Striving for Authenticity?

A weird complaint I’ve seen lobbed at entertainment involves accuracy. Whether it’s a drama not being true to life, or a period piece not capturing the essence of that time, “accuracy” as a complaint goes both ways. On one hand, a story should enhance the believability of the worldbuilding. On the other hand, suspension of disbelief is also necessary. It’s a tricky balancing act, but sometimes the former has to go for the latter to truly work.

Medical dramas are a dime a dozen. Be it The Good Doctor or ER, stories about healthcare are more investing and suspenseful than I’ll admit. In some cases, they’re the most-intense forms of genre storytelling. They have clearly-defined stakes, they have tension and suspense, and there are consequences for failure. It’s a perfect recipe for dramatic storytelling.

That said, rules have to be bent. The one that comes to mind is defibrillation, or using AEDs. AED scenes play out the same way: the patient goes into cardiac arrest, and the person using the AED yells at everyone to stand clear while zapping the person back to life. It’s tense and exciting, but it’s not true to life. And this is for a few reasons:

Firstly, AEDs, at least modern ones, are electronic. Having taken First Aid courses before, I can attest that they guide you with voice prompts. Said voice helps the user even if they don’t know how to use the AED. It’ll also tell you which part of the procedure you’re on. You don’t see this in medical dramas, because it’s not exciting. It’s actually monotonous and boring.

Secondly, AEDs, contrary to TV and in film, are a last resort. If you can stimulate a pulse on your own, you should do so. The AED is only for if your hands and breathing don’t bring victims back to life, which happens because it’s exhausting. Again, you wouldn’t see this in medical drama because it’s not exciting. It also wastes time.

And thirdly, AEDs don’t jolt the victim awake. They do it subtly. I can’t explain how, since I’m no expert in human anatomy, but that “jolt” isn’t so dramatic in reality. You need to stand clear, true, but unless you hear the beeping noise, you wouldn’t know the person’s heart was jolted. Once again, entertainment skips this because, you guessed it, it’s not exciting. You see the pattern?

Here's another example of a trope that doesn’t happen in real life: exploding gas tanks. Gas tanks blowing up when shot at are so prevalent in media that 21 Jump Street threw shade at the trope. In reality, a metal tank filled with propane won’t simply blow up from a bullet. It might dent the outer layer, or start leaking, but it won’t explode. That’d require circumstances that not only can’t be met with bullets, but also are also too complicated to explain plainly.

None of that matters in entertainment, though. Not only do exploding tanks look cool, they can lead to great dramatic effect. There’ve been so many great moments stemming from exploding tanks. Even video games, particularly first-person shooters, understand that! Essentially, I don’t think applying realism here is so great. (Unless you’re 21 Jump Street.)

One more example: period pieces. Whether it be past or future, period pieces routinely get crapped on for not being authentic. A recent example is Gladiator II, which was criticized for not portraying ancient Rome properly. Ignoring how the only way to do that would be to time travel, since no one currently alive lived then, so what? Not only do we learn more about the past each day, contradicting what we previously knew, but there’ll always be gaps due to relics not always surviving. Besides, it’s not always interesting to be period-accurate, especially when you want to entertain people!

If your story takes place in a science-fantasy world, like Star Wars, you’re already bending the rules of plausibility. So what if spaceships move too quickly? And so what if the speed of light can’t be surpassed? It’s not real! You’re already breaking reality, so why not break the law of physics?

I find people get way too picky about “realism” in fantasy. Never mind the coded-bigotry that tags along, complete authenticity defeats the point of entertainment. Because, again, it’s not real! If you want “real”, read a history book, or watch a documentary. Don’t go expecting it in entertainment, which gets exaggerated for effect. Be smarter than that.

I’ll end with a personal anecdote. Remember Jurassic Park? Great movie, though a little hokey. It’s also the best dinosaur movie to-date, and the only entry in its franchise that’s actually great. However, it cheats a lot for the sake of emotional investment. Perhaps the best example’s when Lex “hacks” the park’s mainframe computer. As any professional hacker knows, Lex’s hacking isn’t authentic. But it doesn’t matter, because it’s suspenseful.

Besides, it’s Jurassic Park! The entire premise doesn’t make sense, but it doesn’t have to because it’s a cautionary tale about playing God. If your movie already has giant, CGI dinosaurs roaming around with real humans, I think accuracy becomes a moot point. In other words, shut up and enjoy the experience. And stop being overly-critical of fiction, especially when it’s already quality escapism!

Trump's Project 2025

It’s been rather rough this week. On Tuesday night, I spent the evening watching the American election results in real time. Despite not anticipating a knock-out, I was getting increasingly frustrated. By 2:00 in the morning, when I went to bed, I was a mess. Considering I barely slept that night, as well as hearing the results the next morning, I was a zombie Wednesday. Essentially, it sucked.

But I won’t talk about my emotional state. Not only is it unproductive, it’s also not helpful. Instead, I’d like to discuss something mentioned during the 2024 election cycle, as well as how it could impact, in the best-case scenario, the next four years. That’s right, it’s Project 2025. You heard that correctly.

What’s Project 2025? It’s a roughly 900-920 page book detailing an outline for a Trump presidency and beyond. I say “beyond” because Trump won’t be alive indefinitely. His health is deteriorating, and it’s clear he’s not well. Project 2025, therefore, has taken into account not only Trump, for whom most of it was written, but also a successor to his presidency.

Project 2025, written by The Heritage Foundation, discusses its future for The United States of America. Among the exhaustive list are budget cuts for The EPA, The DoE and other institutions it deems “too progressive”. It also aims to restrict abortion rights federally, as well as outlaw gay marriage and deport “undesirables”. More-specifically, it plans to make all government officials, even justices, strictly loyal to the president. In other words, Project 2025’s an outline for a conservative, Christian theocracy in The US, and a permanent one.

Now, I’m not the foremost expert on this. I’ve read bits and pieces, but my patience and tolerance level for the full report is limited. That said, it’s available online, for free, on The Heritage Foundation’s website. Also, there are many, far more learned individuals who’ve discussed it in greater detail. Besides, I don’t want to bore you.

When I first heard about Project 2025, I went to see what the hubbub was about. It made me ill. Even so, what bugged me more was how little it was talked about. Not many people, voters included, knew what it was, despite being bragged about by its supporters. Was it because Trump frequently kept trying to distance himself, even though he was friends with members of The Heritage Foundation? Why the ignorance?

Perhaps Americans were uninterested in discussing it. More-specifically, American media wasn’t discussing it, deconstructing its wording. The only public mentions were at debates, or rallies. Democratic rallies, too. So yeah, not enough enthusiasm.

But that makes it more of an issue, since this’ll be the outline for Trump’s second term. Many people were unimpressed the first time, but he was heavily restricted too. He did plenty of damage, but he couldn’t do more because officials wouldn’t let him. This time, however, he’ll have fewer guardrails. And if Project 2025 passes, the remaining ones will disappear.

I know some of you are skeptical; after all, wouldn’t The Supreme Court block this? To that end, remember that SCOTUS is currently 6-3 in favour of Republicans. Three of the justices-Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney-Barrett-were appointed by Trump himself, while two others-Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito-lean heavily in-favour of Trump. This leaves the remaining, conservative voice, Chief Justice John Roberts, a question mark, made less-so by him siding with conservatives on several key rulings.

Remember that the current bench, made up of lifetime appointments, overturned Roe V Wade in 2022 with a 6-3 ruling. Roe V Wade, as many feminist advocates attest, allowed abortion access federally. When the Dobbs ruling came into effect, despite Trump’s appointees promising prior that abortion access wouldn’t be impacted, that was repealed. Since then, abortion’s become contested, and now that Project 2025’s a foreseeable reality that won’t change.

Outside of that, SCOTUS is the highest court in The US. Their rulings are the law of the land. Also, save impeachment, they currently can’t be forcibly-removed. Even if they accept bribes or break the law, they’re immune from prosecution. So who’s to stop them from letting Project 2025 pass, especially when at least five of the nine justices are partial to Trump?

Basically, I don’t consider that a compelling argument against implementing this doctrine. Even if it gets blocked, Trump’s base is dangerous and influential. Who’s to say they wouldn’t coerce SCOTUS into turning a blind eye? And who’s the say Trump wouldn’t remove dissenters and replace them with loyalists? Nothing’s out of the question.

It’s worth understanding the real stakes at play. I know Trump has fans, otherwise he wouldn’t have been voted in again, but much of this doctrine is widely-unpopular. Stuff like defunding PBS, banning football and restricting access to porn are real platforms, and that’s the tip of the iceberg. Even DEI, which is misunderstood anyway, is on the chopping block, making it harder for minorities in The US to get anywhere! How’s that even remotely worth voting Trump over anxiety and inflation, two issues I doubt he can fix?

I should reference a meme here about “The Leopards Eating Faces Party”. The punchline’s that people only support that party until it eats their faces. That’s what Project 2025 is. It’s going to impact you even if you think otherwise. And that should alarm Americans.

I know I’m Canadian, hence this won’t impact me directly. But that doesn’t mean it won’t have ripple effects. American elections always do. It’s a consequence of living near a major superpower. It’s also important that I be informed should I visit The US again.

It also impacts me as a Jew. Remember Gaza? Remember how people couldn’t “shut up” about it? With Trump in power, it’ll continue, but get more contentious. If you want proof, look up recent developments since the election.

It’s hard to be told that Trump suckered you again. I know inflation’s a big concern, and that many people want to afford to live. But Trump isn’t the answer. He’s definitely not the answer if it means Project 2025 dictating the next few years. Because however bad I’ve made it sound, it’s worse. Besides, I’ve barely scratched the surface!

And to those who stayed out of the election cycle willingly? Shame on you. I know it feels like politicians don’t listen to you, and that’s valid, but it doesn’t excuse inaction. Because while voting might seem tedious and annoying, it’s necessary to fix problems. It’s not all that matters long-term, but it’s a start. It’s time more people remembered that.

This is giving me immense anxiety. But remember, Project 2025’s a threat to everyone, and it’ll be one for the foreseeable future. That really shouldn’t be taken lightly, no matter your political leanings!