The Pokemon Movie
Pushing Peace, Power,
and Politically Correct Conflict Resolution
by Berit Kjos
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Free cards with movie ticket
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"For lifelong learning to become
a reality, a whole new ethic will have to grip the American imagination."1 (President Clinton,
1994)
"Maybe if we start looking at what’s
the same rather than what’s different.... " (Pokemon:
The First Movie)
"Conflict is a natural, vital part
of life.... The challenge for people in conflict is to apply
the principles of creative cooperation in their human relationships."
(Conflict
Resolution Education: A Guide to Implementing
Programs in Schools, Youth-Serving Organizations, and Community
and Juvenile Justice Settings.
I admit it. Boredom distracted me more
than the cheers and laughter of the young crowd around me. One
parent called it "Pokemon torture." Without the fervent
devotion that draws young fans in unprecedented numbers to the
strange world of Japanese anime, it’s not much fun to watch
"The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back" - one of the
most popular movies in Japan last year.
But to the excited children who skipped
schools to see it, the movie reinforces the context and thrills
of the Pokemon world they have already learned to love. To many
parents, that same fantasy world seems confusing yet tame compared
to other choices at the theatre. Therefore, our objections may
not matter much to non-Christian families. However, parents who
want to raise their children to follow God may want to consider
these concerns:
The shrewd marketing strategies that fuels the
Pokemania.
The way
the movie manipulates a child's imagination.
The group
thinking and collective "consciousness" it promotes.
The pantheistic
spirituality behind the psychic energies it touts.
The artificial
conflict it creates and how this context supports the globalist
quest for universal participation in conflict resolution and
other manipulative forms of the consensus process.
NINTENDO'S MARKETING SCHEMES. The show
begins with "Pikachu's Vacation," a 22-minute lead-in
film guaranteed to feed the greed stirred by Nintendo’s
enchanting Pokemon (POcKEt MONsters). Children already bombarded
with the ever-present slogan, "Gotta catch them all,"
watch their favorite monsters show off their unique battle strengths
and their cooperative spirits. The latter seems strangely at
odds with the Pokemania which drives kids to steal, cheat, fight
and stab in order to "catch all" the coveted trading
cards. One recently sold at a school for $500.
It's no wonder that kids are caught
up in the frenzy and, occasionally, in violence. The ads, the
TV stories, the movie promotion, and the peer pressures stir
wants and cravings even adults find it hard to control. Cravings
demand satisfaction, and unfulfilled cravings stir frustration,
anger, and hatred toward anyone who thwarts their immediate gratification
-- be it peers, teachers, principals, or parents. The movie's
reminders that peace overcomes conflict does little to actually
still the demands of a human nature enticed by today's marketing
moguls.
MANIPULATION or IMAGINATION? Yet the
two themes – peace and psychic power – weave through
the double feature from beginning to end. The latter appeals
to children's growing lust for virtual violence and spiritual
power, while the short sermons on peace and cooperation provide
a smoke-screen for the more disturbing messages that children
best remember. "That movie makes me want to fight,"
said one boy. His imaginary power had triumphed over the call
to peace.
This conflict between human nature and
noble ideals is vital to the worldwide education program, and
the Pokemon version of "edutainment" fits right in.
Through entertainment, it instills new beliefs and values. It
sets the stage for dialogue and group thinking. And it fills
each child's mind with the same violent images, nice-sounding
sentiments, and unspoken need to resolve the inner conflict between
the two opposites. The child becomes part of a like-minded group
which reinforces the new collective values. Meanwhile, the child
has too much fun to think rationally about what's happening to
him.
These opposing messages are not new
to Christian Pokemon fans. Our culture has already been prompting
them to conform their home-taught conscience to more popular
values that please their peers. Most children want more trading
cards, more battles, more of the television stories, and more
Pokemon gadgets. Peaceful ideals yield to the pressure of the
group which has been drilled in the Pokemon vision and commission
to "catch them all."
While children hear and proclaim ideals
such as kindness and cooperation, they are led into a virtual
Pokemon world of power, battles, cheating, and greed. But don’t
think that those mental images come from their own minds. The
Pokemon movie and television episodes don’t just stir the
imagination, they steer it. Unlike the simple toys of past centuries
that prompted the child to depend on their own imagination, the
movie's link to toys and games creates a context for the child’s
imagined experiences. This context determines how they use their
toys, games, and gadgets. In other words, today’s entertainment
industry feeds, manipulates and directs the child’s mind
and imagination.
Where, then, does the movie lead our
children? How does it fit the worldwide quest of common beliefs
and values? Finally, what factors in the Pokemon movie correspond
to conflict resolution, the manipulative worldwide program that
uses conflicts -- real and imagined -- to conform children’s
thinking, attitudes, values, and relationships to an "evolving"
global ideal?
The last part is heavy. Yet, since people
around the world will be pressured to conform to the new thinking,
we need to understand the process and guard against the subtle
public messages that support it. Entertainment plays a big role
in this transformation.
COMMON BELIEFS AND VALUES
First, take a look at some definitions.
They explain the innocent sounding forces that are part of the
entire Pokemon family, not just the monsters called Hypno, Haunter,
Mewtwo, and Kadabra (the psychic Pokemon).
PSYCHIC (Ch'i or Ki) Energy
Defined from an occult perspective
in the Donning International Psychic Dictionary by June
G. Bletzer, Ph.D.
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"An intelligent, powerful, invisible
force… capable of being controlled and directed by the human
mind; 1. Capable of being channeled out through the brain, palms,
and eyes; 2. Can be transmitted through space into other living
organisms and through matter; 3. Occurs when willed or occurs
spontaneously; 4. Invisible energy living in all organisms and
matter, connected throughout all the universes; psychic energy
is an aspect of electricity…6. Controlled and employed under
certain conditions that mankind does not fully understand…
tunes into the etheric world vibrational frequencies reaching
from cosmic consciousness…. 9. Transmits knowledge to the
mind, and manipulates matter…. 10. Frequently comes from
an intelligent, powerful energy field known as highly evolved
soul-minds in invisible bodies… 12. A primordial form of
intelligence pervading the universe and affecting its course." |
Ch'i or Ki
|
(China & Japan) "An immutable
principle in the… vital life force; Synonyms:
Tch’i, Qi, Prana, Biocosmic energy, Psi (Psychic) energy...." |
Psychic Consciousness
|
"An altered state of consciousness…
as in sleep, hypnosis, meditation, and the opening of psychic
doors…." |
The dark and scary main feature, "Meowtwo
Strikes Back," opens with the creation of "the world’s
most powerful pokemon." Ambitious human scientists had cloned
a super-monster from the DNA of the "rarest of all pokemon,"
the sweet, kitty-like Mew. But their creation, Mewtwo, proves
far more ambitious than his gentle genetic twin.
"Am I only a copy?"complains
Mewtwo. "Nothing but Mew’s shadow?"
"You are greater than Mew,"
answered the scientists. "…We used the most advanced
techniques to develop your awesome psychic powers."
The answer fails to satisfy Mewtwo's
quest for identity and purpose, so he repeats his question. He
hates being "just an experiment." Offended and enraged,
he hurls his mighty psychic powers at his uncaring human makers,
destroys their laboratories – an action sure to please anti-technology
environmentalists -- and sets off to create his own world.
When invited to form a partnership with
another human, he hesitates. But the offer sounds good: "With
your psychic powers and my resources, together we can control
the world…. I will show you a way to focus your powers that
will make you invincible."
Mewtwo trusts and learns, then discovers
that the human tutor had tricked him. With his spiritual power
more focused than ever, he determines to rule the world alone:
"Now I have my own purpose…. to create my own world
by destroying yours." Apparently, his psychological wounds
pushed him into a life of evil.
The scene shifts to 10-year-old pokemon
trainer Ash and his friends Brock and Misty. Their Pokemon bring
the "good" side of the psychic force: the pantheistic
Ch'i or Ki energy behind Japanese martial arts, Tai Chi, Chi
Kung, and many holistic health practices such as Polarity. (See
excerpt from A Twist of Faith) A standard pokemon
battle follows and the familiar theme song beats out the Pokemon
vision to an audience already sold on the new games, gadgets
and group thinking:
"I will travel across the
land
Searching far and wide
Each Pokeman to understand
The power that's inside.
Gotta catch them all!"
The "power inside" his Pokemon
gives Ash the needed tools to fight and defeat Mewtwo’s
cruel scheme. In the movie, the link between this "good"
psychic force and the spirit of love and unity becomes the winning
ingredient. It all sounds fine to those who don't understand
the spiritual battle that has been raging since the beginning
of time -- nor remember God’s command: "You shall have
no other god besides Me."
CONFLICT RESOLUTION
Since the "edutainment" industry
– from Hollywood to Japan – tends to clash with traditional
American values, it creates conflict outside as well as within
its movies. Its moral and spiritual guidance produce imagined
experiences that change behavior and often divide families. These
imaginary experiences often leave heart-felt memories as strong
and influential as those based on actual experience. In turn,
these powerful memories and messages, reinforced through multicultural
education and other media impressions, change behavior as well
as minds.
To resolve the inner conflict (dissonance)
between the old beliefs and new imaginary thrills, children with
a Bible-trained conscience learn to rationalize their wants and
justify their actions. In the process, they sear their conscience
and build resentment toward God’s guidelines. Like Adam
and Eve, they tend to run from God. That's not hard to do, since
His authority has been undermined by our schools from coast to
coast. Through the consensus
process (facilitated group dialogue)
children have learned to create "their own" values based
on peer pressure and group thinking. To them, God's standards
no longer fit. Many of the "Christians" who responded
to our first Pokemon article fit this category. (See Comments)
"Conflict resolution" has
become a familiar adaptation of the consensus process everywhere.
Used to resolve social conflicts, it has changed the way people
relate to each other in schools, government, business, and community
groups. While its immediate goals sound good, its ultimate goal
is to conform young and old to the collective society where conflict
and individualism have been replaced with compromise and collective
thinking.
As I mentioned in the Mental
Health article, children who refuse
to conform may be considered handicapped. According to a Teacher
Training Manual from the National Training Institute for Applied
Behavioral Science,
"Although they appear to behave
appropriately and seem normal by most cultural standards, they
may actually be in need of mental health care in order to help
them change, adapt, and conform to the planned society in which
there will be no conflict of attitudes or beliefs." 16
"Conflict resolution" outlines
the steps to the envisioned peace -- a state of mental and social
unity. It's the heart of UNESCO's vision for world education
and the aim of its new chief, the Japanese diplomat, Koichiro
Matsuura. (We hope to finish our report on his goals soon) Around
the world, education and health establishments are already working
closely with the entertainment media. These government-media
partnerships are outlined in the UN's Local
Agenda 21 Planning Guide, in the President's Council on Sustainable
Development's report titled Sustainable America, and in
the U.S. Department of Education's Community Action Toolkit.
Within this unity envisioned by UNESCO,
President Clinton,
and other leaders around the world, certain kinds of diversity
would be allowed, even encouraged. People would still be free
to call themselves Christians, Muslims or Buddhists. But Christians
must conform their faith to a universal model for spirituality.
Buddhism fits this global spirituality well, but only a cross-less,
all-inclusive form of "Christianity" would be tolerated.
Everyone wants peace, therefore few dare criticize the new standards
for "healthy communities."
The practical steps to solidarity are
outlined in documents available through our U.S. Department of
Education. Its website includes the book, Creating Safe and
Drug-Free Schools, An
Action Guide. The section titled
"Conflict Resolution" lists four progressive "Strategies
for Approaching Conflict Resolution:" (1) Peer Mediation,
(2) Process Curriculum, (3) Peaceable Classrooms, and (4) Peaceable
Schools. The last strategy calls parents and all other members
of the school community to participate in a new management system
(TQM) and the consensus and conflict resolution process. No one
is exempt.
Before we return to Mewtwo and the Pokemon
world, take a look at some details of this worldwide process.
Our Department of Education's website provides a link to a curriculum
titled Conflict
Resolution Education. Its "Chapter 4: Peaceable Classroom Approach,"
shows how students can learn "to take responsibility for
their actions and develop a sense of connectedness to others
and their environment." The process requires that the students
--
Understand and analyze conflict.
Understand
peace and peacemaking.
Recognize
the role of perceptions and biases.
Identify
feelings.
Identify
factors that cause escalation.
Handle
anger and other feelings appropriately.
The steps sound good, don't they? But
the "understanding" taught through the consensus process
doesn't fit reality. It doesn't show the truth about human nature.
Instead it blames social conflict on "hateful" and
"separative" beliefs such as Biblical Christianity
with its absolute truths. Since such moral standards hold us
accountable, they offend and divide people. Determined to usher
in a millennium with accountability to the group or "collective"
instead of God, our education and entertainment leaders present
stories and fantasies that blame "separateness" (based
on traditional values) for social problems. (See Mental
Health)
The world's solution to social conflict
is compromise, willingness to seek "common ground,"
and pre-planned consensus positions -- one that moves closer
to the global ideal week by week. To reach this middle ground,
every group member must "feel" each other's emotions,
empathize with each other's cravings, and share their own emotions.
(See Brainwashing)
Those who refuse to compromise face positive and negative incentives
(peer approval or ridicule, rejection, low scoring assessments,
etc.).
But,
you may argue, some beliefs and convictions can be harmful.
That's true, but the aim of this process is not primarily to
change or fix students involved in drugs, occult practices, or
other dangers. It's to undermine faith, absolute truths, and
any other hindrance to consensus so that everyone can be manipulated
through their feelings. And in the Pokemon movie, feelings and
group consciousness, not facts or faith, win the peace.
POKEMON AND COMMON GROUND
The movie suggested a kind-hearted solution
to conflict: "Maybe if we start looking at what’s the
same rather than what’s different...." This slogan
wasn't invented by the Japanese animators. It was the heart of
UNESCO's world education and the consensus process long before
Pokemon was created. Mewtwo repeats this sentiment at the end
of the movie, after an emotional drama that reconciled the good
and the evil forces. His confession and moral lesson seems aimed
at educating rather than entertaining the masses:
"The humans sacrificed themselves
to save their pokemon. I pitted them against each other, but
not until they set aside their differences did I see the true
power they all shared inside. I see now that the circumstances
of one’s birth are irrelevant. It’s what you do with
the gift of life that determines who you are."
This enticing blend of truth and illusion
makes sense in the Pokemon fantasy world. The audience sees only
trivial differences. Parents and children are left with the impression
(a mental image, not a fact) that simply setting aside our differences
could end social conflict.
The solution is not that simple. Some
differences -- such as skin color -- should be ignored. But where
faith and conscience divide us, today's global quest for unity
undermines our most basic American freedom. After all, some of
our most offensive differences are vital to our faith: Our God
is not like other gods. The Bible is not like other "sacred"
scriptures. All lifestyles are not equally healthy. And all religions
do not lead to the same ultimate reality. There can be no genuine
oneness between a true Christian and those who follow the world
and its spirit. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) That's why Jesus told
his disciples to expect persecution, not love, from the world.
(John 15:20) Those who love Him cannot follow the ways of the
world. As Jesus told His disciples,
"Wide is the gate and broad
is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through
it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life,
and only a few find it." (Matthew
7:13-14)
Like the televised Pokemon tales, this
movie tempts Christian children to trade faith in God for faith
in the spiritual force popularized through Pokemon, Star Wars,
and countless other sources. Few will remember to resist, for
its message brings an assault on their emotions, not their intellect.
This is one reason films and fantasy are vital to the cultural
transformation.
Feelings -- especially fear and anger
-- are vital to conflict resolution. In consensus groups of all
kinds, well trained facilitators use emotions stirred by politically
correct stories and "information" to arouse strong
feelings, manipulate and direct those feelings toward resisters,
and build social activists accountable to the group, not God.
The Pokemon movie helps set the stage by stirring emotions that
will guide peer groups around the world. And
The evil Mewtwo captured and cloned
Ash's Pokemon, then sent his army of clones to fight the others.
In the midst of the angry slug-fest, only Pikachu refused to
hit back. The others began to notice the brave but sad little
pokemon who stood still, absorbing blow after blow from his angry
clone. Suddenly a collective miracle happened. The other pokemon
stopped fighting and wept with the little hero. Moments later,
when the heart-broken Pikachu tried to revive Ash, his slain
master, even Mewtwo stopped his assault. The Christ-like example
had touched everyone's heart. But the persuasive final images
of peer power should bring Christians a sober warning. For the
group feeling of empathy produced group consciousness
and group energy -- or rather, psychic energy. And it worked.
A decade ago, New Agers dreamed of Harmonic
Convergence and spiritual evolution through mass consciousness.
Now at the turn of the millennium, the youthful masses are catching
the vision as well. They dream of global transformation, peace,
and love -- the fruit of the global plans for a united world.
But God has a different message:
"Know this, that in the last
days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves,
lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to
parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers,
without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong,
haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having
a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people
turn away!
.... all who desire to live godly
in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil men and impostors
will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. But
you must continue in the things which you have learned...."
(2 Timothy 3:1-13)
Christians need to prepare for the days ahead. The Biblical blueprint
matches the signs of our times. Both point to anger, oppression,
and persecution of those who follow God. In the midst of these
dangers, He offers His people all the strength and joy we need
to triumph. By His wonderful grace, families can stand immovable,
demonstrating genuine peace and love, no matter what kinds of
conflicts rage around us.
"Fear not, for I have
redeemed you;
I have called you by your name; You are Mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned….
For I am the LORD your God….
You are precious in My sight… and I have loved you.…"
Isaiah 43:1-5
This article lays the foundation
for the next one: "Pokemon and the New Chief of UNESCO."
The Japanese diplomat who was chosen to head the UN agency that
reigns over the global education program (see Goals
2000) has been focusing on "peacemaking."
This process -- based on the nice-sounding promises of conflict
resolution -- means that every human resource around the world
must participate in the dialogues that conform their values to
UN ideology. (See Brainwashing) The Japanese Pokemon movie illustrates the
needed tension between social violence and the peaceful ideal
-- which must be resolved by changing beliefs and retraining
the conscience.
Endnotes:
1. William
J. Clinton, Education Record (Spring, 1994).