Star Wars to blame for September 11th attacks according to Handmaid’s Tale author Margaret Atwood
In a recent interview with Variety magazine, the author of Handmaid Tales Margaret Atwood blames Star Wars for the September 11th attacks.
How many of you remember where you were on 9/11, September 11, 2001? I remember sitting in keyboarding class my Senior year of high school when the announcement came overhead on the loudspeaker. “Turn your TV’s on, America’s under attack.” Star Wars was the last thing on my mind that day, but evidently, Margaret Atwood — author of the Handmaid’s Tale — believes that a galaxy far, far away is responsible for the September 11th attacks.
No, seriously, she truly believes that to be true. When asked in a recent interview by Variety magazine about the origins of the Handmaid’s Tale, Atwood answered:
"“The Handmaid’s Tale” that premiered in Denmark in 2000. It started with a film reel going across the top of the stage and showing various things blowing up. And one of the things that blew up was the Twin Towers. But it hadn’t blown up yet. They did the opera again, and they had to take it out, because it was no longer in the future.”“They didn’t get that idea from my opera, don’t worry. They got the idea from “Star Wars.”"
Ramin Setoodeh of Variety then asked her a follow-up question, “do you really believe that?” and Atwood responded:
"Remember the first one? Two guys fly a plane in the middle of something and blow that up? The only difference is, in “Star Wars,” they get away. Right after 9/11, they hired a bunch of Hollywood screenwriters to tell them how the story might go next. Sci-fi writers are very good at this stuff, anticipating future events. They don’t all come true, but there are interesting “what if” scenarios."
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Wow. I don’t even know where to start with this ludacrious and insensitive statement. Off the bat, Star Wars is responsible for a great many things — joy, great filmmaking, even arguments within its fanbase — but to say that a galaxy far, far away is “responsible” for the September 11th Attacks is beyond my comprehension.
On the surface, her statement doesn’t even make any sense, so maybe she’s just a nutcase. But, perhaps she’s not and knows precisely what she’s saying. Who knows?
To clarify, a live version of the Handmaid’s Tale premiered in Denmark back in 2000, where a film reel showed the Twin Towers in New York blowing up — a year before the September 11th attacks.
Instead of recognizing that as a coincidence, Atwood went out of her way to bring this up in an interview nearly 17 years after the September 11th attacks.
When asked to confirm if that is indeed what she was saying, she rambled on more about how Star Wars is the culprit and not her. I’ll answer that question for you. Do you know who’s to blame Miss Atwood?
The cowardly terrorists who planned and then carried out these vicious attacks on American soil. You’re not to blame, and Star Wars is definitely not to blame, either. I’ll stop now before I get too upset, but come on Atwood!
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Star Wars is a venue of escapism and entertainment, and NOT the inspiration for the September 11th Attacks. Many innocent people died on that dark and dire day because a group of terrorists and evil men decided to act out an unspeakable act.
Maybe next time you are in front of a “mic” Miss Atwood, you’ll not speak yourself and remain silent.