Arrogance and rubbish

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/29/the-one-must-see-documentary/

Sigh.  There are all sorts of problems with such a list.  One that I do not share is the worry about documentary vs propaganda.  It's an endless argument - one person's description is another person's whitewash, etc.  Every history, whether in print or on film is a selection of data and decisions made on what and how to present it.  A point of view is a natural outcome.  Deal with it.  Just remember that the term "Documentary" doesn't mean "The Final Definitive Work Etched In Stone Which You Must Kowtow To".  So we are left with a fairly broad definition.  I've got no problems with that.
But I do have some problems here.  One is the mewling excuse by the producers that they're not the 50 "Best", (probably made because the ignorance demonstrated in their choices can be torn apart in about 2 minutes by anyone with a modicum of intelligence and background).  But yea, they are saying that:  You've gotta see 'em before you die means that.  What?  You're saying I don't have to see the best - just these? Oh, Please...
My most serious complaint is an echo of one made in the Times.  This list was obviously compiled by people who were born less than thirty years ago.  For whatever reason, they are lying under the dunder-headed notion that life started with them.  Anybody of any generation that thinks this and acts that way is stupid*.
I find it incredible that these folks would ignore documentaries that are the equal to any in their list.  They influenced, and even changed great numbers of minds, inspired policies and political parties, etc..  I'm not an expert, or a TV or film historian; but how could you ignore Eyes On The Prize, Why We Fight, Vietnam:_The_Ten_Thousand_Day_War, Harvest of Shame, and Intolerance?  (Lest you accuse me of the same generational prejudices, I would point out that two of these were created long before I was born, and two more when I was a child).
I think that I get pissed off about things like this because I see so much in the way of social studies getting ignored and/or abused in school curriculum's and by parents. And this seems to be one more occasion where anything over 20 years old is treated as antediluvian compost, to be ignored. And thus ignoring any lessons or wisdom to be gained therein. The present makes so much more sense if one understands the past. In fact, in many ways, that's the only way to make sense of it is to understand where it came from. That's too often ignored now, (check any political reporting or commentary in the Washington Post or on your nightly news cast for examples).  This list just strikes me as another example of that virginal view of events.


*I would argue that my generation of Baby Boomers, for the most part don't believe this. We grew up with knowledge about and respect for our parents' tales of the Great Depression, WWII, etc. My education certainly involved immersion in the 18th and 19th centuries, at the very least.  However, while not believing that the Universe began with us, some of our members do seem to think that it Ends with us...