I had some hopes for this, but the video game look is ghastly for the most part. And I don't know why they decided they had to "improve" on the original, which is a pretty powerful, darkly rousing story.

OK, I know why they "improved" it -- because they wanted it as dumbed down as possible for wider audience reception. Can't go wrong aiming for the lowest common denominator, right?

And as for the dipped-in-polythene look of the characters -- "creepy" is exactly the word. When I saw the ads for "The Polar Express," I loathed it on sight. You know, if they had just made a little half hour TV special out of it, using traditional hand-drawn animation, they might actually have gotten that holiday classic they were aiming for ...

The software double-posted my comment for some reason.

Glenn, keep it up!

Nothing disgusts me more than seeing these scared little boys puff themselves up & pretend to be so big & tough & strong -- by sending others off to fight & die in their place.

I can only think of Richard Pryor & Gene Wilder swaggering along & saying, "That's right, we bad, we bad!" Except that there's no humor in this ugly reality, unless it's in the very sick joke of letting others die to reinforce their own sagging & insecure illusion of manhood.

Really, is this what passes for grown up men today?

Glenn, keep it up! Nothing disgusts me more than these scared little boys puffing themselves up & telling each other how tough they are -- by sending someone else off to fight & die for them.

It's the political equivalent of Richard Pryor & Gene Wilder sauntering along & saying, "That's right, we bad, we bad." Except that there's no humor in this ugly reality, unless it's in the sick joke of having others die to bolster their own sagging & insecure manhood.

And this is what passes for grown men today ...

I haven't heard many liberals say any such thing. In fact, I've never personally known one to say it.

But I have heard quite a few conservatives say that liberals say it. Which seems to point to certain insecurities on their part.

Simply because they can.

And because they enjoy it.

Simone Weil covered this long ago in "The Use of Force." As did Orwell. As did Erich Fromm. As did so many others.

They do it because they enjoy the feeling of power & control -- and the greatest control over another human being is that of life & death.

They worship power, they worship destruction, they worship death.

Which is why Fromm called them "necrophiliacs."

Emotionally, psychologically, they are failed human beings. And anyone who isn't like them, terrifies & disgusts them, and must be crushed.

And more & more Americans find this to be "patriotic," admirable behavior ...

Earlier posters have it exactly right: Pod & his ilk are the very horror they inveigh against, foaming at the mouth & invoking the apocalyptic nightmares they so desperately hope to make real. Is there any doubt that if they'd been living in any previous totalitarian state, they'd be supporting it as enthusiastically as they one they're striving to create here & now?

The late Erich Fromm had a name for people like this: "necrophiliacs," because they quite literally worship death. All that matters to them is power, toughness, destructive capability; they're obsessed with a fetid, rotting, excremental universe of suffering & degradation. That's what their own wretched souls (or psyches, if you prefer) really are. And anything that embodies life, hope, reason, promise, etc., is anathema to them.

Just read an old copy of Fromm's "The Heart of Man" -- nearly 50 years old now, and just as accurate today as when it was first published. We're dealing with psyches that are warped, contorted, crippled, imprisoned in their own decay. And they loathe & fear & wish to destroy anyone & anything that's different, because they don't dare face themselves in the mirror, don't dare admit what they are.

You strike me as a thoughtful, sincere person who wants to do the right thing, but who doesn't want to hurt the feelings of those around you. That's admirable, but you do have an obligation to be true to yourself. I think you already realize that living a lie is not the life for you.

Cary's right about figuring out exactly what you do & don't believe. Just remember that this is an ongoing process, and that your worldview will undoubtedly change & modify with the passing years, if not your core belief.

If a transcendental or spiritual outlook is important to you, please know that you can be a dyed-in-the-wool atheist & still feel awe, wonder, transcendence -- just without the trappings & framework of a literal God. For me, Jungian psychology, Art, and Nature all fill my particular transcendental needs.

And if you're a straightforward rationalist, with no use for anything mythic, poetic, or metaphoric -- well, pretending to be something you're not won't do you any good. Again, living a lie seldom works out in the long run. Don't contort your soul (or inner being, if you like) in order to please others, especially at the cost of your own self-respect.

As previous posters have noted, you don't have to become an aggressive atheist. But you shouldn't have to deny who & what you are, either. You're still young, and you'll find that there are more Big Questions ahead. If you're going to deal with them, if you're going to live a whole life, then it's time to start working out what's best for you, what you truly believe, who you actually want to be.

First & foremost, be honest.

Wishing you all the luck in the world!