Independence Day 2. What might have happened in-between

This was in reply to a similar post in IMDb, a post which speculated on what might have happened in the 15-odd years on Earth since the events set in "Independence Day" (1996). Because IMDb forums for a movie or personality are cleaned up from time to time, I've decided to simultaneously publish this here along with the reply on IMDb.

Disclaimer: This blogpost does not contain spoilers to the movie, because I am not aware of its actual content.

My favourite ideas revolve around relations between humans and surviving aliens from the first war.

Of the surviving party (parties), there would be at least two or three 'factions', put this way:
* Those that want to destroy humanity and much of Earth and reconnect with whatever future mothership comes. These would be fighters and their ilk (the alien hard-liners);
* Those who somehow automagically decide that humans are worth something, too, and the Earth preserving.
* And maybe those that kinda-sorta like Earth, but not humans, only that they can't do much about it. The undecided (?).

It's possible that maybe one of the city-ships somehow survived to the point that it's established a state-like territory on its own, but that the ship itself is unable to become airborne. Maybe there are more than one and each has formed a different faction and attitude towards Earth and humanity.

Then the structure of the alien society: What was it like before, during, and after the invasion?

Then the very serious problems around whether and how to integrate surviving aliens into society (à la "Alien Nation", but it wouldn't work out like that anyway) — Because if we're better than them, then we can't just kill them all off. I'm aware it's very pacifist and stuff.

And then about how humans treat or mistreat the surviving aliens — look at Guantánamo; and would there even be trials? Does the whole species need to be convicted, or just the ones who set the agenda? How do you find out the surviving alien leaders (given that they all seem to look alike), and whether there are any, if the social structure and ways of communication are so different?

It's likely that humans and (former) invaders would mostly feel mutually repelled by one another and keep up some form of segregation ("District 9"). Would be interesting to know if that's in the new movie.

Then all the issues wrt biocontamination. Organic as they all are, there must be observable changes in Earth's nature. Did the first strikes also hit nuclear plants and was there any fallout and thus any possibility of a nuclear winter? Then I'd imagine the use of cars with internal combustion engines has perhaps lessened alot first due to destruction of major population centres and because of new technology.

The idea of a third and fourth species is also very intersting, given that a large explosion in space can be noticed by a civilization with at least similar advancement.

Oh, the "Pocahontas" scenario of two kindred spirits meeting one another would never work. No, no. But I wouldn't rule out several accidental hybrids. There's a possibility that if some alien surviors managed to form a workable faction within the confines of their previous social structure, then they might have made several experiments with human survivors until releasing one or more, or even a group of human-alien hybrids. And I suppose those in turn would have very dangerous properties. Maybe alien-human infiltrators.

Then what has happened to different human societies on Earth. Suppose some states rebuild and develop military technology, but at the cost of freedom. Some countries decide to keep individual freedoms, but maybe or maybe not risk being less secure. Or countries who decide not to adopt alien technologies and develop native technologies (Not Invented Here syndrome), or countries that don't want to sacrifice freedoms and develop slower and on their own pace compared to those that might sacrifice freedoms and might want to adopt all the latest alien tech.

Vertigo. Review. Analysis.

Reaction and reply to this IMDb post
Agree about the time capsule effect; pity they didn't show the trolleybuses.

I just saw the movie a few hours ago and thought it this way:

Judy Barton somehow decides to start dating Scottie, afraid that Scottie — having recognized Barton — has already put all the pieces of the puzzle together, while in fact he has yet not. This probably hints to the less sophisticated background of both, despite Scottie being a detective and Judy being part of an elaborate plan.

Were the actor playing Scottie different than John Ferguson, who was 49 at the time, the interpretation of the film could have been different, too. — Such that if the actor were much younger and more handsome, it would have been much more plausible to believe Judy's claims of loving Scottie in the final scenes of the movie. This also applies to the relationship between Midge and Scottie, where in some scenes Midge plays the mother figure.

Hitchcock was therefore correct to complain about mis/casting an older guy, despite 'early retirement' at 49 (going on 50) still sounding about right in 1958.

Midge is clearly smarter than Scottie and knows what Scottie is looking for in a woman (a mother-like figure, that is). Scottie hasn't so far taken the bait from Midge, and it is likely that he innately knows that she knows what he wants and so would feel uncomfortable to progress from friendship to something else, as Midge's play would feel unauthentic just because she knows and that Scottie knows that she knows.

The other reason could be that Midge is far too independent; Scottie wants to dominate, but knows that Midge wouldn't let him. Scottie is also old-fashioned, as he doesn't know much about women's wear.

This is when Scottie, after meeting "Madeleine", sees in her exactly what he wants to see: a young and pretty woman with the look and mannerisms of a lady, reasonably independent, but apparently subservient on an interpersonal level. Here we see how Scottie exercises his right to dominate by saving "Madeleine" from drowning, by taking care of her, and so on.

Scottie has become completely obsessed with Judy/"Madeleine".

As Judy and Scottie keep on dating, Judy realizes that Scottie doesn't know about the ruse and lets her guard loose. She chooses to be with Scottie with designs for a better life with him (We see from Judy's family photos that she seems to be from modest surroundings in the state she grew up in).

Maybe she'd thought that Scottie, almost 50 and still not married yet, might be gay and is perhaps looking for a beard. This is alluded to in "Madeleine"'s question about why he hasn't been married yet.

At the time of the ruse, Judy as "Madeleine" was willing to appear subservient, as she was instructed to be like that by Elster. Scottie falls for it.

I remember Elster at the beginning of the movie had no intention to go and wanted to stay with his enterprise. In the scene where Judy has walked up the stairs of the church tower and Elster throws his real wife down, Judy screams and Elster realizes that this could give away the charade, which causes him (uncharacteristically) to part ways with the city and his company as soon as possible. Scottie only attributes this to Elster's grief.

Once Judy has fulfilled her role as "Madeleine", she doesn't need to appear subservient and we get to see a decidedly more independent Judy than Scottie ever thought. It's hinted about when she decides to leave Scottie's home on her own, instead of letting Scottie bring her to Elster.

The masks start falling when Scottie demands Judy to be more like Madeleine and Judy thinks that Scotty is on to something; and while she plays along out of fear of discovery, she is also pushing back, because Scottie 'doth protest too much.'

The masks fall futher after the detective in Scottie has realized that Judy was in on the charade and when Scottie takes Judy to the murder site.

Several scenes follow where Scottie is overly dominant with Judy, short of being violent. It shows why Scottie is unable to have steady relationships with women, and how this is the real reason for his being unmarried.

Scottie forcibly takes Judy up the tower while overcoming his fear of heights, tells all to Judy and forces her to confess. Judy, trying to save herself both from the situation and to tame the much too overbearing Scottie, expresses the words of love to him, but is startled by the nun, who I think was there all along, who heard everything and only used the excuse of having heard voices to appear as if she just arrived.

Whether Judy was startled or felt no other way than to fall to her death is a matter of debate.

The reason why I think the nun heard everything was because after Judy fell to her death, the nun started pulling the bell ropes and so ringing the bell right away. — A person who just woke up usually takes some time to wholly wake up, so I understood that the nun was completely alert by the time Judy's confession escaped her lips.

The ending is left a bit open, because Scottie could be implicated in Judy's death. His saving grace is the nun, who apparently heard everything... but chose not to reveal this.

Or, if the nun really heard "some sounds," and only witnessed Judy fall down, then Scottie would be in a difficult position. Scottie would think that the nun would tell and would want for the nun to be silent. The old and wise nun probably knows this, too (by way of having observed Scottie's mannerisms with Judy), and rings the bells as soon as possible to make sure Scottie doesn't get any chance to impove his position on account of another person's life.

---

In a later post, I added this:
I remember the "gay old bohemian days" phrase was uttered by Midge's librarian friend.

If we allow ourselves to assume that Scottie might be gay, then the librarian friend somehow recognizes this in Scottie, but Scottie dismisses it, because he doesn't know it yet himself. We might see it when Judy (perhaps still as "Madeleine") and Scottie stroll in a park full of young people being together and cuddling. I then saw a cut to Scottie and Judy, where Judy seems to wistfully look at the young people with want, but Scottie appears conflicted — almost wanting to be there, too, but restraining himself.

Then what I forgot to add to my original writeup is this point:

While Judy is actually more independent and despite that still willing to be with Scottie for various reasons, then by very the end of the film she sees her decision backfire, as Scottie becomes more dominant. By the time Judy actually realizes this and starts pushing back, it's too late to break free, as Scottie is almost violent and takes Judy out of the car to the church tower.

Scottie's demands on Judy to be like "Madeleine" is an exercize of a series of warning signs, which Judy doesn't recognize.

So, if the actor playing Scottie were younger, I'd more readily believe Judy's love for Scottie, while with the current version of her "love" might more than anything be for reasons of fear.

Tallinn ja uued trammid?

Tallinna auto- ja trammiteede praegune seis on selline, et uhiuute trammide kasutamine ei ole lihtsalt mõeldav. Ning veel "tasuta transpordiga" lisanduvad tegelinskid, kelle õõvastav odöör omale iseloomulike heitgaasidega hõljub mitme sülla kaugusele. Et milleks uued trammid, kui need lõpuks ka "ära märgistatakse"?

Peale selle kestavad trammid hea hooldusega väga pikka aega ja seetõttu võib trammipark nii tehnoloogiliselt kui ka stilistiliselt aeglaselt vahetuda.

Kui oleks alles jäetud ja renoveeritud need Tatra T4 sõiduvahendid, siis nostalgiahõng kestaks isegi kauem :-)

Trammiromantikast...

Nagu kindla stiiliga musta värvi taksod Londonis, määrab ühistransport päris selgelt ka Tallinna näo ja seega paneb ka siinne veerem oma märgi maha. See ei pruugigi paha olla, sest selle järgi tunneb nii piltidelt kui filmit ära tuttava linna.

KT4 tramme saaks võtta kui omamoodi klassikat, kaasaega ja modernsust eelmise sajandi lõpuveerandist — mis kokku võttes ühendab üleminekuvahendina peamiselt puidust Kopli ja Kalamaja ennesõjaaegse stiili, XX sajandi modernsuse ja ilmetuse vaheldumise (Lasnamäe jt 1980ndate hooned), ning XXI sajandi postindustrialismi (Kesklinna City), avaldudes esimesele ja viimasele kontrastsena ja sulandudes ühte keskmisega.

Võrreldes mistahes tulevikutrammidega, mis viivad minevikust tulevikku ja tagasi, mõjuvad KT4 trammid oleviku eri faaside vahel laveerijatena.

Seda stiili muutumatust võib nimetada omamoodi paigalseisuks (v.k. застой).

Ma mõistan, kui inimestel on soovi, et Tallinn näeks läbi trammide modernsem välja, kuid kas praegune poliitiline seis (sest edasiminekuks seda nimetada ei saa) uute trammide asja lõpuni viia jõuab, on kaheldav.

P.S.
Trammiostu CAFilt ma ei toeta, sest nende trammid on mõnede sildade-estakaadide jaoks liiga rasked, st. ei vastanud tegelikele tehnilistele tingimustele. Lisaks pole veeremit Tallinna trammiteedel üldse testitud.

Määrdunud korvid poodides ja mida peale hakata

Nagu teada,
on poodides plastmasskorvid ja kärud kole mustad.

Tehke nii:

1. Võtke üks kilekott rullist, mis on tavaliselt puu- ja köögiviljaletis. (Need kilekotid on enam-vähem tasuta, kui neid eesmärgipäraselt kasutada. Tervet rulli ära võtta muidugi ei maksa.)
2. Pange sinna kilekotti oma kaup.
3. Kui kott saab täis, võtke uus.

(Kergelt määriv kaup, nagu näiteks hallitusjuust, tulekski jätta kilekotti.)

4. Kassas: Laduge kaup kilekotist lindile.
...
5. Siis võtke kilekott, pöörake tagurpidi ja pange jopetasku.
6. Saadud kilekotti saab kasutada koera jalutamiseks.
Profit...

7. Koera jalutamisel võtke kilekott, pöörake see käe peale tagurpidi nii, et varem korvis määrdunud kilekotipool jääks välja (kui see mingi kauba poolt enne ära määritud polnud).
8. Korjake koerakaka üles, siduge kilekott kinni ja visake koerakaka vastavaks otstarbeks mõeldud ühe partei värvidega äravõõbatud kasti.

"Something good..."

There is an English-language phrase about "something good coming out of something bad". Such sentiment would only serve as a fallacy with regard to gravely horrible history anywhere, as if this kind of wording were to justify the means to an end.

Stargate Universe, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and 2001: The Space Odyssey—A Perspective

This was published first to make sure that the post lasts longer than in IMDb forums.
I've reminisced a bit since first replying in this [IMDb] thread, so got some new ideas in support for TMP.

"Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (TMP) was released ten years after "2001: A Space Odyssey" (2001), so it's historically placed within the timeframe of a generation that also had first-hand experience of 2001, which there is a huge fanbase of, and which extensively features elements of observation and contemplation. And, so, this is what the creators of TMP probably leaned on, most likely to offer an intelligent and ethereal view of space, in order, perhaps, to unintentionally counteract the "pew-pew-pew" effect of Star Wars.

So, when I think of Stargate Universe (SGU) and TMP having similarities, then a fair amount of all of that was borne out of 2001. Now that I'd thought of it, 2001 must have provided the people over at SGU quite a bit of influence in how SGU was presented.

When 2001 was initially released, it was lambasted by critics and a rather incredulous public, while only later was the film accepted as a classic. I hope for the same trend to happen with SGU, and, to a certain extent, to have happened already with TMP.

Estonian Air. Mida teha.

Jätk minu eelmisele postitusele.

Partsi haldusala

Estonian Airi kahjum ja Tero Taskila ning Jan Palméri tasu ei loe, sest pea kõigil rahvuslikel lennufirmadel läheb suuremal või vähemal määral halvasti. Teadupoolest oli Estonian Airil protsentuaalselt kõige väiksem kahjum kõigist nendest Euroopa rahvuslikest lennufirmadest, mis kahjumis olid.

Kivi MKM kapsaaeda on ehk see, et ei ole olnud piisavalt kannatust oodata, kuni üks strateegia (kasvõi Taskila oma) üldse käiku läheb, ja kuni ta elaks, et siis teada saada, kas see töötab või mitte. Sest antud hetkel tekib küsimus, et kas kahjum oleks Taskila juhtimisel hoopis väiksem olnud.

Kuna osa lennukeid on kasutamata, siis soovitan Estonian Airil nad mingi hetk käiku lasta ja juurutada nendega paindlik sündmustepõhine graafik, mis sõltuks rohkem hooajast ja sündmustest, à la kontsertid, laulupeod, spordivõistlused, PÖFF jne.: näiteks pakett, kus on sündmuse premium-piletid lennuga Eestisse ja tagasi, ja võib-olla isegi hotellitoad. Lisaks lennufirma-poolne täiendav infra erisuguse varustuse transportimiseks: muusikariistade ja mittestandardse kujuga sporditarvete turvaline transport ja käitlemine.

Koostööd saaks teha suursündmuste korraldajatega, hotellide ja Ettevõtluse Arendamise Sihtasutusega (või mingi muu quangoga, sest EAS tahetakse vist üldse kinni panna), mispuhul riik võiks omalt poolt toetada ajakohase reklaamiga ntx välisriikides, sest Estonian Airi otse toetada vist ei saa.

Kui seda ei saa riik, mis on muuseas täiesti võimalik, siis seda saaks teha näiteks koostöös turismiettevõtetega, hotellide ja suuremate sündmuste korraldajatega. Praegu on selline seis, et nagu polekski Estonian Air Eesti turismiettevõtetega midagi huvitavat koos tegemas (ok, ma pole seda uurinud, kas üldse) ja igaüks nagu teeb mis ise tahab ja käib oma suunas.

Lisavariant oleks panna lennukid tööle Euroopas sinna, kus parasjagu on nõudlus lennureisidele suurem kui kohalik ressurss seda antud hetkel võimaldada suudaks.