Fit To Print

From My Cold, Dead Hands

April 6th, 2008

I realize this may be in poor taste, but I have a couple things to say about the now deceased Charlton Heston. The Ten Commandments and Planet of the Apes were pompous, ridiculous movies, as were Heston’s performances in them. It is quite likely that he was much better in Ben-Hur, and I probably should watch that before rendering any final judgment.

In addition, while I personally am not a hunter, I see how it could be a great experience. I’m also somewhat opposed to the idea of guns in general, but absent that moral objection, gun collecting seems a perfectly compelling hobby.

What seems less reasonable to me, and perhaps entirely petty, is the idea of spending half your life stroking your own ego in 8 hour epics with thunderous scores, and the other half fighting for the right of every American to carry, shoot and wave any gun under any circumstance (not literally, that was Hestonian hyperbole). The AP is calling him a film legend, which may be true, but he was also a chronic overactor who worked really hard to keep guns in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them. Moses, here, served as an icon for the cultish libertarianism that too often stands in the way of decent policy and plain ol’ rational thought.

Of course, guns don’t kill people, bullets do. I mean, people do. Or whatever. Anyway, here is your moment of Zen.

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