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  • Haiti and Poverty-Stricken America

    The tragedy in Haiti is unparalleled. The call for help
    from around the world is needed, to say the least.

    The question:

    What does it take to get an equal call to citizens of the
    United States to help out American citizens who
    have, are and will be experiencing metaphorical
    earthquakes of their own?

    Native Americans. Homeless war veterans. The
    homeless. Poverty-stricken people in the United States.
    Those who have lost their jobs and homes and had
    and are having their lives ruined because
    of ignorant, fear-filled human beings like George Bush
    and Richard Cheney, who plunged the United States
    of America into a meaningless war that caused the
    murders of thousands of Americans, Iraquis, and
    others, and in turn, created the economic turmoil
    that has placed the United States on the brink of
    financial disaster. These two individuals live in
    warm, safe, secure homes, and are revered in some
    circles, as wonderful men. With what legacy will history
    books credit them? Because America honors those who
    serve in public office, for some strange reason, more
    than any other American, they will prevail with
    their new libraries, etc.

    Who is going to create a text message number for
    people to call in to donate money to help out those
    Americans who were figuratively destroyed in the
    past by greed and self-interest like these two men?
    Who? And when?

    The United States has always been helpful to
    people in other countries. It has helped make
    America, in many people’s eyes, the great
    country that it is. It is almost cliche. What
    about Americans who need help? Think
    about it. Where is the outpouring to
    help Americans in need, like what is
    going on in Haiti now? Where is it,
    folks? And that is not to slight Haitians
    one bit. The horror they are
    experiencing is unimaginable. We
    must help them out. I’m simply
    saying that we have Americans
    in America who are experiencing
    the same kind of horror.

    Food. Shelter. Clothing. Possibly a bit of
    recreation. Where has it gone for thousands
    of Americans who have been, are, and will
    be devastated by this metaphorical earthquake
    that plagues Americans as a people?

    It is time for the United States of America to
    put forth the same effort it does to help out
    Americans like Haitians are being helped now.

    It is time, or, the infrastructure of America will
    continue to decay, and die.

    It is time.

    And for those of you, after reading this, who will want to compare me to Rush Limbaugh’s bellowing about American citizens’ income tax money that goes to Haiti, forget it. Rush Limbaugh is a squeaky
    conservative. Oiling his hinges would only be a beginning to turning
    around his idiocy. For me, my hinges are oiled. I am tired of those who try to make a show by giving others money, when many Americans in their backyards are struggling to stay alive.

    We have always given as Americans. So much so,
    we are blinded to the fact that there are thousands
    of Americans who need the same kind of help
    Haitians are struggling to receive. If you want to
    argue this point, before you do, I encourage you
    to visit some Native American reservations in
    the United States. Visit them. Roll in the dirt,
    feel their earth. Go to the Conoco convenience
    stop in Lame Deer, Montana. Stand in line
    with what you want to purchase. Observe
    those standing in line with you. Who are
    they? They are Native Americans who live
    on a poverty-stricken reservation where
    drug and alcohol abuse stalks each Native
    American who lives there, like actually,
    forced to live there, because their ancestors
    were shot and killed when they resisted
    attempts at curtailing their rights to
    follow the buffalo and to live free.

    Go there, my friends, before you flap
    your tongue about me, and my
    pontificating. Sit and ponder there.
    Then, tell me that America’s
    indigineous people in addition to
    those Americans who live in
    cardboard boxes under bridges
    do not need the kinds of help some Haitians
    are presently receiving.

    Tell me. Tell me. Churches who
    spend all of their might on helping
    people in other countries who are
    experiencing plight, poverty, hunger,
    disease, AIDS, and a host of other
    horrifying things that most Americans
    do not. Why is it that there are
    Americans in America who live
    in “Third World” countries, or as
    some idiots say, “developing nations”,
    which is hilarious to me, here in
    America? Check out Pine Ridge,
    folks, before you attack me for my
    presence of mind here.

    Check out parts of Los Angeles,
    New York City, Chicago, Denver,
    etc. Everywhere, and anywhere you
    go in the United States, you simply
    need to open your eyes, and you will
    see human devastation.

    So, close your mind. Kick me in the ass
    for this article. Say that I am an idiot.
    It doesn’t matter. My plea is simply to
    open your minds and eyes to the
    devastation in America as you have
    opened your minds and eyes to
    Haitians. Americans need your
    help as well. They also need your
    hearts and your love. Who is the
    first one to raise their hands and
    pledge, at you are pledging to
    Haiti, to exude the same passion
    for America’s people who are
    less fortunate than you? Who?

  • Plot

    There are numerous challenges that come up
    when one is writing and striving to break
    through and beyond. In order to “stay with it”,
    the writer must look inside of themselves for
    something that will carry them through the
    difficult times, keep them going, and take
    them to success.

    Ask yourself the questions below. By writing
    them down, you can refer to the answers as you write,
    and beyond. These answers will take you into
    the depth of yourself where you can clearly see
    your main character’s passion. This passion
    becomes the main theme of your story.

    Passion must be sizzling inside of you. It’s a
    human emotion. Your passion for your story
    has taken you to this point in time in your
    life. What do you want it to be this time
    next year? By understanding your and
    appropriately utilizing your passion for your
    story, your mind will be ratcheted up a few
    levels to the point where you are unable to
    get the words down fast enough.

    By utilizing the main theme of your story, you
    can show opposition to it. This creates conflict,
    which all good stories need, even comedies.

    This main theme, your passion for the story,
    will guide and direct you throughout the writing
    process. It will cause you to be more creative
    and imaginative, which, in turn, will produce
    a solid and seamless plot.

    The questions are:

    1. Who was I when I got the idea for my story?
    2. What was I doing?
    3. Where was I?
    4. When was it?
    5. Why did this idea come to me?
    6. How did I recognize it?

    Be diligent when writing the answers, very
    diligent. Shortcut the process and you will
    cause shortcut yourself and your opportunities.

    I hope this has been of help to you.

    Best Regards,

    Donald L. Vasicek
    Olympus Films+, LLC
    “The Zen of Writing/Filmmaking/Consulting
    http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
    dvasicek@earthlink.net

  • Third Act of the Screenplay

    What Mr. Wilder means”…the third act must build, build, build…”,
    is to make the tension of what your main character is
    doing to achieve her/his goal go up, up, up, like using
    a corkscrew to open a bottle of wine. The more you
    twist, the tighter the tension in the cork becomes, until something
    gives, the cork breaks, or whoever is screwing in the
    corkscrew, decides it is time to pull out the cork with
    the corkscrew.

    In other words, make it more and more difficult for
    your main character to achieve her/his goal until
    she/he comes to a point where he/she must either
    give up her/his goal, or, he/she “goes over the top”,
    experiences an epiphany, and accomplishes the
    goal. Each obstacle (difficulty) must be more
    challenging than the last. It’s like putting your
    main character on a tree branch. Her/his
    opposition throws rocks at her/him until the
    branch breaks. Then, he/she falls in a raging
    river. Then, in the river, he/she fights to keep
    from drowning until he/she comes to a roaring
    waterfall. The question is, will she/he, survive
    the waterfall, or not?

    When you have your main character at the “waterfall”
    of your story, then you have your main character
    decide at that point, what she/he has to do to
    survive tumbling over the waterfall. To conquer
    this, the main character must overcome her/his
    greatest fear of accomplishing his/her goal
    throughout the story. If he/she does, then he/she
    experiences an epiphany. He/she faces her/his
    fear and overcomes it. Perhaps, instead of tumbling
    over the waterfall, getting battered to death by
    rocks, and drowning, which has been your main
    character’s primary fear that has been keeping
    her/him from accomplishing his/her goal in the
    story, that of the fear of drowning, your main
    character swims back upstream and saves
    herself/himself.

    This is the last event in the third act. From
    this point forward, wrap up all loose ends
    from your story, send your main character
    to the Olympics as a champion swimmer,
    and end your screenplay.

    Donald L. Vasicek
    Olympus Films+, LLC
    The Zen of Writing and Filmmaking
    http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
    dvasicek@earthlink.net