Relating to Smiles

I watched a wonderful film by Ingmar Bergman, called "Smiles of a Summer Night". 

It's a humorous retrospection of human emotions, mainly revolving around love. It reminded me of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" in much the same way "Wild Strawberries" reminded me of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol".

One scene in Smiles touched me.  During a visit of the actress with her mother, the old woman said:  "One can never protect a single human being from any kind of suffering. That is what makes one so extremely weary." 


She then added: “I am tired of people, but it does not stop me from loving them”. 

Defamation

Most people value their reputation because it is easily tarnished.  Defamation laws are designed to protect it.   Why is it then that defamation suits are so hard to bring?

These are the topics I hear people talking about. To clear up  misconceptions about these issues, I decided to explain what defamation really means:


Definition

Defamation is an act of communication, which causes someone to suffer a damaged reputation. Defamation can be written (libel) or spoken (slander).

Elements

In order to bring an action for defamation in court, there must be: 

(1) A communication to one other than the person defamed; 

(2) A false statement of fact concerning the person defamed; and 

(3) Harm to one's reputation.

Other elements of defamation sometimes include intent. However, defamatory statement does not have to be made intentionally.  A careless (negligent) act of making a false statement that is harmful to another sometimes may be enough.  The key is there must be damage to reputation, respect, goodwill or confidence in which the victim is held in the eyes of others.

Defenses

There are a number of defenses to defamation. The most important and absolute defense to an action for defamation is the "truth”. 

Another defense recognized against defamation is "opinion".  For example, if the person making a negative statement is expressing an opinion as opposed to fact, the statement may not support a cause of action for defamation. Opinions on matters of public concern that do not contain or imply a provable factual assertion are protected by the First Amendment freedom of speech. New York Times v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254, 264 (1964). 

Costs of lawsuit

Filing an action for defamation is not always a good idea. While someone whose name is disparaged by lies has every right to feel angry, the act of filing a lawsuit for defamation is likely to create a greater audience for the false statement. For a public person, a loss in a defamation lawsuit is likely to be public and will only make people conclude that the allegations were true. 

Furthermore, there are always monetary and emotional costs associated with filing any lawsuit. In connection with a defamation suit, the emotional cost involved may be even higher because this suit is associated with the loss of social standing. There may also be hidden costs, such as business interruption.  

In practice

A suit for defamation may last years and cost thousands of dollars in legal fees. These costs deter most people from filing suits for defamation.  In practice, defamation law is a luxury of the rich, but rarely helps ordinary people whose reputation is attacked.

That said, ordinary people can easily fall victims to defamation suits if they get into the habit of making disparaging opinions about the rich and powerful.

How to avoid suits for defamation

In order to avoid suits for defamation, be sure that you stay away from stating opinions and stick with facts.  For instance, instead of saying that a product is defective, state that it failed to perform according to specifications. Instead of saying that someone is corrupt, state facts behind this opinion and let your audience make their own conclusions.  If you absolutely must use opinions, back them up with facts and references.

Conclusion

Although the law of defamation is supposed to protect people, in practice, it may hinder their freedom of speech. Thus, saying less may be more.

Hungry for Change

Food, Inc. is a must see film for anyone who eats food in America. 

It is not a sensational expose or a one sided campaign against eating meat. It is an eye opening, intelligent, educational and compelling investigative journalism.  


This film delivers hard facts about American food industry that are designed to show us how to make positive changes in our eating habits.

There is nothing gory in this film, but you will see some  disturbing images of fat grain over-fed, cows and overweight chickens that are unable to walk or breathe in the windowless coops. 


You will also learn that the entire food industry is controlled by a handful of mass-producing companies, which are driven by profit and mechanization rather than by nature or people’s health. The film also reviews lack of government policies on food testing and resulting widespread epidemic of E.coli and dangerously escalating rate of diabetes.

One of the most compelling stories in Food, Inc. is told by Barbara Kowalcyk, who petitioned Congress to pass food safety law after her 2 year old son, Kevin, died from E.coli poisoning from eating a hamburger.  


Think about this for a second: how often do you eat a hamburger? How often do you feed fast food to your children? Do you know how it is made? Do you know how it is regulated? If you answered no to any of these questions, you must watch Food, Inc. or at least go the this website and watch the trailer.


According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 76 million Americans are sickened, 325,000 are hospitalized and 5,000 die each year from food-borne illnesses.   Although Kevin's law is not in Congress right now, there are other national food safety legislation and advocacy programs that all Americans should support. 

After you watch this film, it is unlikely that you'd ever want to eat conventionally raised meat again. The alternative is grass-fed, free-range organic meat. Cows that eat grass and walk around outside in their natural environment do not produce tainted meat. Chickens that are exposed to sunlight do not suffocate from lack of fresh air. Healthy meat builds your body and fights disease. Get it at your local whole foods store, at the farmer’s market, food co-op, or order online. 

Please watch this film and get hungry for change. 

Californication

I rarely watch TV, but  I watched Californication last night on Netwflix.  


I found it entertaining, but could not help wondering why certain speech segments seemed forced and plot so unnatural. 


 I like shows about egocentric males, but this one did not ring true with me.  Most men, no matter how witty or self involved, do not speak the way Hank Moody does. 


A friend of mine wrote for this show when it first started, so it was fun to see some of the traits of my friend reflect in Moody's early character, down to the black T Shirts paired with dark denim jeans and a leather jacket.  


Nonetheless, this show is overrated.  I may be biased because I am not from [hel]LA, but more likely, I am just more critical jaded than most when it comes to reality.  I tend to side with this negative review by Nathan Rabin.  


All that said, I may still watch it tonight. (I never said I was not a hypocrite.)

All he ever wanted - a book review

I picked up All He Ever Wanted at the airport.  Having nothing to read, this book by Anita Shreve seemed intriguing.  It was described as an emotional tale of unanswered love of a man for his wife.  


Set in the last 19th and early 20th centuries, it is a story of Van Tassel and Ms. Bliss, which begins with them going to teas, taking walks and exchanging books. During this proper courtship,  Van Tassel grows with desire, which eventually turns into an obsession. 


Though I am not a fan of the romance genre, I found this romantic novel to be well written. Shreve is especially good at painting details by describing clothes, furnishings and architecture in a way that is appealing and light. 


The story develops slowly at the beginning but gains momentum somewhere towards the middle, proving  to be an engaging study of passions of the mind. 


Below are a few quotations on point: 

"How much of love is a trick of the mind, a mere feat of verbal acrobatics, to accomodate persons who just happen to cross our paths and who suit our needs at one particular moment in time?" 

"The heart may love, but the mind does not. The heart has no mind and the mind has no heart. They are two separate organs, often at war with one another." 

"Passion both erodes and enhances character in equal measure, and not slowly but instantly, and in a such a manner that what is left not in balance but is thrown desperately out of kilter in both directions. The erosion the result of the willingess to do whatever is necessary to obtain the object of ones' desire, even if it means engaging in lies or deception or debasing what was ones treasured. The enhancement a result of the knowledge that one is capable of loving greatly, an understanding that leaves one, paradoxicaly, with a feeling of gratitude and pride in spite of all the carnage." 

"Love, which just moments ago I had thought too domestic and tame a word for my nearly transcendent feelings, was replaced by something for which I have never been able to find a suitable name: the helplessness that descends when a  cherished object has been stolen, the anger that one feels when one has been deceived."

Halloween portraits

Where sadness roams