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spacesuitcatalyst — America.
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Published: 2007-05-20 17:09:59 +0000 UTC; Views: 9353; Favourites: 208; Downloads: 114
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Description
That's America for you.Shot in Morro Bay, California.
Lens: Canon EF 50mm F/1.8 Mk. II
Aperture Priority at f/1.8
Please note that this photo can be read in a variety of ways. If you see it and instantly comment "BUT I LOVE AMERICA DON'T YOU WHY ARE YOU BEING SO UNPATRIOTIC???", you're missing the point on a grand scale.
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Comments: 103
Well i guess anything that has to do with america has been (lately) interpreted in many ways -bad and good-
i guess itz cuz of the economy, oil spills, politics, immigration... etc. all of those PROBLEMS
haha
but i love this either way. great job
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I found the juxtaposition of elements interesting and ironic. What I see in the photograph, personally, is admittedly rather reflective of my personal political stance. All art is subjective, even one's own. My point is (as exemplified by the comments of a few others), is that this photo can be interpreted in a variety of ways.
I see it as sort of a metaphor for America's fall.
Others of a potentially different political ilk may see it as an exemplar of our country's disrespect for our own symbols, or what have you.
And either stance is perfectly okay, with neither being wrong, and neither being right.
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Ah, well said.
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What an amazing shot. The composition itself is wonderful, and the different interpretations that can be drawn from this are myriad.
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I stumbled on this picture and it amazed me. I'm not really sure what it is but I feel it holds a bold statement. I look at it in several ways, such as the ashes could represent the ashes of ones who've died fighting for this country and another way is how it looks like patriotism is being tossed away. (I see that happening once in a while.)
Anyways, just thought I'd throw in my small bit, awesome picture!
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i really know what you mean with the whole outraged commentary thing, it's absurd the amount of assumptions individuals make about an artist.
nevertheless, i like your choice of focus here, not really on the flag and more on the (whatever that shit is) + cigarette butts - i think it kind of points out that our society focuses on too many mediocre issues and not enough valid ones to weigh out the difference leaving the poor flag in the background neglected and alone hah :3 just my take.
really well done, thanks for sharing!
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Can I make an ink drawing of this for the AP test?
I want to highlight aspects of America, good AND bad.
btw, this makes me depressed... D:
I still love my country though...
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It's a flag.
I find the idea of showing such great respect (which many of us don't even seem to show to even our own brethren) to an inanimate piece of fabric oddly archaic.
Like praying to rocks or doing rain dances.
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Woo! Thanks!
Tux ftw, by the way. Assuming that IS Tux there in your avatar..
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Lol I made that penguin myself, you can call it tux or not
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I love this photo (:
111'st favourite btw
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EXCUSE ME?!!
IF YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT AMERICA IS, then GET OUT OF MY COUNTRY!
There might be a little greed in the upper ranks, BUT YOU DON'T SEE PEOPLE SNEAKING ACROSS THE BORDER INTO FRANCE!!!
America is a great country, the greatest, most peaceful country ever to show it's face on the planet, and I wouldn't change a thing about it!
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"America is a great country, the greatest, most peaceful country ever to show it's face on the planet"
...you're kidding, right?
We're hardly the most peaceful. We stole 1/2 our lands from the Indians, brutally. Much of it from Mexico, via good ol' fashioned American trickery. We regularly invade other countries under false pretexts (case in point: 'fighting terrorism' or 'spreading freedom'. Mirrors Imperialistic tendencies).
Not to mention we have a habit of fucking our environment over and taking copious advantages of sweat shop labor, etc. etc.
But hey, the sneakers are cheaper, right?
If you want a peaceful country, take a look at Switzerland. They're perfectly neutral. Never been to war. That's what I'd call peaceful. Or even Iceland.
For a country that is, according to you, the most peaceful, I find it strange that we have the second largest standing military in the world (second only to China), and THE largest military budget (more than 4 times, I believe, that of our nearest competitor, again, China).
Look, I love my country. Or rather, I should say, I love the ideas and principles that my country was founded on. Problem is, we've strayed so far from that now, that I have trouble loving what my country has become.
Sure, we're not the worst. But that's no defense.
In my opinion, I'm actually MORE patriotic then the one who waves a flag and blindly pledges allegiance. Why? Because I want my country to be the absolute best it can be, not some deplorable caricature of an experiment gone wrong.
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HA HA HA!
YOU'RE kidding, right?!
*loading automatic de-brainwashing module*
Of course! You know what, you are absolutely correct in everything you just said.
But (there's always a 'but' to something) it's the DETAILS you have wrong.
Let's start from the top, shall we?
Before I begin, I want you to know that I am in no ways arguing with you, and I hope that we can carry on a civilized conversation.
Yes, we stole a LEETLE bit from the Indians, but if they wanted it so bad, WHY AREN'T THEY DEMANDING BACK, huh?And, they fought against us in the French and Indian war. They made their bed when they thought they could defeat us.
Before I continue, I want you to know that I am a Christian, and Christ is my ultimate goal. I will worship Him no matter what country I am in, because He is the Lord of my life, and the very center of all my affections. I agree with you that America has become something she shouldn't be, and I propose we fix her, STARTING WITH BRINGING PRAYER BACK INTO THE SCHOOLS!
I won't even go into the fact that global warming is bullcrap. We'll skip that.
Oh, and the reason we have such a large defense budget is because of people LIKE CHINA AND RUSSIA AND NORTH KOREA ATTEMPTING TO BLOW US UP!
And Switzerland... well, to tell you the truth, I love Switzerland too. They are very peaceful, and what few they have, BOY, DO THEY HAVE SOME COOL FIGHTER JETS! But they are very, VERY secular! It would be difficult worshiping my Lord and Savior in such an environment!
Please respond to this. I very much like listening to other peoples opinions and sharing mine with others.
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If by a little bit you mean everything west of the original eastern colonies, than sure.
They have demanded it back. Several times. Still are. Open any basic high school history textbook, and you'll find that it is ridden with tales of Native Americans attempting to find equality and regain their lands, but being perpetually screwed over by the government. "Manifest Destiny" we called it. It was our duty. Our right. And besides, who cares about the Indians anyways? Those uncivilized ruffians...
I respect your status as a Christian, but I fail to see what bringing prayer into schools will fix. Prayer was never mandated in schools. We solved this problem back in 1962, with the Supreme Court's ruling in Engel v. Vitale.
Also, it would do you due note to look into the religious views of our founding fathers. It is a fact that nearly all of them vehemently were against the integration of church and state, and many did not even consider themselves Christians. Thomas Jefferson once rewrote the bible, leaving only the philosophy and teachings behind whilst eliminating any reference to worship or prejudice. In fact, the words "One nation, under god" were not added to the Pledge of Allegiance (which, by the way, was not even penned until the early 1900's, and in its original form consisted of only a couplet) until the 1950's, much at the behest of the Catholic church. This was during the time in which the 'Red Fear' was at its height, and the church's justification for their additions was to '
As for global warming, there is an overwhelming scientific consensus that our earth's temperature is being effected by human activity. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, American Assc. for the Advancement of Science, the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, and many others all agree on this. No dissenting scientific opinion has been offered since 2007 (although noncommittal positions have been taken). Long story short - does our planet move in patterns of climate change? Yes. But the fact is, our activity is rapidly accelerating this change, at a rate that is unnecessary and dangerous. You can not argue (logically) against the fact that CO2 and other gases, emitted in capacities far beyond anything natural by our own activity, is burning a hole in our ozone. You can not argue that this does not contribute to global temperature change. It's simple science.
Yes, I addressed our defense budget and the possibility of that rationale, if you didn't notice. Therefore I'm not going to go into it again.
Are they secular? Yes, overwhelming so. But would that constrict your ability to worship the God of your choosing? Absolutely not. There is no law, and no prevailing social prejudice, to back up that point. Just because a country has a stance that is relatively lacking in religion does not mean it is ANTI-religion. Distinctions are important here.
I'm an Agnostic Atheist. I've studied varying religions. Christianity. Hinduism. Buddhism. I grew up with a Christian mother and an Atheist father. I've always had the right to choose. I've read the bible. And I absolutely respect your faith and the faith of any others. However, it is my strong belief that this faith, or any other religious faith, has no place in government. Etymologically AND logically, Faith stands in direct opposition to Logic. They are to be kept seperate.
People co-opt religion for their own uses continuously and shamelessly, and the sad thing is people buy it. Whether it be Islam in the Middle East or Christianity here in America. Wars have been justified. Hatred. Prejudice. Progress has been stifled. But not just by the perhaps reasonable philosophical letter of a particular religious law (That shalt not murder... that seems pretty logical to me), but moreso by people's prejudices. The problem is, people spread their prejudice and hate, and when they are questioned, they throw up a holy book in defense. If they really cared that much about respecting their religion, then Shrimp Cocktails would be outlawed in America right now, not just gay marriage. But that's another issue.
If you wish to continue this debate, please do so by noting me here on DA. Thank you.
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I am from Britain, and it certainly seems quite a lot of the people are great, but the way the rebeblicans have lead your country's image has not done it any favours sadly
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*Applause*
Thank you. That made half my night.
Brilliant.
Great capture, too.
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I'd like to take some time here, in the tradition of good ol' fashioned debate and intellectual discussion, to partially negate one of my own points.
"[...]we have the second largest standing military in the world (second only to China), and THE largest military budget (more than 4 times, I believe, that of our nearest competitor, again, China)."
Okay, so, maybe this is partially understandable. We're a big country. One of the richest (although that fact is now thrown into question). We need our defenses. Problem is, it's not a matter of defense. It seems our military has become more of a weapon of offense.
My father is retired from the Air Force, let me get this straight - I have nothing against the brave soldiers who put their lives on the line. What I do have something against is how they are utilized.
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God bless us...and God help us. Other countries think we have it so great, but I think in the decades to come thier gonna realize how far we have fallen since the days of our founding fathers.
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Goodness, this is brilliant. I adore your concept. It's profoundly disturbing and, sadly enough, true.
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i have to agree with this actually lol
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Sweetie WE ARE THE BEST!!! Why do you think so many people die trying to come here?? Why do people sail 90 miles on a raft to come here?? Sweetie i think there is something wrong with you O.O Your face is on the ashes! Thats people like you!! Blind!
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Unfortunately its' the perfect representation of the America now. However my compliments, it's a great photo.
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Great colours, controversial... I love it.
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great shot, great concept, great placement, excellent excecution.
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This somewhat reminds me of Corporate America ([link] )
Who can stop de-evolution of the human race?
Look at you, Corporate America, you're in disgrace
Globalize; cigarettes, business jets, you love it
Maximize; but you can take your bottom line and shove it.
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Wow, I love this piece 
Favorite'd.
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damn the colors!
nice edit, nice concept by the way!
faved!
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i want your lens
god i hate being broke lol
now this is where the intense colours really work
nice dark image
nice dark feeling
yeeeeeah
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More than anything for me, the flag could not be positioned more perfectly. While most ashtrays are dirty, this one is just deplorable. Kudos.
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Stunning tones and the f stop of 1.8 looks great. The simple made interesting!
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thats awsome.
did you edit it??
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*bows*
You are king of the 400D.
Living for this concept. You are a brave one Sir.
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