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Re: A rebuttal! For the points I disagree with, anyway. Cannoli Send a noteboard - 21/12/2009 08:48:55 PM

First, the "bomb from orbit." Why in the world would a transport ship have weapons capabilities? Our space shuttles certainly don't. Maybe this would have been feasible and maybe not, but I don't think it requires much suspension of disbelief to assume "not." And furthermore, it was stated that "a select few humans were allowed to stay." Maybe this means only good guys. Or maybe it includes ten or twenty hostages. Bomb us (just for money, mind you, you're in no danger up there) and you kill your commanders.


Bombing from orbit doesn't require that much in the way of weaponry. Recall the movies "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon" and their "chunk of rock from space being exponentially worse than nukes" scenarios. That is the principle behind kinetic energy weapons. You just toss a piece of sufficiently massive matter out the door and if you aim right, you get the same effect as a nuclear weapon. This is not something I made up - it is a common idea in science fiction, called "kinetic energy weapons." And hostages? Really? You think the big profit-hungry corporation is going to let THAT stop them? A KEW strike wouldn't leave enough bits for forensics to contest their assertion that the natives whacked the hostages anyway. And anyway, I am pretty sure it means good guys. The camera showed the fat black guy and the scrawny nerd when it said that, and it showed the corporate boss guy being led off in the line of those being kicked out. So, not hostages.

One few final notes
- The "ridiculously exposed rotors" are less exposed than helicopter rotors which have been used in combat against foes far more technically advanced than the Pandorans for over fifty years.

- Your counter-argument against humans being the underdogs seems to be that humans are just so badass that severe numerical, environmental and physiological handicaps are insufficient to overcome their awesome toughness!

- Your arguments about the capabilities of the corporation to come back again are a little strange. You talk about the prohibitive expense of sending the expedition as if it could be reasonably expected to bankrupt the company, but at the same time seem to think that space travel is so common as to enable companies to blithely send out mining expeditions on other planets without government approval and open assistance! Any company with the wealth to invest in interplanetary mining ventures, genetically engineer avatars & patronize useless scientists on the off-chance they might come up with something interesting, is going to have significant investments in government. If they really are operating on a shoestring, with all of these prohinitively expensive investments being underfinanced gambles hoping for a big return to pay for them, then there must be other, more wealthy and powerful companies capable of learning from the mistakes and going in full bore. If the company is the most wealthy and dominant company in the world, this loss could not have undone them - they have the ability to make so much more money from the technology they demonstrate that this one expedition cannot possibly be their sole or primary hope of income.
- If they can engineer Pandoran life-forms so as to create avatars capable of interacting biologically with the natural ones, how long do you think it would take them to whip up so bioweapons capable of taking care of all those naked savages without risking a single infantryman?
Cannoli
"Sometimes unhinged, sometimes unfair, always entertaining"
- The Crownless

“Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.” GK Chesteron
Deus Vult!
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"Avatar" discussion thread - 17/12/2009 08:10:04 AM 2402 Views
Innovative world-building sci-fi, dull cliched story - 17/12/2009 01:13:47 PM 1086 Views
Agreed for the most part... - 17/12/2009 11:05:27 PM 1064 Views
Doesn't that last paragraph describe Star Wars? *NM* - 18/12/2009 03:33:58 AM 567 Views
*snorts* *NM* - 18/12/2009 09:03:05 AM 447 Views
Re: Doesn't that last paragraph describe Star Wars? - 18/12/2009 09:49:23 AM 1004 Views
Star Wars had many things. Good characters was not one of them. *NM* - 18/12/2009 09:06:18 PM 459 Views
Re: Star Wars had many things. Good characters was not one of them. - 19/12/2009 02:57:43 AM 972 Views
Avatar is basically Return of the Jedi, at least the part on Endor. But less militarily plausible - 19/12/2009 02:22:35 AM 1202 Views
Watch the movie again. - 19/12/2009 03:08:05 AM 1215 Views
It's a watered-down Dune. *NM* - 21/12/2009 08:41:39 AM 664 Views
What struck me the most about this movie... - 22/12/2009 01:25:00 AM 1020 Views
Predictable with a tired & preachy plot. (spoilers) Also, the ending was completely ludicrous. - 19/12/2009 03:02:21 AM 1467 Views
You need help *NM* - 19/12/2009 07:33:52 AM 696 Views
A rebuttal! For the points I disagree with, anyway. - 20/12/2009 05:07:59 AM 1035 Views
Re: A rebuttal! For the points I disagree with, anyway. - 21/12/2009 08:48:55 PM 1121 Views
It would help if you'd leave my quotes by the arguments, but whatever. - 22/12/2009 10:36:42 AM 1017 Views
Heh... - 29/12/2009 11:01:41 PM 962 Views
wow, you really do need help - 21/12/2009 07:23:12 AM 1234 Views
If the bad guy has all the stones and still loses, how heroic were the heroes? - 21/12/2009 08:53:00 PM 1057 Views
Wow...you're serious? Really?? - 22/12/2009 04:56:20 PM 977 Views
lol - 22/12/2009 04:59:47 PM 937 Views
That's uncalled for IMO - 25/12/2009 09:04:01 PM 1147 Views
I am pretty sure she refered to the fact that he sheered for the bad guys and wished the Na'vi ill. - 25/12/2009 09:19:32 PM 1000 Views
He didn't cheer for them - 26/12/2009 01:05:40 AM 974 Views
...an attitude I always found a bit worrisome, too *NM* - 26/12/2009 11:48:40 AM 567 Views
I tend to agree - 21/12/2009 03:23:54 PM 945 Views
I thought the same things, but... - 25/12/2009 08:29:09 PM 956 Views
A fun time. Predictable, but not in a bad way. Minor Spoilers. - 19/12/2009 03:05:19 AM 954 Views
you said Fern Gully ^_^ - 19/12/2009 09:01:58 PM 987 Views
Spectacular - 19/12/2009 02:54:53 PM 1043 Views
A wonder of a movie experience *minor spoilers* - 19/12/2009 08:47:06 PM 1078 Views
Very good and fun, but not world-shattering. - 19/12/2009 11:19:26 PM 1266 Views
Has anyone seen this in 3D and not enjoyed it?? - 20/12/2009 06:11:52 PM 1083 Views
Cannoli, presumably. *NM* - 20/12/2009 10:41:48 PM 667 Views
Sure make fun of the visually impaired, asshole. - 21/12/2009 08:57:33 PM 1038 Views
Yeah, that's totally what I was doing. - 21/12/2009 11:59:26 PM 1086 Views
Do you buy them from antique shops? *NM* - 22/12/2009 01:10:12 AM 627 Views
Does this include the new 3D? - 22/12/2009 01:17:07 AM 1167 Views
same here - 22/12/2009 02:59:32 PM 876 Views
I'm tempted to make a joke about the depth of your posts. *NM* - 22/12/2009 04:31:04 AM 470 Views
is that what we are calling tunnel vision these days? *NM* - 24/12/2009 07:04:08 PM 580 Views
Dammit! So much better than mine. *NM* - 26/12/2009 05:19:19 AM 526 Views
Saw it with my family. - 20/12/2009 09:10:56 PM 922 Views
Sci-fi Pocahontas - 21/12/2009 01:12:02 AM 1061 Views
My friend and I spent the whole movie - 07/01/2010 12:50:56 AM 906 Views
Oh so you're the kind of movie-goer in the seat behind me... - 07/01/2010 11:20:56 AM 869 Views
No way! - 07/01/2010 03:48:48 PM 798 Views
that you mock at all is incredibly disrespectful - 07/01/2010 05:31:55 PM 986 Views
You're overreacting. - 07/01/2010 06:20:06 PM 946 Views
You said you do it quietly - 07/01/2010 08:18:07 PM 954 Views
Fair enough, fair enough. *NM* - 07/01/2010 08:57:23 PM 595 Views
Except maybe the purist who really needs to be kept in a total sensory deprivation chamber. *NM* - 08/01/2010 10:51:58 PM 492 Views
Nothing's more satisfying that seeing and hearing the crowd around you react like you do - 09/01/2010 01:36:36 PM 865 Views
*NM* - 09/01/2010 03:59:28 PM 539 Views
You should never watch a movie with me. - 10/01/2010 01:23:30 AM 937 Views
There's a gentlebot to see you, says his name is Tom Servo. - 08/01/2010 03:59:34 AM 958 Views
3D IMAX is worth the extra money... - 21/12/2009 08:40:57 AM 1016 Views
The only thing I am upset about - 21/12/2009 09:38:17 AM 1197 Views
Oh yeah, that puppy's been selling out like crazy. - 22/12/2009 12:01:18 AM 873 Views
Visually stunning. - 24/12/2009 02:12:42 PM 880 Views
As usual, Hollywood shoves an ideology down peoples' throats. *NM* - 26/12/2009 04:30:20 AM 442 Views
Once they've paid their ten bucks to get in. *NM* - 27/12/2009 04:31:59 AM 528 Views
A good ideology assault doesn't come cheap! *NM* - 28/12/2009 10:03:08 AM 536 Views
$14 evening show with 3D glasses. *NM* - 29/12/2009 07:15:03 AM 638 Views
one point i haven't seen discussed yet.... - 26/12/2009 05:43:05 AM 1140 Views
It stinks!! *NM* - 26/12/2009 05:51:30 AM 663 Views
So, a silly thing I found distracting... - 29/12/2009 07:26:02 AM 1024 Views
that caught my eye too - 29/12/2009 07:36:46 AM 923 Views
A silly thing I found distracting was that the aliens were humanoid. *NM* - 29/12/2009 09:48:46 AM 613 Views
Umm you would rather watch non-humanoid aliens? Yeah thats fun *NM* - 29/12/2009 03:29:26 PM 504 Views
*sigh* - 30/12/2009 11:09:16 AM 887 Views
Yes. Yes. - 01/01/2010 08:19:58 AM 941 Views
I have missed you so much on this site. *NM* - 02/01/2010 04:13:56 AM 477 Views
well. it's not necessarily erroneous either. - 30/12/2009 06:28:57 AM 872 Views
See my response to Dark Knight above. *NM* - 30/12/2009 11:11:27 AM 525 Views
ah okay. carry on then *NM* - 30/12/2009 04:44:12 PM 599 Views
Yes. - 03/01/2010 05:08:17 PM 997 Views
I believe she was speaking about their tails. - 07/01/2010 07:37:46 AM 873 Views
If I remember it was the "USB Plug" in their hair. *NM* - 08/01/2010 08:29:38 AM 623 Views
Yep - 08/01/2010 09:33:08 AM 966 Views
*facepalm* yah, that's what i was talking about - 08/01/2010 05:31:33 PM 921 Views
I figured - 08/01/2010 05:50:22 PM 932 Views
Yes, the plot is simple, predictable and ideological - 29/12/2009 07:41:36 AM 903 Views
It was the best movie I've seen in ages. I'm seriously thinking of going to see it again. *NM* - 29/12/2009 12:20:11 PM 673 Views
We definitely will. - 29/12/2009 03:30:07 PM 945 Views
Going again tomorrow. *NM* - 02/01/2010 05:14:53 PM 679 Views
Project 880: The Avatar that might have been - 31/12/2009 10:30:21 AM 1224 Views
That is very interesting. - 31/12/2009 01:25:19 PM 887 Views
yeah - 02/01/2010 01:56:15 PM 1001 Views
i think that would be interesting to see - 31/12/2009 04:29:19 PM 1004 Views
Avatar is/was gonna make a pile of money anyways. - 31/12/2009 08:30:34 PM 1175 Views
Re: I hated the 3-D effect. It was horrible. - 10/01/2010 09:39:25 AM 944 Views
Stephen Colbert on Avatar - 15/01/2010 03:18:29 AM 777 Views
I liked it even better the 2nd time. *Spoilers* - 16/01/2010 12:23:50 AM 906 Views
Yeah, I really liked the music. *NM* - 16/01/2010 06:04:55 AM 639 Views
It just took the double at the Golden Globes. - 18/01/2010 04:04:08 AM 1004 Views
Ok, wow, I didn't expect that to happen. *NM* - 18/01/2010 08:59:51 AM 451 Views
I can't say I'm surprised it did. Not that I agree with it. *NM* - 18/01/2010 07:37:08 PM 405 Views
Okay I bit the bullet and went to see it - 18/01/2010 11:56:28 PM 898 Views
I always forget that I saw movies in 3D. - 19/01/2010 01:11:05 AM 985 Views

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