ray_afraid said:
Slavicuss said:
All the anger and bitterness could have been easily avoided if he released the originals alongside his preferred SEs.
Broom Kid said:
Definitely, but on the other hand, it’s not his fault people are being like that.
So, it’s his fault, but it’s also not his fault?
Hmm…
No - I agree that anger and bitterness would have been avoided if the thing that happened hadn’t actually happened. But that doesn’t mean he deserves to be blamed for other people’s actions and behaviors. Again, that’s some victim-blaming thought process going on. “You made me do this. You made us do this. Look at what you made me do.” It’s pretty poor justification for acting in a way you don’t have to act. You have a choice to take things that personally. You’re not helpless.
And to be clear, I’m not any different here. I used to indulge the sort of easy, cynical, and mean-spirited demonization of this guy despite never knowing him, meeting him, hanging out with him, or having really anything to do with him other than watching his movies and buying the stuff. The whole of my “relationship” with George Lucas is consuming product, and that’s it. And after seeing the toll the internet and people’s behaviors have taken on so many people, not just associated with Star Wars but associated with ANYTHING remotely popular, there is no amount of product consumption that bestows upon me the absolute right to treat another human being like dirt. Even when I convince myself it’s justified, or worse, that it’s okay because he’ll never see me doing it. I’m still contributing to a pretty mean-spirited and shitty atmosphere towards a man who never did anything to me personally, for no other reason than he didn’t let me buy a blu-ray.
I think it sucks I can’t buy that blu-ray. It’s why I’m here, obviously. But I can think it sucks, and I can think he’s wrong, but I don’t have to let it personally affect me to the point where I’m indulging in conspiracy theories and ugly insults. That’s my choice to make. I used to make a different one than I do now. And making that other choice back then didn’t make me feel any better, in hindsight. It certainly didn’t get me what I want, either.