on mediocrity, terrorism and motherhood

Just finished watching "Amadeus" for the first time in lots of years. I think the writing was meh. To me, the most interesting question posed by the movie is "How do you deal with mediocrity when you yearn to be great? How do you deal with your own imperfection in the face of perfection?" The movie only superficially touches on this. To me, the best scene in the movie is the last one, in which Salieri is wheeled through the insane asylum, crying out to all the "mediocre" souls there that he is their patron saint, he is the one who absolves them of the sin of being mediocre.

This is a profound and painful inquiry, and it would have made a much better movie to probe that question more deeply.

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How does it relate to terrorism? Oh- it doesn't, except that I think the Dept of Homeland Security is ridiculously mediocre. I heard on the radio today that the Ports of San Francisco and Oakland received NOTHING from Homeland Security, even both applied for funds. Hmm. It makes me wonder whether we've got to batten down the hatches around here. I'm just saying... I'd love to know what they knew and when they knew it, if you know what I mean.

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And mediocrity and motherhood. What a hot topic. The stupid "mommy wars" are so ridiculous. It's a clever ploy to divide a constituency. (The "mediocrity" angle here is that women who are educated and able are choosing a lesser life when they choose to raise kids.)

If all women came together, those with children and those who are child-free, to demand actual wage equality, it would be a dangerous day for politicians. Instead, they create rifts that conveniently distract people from the true issues of inequality. Squabbling over which goal is more lofty-- to raise the next generation or to rise to the highest positions in political and corporate arenas-- conveniently misses the point, which is that neither will happen with any great success until women are treated equally both in the home AND the workplace.