Running on Empty
No Takes to Give
So beyond my Pick of the Week and the latest episode of One Band, 5 Songs, I really don’t have anything to say this week. I was going to write something about Popsugar’s 21 of Our Favorite Pop-Punk Songs From This Year, Including Halsey, Willow, and Olivia Rodrigo list but it turns out that I have nothing to say about it. There’s also been a lot in the news in the last few days but again, I have nothing to add to those conversations. With the semester coming to a close, a research paper whose due date is looming, my general low energy (I’m sure spurned on by the 30 pounds I’ve gained over the last nine months), and a recent epiphany that I don’t need to have a take on every little thing…well…yeah.
Pick of the Week: How the Force Can Fix the World: Lessons on Life, Liberty, and Happiness from a Galaxy Far, Far Away by Stephen Kent
I first discovered Stephen Kent’s work about ten years ago, through his old band Radio Reds. Since that time, he’s gone on to become a political commentator, podcast host, and a communications and public relations professional in Washington, DC. He is also a hardcore Star Wars fan and enthusiast. His debut book How the Force Can Fix the World: Lessons on Life, Liberty, and Happiness from a Galaxy Far, Far Away is, from what I can tell, a wholly original take on the galaxy from far, far away. While Kent and I do not see eye-to-eye politically (he is a bit right of center while I am a bit to the left) his analysis in How the Force Can Fix the World is fair and obviously comes from a place of compassion and reason. Here’s the book’s description from the publisher’s website:
From widespread unemployment and mounting international hostilities, every day we are swept into more political chaos—so one brave man looks to the Star Wars universe for answers to our most urgent problems.
“You can’t stop the change — anymore than you can stop the sun from setting.” Anakin Skywalker was never able to live with this wisdom shared by his mother on the day he left home to train as a Jedi Knight. That failure led him to becoming the fearsome villain we all know as Darth Vader.
We’re living in a time of unprecedented and rapid change. An age of chaos. Democracies are in decline worldwide. Dictators are ascendant. Civic organizations are crumbling. People feel lonelier and more rudderless than in any other time in recent history. We’ve tried to slow down, and in some cases we, like Anakin, have tried stop the change, but failed at every turn. The fears that come with living in an age of disruption have produced public anger, and that anger has swelled movements of hate.
Author Stephen Kent believes part of the solution is hiding in plain sight. A story that binds together multiple generations with a common language, a moral framework, and a sense of wonder. It’s Star Wars.
What if we looked to Star Wars for more than just entertainment? How the Force Can Fix the World takes this challenge on by analyzing the core principles of the Star Wars franchise: HOPE, CHOICE, HUMILITY, EMPATHY, REDEMPTION, BALANCE and rejecting FEAR. Together, these are the Star Wars roadmap for living better lives, and maybe even fostering a better politics.
The path that we’re on — where fear leads to anger, and anger to hatred — will only end in suffering. But Star Wars shows us the way back from the brink. Shared stories of virtue that are beloved across cultures and political divides are hard to come by, but Star Wars is one such story. Turn on the news; things are pretty broken right now — but the Force can fix the world.
What I loved about this book is its admiration and deference for the source material. In a lot of ways, I think Mr. Kent looks at Star Wars the same way I look at Superman comics, with an almost religious and spiritual reverence.
There was a time, probably 20 years ago, when I was a huge Star Wars fan. In my 20s, I started reading Star Wars novels from the Expanded Universe (which just so happened to be the books that got me into reading). By the time it was all said and done, I probably read close to 40 of those things before my interest began to wane. Then came the announcement of the sequel trilogy and the de-canonization of the Expanded Universe. Needless to say, I was disappointed but logically and creatively it made complete sense. I saw the final three films of the Skywalker Saga in the theaters and walked away completely indifferent. They were fine. I enjoyed watching them but didn’t feel any real emotional connection to or great betrayal by those movies. They were there. I’m glad that I saw them but have had no desire to go back to them since. Listening to the audiobook of How the Force Can Fix the World has gotten me to reassess that opinion.
Overall, this is a fun and hopeful examination of one of the most beloved franchises of all time, that treats these films as sacred texts, and gives excellent and workable tips for improving the world one person at a time.
(Quick side note, I can’t recommend Radio Reds’ final record, Fire Academy (EP) enough. As I said in my review of the record "These songs are passionate and heartfelt and grab you by the balls with their intensity and hooks" and “Bands like Restorations, Luther, and The Menzingers have found success in punk circles (especially The Fest crowd) with styles that mix and match elements from punk, indie, post hardcore, Americana, and emo and I see no reason why fans of those bands wouldn’t love Fire Academy and Radio Reds in general.”)
One Band, 5 Songs
This week the podcast covered the career of punk legends Stiff Little Fingers!!!
One Band, 5 Songs is available exclusively on Spotify and is waiting for your ears right now!
Next week, depending on the poll results, we’re talking about either the originators of alt-country or a 90s powerhouse fronted by one of rock ‘n’ rolls most fierce women.
That’s All For Now…
I hope everyone has a safe Thanksgiving (if that is your thing) and…