Enriching Mere Thought

Recently I was watching some old Charlie Chaplin movies that were edited and re-issued by him in a later era.  He added music and replaced the captions with his own voice-overs.  I thought it was an interesting -- and effective -- combination of old and new techniques.  

Perhaps this suggests how a modern media consumer can be more than a passive consumer.  As an example, consider how numb and passive we have become to news of slaughter in Gaza.  It bothers me that I object to the sadistic murder of children in a purely intellectual or philosophical way, but don't really feel anything.

It's not that I consider feelings more important than thought.  There are people who do consider feelings a more essential and authentic part of their soul.  Recall the classic movie, "Lawrence of Arabia:" the newspaper reporter asked the Arab king, 'Isn't mercy a passion with Lawrence?"  The king replied that yes it was with Lawrence, but with the king himself mercy was merely good manners.  The king added, "I leave it to you to decide which of these two motives is more reliable."

So I don't want to glorify raw emotions about murdering Gazan children.  But I do want to add an emotional experience to a philosophical or intellectual viewpoint.  Music is one way to do that: watch a music video "Zombies" by the Cranberries.  The video makes references to violence in Ireland, but the viewer can carry that idea over to Gaza.