Corner Booth

So I was reliving my childhood a couple day ago watching "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory." This is the version with Gene Wilder, not Jonny Depp (sorry ladies). I can remember being enthralled by this cinematic masterpiece as a child. Longing for the day when a place like the mystical chocolate factory would find it's way into my life and I could feel like a giant next to those little jaundiced dwarves. Alas, that day has yet to come (but I still have hope). In High School, I remember watching it and realizing all the "life messages" and "deeper meanings" that were littered throughout the movie and feeling I had found an untapped resource for existentialism and random bullshit quotes. Things like "A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men." and "Candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker." (my personal favorite). But watching "Wonka" the other day I found a quote that I found a bit disturbing. When explaining to Charlie why he was to soon inherit the Chocolate Factory, Wonka explains that he has long realized that the factory must go to a child. I had always found this endearing, along the lines of "I believe the children are the future, teach them well and let them lead the way."(tear) In actuality, though, Wonka is a power monger (that's right, monger) who refuses to give up his tyrannical ways, even beyond death. His rationalization for giving the factory to Charlie is, and I quote, "...an adult would want to do things his own way, not MINE." Wonka isn't giving the factory to a child in order to preserve it's innocence or to fulfill the dreams of an impoverished family, he's doing it because he understands that a child's mind can be molded and manipulated into believing that Wonka's ideas are flawless and noble. Bullshit. Wonka you bastard. This is no different than the tobacco companies telling me, all those years ago, that smoking would make me cool. Well lemme tell you something guys, I've been smoking on and off for a while now and have yet to become "cool." Wonka must be stopped...long live Nestle.
Much Love,
Bo