She uses the war metaphor I’m so tired of, and on Remembrance Day, but the rest of her post is so eloquent that I’ll forgive her that, mostly (but come on, they’re demanding fair compensation for their creative work – can’t they get a little more creative with their rhetoric?). But anyway, House writer Doris Egan weighs in with passion on the WGA strike:
Edited to add: Screenwriter John August (Go, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie’s Angels) remains the most clear-headed explanatory voice I’ve heard from the writers side, one of the few who seems to have rejected the Kool-Aid and makes me forget why I sometimes have to remind myself I’m on their side:
Get your ‘writer.’ shirts, hats,
buttons, mugs, and more at:
dirtyword.net
Show your support for the writers!
Are they getting residuals from that? 😉 Not sure I like the idea of someone trying to make a profit off the strike.
Gracias por la nota de August que es perfecta. Creo que es muy inteligente de tu parte que presentes todas las posturas, pero ya me parecía raro que dudaras de tu apoyo a los escritores, justamente vos que siempre nos recordás el papel fundamental que juegan en la calidad de los shows que nos gustan. Los autores suelen ser menospreciados en la industria del cine y la TV y son sin duda uno de sus miembros más esenciales. Más allá de la realización posterior, ellos son quienes crean un buen o mal producto (genealmente en las sombras porque pocos conocen sus nombres y todo su esfuerzo).
Rough translation of Julia:
Thanks for August’s post which is perfect. I think it’s very smart of yu to present all sides, but it still seems weird that you doubt your support of the writers, you who always remind us what goes into the quality of the shows we like. The writers are always underappreciated in the tv and film industry and are without a doubt one of its most essential members. Even more, they are those who create a bood or bad product (usually in the shadows because few know their names and all their efforts).
I don’t think I’m actually showing both sides of the story – the studios wouldn’t think so.I’ve only linked to writer-supportive sites so far, except to point out who the other side is.
I don’t even doubt the writers side, it’s more a case of “I agree with you, but I wish some of you would shut up so I don’t regret that.”
I can be supportive of their goal without being on board with writers who are dismissive of the human cost of the strike. I hate the rhetoric that always comes out in a strike, especially writers positioning themselves as soldiers in a war, when their country is sending actual soldiers to an actual war to die. I hate that dissenting voices are attacked.
I’m also allergic to hyperbole and can’t stand being treated like I’m too stupid to understand the world is not black and white, angels versus devils. Both sides failed – that’s why it came to this, that’s why no one’s back at the negotiation table and are instead engaged in a PR battle. The WGA has some blame in that, too. Not as much as the studios, but no one right now seems to be making much of an effort to get back to negotiations, and without that, there’s no end in sight, and no one should be taking any pride in that.
Tenés toda la razón. Comprendo lo que decís y estoy de acuerdo. Me doy cuenta de que yo hablo desde lejos, sin estar realmente enterada de los detalles del asunto y especialmente sin tener que sufrir el discurso sindical y huelguista que suele enervarme y desagradarme mucho, más allá de que pueda apoyar la causa que los provoca.