Open Thread: Game of Thrones

I confess. I've been watching Game of Thrones since its inception.

Tonight, Daenerys, supposedly the good leader, went psycho, using her magical weapon, the dragon, to annihilate a city of over a million.

Yes, Cersei is evil. But hey, it turns out the other side was evil too. Think Democrats and Republicans-- they are both a threat to humanity. Sure, there are some good ones, but look at their leaders-- Schumer and Pelosi.

And where does Biden fit into my loosely metaphorical riff? Biden is played by the soldiers under John Snow's command who start wantonly killing innocent citizens. Biden talks about dealing with climate change from a "middle ground." I guess that's like killing innocent people one at a time with a sword instead of the way Daenerys does with the big gun dragon. She talks about the good she'll be doing for generations to come. Feh.

The thing about Game of Thrones is that it has not been a typical linear story, as Aristotle described in Ars Poetica, with a beginning middle and end. It is a new kind of story, as Douglas Rushkoff described, in his book, Present Shock, which is more about the world than the journey.

People have been watching it for eight years. They've developed a relationship to the world, to the characters. And now, its crashing to an end. And what follows it? Well, John Oliver giving us news about a totally insane world-- but it's news that is true. Who needs dragons when their are men who want to tell women they can't control their lives. Who needs kings and princes when we have billionaires and CEOs with power like Satya Nadella of Microsoft and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook-- in some ways more powerful than most kings, president and potentates.

Then there is Tyrion, a wise, good man-- portrayed as a small person because that's the way the powers that be think of wise, good people. He is hopeful. He believes in the best in people. He tries to make peace. He is royally screwed and his trust betrayed in today's episode.

So, what do you think. Go ahead. Loosely associate away.