Originally posted by Eladar
Does transformers movies receive tax dollars from the government?

To varying degrees, depending on how one defines "receiving tax dollars." I find such a semantic issue uninteresting; resources are used to produce goods and services, whether or not they are productively applied is not directly related to what numbers are on which bureaucratic piece of paper.

Originally posted by finnegan
So do you and or Eladar oppose or support the annual subsidies to the military of Israel ($3bn) and Egypt ($2bn)?

There are already threads debating this. Why hijack this one?

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
Well, at least a movie of a rapper having sex with his own head is less of a waste of money than Transformers movies.

Some people actually find Transformer movies entertaining.

Originally posted by normbenign
There are already threads debating this. Why hijack this one?

Read the thread title. What is the cost to the taxpayers of this film festival to which you all object? If it comes close to the amount gifted to the Israeli Defence Force or the Egyptian army then I will concede your point. I think that for $5billion you would find the quality of the films improved radically.

Originally posted by finnegan
Read the thread title. What is the cost to the taxpayers of this film festival to which you all object? If it comes close to the amount gifted to the Israeli Defence Force or the Egyptian army then I will concede your point. I think that for $5billion you would find the quality of the films improved radically.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma

I do not agree that the dilemma is a false one. If we assume that the reasoning goes like this:
It is bad to waste public money
This film is a waste of public money
We should not sponsor the arts

I would reply
We should use public money wisely
A small sum sponsoring the arts may produce a good or a bad film but it will still give a young artist some valuable experience
We should sponsor the arts
A large sum sponsoring the IDF carries with it a risk of sponsoring crimes against humanity
We should be worried about the larger sum and the more serious risk

If the issue is about tax payer money, as the title states, (and not therefore primarily about the quality of an experimental art film) then
It is not consistent to complain about a small sum wasted and ignore a much larger sum with dangerous consequences.

Analogy. I once assumed responsibility for a budget in excess of £12m. I found myself entering a debate about the spending of some £200 on books and periodicals. I responded that I had more important items to spend management time on. I thought we could afford a few periodicals without blinking.