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California, land of paradox, manufactured celebrity, and the Left Coast of American intellectual hubris, is a land governed by strict vehicle emission regulations. I am always puzzled by California's pride in its clean air regulations. Should a state be proud of regulations that produce "Bad Air" days for one third of the year in L.A.? I hear that they now intend to regulate wood burning and barbecue grills.
Has anyone investigated the emissions produced in the name of Special Effects? Nearly every explosion you see in action genre cinema today is filmed in the real world and "enhanced" with gasoline and other accelerants. While this is exciting, is it really necessary? And what is the cost? I imagine that burning a cupful of gasoline in a special effects explosion produces incomplete combustion and a plethora of emissions, especially when combined with the other materials being burned. And what about the explosive materials? And the firearms?
It is illegal in many places to burn trash, because of the toxins produced by burning synthetics like plastics. A car, one of the most likely props to be burned, contains an incredible array of synthetics, even when stripped of usable parts. Must every car that crashes through a guardrail in a movie explode? Why has fantasy replaced reality in the special effects world, even while purportedly depicting real events?
Firearms in the movies are often completely unreal, too. Just carrying the amount of ammunition I see used in "routine" Hollywood shootouts requires use of a handcart, and in toto per action film, probably requires a good size truck. But the heroes and villians fire thousands of rounds with nary a nod to where the heck it all comes from. I'm surprised that California with its strict gun laws, does not have similar firearms emissions laws. They probably do have them for firing ranges, but I don't think all special effects are filmed on firing ranges.
Hollywood enhancements may be a significant contributor to L.A.'s Bad Air and should be investigated. While population control is the only way to truly reduce humanity's emissions, until we come to grips with that, I suggest that a return to reality in Hollywood when depicting reality might be a good starting point for a return to sanity in the body politic, a return to vérité.
Has anyone investigated the emissions produced in the name of Special Effects? Nearly every explosion you see in action genre cinema today is filmed in the real world and "enhanced" with gasoline and other accelerants. While this is exciting, is it really necessary? And what is the cost? I imagine that burning a cupful of gasoline in a special effects explosion produces incomplete combustion and a plethora of emissions, especially when combined with the other materials being burned. And what about the explosive materials? And the firearms?
It is illegal in many places to burn trash, because of the toxins produced by burning synthetics like plastics. A car, one of the most likely props to be burned, contains an incredible array of synthetics, even when stripped of usable parts. Must every car that crashes through a guardrail in a movie explode? Why has fantasy replaced reality in the special effects world, even while purportedly depicting real events?
Firearms in the movies are often completely unreal, too. Just carrying the amount of ammunition I see used in "routine" Hollywood shootouts requires use of a handcart, and in toto per action film, probably requires a good size truck. But the heroes and villians fire thousands of rounds with nary a nod to where the heck it all comes from. I'm surprised that California with its strict gun laws, does not have similar firearms emissions laws. They probably do have them for firing ranges, but I don't think all special effects are filmed on firing ranges.
Hollywood enhancements may be a significant contributor to L.A.'s Bad Air and should be investigated. While population control is the only way to truly reduce humanity's emissions, until we come to grips with that, I suggest that a return to reality in Hollywood when depicting reality might be a good starting point for a return to sanity in the body politic, a return to vérité.
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