A Society In Crisis - Why Numbers Have Meaning

[Zorro]

This is the third thread in a series of threads called "A Society In Crisis."

So we've probably all heard of last year's Christian film "Alone Yet Not Alone," mostly due to the Oscar snub for the title song. I've not seen the movie yet, but I've purchased the song on iTunes; it's actually a very beautiful song and was well worth the $0.99 I paid for it. The song is sang by Jodi Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic who actually has to have her husband squeeze her diaphragm while she sings. The Oscar nomination for the song was rescinded, apparently because Bruce Broughton, the songwriter, accidentally broke some of the nomination rules when he requested a nod from some of the Oscar folks via email; apparently stating that he was the songwriter is where he actually broke the rules. It's a shame that happened because the rules are probably accidentally broken for a lot of Oscar nominations; a lot of people feel this one was singled out for begin Christian.

It's a shame that the mistakes of the songwriter resulted in the singer not getting her fair chance in the spotlight. But regardless, the Oscar snub is not why I'm making this post; the rules were apparently broken (whether accidental or not) and I'm not going to complain about it. I'm making this post because of the supposed "ratings" for the movie that appear at the IMDb. At the time of this post, the movie has an average 3.6/10 rating from a total of 208 voters. What's most intriguing is the details of those statistics. I've attached a screenshot of the rating details.

This is a perfect example of the polarized society we live in. Most of the ratings are likely from progressive left-leaning individuals who tend to be more active at the IMDb, Hollywood, and at the cinema; but the fact that you have such a drastic contrast between people giving the movie a perfect 10/10 rating and people giving it a 1/10 tells me that the ratings are biased both ways and are also a good indication as to exactly why the movie got an Oscar snub. This is a perfect example of why, when considering the purchase of a book, music album, or movie, you should carefully evaluate the topic of the item in question before basing your purchasing decision on the reviews you read.

It's also worth noting that Christians and conservatives are often falsely accused by the left of being racist (even this movie has seen such false accusations), bigoted, homophobic, and thoughtless of people with disabilities. The left needs to get a taste of their own medicine, and some powerful names in conservative media need to point out that the left is attacking Jodi because of her disability and faith.

[BlackCat]

May I say something about this?

[Zorro]

May I say something about this?

Feel free. However, the purpose of my post is not to argue about whether or not the Oscars should have rescinded the nomination - that is what it is. Also, I wasn't posting about whether or not that movie was any good, because I haven't even seen it. I posted this for the sole purpose of showing the biased 3.6/10 rating the movie has at the IMDb, and explaining why that is. I'm merely attempting to illustrate how, in the society we live in, such a seemly simple number is not really that simple, and how it can have so many deep meanings and far reaching implications. The fact that 75% of the 208 people that have reviewed this film at the IMDb have either given it a 1/10 or 10/10 is very powerful in proving my point.

[BlackCat]

Okay. I like Kelly Greyson's eyes.

Anyways, excellent observations. This is why standard deviation is so important. People usually dismiss standard deviation because they don't understand it, but as you showed, it's vital in understanding the whole picture.. or in this case, a movie.