The FAIR Conference in Parts: A Failed Documentary

[_Daniel Peterson]

What a fascinating and insightful write-up. I learned things from this that I never would have noticed from my admittedly casual viewing of the documentary.

When Scartch starts puffing something in this fashion, you just know it's bad.

A sound critical principle, I think.

[_Daniel Peterson]

the monetarily compensated senior apologist Bill Hamblin who is currently doing a lucrative side-job in Oxford.

Yes, he's "monetarily compensated" in the sense that he has a job. Don't you?

Other than that, if you can provide actual figures on the money he's earned for apologetic activities during, say, the past five years, I, at least, would be intrigued by them.

And his (now-concluded) "lucrative side-job in Oxford"? A seminar of the National Endowment for the Humanities:

http://www.utc.edu/Outreach/NEHHolyLand/

A Mopologist plot, no doubt.

we on this forum do not understand Dr. Peterson's sense of humor. We just don't get what a great, noble, and nice fellow he is.

Some here may. But my greatness, nobility, and politesse are, truly, quite remarkable. Maybe nobody here but myself has taken their full measure. And sometimes I doubt whether even I have.

So in part 5, he holds a very lengthy interview with Peterson where it is explained that Peterson softens his disdain for other posters by using irony. Where Peterson's brain is thinking "you idiot, you moron," his fingers type irony. So now, when we read ironic statement after ironic statement from Peterson, we are given the legend from Shirts whereby to make the appropriate insulting substitutions. And this is supposed to make us feel better about Peterson, to make us think Peterson is a "nice guy" and misunderstood, where in reality, the only misunderstanding would be that we might have thought Peterson was just being funny, when really all the time he's holding back a slew of personal insults?!

Really, I'm a vicious brute. My cruelty, unscrupulousness, and depravity are genuinely quite frightening. Maybe nobody here but myself has plumbed them to their depths. And sometimes I doubt whether even I have.

[_harmony]

Documentary? What utter tripe.

I think he agrees with you, Jersey. And I'm pretty sure he'd think the rest of the videos are utter tripe also, or at least the vast majority of them.

Since I rarely look at videos (my grandchildren exempted, of course), I can't say either way.

[_Jersey Girl]

Documentary? What utter tripe.

I think he agrees with you, Jersey. And I'm pretty sure he'd think the rest of the videos are utter tripe also, or at least the vast majority of them.

Since I rarely look at videos (my grandchildren exempted, of course), I can't say either way.

Uh, harmony? The video series that he's referring to is akin to a "home video" of a visit to the FAIR Conference, not a "documentary". That'd be the same thing as me labeling your post as a "novel" and criticizing it from that standpoint.

[_harmony]

Uh, harmony? The video series that he's referring to is akin to a "home video" of a visit to the FAIR Conference, not a "documentary". That'd be the same thing as me labeling your post as a "novel" and criticizing it from that standpoint.

I know, Jersey. I think that's what he's getting at... that they are home videos, they look like home videos, they have little if any value outside of the home video concept.

He's being sarcastic and his target is Kerry's videos.

[_Gadianton]

Can you elaborate LoP? What am I doing, and why is it sad?

And what do you spend your thousands of hours on message boards doing that is either so important, or praisworthy?

Because you spend your time tearing down, mocking, etc. I submit you organize your own group and hold a conference. Let us know how it goes. Maybe I'll show up for some of it.

Hmm. I don't think this is a very good objection. I wonder what you, by the way, thought of the "peer review" that your organization, FAIR, gave of "Mr. Meldrum's" well-meant apologetics? I think I have been far more generous here to an "enemy" than your blood-thirsty organization has been to it's own brothers and sisters in the gospel.

I wonder, what kind of grade do you think his documentary would get from a film class at BYU? And why shouldn't Kerry, here, where the reputation of your organization and its "scholars" are at stake, be encouraged to do better?

[_Gadianton]

What a fascinating and insightful write-up. I learned things from this that I never would have noticed from my admittedly casual viewing of the documentary. I am curious, Gad, what you though of that charming interlude/montage which was overlaid with Muzak?

Thank you, Mister Scratch. I was puzzled by the montage, to be perfectly honest. In one respect it shows he had some fleeting aspirations of professionalism. And the first twenty seconds weren't all that bad. Certainly, the ability to go back and pick through the lengthy segments of embarrassed victims of his candid camera and find the gems could have gone a long way to help the overall feel of the first four segments. It's just that it is kind of hanging there, out of place. And it went on far too long.

I think for his next effort he needs to give himself a time limit, say 25 minutes. Then he needs to write down his purpose of the documentary, and what he would like to achieve. And then work on putting it all together with carefully picked cinematic effects and edit out the extraneous material.

There is no shame in editing. Even Hugh Nibley had an editor.

[_Mister Scratch]

Here's a follow-up question:

---We know that Bill Hamblin is amongst the "monetarily compensated" FARMS apologists.
---We know that FARMS has a multi-million dollar budget at its disposal.
---Thus, is it too far a stretch of the imagination to think that FARMS (by way of Bill Hamblin) may have funded this documentary?

[_Jersey Girl]

Here's a follow-up question:

---We know that Bill Hamblin is amongst the "monetarily compensated" FARMS apologists.
---We know that FARMS has a multi-million dollar budget at its disposal.
---Thus, is it too far a stretch of the imagination to think that FARMS (by way of Bill Hamblin) may have funded this documentary?

It's only too far a stretch of the imagination for any clear thinking person who has examined the website.

[_harmony]

---Thus, is it too far a stretch of the imagination to think that FARMS (by way of Bill Hamblin) may have funded this documentary?

ROTFL. Okay, that was funny.