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* DEEP THOUGHTS * by Jack Handy

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If they ever come up with a swashbuckling School, I think one of the courses should be Laughing, Then Jumping Off Something.

When you're riding in a time machine way far into the future, don't stick your elbow out the window, or it'll turn into a fossil.

It takes a big man to cry, but it takes a bigger man to laugh at that man.

At first I thought, if I were Superman, a perfect secret identity would be "Clark Kent, Dentist," because you could save money on tooth X-rays. But then I thought, if a patient said, "How's my back tooth?" and you just looked at it with your X-ray vision and said, "Oh it's okay," then the patient would probably say, "Aren't you going to take an X-ray, stupid?" and you'd say, "Aw bonk you, get outta here," and then he probably wouldn't even pay his bill.

One thing kids like is to be tricked. For instance, I was going to take my little nephew to Disneyland, but instead I drove him to an old burned-out warehouse. "Oh, no," I said. "Disneyland burned down." He cried and cried, but I think that deep down, he thought it was a pretty good joke. I started to drive over to the real Disneyland, but it was getting pretty late.

A good way to threaten somebody is to light a stick of dynamite. Then you call the guy and hold the burning fuse up to the phone. "Hear that?" you say. "That's dynamite, baby."

Why do people in ship mutinies always ask for "better treatment"? I'd ask for a pinball machine, because with all that rocking back and forth you'd probably be able to get a lot of free games.

I'd like to be buried Indian-style, where they put you up on a high rack, above the ground. That way, you could get hit by meteorites and not even feel it.

If I lived back in the wild west days, instead of carrying a six-gun in my holster, I'd carry a soldering iron. That way, if some smart-aleck cowboy said something like "Hey, look. He's carrying a soldering iron!" and started laughing, and everybody else started laughing, I could just say, "That's right, it's a soldering iron. The soldering iron of justice." Then everybody would get real quiet and ashamed, because they had made fun of the soldering iron of justice, and I could probably hit them up for a free drink.

I bet when the neanderthal kids would make a snowman, someone would always end up saying, "Don't forget the thick, heavy brows." Then they would all get embarrassed because they remembered they had the big hunky brows too, and they'd get mad and eat the snowman.

Fear can sometimes be a useful emotion. For instance, let's say you're an astronaught on the moon and you fear that your partner has been turned into Dracula. The next time he goes out for the moon pieces, wham!, you just slam the door behind him and blast off. He might call you on the radio and say he's not Dracula, but you just say, "Think again, bat man."

Too bad you can't buy a voodoo globe so that you could make the earth spin real fast and freak everybody out.

The people in the village were real poor, so none of the children had any toys. But this one little boy had gotten an old enema bag and filled it with rocks, and he would go around and whap the other children across the face with it. Man, I think my heart almost broke. Later the boy came up and offered to give me the toy. This was too much! I reached out my hand, but then he ran away. I chased him down and took the enema bag. He cried a little, but that's the way of these people.

I wish I had a Kryptonite cross, because then you could keep both Dracula AND Superman away.

I don't think I'm alone when I say I'd like to see more and more planets fall under the ruthless domination of our solar system.

Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis.

Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself: "Mankind". Basically, it's made up of two separate words - "mank" and "ind". What do these words mean ? It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind.

I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they chose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas.

I guess we were all guilty, in a way. We all shot him, we all skinned him, and we all got a complimentary bumper sticker that said, "I helped skin Bob."

I bet the main reason the police keep people away from a plane crash is they don't want anybody walking in and lying down in the crash stuff, then, when somebody comes up, act like they just woke up and go, "What was THAT?!"

The face of a child can say it all, especially the mouth part of the face.

Ambition is like a frog sitting on a Venus Flytrap. The flytrap can bite and bite, but it won't bother the frog because it only has little tiny plant teeth. But some other stuff could happen and it could be like ambition.

I'd rather be rich than stupid.

If you were a poor Indian with no weapons, and a bunch of conquistadors came up to you and asked where the gold was, I don't think it would be a good idea to say, "I swallowed it. So sue me."

If you define cowardice as running away at the first sign of danger, screaming and tripping and begging for mercy, then yes, Mr. Brave man, I guess I'm a coward.

I bet one legend that keeps recurring throughout history, in every culture, is the story of Popeye.

When you go in for a job interview, I think a good thing to ask is if they ever press charges.

To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other.

What is it that makes a complete stranger dive into an icy river to save a solid gold baby? Maybe we'll never know.

We tend to scoff at the beliefs of the ancients. But we can't scoff at them personally, to their faces, and this is what annoys me.

Probably the earliest flyswatters were nothing more than some sort of striking surface attached to the end of a long stick.

I think someone should have had the decency to tell me the luncheon was free. To make someone run out with potato salad in his hand, pretending he's throwing up, is not what I call hospitality.

To me, clowns aren't funny. In fact, they're kind of scary. I've wondered where this started and I think it goes back to the time I went to the circus, and a clown killed my dad.

As I bit into the nectarine, it had a crisp juiciness about it that was very pleasurable - until I realized it wasn't a nectarine at all, but A HUMAN HEAD!!

Most people don't realize that large pieces of coral, which have been painted brown and attached to the skull by common wood screws, can make a child look like a deer.

If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.

Better not take a dog on the space shuttle, because if he sticks his head out when you're coming home his face might burn up.

I dislike using the word "sex" to describe this phenomena because of all the negative connotations that it has and because the experience seems to be much different than the act of intercourse as we know it in the physical.

One more little thing, while we're on the topic of MR, is how much freaking money it's making:
212 million in the US and it's already 65th on the all-time, worldwide money making list at 363.5 million...BUT

TITANIC still rules: Worldwide total gross:$1,835.4 million (or 1.8 billion dollars!!!!!!!!!!)
600 million in U.S. alone...

For those of you who are hardcore, here's something to chew on:

The Matrix: Reloaded, Redux
Posted on Tuesday, May 20, 2003 at 04:04 PM
From the Movie Commentary department: I saw The Matrix: Reloaded again. This time I went prepared. I had a sheet of paper with a few names written on it, suitable for taking notes on those character's conversations. The Architect's speech had never penetrated my skull very deeply, and it was fading with time, so I jotted down some quotes from it. After doing so, and watching the film with my wild theory in mind, I have to throw some of it out. Most of it, actually.

The same warnings apply to this as last time. Please don't read any more if you haven't seen the movie. If you do, I'm going to ruin it beyond all measure, quoting entirely huge swaths of conversation from the final minutes of the movie, revealing all. Don't do it. You've been warned.

The Architect
The Architect especially seems to be quite clear. He states that he created the matrix, but also refers to himself in ways that make it quite clear that he is an AI. He refers to The Oracle as an intuitive program. Now it is possible that both of those characters are still human and merely choose to see themselves as programs. After all, given a determinist philosophy, aren't we all programs? As the Merovingian said, it's all about causality. Cause and effect, and as we respond to stimulus, how are we more than programs?

Still, if we take The Architect at face value, and there doesn't seem to be any reason not to, he is an AI that created the matrix to handle the human problem. As we've been told before, the first matrix was a failure, because something in human nature apparently renders us inacapable of accepting a conflict-free life. As The Architect put it, "The first matrix I designed was quite naturally perfect; it was a work of art. Flawless. Sublime. A triumph equaled only by its monumental failure. The inevitability of its doom is apparent to me now as a consequence of the imperfection inherent in every human being." He then goes on to explain that the second matrix failed as well, despite being populated with conflict. Success with the matrix only came when the character we know as The Oracle, described by The Architect as "an intuitive program," came up with the solution: Choice.

Again I am drawn back to The Merovingian and his pondering on causality, and to The Oracle and her pondering on choice. I'll sidetrack myself here long enough to point out that The Oracle may be wise and able to see many things about the future, but she sure doesn't give it away much, and she sure doesn't know everything. In the first film she told Neo that he had "the gift" but seemed to be waiting for something instead of telling him one way or the other whether he was The One. That's odd, because her "prophecies" seemed to be much more explicit for Morpheus and Trinity. Given the new information from the new movie, I can now understand the specificity of her prophecy to Morpheus - it was part of the overall scheme of the matrix. But her prophecy to Trinity had to do with Trinity falling in love with The One, yet The Architect makes it clear that none of the previous The Ones had been motivated by love. Was the role of Trinity originally destined to be that of one pining for The One, love unrequited? Is there a bigger plan underneath it all to try to provoke an AI into true love, as I posted in my previous essay on the new film?

So The Architect and The Oracle together devise a plan that handles 99% of humans. They all have a choice, though they don't realize it, and the existence of the unknown choice is apparently enough to satisfy most mind, and they live life within the matrix, blissfully. That remaining 1% escapes to Zion. So Zion, we learn, is an escape valve. It must exist to enable the 99% to function correctly, and it holds the 1% that won't play ball. It's a system that works better than the previous two, but that 1% is dangerous. Again in the words of The Architect, "While this answered function, it was obviously fundamentally flawed thus creating the otherwise contradictory systemic anomaly that if left unchecked might threaten the system itself. Ergo those that refuse the program - while the minority - if unchecked, would cause an escalating probability of disaster."

I happen to think that it is important to pay close attention to what The Architect says. He describes the matrix as "older than you know." From the perspective of the humans in Zion, it is around a century old. Yet it might easily be 600 years old, or even older than that. The Architect said that he prefers counting "from the emergence of one integral anomaly to the emergence of the next," making this the sixth version. Imagine a system in which cruft slowly builds up. That shouldn't be difficult - just imagine your desktop PC. Every now and then, enough garbage builds up in the system that it is necessarily to reload it. If you are a program running on the PC, you would count reality from the moment it was last rebuilt, because you would have no way of knowing what came before. Morpheus wasn't lying to Neo or the people of Zion, he was explaining reality as he believed it, as all of the humans in Zion believe it. But he was wrong.

It would be easy to determine from these statements of The Architect that everything will be reset to avoid the "systemic anomaly," but I'm not sure he explicitly says so. He does state that Zion will be destroyed, but I think that the rest of the matrix is safe from the direct intervention of The Architect or his compatriots. Instead, after Zion is destroyed, that "systemic anomaly," unchecked, will eventually disrupt the matrix. While there is a very short window of time during which Zion can be saved, the matrix itself has no such stated time limit. Instead, Neo is told that "failure to comply with this process [of selecting a new batch of 23 people to start rebuilding Zion] will result in a cataclysmic system crash killing everyone connected to the matrix." One presumes, based on the previous statements of The Architect, that this will be because the 1% will no longer have that escape valve, and nobody will really have a choice, unconscious or not, and so this matrix will at some point achieve the same instability that plagued the first two versions of the matrix.

The Architect plays this up by pointing out that if everyone connected to the matrix is killed, and Zion has been exterminated, the entire human race will become extinct. I'm not sure I buy that, for several reasons. First and foremost is that the first two versions of the matrix failed in just the way that this one apparently will, and yet there were apparently still humans around to populate the third version which is the current version. It is possible that they never risked the entire human population in the first two versions, but that does beg the questions of what they did with the humans during that time of testing, and how long it took to realize that the systems were unstable. The second reason I don't buy it is that The One has obviously developed in ways somewhat unexpected, or at least unpredicted, by The Oracle or The Architect. When The Architect describes The One (or the 1%) as a "systemic anomaly that, if left unchecked, might threaten the system itself," was he referring only to system stability, or to some sort of ability for The One to actually seize control of the system and take control away from The Architect?

So far I've kept myself within the framework of the film, preferring to solve the puzzle within the rules laid down by the Wachowski brothers, but it is worth noting that there is another two-hour film coming, and whatever happens next must surely fulfill the expectations of movie-goers for raising the bar, as well as living up to the title of "Revolutions."

Now we come to the crucial part of the conversation with The Architect, the reason for Neo's existence, the "Why" that is the only true source of power according to The Merovingian. The Architect questions first whether Neo is ready to "accept the responsibility for the death of every human being in this world." Leaving aside for the moment the question of whether the choice of "this world" instead of "the world" means anything, since it may not, I wonder about the overall construction of the sentence. Is the goal of The Architect that Neo does accept that responsibility, or that he does not? There is no question that The Architect is exercising another system of control, manipulating Neo, and he seems to try to manipulate Neo into making the decision to save Trinity. When control meets choice, which wins? The overall system of the matrix is designed to exert control on those plugged into it. For the system to work, there must be a choice, but only 1% of the inhabitants of the matrix make that choice, or are even aware of it. This is a systemic anomaly that seems to defy absolute control, leading Neo to state that "the problem is choice," a statement with which The Architect does not disagree.

Does the entire existence of the matrix, the success or failure of the matrix, depend on Neo's choice? Remember The Oracle's statement that, "You didn't come here to make the choice. You've already made it. Now you must understand why." How applicable is that to this situation?

The Architect says "Your five predecessors were, by design, based on a similar predication - a contingent affirmation - that was meant to create a profound attachment to the rest of your species, facilitating the function of The One. While the others experienced this in a very general way, your experience is far more specific vis a vis love." From this statement we can understand that whatever choice the previous five anomalies faced, it either wasn't between saving the world and saving someone the anomaly loved, or it was a much easier choice for them to make. Perhaps that is the point. The previous five anomalies faced no real choice at all. They simply did what was clearly right for them to do given the circumstances, and they picked out the next 23 inhabitants of Zion so that the matrix would continue. What then is the challenge? How is it that The Architect has failed so miserably that despite its "sincerest efforts" to eliminate the anomaly completely, the latest eventuality is actually more powerful and more human than the previous five? Either The Neo is truly an anomaly among anomalies, or The Architect has an unstated goal that runs counter to his statements.

"Which brings us at last to the moment of truth, wherein the fundamental flaw is ultimately expressed and the anomaly revealed as both beginning and end. There are two doors. The door to your right leads to The Source and the salvation of Zion. The door to the left leads back to the matrix, to her, and to the end of your species. As you adequately put it, the problem is choice. But we already know what you are going to do, don't we? Already I can see the chain reaction, the chemical precursors that signal the onset of an emotion designed specifically to overwhelm logic and reason. An emotion that is already blinding you from the simple and obvious truth. She is going to die and there is nothing you can do to stop it."

An echo of the red pill - blue pill choice lays before Neo again. It seemed clear to most fans of the movie that Neo could have made no choice other than to take the red pill. For one thing, there wouldn't have been much of a movie otherwise, would there? For another, who would spend the rest of their lives wondering what things would have been like otherwise? So too here, Neo's choice seems obvious. So obvious he had really already made it. Now he must understand why, and even that seems clear. One could even assign mathematical values to each choice. I forget the proper way to do this, but let's say that taking the door to Neo's right is 100% certain to result in Trinity's death and 100% certain to result in Zion's repopulation and the survival of humanity. That seems to balance out with a score of 0 (-100 and +100). Now let's say that taking the door to Neo's left is 80% certain to still result in Trinity's death and only 10% certain to result in the survival of Zion in any form. Now we've got a score of -70 (-80 and +10). But wait! Add the numbers differently. The first scenario gives a 100% chance of failure for saving Trinity and a 0% chance of failure for saving humanity, for -100. The second scenario gives a 20% chance of success for saving Trinity and a 10% chance of success for saving humanity, for 30. Of course, such a reckoning is silly. A 10% chance is very nearly no chance at all, and percentages don't add together. But such is the human mind that any chance at all seems worth taking. Even a 1% chance of saving both Trinity and humanity beats a 0% chance if you take the other option. The Architect describes it as "Hope. It is the quintessential human delusion. Simultaneously the source of your greatest strength and your greatest weakness."

But what can The Architect have been expecting? Knowing that Neo is what he is, the choice is already made. The why seems clear, but perhaps it isn't as clear as we thought. Digging deeper, I suppose that the question of "why" could refer to why Neo is different from the previous five that held the role of The One.

Agent Smith
One of the new concepts introduced in this film are "exiles," or programs that refuse to die. As a unix hacker, I'm familiar with runaway and zombie processes, and certainly processes blocked on I/O contention can resist termination quite stubbornly. In none of those cases would I consider the processes in question to be fully in control of themselves, but I can accept that in the much more complex computing environment of the matrix, things are a little different. Lending further support to my theory that the matrix itself has not been reset six times is a statement by Agents Smith. Early in the film, Smith states that, "It's happening exactly as before." Another copy of Smith replies, "Well, not exactly." Smith seems to have some memory of the earlier cycles of The One traveling to The Oracle and The Source, and is able to show up at the appropriate places and times to try to put his own plan into motion. What that plan entails isn't clear, since Smith is obviously acting on his own as an exile now, but his memory of previous cycles is a clue.

Similarly, The Oracle is obviously aware of previous cycles, as is obviously The Architect. What about the others? The Merovingian and Persephone, the werewolves, the twins, the other agents, are all of them aware of the cycle? I need to watch the first movie again with this frame of reference to see how well this awareness and this repeating cycle might fit with Agent Smith speech to Morpheus about humans and their stench. The agents are certainly aware of exiles, as they are very concerned with recovering the Keymaker and refer to him as an exile in the process. But Smith might be more aware of things than the other agents. After all, something is different. This cycle has changed, because Neo is different.

It appears that everything was going according to plan in the first movie until Neo destroyed Agent Smith. That was "unexpected." But Smith went into exile, refusing to die. Not just refusing to, but "compelled" to. In addition, he gained new powers, and perhaps a new awareness. There is a link between Smith and Neo now, the exact nature of which is unclear. Smith seems to be alternately pursuing his own nefarious goals and acting under some sort of compulsion to either kill or assimilate Neo. Perhaps in the cource of "destroying" Smith, Neo left a part of himself behind, so there is a little bit of The One in Smith. Maybe Smith's plan is to disrupt Neo, to stop him from fulfilling the cycle. Maybe Smith's plan is to instead replace Neo, taking on the role of The One himself. Why he would want to do either is not certain.

One thing is certain, Smith is now operating near Zion, in "the real world." Seeing the movie again has only confirmed that Bane was taken over by Agent Smith before being recalled out of the matrix. Whether Smith's control of Bane is total, I'm not sure. Perhaps Bane cutting his own hand represents a struggle between Smith-within-Bane and Bane himself, or perhaps not. But Smith-within-Bane attempts to get his ship sent along on the mission to recover Neo, and failing that attempts to murder Neo in Zion. After that comes to naught, he apparently manages to prematurely trigger an EMP, drawing the wrath of the sentinels down on hidden ships of Zion and incidentally dashing any slim hopes Zion might have had of surviving the onslaught from above. When we see Bane for the last time within this film, he appears to be in some sort of coma similar to Neo's. At what point exactly he entered that coma is unclear. I'm inclined to believe it was the exact moment Neo entered his.

So how is Smith operating in "the real world." The obvious first idea is that "the real world" is itself another construct like the matrix. An "uber-matrix," surrounding the matrix we've known about. After all, if we're concerned with systems of control, would The Architect truly be satisfied to let 1% of humans just escape into the outside? And how would humans who had truly escaped into the outside "threaten the system itself?" Wouldn't they still have to be within "the system" to affect the system? It is possible that the threat would be from whenever members of the 1% reinserted themselves into the matrix and caused problems that way. While it seems unlikely that The Architect would be willing to give up that much control, it might be forced upon him "as a consequence of the imperfection inherent in every human being."

I would like to believe in the uber-matrix because I'm not sure how else to explain Smith operating in "the real world" or Neo stopping the sentinels. But The Architect does refer to "those that refuse the program," implying that they might actually have done so. To paraphrase Neo, there are only two possible explanations. Either there is an uber-matrix, or there isn't. If there is, why? And if not, how? Although the Merovingian explained that Why is a much more interesting and important question than How, I don't know that we was referring to this situation. After all, working backwards, the idea of an uber-matrix is not without a bunch of questions of its own.

The Uber-matrix
If there is an uber-matrix, then those within Zion are under some level of control. Just as cleaning robots came along in the first movie to dispose of Neo's body when it appeared he was rejecting the matrix, so too could whoever controls the uber-matrix simply dispose of that pesky 1% that reject the program of the inner matrix. Instead, they are allowed to survive, and grow and thrive. Why? Perhaps a choice that results in certain termination soon afterward is no choice at all, in which case the survival of Zion is required by the same human flaw that requires its existence to being with. Still, I wonder why 250,000 sentinels would be sent, even if they aren't real, to destroy a bunch of humans that could be destroyed just as easily by unplugging them all. With none left alive, would it matter that they all just fell to the ground, empty?

These are but a few of the many questions that run through my mind when I question the concept of the uber-matrix. While the irony would indeed be delicious if the five-minute rave/love scene, intended to showcase humanity, turned out to be itself an artificial construct, I'm not nearly so sure that this is case as I was.

Then how does Smith operate in the real world? And how did Neo stop the sentinels? I'll take the last question first. It remains a slim possibility that Neo did not in fact stop the sentinels, but that an EMP was sent at just that second, coincidentally. Or not-so-coincidentally, if one thinks about the supernatural aspects of coincidence involved in the events of both films. While the prophecies guiding Morpheus may have been false in certain details, there are still the questions of the prophecies that came true, Neo's prescient dreams, and the startling coincidences involved in collapsing bridges and impaled operators that necessitated Trinity plugging into the matrix in the first place. When I consider that Neo stated, "Something is different" as he realized he could sense the sentinels, and thinking back to the scene with The Architect and how we slipped through one of the monitors at one point to focus on one of several Neos, each having a slightly different reaction to The Architect's statements, I'm almost willing to believe that Neo stepped back into a different "real world" than the one he left, or that he never actually stepped back into it at all. After all, Morpheus managed to get out of the matrix by stepping through a door, a first. Maybe Neo and Bane both collapsed from the EMP because they are artificial constructs. I don't think I can stick with such a theory, however, because that switch, if it took place, happened long after Smith had already taken over Bane, a "how" question for which I don't have an answer. And if they were artifiical constructs, I think the other might have noticed after getting them on the medical table.

How then did Neo stop the sentinels? It is worth noting that he didn't control gravity or pull any of the other fancy tricks he is able to inside the matrix. He "only" stopped five sentinels. That could imply no more than a peculiar connection with them, similar to the odd connection between Smith and Neo. His ability to "broadcast" something to them would indeed be unusual, but they were pretty close. Why then did he go into a coma? Maybe it was exhausting work.

The more important question to answer without the assumption of an uber-matrix is how Smith operates in the real world, or why no others can. Perhaps the why is easily explained by that fact that nobody else shares Smith's ability to replicate himself and exist in more than one place at the same time. Agents can jump from body to body, but not occupy two bodies at once. Smith can. Asking the follow-on question of why an Agent wouldn't just take over the body of someone about to be recalled out of the matrix simply leads one to question why they don't do that anyway, taking over the bodies of anyone who plugs into the matrix from outside. Obviously being part of the 1% has its advantages.

What is it like, being taken over by Smith? For an AI, it might be as simple as overwriting the memory of the previous process with a complete copy of one's own memory. Since people within the matrix are digital projections of their mental selves (or is that vice-versa?), a Smith-infected person would be indistinguishable from Smith within the matrix, but their real body would simply have a different brain in it. Of course, this ignores the issues of how a brain is structured, and whether links into the matrix from outside are two-way. An altered projection doesn't necessarily affect the projector, but how closely can we follow that analogy? Could activity within the matrix cause the neural pathways of a human brain to spontaneously completely rewrite themselves? Why not?

So Smith might have been able to truly replicate himself into the real world by rewriting the neural pathways of Bane, giving Smith a new body in the real world. I'm willing to accept that. Neo might have some sort of special connection with both Smith/Bane and the sentinels by virtue of his status as The One or his encounter with The Architect. I might even be willing to accept that. So I can't be 100% sure about the uber-matrix.

On the other hand, again, it might be an easier way to explain how Smith was able to travel into "the real world" and allows for two possibilities with the apparent comas at the end of the film. One is that Neo is attempting to deal with the sudden realization that reality is not real - we've heard reference to this being a difficult process for some people, especially older people. Another is to recognize the similarities between Neo's collapse and the collapse of the three bodies at the power station. Is it possible that something happened to the bodies of Neo and Bane outside of the uber-matrix, and their bodies are currently "empty" of control?

More Questions
I'm left with more questions than answers, which is obviously the intent of the movie. In addition to all of the questions I've left unanswered above, I have questions about The Keymaker. Is he part of the cycle each time? Why did the Merovingian try so hard to keep him safe? He seemed quite at odds with The Keymaker himself, who replied to a question about how he knew everything he knew with, "I know because I must know. It is my purpose. It is why I am here." The Merovingian described him saying, "The Keymaker is a means to an end." If the team had not recovered The Keymaker, how else could they have gotten to The Architect?

Also, who was being escorted out of the Merovingian's presence as Morpheus and the team were coming in? He seemed to be led forcibly out, and I suspect we may see him again.

Much has been made of The Merovingians and their belief that they are descendants of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. However, I think that most of that speculation overlooks the fact that The Architect says that Neo is the first iteration of The One to experience love. Of course, that also shoots down my own previous theory that The Merovingian and Persephone were an earlier iteration of The One and his girlfriend. At this point I must conclude that Persephone's statements were just what they appeared to be and no more. Then why "The Merovingian"? They are also known as the keepers of the Holy Grail, and The Merovingian did keep the Keymakers. He may also be holding other items important for the future, but I suspect that the name means no more than that.

In Conclusion
There is no conclusion. The "real world" might be an uber-matrix, or it might not. The prophecy might be mostly true, or not. Neo never did actually make it to The Source, though Morpheus thinks he did. Neo's choice might have been expected by The Architect, or maybe not. Perhaps humanity will die. Perhaps Neo will achieve some sort of power and control over either the matrix, or the uber-matrix, or both. And the "Why" behind The Architect is still vague. Are we still running with the "humans as batteries" concept? Maybe. But knowing why is the only true source of power, I heard.

Neo will certainly be back in the next movie, as will Smith. Many Smiths. Smith evidently does a little more of assuming Neo's abilities, as the preview appears to end with Smith flying. Everything else flew by so quickly it's hard to draw any conclusions.

Zion has collapsed every time???  No, Zion hasn't collapsed because they keep choosing love over saving Zion...right? (I admit I am a little confused, but I think I got that part of it)

Welcome!

I, for one, think it is possible.  Is it right?  I think it depends on how and why it is done.  The ends definetly don't always justify the means but sometimes they do.

I think anytime, however, we force others to do our will we don't really end up winning or helping them.  Interesting question though.

Fortunately, I don't think most people capable of doing such a thing would do it...

Finally, as a side note, I think we compell people all the time, usually on a subconscious level, especially when we use flattery...and the obvious times we use bribery.  Sometimes the reasons for doing such things are virtuous, and other times they are the opposite.  Sometimes just the way we gaze, or even glance, at someone can affect them.

My real question is why it is common to project from the position of laying on your back...but then I guess I have read that many expereinced projectors do indeed project from the sitting position.  But by in far most people project when laying down, on their back.  

Has anyone heard of someone projecting while walking or doing some other activity like that (obviously not in trance state, etc.)?

THe only suprise you are in for is how confused and bad you are going to feel...give up on looking for any kind of experience from that stuff...take it from someone who knows from personal experience.

Hey Frank, cool number of posts (1111)...and if you feel that way about the first Matrix film then you definetly shouldn't worry about seeing the second one.  I agree with you wholeheartedly...if they focused more on the intriguing philisophical/metaphysical element it would be much more intriguing, but hey, it's all about the $ so they would never do that![]

For a number of years, unfortunately, I abused drugs and alcohol.  During this time I still maintained good (and even exceptional) grades in school, but behind the scenes I was being torn to pieces by my obsession to find enlightenment and happiness in drugs.

That is, of course, something I left behind me...and I can't say there hasn't been some (although very few) positive experiences during that time in my life.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that as a prelude to what I am about to say:

Drugs are a dead end...and they are often used by those looking for an easy way out.  For every 1 person, for example, who can conservatively and safely smoke marijuana and maintain a healthy social life and career, there are 10,000 people who blow all of their money smoking weed and end up abusing dangerous, physically addictive drugs.  No matter how many times people tell others this, those who want to are going to continue to rationalize and justify drug abuse.  And don't get me wrong, I am not pointing fingers only at pot smokers (and I was one for a LONG time), I also point the finger at those who abuse prescription drugs, fatty/sugary foods and alcohol.  

Salvia Divinorum- I have ingested 10X extract and I did have an "experience," as I said in the other post on this subject, and it was highly unpleasant for me and I did not have any sort of OBE or otherwise beneficial experience.  I do not recommend this drug to anyone.  But hey, it seems safe and I don't know anyone who steadily abuses it because compared to, say, a fat bowl of some high quality marijuana (aka: KGB- killer green bud) it is not pleasant.

To answer your question Link- Yes, I have ingested this substance and I absolutely do NOT recommend it to anyone.  Not only was it extremely unpleasant, but the experience had no redeeming value for me whatsoever.

Luckily, most people feel the same and therefore this drug is not often used for recreation.

MJ-12: thanks for the comments.  Don't ever think, however, that I don't know that things in films are SUPPOSED to be the way they are, I know they are...everything in a film, if the director is good and meticulous (and I know the Watchosky-or however you spell their name-brothers are VERY meticulous).  I just don't like their vision, but it is their VISION and I do like the philosophy and all the mythic tropes, etc. in the film...unlike many others, I find this to be one of the most, if not THE most attractive, elements of the film.  I do not, however, think that this film is anything special in regards to this...many other films raise much more in depth and philisophical questions, although the Matrix series does so with an unparalleled style...

Also, I think the Matrix raises a number of issues that are very pertinent to the era we live in, the age of information and the question of AI and consciousness...and the nature of the universe.

I think the "sentient" programs in the film are an amazing addition to an already fascinating narrative.

Peace out!

Welcome to the forum!  I hope you like it here.  Just so you know, people tend to respond more if you ask specific questions, not general ones.

Anyway, welcome once again!  And, by the way, what does your name mean?  "Vetri" means glass or glasses in italian...

Although the only real battle is that happening within oursleves...I do believe in real opposition in the universe/reality.  Part of the reaons for living in this world/lower level, is to learn and see the difference between good/evil, darkness/light...and then rise above those and control them.  But I do believe we must become the light, or the dark...and not both at the same time.  It is all about polarization, although aren't we made from that which is neither?

Does that make sense to anyone but me (I think that explanation is horrible).

Anyway, I believe in negs but the only way were can be affected is if we allow it to happen, either consciously or sub-consciously.

Hell is a state of mind.

We make our hell.

See, I am not like the other Christians who believe in fire and brimstone.

I didn't write the book...though I wish I had! [^]

Anyway, I didn't mean to say any schmoe could waltz in and out of dimensions or different levels/territories, (whatever we want to call them).  In fact it's kind of a paradox.  We determine what we see and where we go, nothing can stop us...but things do.  I know that doesn't make sense, but I guess what I am trying to say is that there really are different heavens and hells, of course these are just terms to describe the states that we create for ourselves.  So although I believe in different, subjective levels, I also believe in an objective reality and I do believe in the Eternal Now where God resides and if we want to get there (and I do) then we must preapre oursleves.

Regarding Earth....Earth is a low place and a place of learning or as Robert Bruce says "Hard life experience."  Only certain spirits chose to be incarnate here and for a very good reason.  I believe we are trying, among other things, to learn to control matter...and of course to gain knowledge and learn to love, etc.  Not just any spirit can come here and be seen, or wander into our lives, and when they do it's usually because we want them to our have invited them, either consciously or sub-consciously (although it's always conscious on some level).  Whoa...it's late and I am rambling.

What do you think?

I have read up on what those who have seen Reloaded have to say and it sounds like it's gonna be heavy on action and skimpy on plot/narrative...which means a lot of eye candy and CGI, and hey, because it's the Matrix it's gonna be cool.  So the consensus seems to be that it's not only going to break records as far as ticket sales, etc. but that it's pretty good, but it lacks that special something the original had, but that's the curse of the sequel.  I am going to see Friday night with a bunch of buddies (and because the wife is out of town, afterwards we are going to have a huge Halo tournament- 5 xboxes, 4 tv's and a projector for one of them....shaweeeet!)

Yes, I think when one attempts to progress spriritually, he or she will inevitably have to face the obstacles that everyone must eventually face.  When we strive to move forward faster than the general population, and this is a great thing, we will face even steeper opposition.

I am a great believer that while we ourselves often times hinder our own progression, there is an evil/negative force that automatically strives to stop us as well...it's the nature of realuty/the universe, but it is NOTHING TO FEAR.

This is a very interesting topic and I hope to discuss it more then times permits.

Thanks!

Very interesting questions, and I can't say I know all the answers, but I do feel strongly about some of this.  First of all, I have a firm belief that some "belief systems" are indeed correct.  In other words, what you think determines your reality.  Therefore one could not just "enter" another dimension or belief system territory because you, in order to be there or see it, would have to be in that state of mind/spirit.

From my personal expereince, I have found there are many places where you can freely roam but some areas are restricted to those beings who have attained a certain degree of truth or righteousness or whatever you want to call it.  The only thing stopping you from reaching those areas, however, is yourself...so in that sense there is nothing "off limits" except for what you determine yourself.

Good question and I am interested to see what Frank, and others, have to say.

OfficeSpace is a damned funny movie and I remember laughiing SO hard when they jump kick that fax machine or whatever it is.  Good flick and it speaks volumes about coroprate America.

THe Big Lebowski is a great film and dang funny.  (I love to say dAng)

GOingslow- you MUST be kidding about Jury Duty

Welcome.  I myself am on a little hiatus from AP...not that I don't meditate, pray and strive each day to improve spiritually and develop my energy, but with the pressures I am under with work and school, I spend most of my time posting nonesense here in the chat section.

Anyway, welcome and I hope you enjoy being a member of this community.

-Daniel

Great picture!  Yes, from Rottentomatoes.

Obviously Toy Story 2 has less artistic value than, let's say, the Godfather...but because (and I think I mentioned this) that list is based on the number of positive reviews, then it just reflects it's general "likability."  That's art for you, it's totally subjective.  One man's treasure is another man's trash, and vice versa.

I knew many would not be able to name just one film, so here is a short list of some of my all time favs (some from childhood and some from recently):

E.T.
Il Ladro delle Bicicleta
StarWars
A River Runs Through It
The Godfather (I and II)

OK, OK, I dont' know why I did that.  Here is a list of films that, not according to me, but by a poll of thousands of critics of yesterday and today, have come up on top:

Percentages indicate how many critiques were positive, the last number indicates how many reviews this is based on:

1. 100% Toy Story 2 111
2. 100% The Taste of Others 57
3. 100% The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night 54
4. 100% The Sweet Hereafter 45
5. 100% Amadeus 42
6. 100% Rear Window 42
7. 100% Vertigo 35
8. 100% Apocalypse Now 33
9. 100% Blood Simple 33
10. 100% The Godfather 32
11. 100% Sense and Sensibility 31
12. 100% Casablanca 30
13. 100% The Third Man 30
14. 100% Toy Story 30
15. 100% The Wizard of Oz 30
16. 100% Lawrence of Arabia 29
17. 100% Pulp Fiction 29
18. 100% Big Night 29
19. 100% Schindler's List 27
20. 100% Psycho 27
21. 100% This Is Spinal Tap 27
22. 100% Yana's Friends 27
23. 100% Singin' in the Rain 26
24. 100% Taxi Driver 26
25. 100% The People Vs. Larry Flynt 26
26. 100% Winslow Boy, The 26
27. 100% Blood Simple: Director's Cut 25
28. 100% Pepe Le Moko 24
29. 100% Citizen Kane 24
30. 100% The Last Waltz 24
31. 100% Sound & Fury 24
32. 100% Human Resources 23
33. 100% Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb 22
34. 100% Jaws 22
35. 100% Bullets Over Broadway 22
36. 100% Quiz Show 22
37. 100% The Manchurian Candidate 21
38. 100% Seven Samurai 21
39. 100% The Decalogue Box Set 21
40. 100% Sweet Smell of Success 21
41. 100% Aliens 20
42. 100% A Clockwork Orange 20
43. 100% Do the Right Thing 20
44. 100% Sunset Boulevard 20
45. 100% Grand Illusion 20
46. 100% North by Northwest 20
47. 100% The Secret of Roan Inish 20
48. 100% The Player 20
49. 100% Dark Days 20
50. 99% Saving Private Ryan 70
51. 98% Chicken Run 117
52. 98% E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial The 20th Anniversary 80
53. 98% L.A. Confidential 53
54. 98% Metropolis 47
55. 98% The Empire Strikes Back 44
56. 98% Scratch 40
57. 97% The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 195
58. 97% Catch Me If You Can 176
59. 97% Spirited Away 138
60. 97% Yi Yi 73
61. 97% All About My Mother 63
62. 97% Antz 58
63. 97% E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial 38
64. 97% Rivers and Tides: Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time 37
65. 97% Monty Python and the Holy Grail 35
66. 97% Not One Less 34
67. 97% Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter Jr. 31
68. 97% Gone With the Wind 30
69. 97% Cure 30
70. 97% Apollo 13 30
71. 97% Daughter from Danang 29
72. 96% Bowling for Columbine 144
73. 96% The Iron Giant 94
74. 96% With a Friend Like Harry 85
75. 96% Read My Lips 82
76. 96% Croupier 53
77. 96% Open Hearts 50
78. 96% Good Will Hunting 49
79. 96% I'm Going Home 47
80. 96% An Ideal Husband 46
81. 96% Down from the Mountain 28
82. 96% The Producers 27
83. 96% Ran 26
84. 96% Silence of the Lambs 25
85. 96% Hell House 25
86. 96% In the Company of Men 24
87. 96% Miller's Crossing 24
88. 96% Chaos 24
89. 96% Terminator 2: Judgment Day 23
90. 96% Solaris 23
91. 96% Glengarry Glen Ross 23
92. 96% Hercules 23
93. 96% Life and Times of Hank Greenberg, The 23
94. 95% The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring 179
95. 95% The Pianist 152
96. 95% Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 132
97. 95% The Insider 117
98. 95% The Dish 97
99. 95% Shakespeare in Love 79
100. 95% Time Out 75