When One Doesn't Care About the Natives...

Christ, America sucks!!! 

Ok, that's not true. I know, America is, all things considered, a pretty good country. But, GOD DAMN, there is some screwy shit going down in our country! Sure, the economy is all sorts of fucked; our armed forces are fighting pointless wars; and so on and so on. But, some of the crap that's taking place on the homefront is really ridiculous. Case in point, fracking! Josh Fox's Oscar nominated doc, GasLand seeks to expose this heinous process and bring about a change. Luckily, the film is up to snuff. GasLand is pointed, at times horrifying, at times hilarious, look at how middle America is effected by all this lovely planet cracking. It's an informative look at something a lot of people probably don't know a whole lot about. 

Since I Know You Don't Believe Me...

Here's the proof I know Josh Fox!

It was actually pretty cool. Getting to hear about the project - it was called "Water Under Attack" back then - was really interesting. He also happens to be a brilliant director; the piece me and my compatriots in this picture worked on with him was one of the most original things I've done in my young career. Anyway... hope you've enjoyed my bragging about my "connections" today. I promise I'll stop now.

There's Scary Shit Going Down In America: GasLand and Meeting Mark Ruffalo

Despite all of Bard's shortcomings (and there are many) they are not totally against shelling out to get someone influential and famous to come talk to us on whatever the issue of the week is. I'm not talking about some chemist that only people who follow chemistry would know; I'm talking about someone that the general public is well aware of. Just last night, Bard's Environmental Program hosted a screening of Josh Fox's GasLand, one of the five Oscar nominees for Best Documentary. In attendance were two people who make a living studying the effects of fracking. The other was Mark Ruffalo. Yeah, that Mark Ruffalo, the one from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Zodiac, and The Kids Are All Right. He's big on the whole environment thing, and has joined the tour of the film in hopes of raising awareness of natural gas drilling in the United States. Needless to say, I was there. I took an interest in Fox's film from the beginning. I actually know the man, thanks to a summer spent at NYU, and had heard about the project as it was just getting started. Also, the film nut in me couldn't pass up a chance to meet Mark Ruffalo. How would I be able to face my fellow LAMBs if I turned down an opportunity like that. The event pretty much boiled down like this.