Most recent public comments by Logan Dandridge https://nowcomment.com/users/19022 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506014 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506014 This reminds me of when House of Cards first came out, it right in the middle of a local election in Virginia. Watching a political charged show during a time of heightened political attention is an amazing complement. I think this is an interesting commentary on how media can impact the relevance of a topic and vice versa. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 09:46:40 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506012 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506012 "However, we would be a much more informed society if we we’re able to make these structural and racial connections at a much earlier age." I think it would be generally difficult to qualify how much individual knowledge about historical racial subjection would affect society. Perhaps on the part of African American students there perception of their reality would be more progressive due to an increased awareness. However, society as a whole, especially the majority, would have to have a more invested interest in that same historical context. I don't think one can happen without the other. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 09:43:58 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506007 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=506007 In this excerpt is the argument only opposing segregation due to a unwavering measure of racial divergence? Or is the subject an inherent assumption of inferiority on the part of all slaves? And it's this feeling that drives the two races apart. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 09:37:13 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505993 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505993 It's become clear to me that regardless of how race and class are said to be understood in a general context they're undeniably integral in basically every element of social,political, and economic American life. In my opinion the justification of a result matters very little when the outcome isn't dependent on that justification being accepted, or even it's truth. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 09:31:11 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487030 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487030 I think the cultural representation of violence is often driven by the initial reaction and not the results. Living in a "street smart" society may appear effective for some characters in the Wire, but in the end who really gets out. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:28:49 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487029 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487029 I'm not sure if the goal is to win the war. If we are maintaining the idea that drug and street related crime, which involve gang violence, is a problem that has an explicit solution than yes - win the war. But I don't think it does. If so, we would've been closer to finding it by no I would hope. Until they are all legalizes, which I don't see happening in the near future, this will be an integral fixture of society. And a problem which i don't think you can necessarily eradicate. As such, the police should respond accordingly. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:26:27 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487025 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487025 Is this something that anyone is surprised about? I in particular understand that there is a fundamental difference in the way crimes are perceived, reported, and handled by the police and news outlets. Race and class are more factors of what gets coverage and what doesn't than the actual facts of the case. I'm not surprised at all by this comment. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:23:47 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487021 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=487021 I'm wondering how exactly police departments maintain focus on daily objectives within the department while dealing with these external forces. In the Wire we see a myriad of complicated, often highly political, issues within the department. Either, a police chief is getting the axe, or someone new is shaking things up. Stability seems to be an issue, and this must be problem in a line of work which deals with law and order. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:18:55 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486992 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486992 Dealing with depression is difficult enough. But within certain communities there is a heavy stigma around getting treatment for your problems. The issue is complicated when a families financial situation won't provide enough money to cover treatment. Cases that go untreated, end poorly. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:12:38 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486984 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486984 Generally speaking I think more accountability must reside with the parents to take an active role in raising there children properly. And that doesn't mean setting a curfew and making sure they're home on time, god knows what they did from morning till dawn. Active parenting is a duty. If you're unsure of your child's whereabouts, or whether or not he'd been arrested, you're failing. And to think these children can succeed in the classroom with no discipline or work ethic puts to much pressure on the teachers. It's their job to instruct, not to babysit. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:07:35 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486978 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486978 I think this scene is interesting, but unrealistic. I find it hard to believe that a hardened murderer would let his son be adopted by anyone formerly associated with the police. I understand how the Wire humanizes Weebay with his fish, I think this helps haze our judgement. Already, we see Weebay as a human being, and can therefore believe he would let his child live with the former police chief. Bunny made a compelling case, but I think this is a product of the narrative of the Wire. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:03:32 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486973 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=486973 Economic stability is another grey area that I think affects these topics. There a plenty of families living below the poverty line whose standard of living could be reliant on illegal activity. Now, not saying illegality in any form is alright, but like in Baltimore during this time, drugs kept a lot of people afloat. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 09:55:07 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486971 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486971 If just justification for selling crack is "to sustain a way of life" is there any use in attempting to curve the actions of drug dealers and criminals? For instance, in there perspective crime isn't crime, it's a job. So, what could be offered to someone who doesn't recognize wrongdoing? Thu, 03 Mar 2016 09:49:48 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486969 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486969 Is there a fundamental difference between the good man and the nothin'if the result of a "good" man who still sleeps around and hurts his partner is a scared woman who chalks up his actions to "how men are"? I think female independence is something that the Wire rarely touches on. While there are single mothers in the series, they are mostly portrayed as dependent on the men in there life, whatever capacity those men may be in. For Mrs. Brice, she acts tough at home, yet has to listen to the final word of her incarcerated husband. Beedie thinks she can fix McNulty, but his actions only make the audience feel sorry for Beedie for wasting her time. She thinks he is a "good man" but she ends up hurt in the end. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 09:46:36 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486967 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486967 i think with the treatment of this issue you have to think about it in context. What gangster/mob movie has generally strong or particularly engaging female characters? American Gangster, Goodfellas, Scarface, The Godfather - all rarely focus on the influence of the female voice. I understand that The Wire is operating at a more expansive level by reflecting the institutions in Baltimore, but "the game" is the central theme. The Wire fits into a genre, where female characters aren't spotlighted. I think you have to understand the topic in reference to the genre. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 09:41:51 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486966 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=486966 I guess I'm just having a hard time deciphering between the nuances of street values within the "corner boys" when there morality isn't predicated on their peers, but in the environment they live. Thu, 03 Mar 2016 09:38:00 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455319 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455319 What of Simon's mindset at the time was potentially damming to the life of his pilot? Would someone with an unbiased voice in the journalism done it differently? Additionally, does impartiality affect the result of a topic when the generally consensus is clear. Wed, 03 Feb 2016 12:18:04 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455290 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455290 I personally find dramas more engaging when their depiction of the world is as authentic as possible. The city that The Wire is set in is not like any city in the world. It's a unique place. As such, Simon slowly and meticulously shows the inner workings of the most prominent institutions within the Baltimore area. He captures the language, clothing, housing, and food. And with all of this material he blends in powerful pointed commentary on real events through dramatized fiction which isn't all that dramatized at all. The result is what some would consider a "sad" or otherwise pessimistic show. "Bleak" is the word Bowden uses. Yet, I find something strangely uplifting in watching the life operate from bottom to top. You have to see the entire scope of the game to find your place in it. Wed, 03 Feb 2016 12:12:52 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455262 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455262 Creating characters with depth is something Simon and his team of writers have mastered. I think traversing a narrative structure that isn't dependent on each season, but is depicted like a novel, is difficult. Maintaining interest from season to season with characters who come in and out seems like an insurmountable task for any current drama. Wed, 03 Feb 2016 12:04:32 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455205 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=455205 This may be banal, but I think just generally speaking - reporting that opposed contemporary systems can have the biggest impact by simply writing about the reality in a concise, transparent manner. Some of my favorite writers produce content that is often against the norm. Simon went into the field and collected ethnographical source material. The Wire is his evidence. It's his visual way of introducing and supporting his claims about race, class, the justice system, etc. But most of this can be done traditional journalism. Ta-Nehisi Coates writes for the Atlantic. His essay "The Case for Reparations," introduced controversial issues, mainly the implications of slavery on 21st. century American race relations. There is passion and eloquence in his writing, and that's what I think people connect with the most. Wed, 03 Feb 2016 11:59:55 -0500