, which is based on the books by C.S. Lewis.
Religion continues to be a regular topic for discussion on Leonard Peikoff’s weekly podcast, which unfortunately remains in test phase with the roundtable format. Podcast 40 runs the term greed by those in Dr. Peikoff’s company. Podcast 41 fares better—he goes solo again—addressing a range of issues including Sen. John McCain’s heroism, self-indulgence, use of the term religious, meaning of the term arbitrary, morality in theory and in practice, and a communication from an intelligent eighth grader. Podcast 42 goes back to the group with two questions that Dr. Peikoff uses to spark a thread about one’s method of thinking.
Watching yesterday’s political train wreck from Illinois (more to say on that—and the other Illinois-originated political disaster, Obama’s Reverend Rick Warren—later), I’m reminded of my early optimism that the election of Barack Obama to the nation’s presidency could inadvertently lead to recovery by way of a quicker demolition, and, thus, revolution and reconstruction. In the wake of the economic recession and piecemeal, bipartisan nationalization of American industry, cash-strapped states are turning toward so-called privatization—of land, institutions and roads—in overwhelmingly Democratic-controlled states. The point is that, under incoming Obama, whose supposed integrity is unmasked more every day, government control of business will rapidly expand and, without opposition from religionists, such as Rev. Warren, who share National Socialism as a goal, market-oriented solutions may emerge without the usual round of left-wing denunciation—the public may demand it after Obamacans unite behind historic enactment of an axis of religious-environmentalist-National Socialist policies. After all, thanks to religious Republicans and their disastrous expansion of the welfare state and a hugely harmful military presence in Iraq, the left practically controls America’s government.
