Sneak Peak at Disney "Avatar Land"

[Raiden]

Originally Posted by CyanRachel

Although, to be fair, I do understand your POV and concerns, Raiden. Do hope you'll be able to find *some* enjoyment in "Avatar Land" though.

It has very little do with my enjoyment.

It actually has to do with the erosion of our values as a community.

We're not like the Star Wars community, or the Lord of the Rings community; those people belong to groups founded because similar people liked movies that took them away from reality and deposited them in far-away places.

Avatar does that too, but it comes with something that Star Wars and Lord of the Rings do not come with. An important real-world message about preserving the wonders of Earth for generations to come, and that anybody can make a difference for that cause; it doesn't take a famous celebrity or celebrated academic to plant some native plant species, repair damaged habitat in a city park, or pick up garbage on the beach.

If we're just a bunch of nerdy blue sci-fi fans who go out like a swarm of locusts and consume merchandise related to our favorite movie, we've lost something important, and become "part of the problem".

Quite frankly, it would make me question ever coming here.

[CyanRachel]

Originally Posted by Raiden

It has very little do with my enjoyment.

It actually has to do with the erosion of our values as a community.

We're not like the Star Wars community, or the Lord of the Rings community; those people belong to groups founded because similar people liked movies that took them away from reality and deposited them in far-away places.

Avatar does that too, but it comes with something that Star Wars and Lord of the Rings do not come with. An important real-world message about preserving the wonders of Earth for generations to come, and that anybody can make a difference for that cause; it doesn't take a famous celebrity or celebrated academic to plant some native plant species, repair damaged habitat in a city park, or pick up garbage on the beach.

If we're just a bunch of nerdy blue sci-fi fans who go out like a swarm of locusts and consume merchandise related to our favorite movie, we've lost something important, and become "part of the problem".

Quite frankly, it would make me question ever coming here.

Hmm, well, I do see your point, Raiden. It's very true, what you're saying. So I guess, in my own case, I'm of two minds on the topic of Disney's "Avatar Land"...I now find myself a bit more divided as I consider your words. Definitely something to ponder. I feel a bit more conflicted, as I do honestly share many of your sentiments...but that Disney fan inside of me wants to totally immerse myself in what Lightstorm and the Disney Imagineers will create for us Avatar fans at Disney's Animal Kingdom. I'll have to give this all some more thought, and make sure I'm that much more mindful of the POV you've presented here. I truly don't want to be one of those people in the "swarm" that just consumes merchandise for my greedy self and becomes "part of the problem".

Irayo for this insight, tsmukan.