Oldies That are Making a Comeback 3

Perhaps one of the greatest serials to ever make it to T.V., "The Prisoner", is being reimagined on AMC. This phenomenal work, at least in it's original form, is quite outside my capabilities to fully comment on or describe, but, it suffices to say, It is a metaphysical battle of one man deconstructing the dehumanized society as described in the later revelations of Howard Beale.

"The Prisoner"(1967)

"The Prisoner"(2009)

Oldies That are Making a Comeback 2

The media left constantly compares their counterparts on the right to one of two characters: Howard Beale from "Network" (1976) or "Lonesome" Rhodes of "A Face in the Crowd"(1957). while the analogy is interesting there is some trace of irony in Olberman comparing anyone to Howard Beale. These two films saw America's obsession with realness at the expense of reality long before most, and in their satire actually became a reference for what they were satirizing.

"Network"(1976)

"A Face in the Crowd"(1957)

Oldies That are Making a Comeback 1

The superb and atmospheric "The Devil and Daniel Webster" was recently dusted off for TCM's Essentials, a program that features Alec Baldwin and some old guy telling you about what good cinema is. This movie is still thoroughly fresh and it's apparent moral, that one must sacrifice a part of their soul to their country to rationalize the devilish ravishes of greed, plays extremely well in the modern context.

The First Church of Tiger Disbands

The First Church Of Tiger Woods, an internet site to celebrate the coming of the true messaiah, Tiger Woods, has become The Damnation of Tiger Woods (tigerwoodsisgod.com). The whole media storm around the fall from grace of a golf player offers us cautionary tale as old as Pentheus or Jesus or Lindbergh. It would behoove those who hide in the security of being above reproach to take it seriously. Do not underestimate the public's thirst for the blood of fallen idols. There is alot more to be shed and, far from satiating the hunger, Madoff and Woods have only started the sharks to circle. Who will come out as Tiresias? Only the ones who can embrace the darkness and reflect on their own natures.

Palinsanity

Palin is really striking a chord with a certain segment of the American public and while she will never be president, it must be said, without irony, she is a great politician. She has managed to shift a large portion of the national media's attention away from even the pretense of politics onto the epic trivialities of her own life, and channeled all the petty hatred and resentent of white America into her own malleable cacophony.

Obama Anounces Troop Deployment. Pleases Neither Side

Obama's announced the deployment 30,000 troops to Afghanistan; a withdrawl starting in 2011; and the use of a modified amalgamation of counter-terrorism (drone attacks) and McChrystals COIN (counter-insurgency) strategy. After being hammered out after wipespread and heated debate throughout the upper echelons of the executive branch and its agencies (How Obama Came to Plan for ‘Surge’ in Afghanistan), it has failed to fully satisfy anyone in substantive terms. His cold-blooded approach in laying out his plans last week at West Point, likewise, draws a clear line between the charismatic senator of the 2007 campaign and the dispassionate messiah of present day. The most interesting analysis of the real face of the Obama Administration that is surfacing in one of the most important decision yet in his presidency has come out of David Brooks of the NY Times (The Analytic Mode), and Dana Milbank of the Washington Post (Obama the mortal). In summary Obama is an incrementalist; he values pragmatism and compromise above ideology; and he designs policy to evolve in a complex and changing world through argument and negotiation. Understandably this doesn't give much for any "side" to grasp onto and, in a way, is disruptive to the whole ideological balance of power that has stabilized the masses since the 1950's. In promoting the radical center during his campaign, everyone who wanted to see, saw what they wanted but here, a year or so afterward, we realize we bought a messiah, a sort of technocratic Jesus, and everyone is left clawing at their shadows.

(Jon Stewart did a nice little piece in this vein check it out here.)

Fear in Film Part 4

Our last in installment is "Collapse", an interesting little pre-apocalyptic documentary of an underdog by Chris Smith featuring almost exclusively the very convincing and charismatic Michael C. Ruppert. The director doesn't reveal as much as with "American Movie" and while it is possible to see it as a character study there aren't the touches of irony that give you a hint as to how your supposed to interpret the film. The general philosophy of Ruppert is that peak oil will cause a breakdown in the government's ability to enforce stability, the economy will collapse, and society will revert to pure Darwinism. He supports his theory with a well built and convincing (though faulted) logic peppered with an urgency that draws out all the incoherent fears and directs them with some considerable force.

"Collapse"

Fear in Film Part 3

A deeper view of our impending doom will probably come out of the "The Road" directed by John Hillcoat, based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy of the same name. Here we don't get any of the cosy shreds of commentary that comes from prophesising how the world will end; no explanations are offered. Nor do we have the hope of a new messiah. All there is man and earth trapped in a relationship that has disintegrated and with it all the ethics and values that held human society together. This could be taken as an environmentalist allegory, but I think that is far to positive. Whats at stake here is mans belief in himself as a creative force and the destruction and incarnate chaos that lurks behind this presumption.

"The Road"

"Legion":

"The Book of Eli":

Fear in Film Part 2

another version of our self-destruction is that our collective sin (i.e. our liberal live and let live values) will cause fire and brimstone to hail upon us in our comfortable little lives. This is an old story whether its god who directly sends man-eating angels to munch on us, as in "Legion" or we, as in the "Book of Eli", destroy ourselves and it's left for Denzel Washington/John the Baptist to roam the desolate plains Road Warrior style redeeming us.

(P.S. as I'm writing this the apocalypse is obviously in it's early stages as Google, YouTube, Newser, and Wikipedia are are down so i'll post the previews separately in a couple hours if i don't get eaten by angels first)

Bin Laden not in Pakistan, Says PM.

Gordon Brown has held talks with Yousef Raza Gilani. Pakistan's PM Yousuf Raza Gilani has told Gordon Brown he does not think Osama Bin Laden is in his country.

Speaking after talks with the UK prime minister, Mr Gilani said the US had provided no "actionable" intelligence on the al-Qaeda leader's whereabouts.

Mr Brown praised Pakistan's anti-terror efforts and pledged more support to help stabilise its border regions.

But the UK prime minister did not repeat his weekend call for Pakistan to do more to track down Bin Laden.

Questioned about these comments at a Downing Street news conference, Mr Brown hailed Pakistan's efforts to "disrupt the activities of al-Qaeda" in its South Waziristan region and vowed to continue sharing intelligence with "our allies".

Mr Gilani praised America's cooperation with Pakistan on security issues but he said Pakistan had yet to be given any "credible or actionable information" by the US on Bin Laden.

Source BBC

By Victor.

Middle East Conflict Played Out in The Olive Groves

Olives are the main source of income for many Palestinian farmers

Akram Imran says the Jewish settlers came at night to destroy them.

"I came to work in the early morning. It was a horrible sight, a massacre of trees," he said. "Some of them are at least 70 years old."

Climbing over a heap of withered branches in his olive grove on a rocky hillside near the village of Burin, the Palestinian farmer said they attacked 81 trees.

In some cases only tree trunks remain, the branches have been cut off.

Olives are the main source of income for Mr Imran and his family. He says it is hard to grasp the extent of the damage.

Akram Imran's livelihood depends on his olive grove
"All that I have is the land and the trees," he said. "I don't have any other work - just the trees. It will take five to seven years before they become fruitful again. I just hope the settlers won't come back."

Mr Imran's village is surrounded by Jewish settlements, which are illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.

He says this is not the first time his olive groves have been vandalised.

Source BBC

By Victor.

Obama to Deploy 30,000 Troops to Afghanistan

An exit strategy is expected to form part of the speech
President Barack Obama is to announce that he is sending 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, to deploy within six months, US officials have said.

Mr Obama will make the much-anticipated announcement as part of a speech at West Point, detailing his new strategy for taking on the Taliban.

He has briefed his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on the plan.

The US currently has 68,000 troops in Afghanistan, with foreign forces overall totalling more than 100,000.

Mr Obama's announcement comes amid growing domestic concern over the Afghan war.

On Monday, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced he would send 500 more soldiers to the country.

Source BBC.

By Victor.

Four Dead in Iraq Retaurant Bombing.

A bomb killed at least four people and wounded 25 others in one of Iraq's holy cities Wednesday morning, an Interior Ministry official said.

The bomb detonated in a popular restaurant in Karbala in the morning, when it was packed with breakfast diners.

The restaurant is reported to be about 400 meters from the headquarters of the city's security forces, said Karbala police spokesman Abdul Rahman al-Meshawi.

The attack came as Iraq prepares for the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha, which begins Friday. Authorities have strengthened security measures for the five-day holiday, which has in the past served as an important occasion for insurgents to carry out their attacks.

Karbala, about 60 miles southwest of Baghdad, is revered as the home to a shrine honoring Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed and a venerated Shiite martyr.

Source CNN.

By Victor.

Fear in Film Part 1

There is an unusual amount of apocalyptic, pre- and post-apocalyptic movies on the way for Christmas that tap into the inchoate fears of the american psyche. The themes of our assured destruction are diverse:

2012

Building on the popular urban legend, according to the Mayans apparently, the solar system will align with blah, blah, blah and we all will die. whats interesting about this movie is that in the end billionaires and heads of state survive by paying to get on a ship that floats by and watches the world burn. We can see how this relates to the current perception by the public that bankers are giving themselves huge bonuses while the economy they created collapses around them. This feeds into a basic sense of unfairness and is sure to fuel ticket sales. Trailer although it's been impossible to miss the promotion for this movie:

Karzai's Promise of a 'new season' for Afghanistan.

President Karzai's inauguration was attended by many Western dignitaries.

Walking along a 100-metre red carpet, President Hamid Karzai's arrival for his inauguration ceremony was unhurried.

But there is a growing sense of urgency that the Afghan leader must deliver progress in his second term.

In the hall where the ceremony took place, there was a sea of Afghan dignitaries as well as Western officials - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, and the British, French and Russian foreign ministers.

President Karzai knows he must balance all their demands.
The West - particularly the Americans - have been pouring on the pressure in recent days, saying that President Karzai must do more to stamp out corruption within his own administration.

By Victor

Source BBC.

Three Injured in Israeli Air Strikes on Gaza.

Two smuggling tunnels in southern Gaza were hit early on Tuesday

Three Palestinians have been injured in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip, Palestinian medical workers have said.

The Israeli military said it had hit a "weapons-manufacturing facility" near Gaza City and two smuggling tunnels near Rafah, on the border with Egypt.

The strikes were carried out overnight in response to two rockets fired from Gaza into Israel on Monday, it added.

In a separate incident, the Islamist group, Hamas, said two of its fighters were killed in an accidental explosion.

The Izz al-Din Qassam Brigades members had been carrying a rocket in a neighbourhood to the east of Gaza City when it blew up, it said.

There are unconfirmed reports that four others were injured by the blast. The Israeli military said it had no knowledge of the incident.

Rocket attacks from Gaza have decreased since Israeli forces undertook an offensive against Hamas, which controls the coastal territory, last December and January, but there have been sporadic attacks since then.

The Qassam rockets launched on Monday evening landed in an uninhabited part of the western Negev desert. There were no reports of damage or injury.

Source: BBC

By Victor.

Fort Hood Shooting

on November 5 an army colonel and psychiatrist Nidal Hasan shot and killed 13 soldiers at Fort hood in Texas. His main responsibility had been to treat post-traumatic stress in those returning from war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. He had repeatedly tried to break doctor patient privilege and turn over information about those under his care to be prosecuted for war crimes. It is believed that he had frequently corresponded to radical imams in the US and abroad via the internet. This has raised worries (as expressed in this WSJ article) that protection of expression could inhibit law enforcement agencies from addressing the self-radicalization of home-grown terrorists through increasingly accessible outlets of extreme ideology. This has also led some populists like Sarah Palin to call for more profiling of Muslims working in government positions. That liberal "political correctness" led to officials ignoring warning signs before this tragedy, has become a major talking point for some conservatives

Suicide Attack in Afghanistan Kills 13.

At least 13 people are reported killed in a suicide bombing on Friday morning in Afghanistan's Western Farah province, police said. Among the dead was a policeman. The attack also injured about 29 others including 8 children, police said.

The suicide bomber self-detonated next to the governor's house in the capital , Farah city. Police have suspected the bomber to be a Pakistani.

The largely deserted province bordering Iran has seen an increase in bloodshed as Taliban insurgents have spread west from their stronghold in the south and at east of Afghanistan.

The attack occurred a day after Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, was sworn in for another five-term.

Source CNN.

By Victor.

Obama 'Close' to Afghan Decision.

Mr Obama said a decision would be announced within "several weeks"

President Barack Obama says he is "very close" to deciding whether to send more troops to Afghanistan and will announce his decision within "several weeks".

Mr Obama also told CNN in China his new strategy would emphasise an "endgame".

The top US military commander in Afghanistan, Gen Stanley McChrystal, wants at least 40,000 more US troops.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in Kabul to attend the inauguration of President Hamid Karzai after a fraud-marred poll.

Her visit is a clear sign that the US and its Nato allies have no choice but to work with Mr Karzai and he knows it, the BBC's State Department correspondent Kim Ghattas says. Pressure is also reported to be mounting on Karzai by the international community for the rampant corruption in his government. He has been charged to fight against it.

Source BBC

By victor

Israeli Settlement Plan Denounced.

The Israeli government considers Gilo an integral part of Jerusalem.

The US and UN have criticised Israel's approval of 900 extra housing units at a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the move would hamper Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Their remarks came after Israel's interior ministry approved planning applications for the new units.

The planning and construction committee authorised the expansion of Gilo, which is built on land captured in 1967.

The land was later annexed to the Jerusalem municipality.

Meanwhile, Israeli bulldozers have demolished two homes in East Jerusalem, a further cause of Palestinian anger.

Thirty people were displaced when the first home was knocked down in the Beit Hanina area of East Jerusalem on Tuesday evening, rights groups said.

Source BBC

By Victor.

on TV part 2

ABC is remaking the 1983 sci-fi serial V. The original was a thinly veiled allegory of the Nazi rise to power and this time around it looks like it hasn't lost any of its social commentary. The basic premise is that a technologically advanced alien race lands on earth to refuel its ships offering all kinds of goodies including universal healthcare that they use to entice the youth to support them. It comes to Light that they have infiltrated high government positions. Underneath their beautiful appearance and utopian rhetoric are evil reptilian beasts trying to subjugate the human race. See where this is going?

On TV part1

To coincide with the one year anniversary of Obama's election HBO Aired a documentary produced by Edward Norton recorded over a two year period leading up to Nov. 4, 2008. The access granted to the filmmakers, especially in the early stages of the campaign, is extraordinary. Though Norton has claimed that he took a non-partisan archivists approach, at least the timing of this documentary surely has some political intentions. Its hard to deny the power of reliving these moments which surely will seem even more powerful in retrospect.

Jordan Police Accused of Death.

Five Jordanian police officers will face trial after a man died on Sunday of injuries allegedly sustained while in their custody, officials said.

The Minister of State for Information Affairs, Nabil Sharif, said the case should be referred to the judiciary. The family of the victim have accused the police of torturing him following his arrest in Amman last month.

The friends and relatives of the victim, who is 20 years, clashed with the police in the east of the capital after he was buried on Monday. The police had to use tear gas to disperse the crowd.

Source: BBC

By Victor.

Yemen Rebels 'Down Fight Jet'

Rebels in northern Yemen have said they shot down Yemeni fighter jet that was attacking their stronghold on Sunday. The government in Sanna has denied the claim, saying that Sukhoi crashed because of 'technical problem.' It was a third Yemeni plane to crash since the last fighting between the army and the rebels, known as the Houthis, began four months ago.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia said it had regained control of the area seized by the rebels in an incursion last week. The Yemeni President has said the war will continue no matter how much money or martyrs it will cost to fight against the rebels.

Source: BBC

By Victor.

At Least 20 Dead in Pakistani Traffic Blast

At least 20 people have been killed and many others injured in a car bomb in the northwestern Pakistan town of Charsadda, police said. The attack took place at a busy ttraffic intersection in the town which lies north-east of Peshawa.

More than 300 people have been killed in a wave of attacks as Pakistani troops launched an assault against the Taliban south of Waziristan. The blast also destroyed many nearby buildings and vehicles, District Polce Khan said.

The blast has put fear in the people of the area since the blast has become very rampant and can happen at any place. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Source: CNN.

By Victor.

Five British Soldiers Shot Dead.

Five British soldiers are reported to have been shot dead in Helmand Province in an attack the UK military blamed on 'rogue' Afghan policeman.

The soldiers , three from the Grenadier Guards and two from the royal military police, had been monitoring and living with the Afghan police in the compound. The officer opened fire, injuring eight others before fleeing the camp.

Prime Mionister, Gorden Brown, has reacted saying to the MPs that the Taliban said they had carried out the attack and may have infiltrated the Afghan police.

Speaking in the Commons, the prime minister said evidence was being gathered and security would be stepped up after the shooting.

Souce : BBC

By Victor

Pakistan Road Blast Kills Seven

At least Seven paramilitary troops are reported to have been killed by a roadside bomb in northwest Pakistan, officials said.

Eleven others were said to have been injured in the blast, which struck a regular patrol of troops in the Khyber tribal region.

The latest attack came as a fierce fighting continued in south Waziristan between the army and insurgentts.

Source BBC

By Victor.

Jon Stewart Bulldozes Fox

Last week on The Daily Show Jon Stewart showed how the fox news cycle feeds upon itself and creates news. He then took on the Obama administration for saying of the Fox conflict that they were speaking "truth to power" responding "it's your job to fuck up power, it's Fox's job to fuck up truth". Unfortunately there were some problems posting the video directly but it can be accessed here:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-october-29-2009/for-fox-sake-

What the Fox!

On October 28th, as reported by Mediaite ,a tête-à-tête was held between Fox news channel's Micheal Clemente and press secretary Robert Gibbs. Both sides apparently agreed to an uneasy peace. The truce came after the white house tried to exclude FNC from a press pool and was forced to back down due to the solidarity shown by other News networks in the pool. Fox is obviously taking this as win but acknowledges the battle benefits both sides in the short term which, at least for Fox, is clear by the boost in their ratings :

On the other side of the spectrum Rachel Maddow defended the White House's move observing that Fox, among all the new stations, is the only one that actively encourages and organizes protest against the government and that this, not their opinion journalism, separates them from other news stations:

The White House also claims it has accomplished its goal by directly challenging Fox in this interview with an unnamed aid. Their goal, he says, was to build support and "energize their base". Analyzing the White house strategy the New Yorker released this article in their November 2nd issue observing that the White House's intention was more to send a shot across their bow than to attack.

Pakistan Car Bomb Toll Passes 100.

The death toll from a car bomb in northwestern Pakistan city of Peshawar has risen to 105, a day after the blast.

At least 200 other people were wounded in the attack. Overnight, more bodies were said to have been recovered and some of the injured had died.

Similar attacks have killed hundreds of people in recent weeks, as the army carries out an operation against the Taliban militants in south Wazinistan. The government has blamed the Taliban , but they have denied responsibility.

The attack happened at a time when Hillary Clinton was on her visit to Pakistan; meanwhile, she continues her visit in the country, arriving in Lahore.

By Victor.

Source: BBC

Pakistan Cr BombToll Passes 100.

Police Arrest Over Iraq Bombing

Iraq has arrested over 60 security officers including 11 senior members over Sunday's twin bombing in the capital, Baghdad.

Those arrested include the commanders of 15 checkpoints near where the attack took place. It is reported that the attack killed about 150 people, and wounding more than 500 others. The attack is said to be the deadliest since 2007.

The attack has raise questions over the competence of the security forces since American forces handed over security issues to Iraq. Investigations are still going on cconcerning the attack.

By Victor.

Source: BBC

Beck Throws a Frog into Boiling Water

If you think this is ridiculous your missing the point. Of course its ridiculous. It's also genius in it's own way; sensationalist but also making a valid point about commonly accepted wisdom. I elect Beck to be the 21st century's Aristophanes.

Rules for Radicals: Find the Jew

In a time honored strategy of finding the mastermind behind every conspiracy, Saul Alinsky has graced the sidelines of conservative rhetoric. With his name that sounds vaguely Russian and thoroughly semitic, and his involvement in Chicago community organizing from the 1930s-1970s he has been occasionally cast as the Jew/Bolshevik brain trust behind the President- for example in Hannity (notice how they say Alinsky sneers, because of course thats what Jews do, and the picture at the top of their article in case you had any doubts) the National Reveiw, and this more recent article in the Wall Street Journal.

Okay, be that as may, it is interesting how much Obama's team is following Alinsky in the latest battle with Fox (as the biased but clear WSJ proposes). We've seen them attempt to target, freeze, personalize, and polarize ideological opposition.

The "War" Between Obama and Fox News

When communications director Anita Dunn characterized Fox News as the "research and communications wing of the Republican Party" it set off a virtual war between the administration and the network. Watch:

Much commentary has been devoted to it of late with news orginizations and journalists picking sides. With some on the one hand, like Jacob Weisberg of Newsweek, going so far as to call FNN

un-American, and others, like Jake Tapper of ABC and more surprisingly Clarence Page of the Chicago Tribune openly defending them, most shied away from being so direct and chose to analyze the conflict with a semi-objective tone (NYT)

This conflict raises a lot of questions. Firstly "is Fox in fact news?" (videos of The Ten Most Egregious Fox News Distortions on Huffington Post) begs the question what is news and who has the responsibility of reforming it when it goes out of its bounds. In countries like America where, except for PBS, all news organizations must survive on ad revenues, the moral standards are set by shareholders and ratings. Within the groupthink that develops out of competing in this framework even the most high-minded journalists are forced to make a choice between emotive journalism and marginalization. So Fox plays the game without really pretending that its not a game, and they play extremely well. Others are forced to follow suit though they can't be quite as honest in their dishonesty. Fox took a sublte hypocrisy and turned it into blatant, in your face irony. For example take Charles Krauthammer, a frequent contributor and commentator on Fox, whose recent article said this about the Obama Administration's tactics of late:

Factions should compete, but they should also recognize the legitimacy of other factions and, indeed, their necessity for a vigorous self-regulating democracy. Seeking to deliberately undermine, delegitimize and destroy is not Madisonian. It is Nixonian.

Their commentator Glenn Beck can go on a morning show and say "Obama hates white people", they often fanned the flames of the birther debate, and Roger Ailes, the CEO of Fox, actually worked for Nixon and set many of those policies. They say Obama is Nixonian when he makes a move against them.

Obama Aide Anita Dunn Reveals Media Manipulation Strategy During 2008 Election

Politics and Political Pundits

So I should put a disclaimer on everything I've said up till now. The partisan divides touted by the media are by no means as clear in the actual political spectrum as they seem to appear from the outside. The two party system is seen as an effective way to summarize debates to the public and force compromise within and between parties. In reality there is no left and right. There are a plethora of issues and perspectives that betray such a two dimensional portrayal. I don't have the time or knowledge to do justice to the complexities of each debate but a rough and incomplete outline of guiding ideologies would look something like this:

Foreign policy: neo-liberalism, institutionalism, constructivism, realism, neo-realism, and neo-conservativism

Domestic economic policy: interventionist (industrial policies, supply-side economics, redistribution of wealth...) non interventionist (libertarianism, deregulation...)

Jurisprudence: natural law, legal positivism, legal realism, and critical legalism

Many more could be included in this list each with its own innumerable subcategories and further they can exists together on different levels. For example, as it has been suggested in a Washington Post article, while Obama pursues distributional policies on a tactical level his strategic goal is free market libertarianism. Moreover on top of this there are lobbies in each district, state, and on the federal level each with competing or colluding interests with which each politician must contend.

Of course you'd never guess at this complexity from watching cable news where up to 195mil Americans get there news each month (Pew research poll). Here its all about personality and they benefit from keeping the debate as emotive and two-dimensional as possible. the media sanctioned "leaders of opinion" by viewership (with analysis at the right):

On the left:

Keith Olbermann (MSNBC) The New Yorker

Rachel Maddow (MSNBC) The Observer

Chris Matthews (MSNBC)

On the right:

Bill O'Reilly (FOX) Rolling Stone

Sean Hannity (FOX) CBS

Glenn Beck (FOX) Time Magazine

Lou dobbs (CNN) New Yorker

To better summarize their views I'll put up this video by Charlie Brooker from BBC4's Newswipe. Enjoy:

The Paranoid Style in American Politics

Two leading columnists give their take on the weight, historical basis and implications of the modern punditocracy and extremism in America. From the John Birch Society to the modern day they look back at the prophecies of Richard J. Hofstadter and their current incarnations.

David Brooks - The Wizard of Beck New York Times October 2, 2009

Thomas Frank - From John Birchers to Birthers Wall Street Journal October 20, 2009

Moore Turon

In New Online Game Obama is the Last Imam

There's a new online game after the fashion of Warcraft that puts you in a strange dystopia - 2011. They've taken Glenn Beck's wet dreams and translated them into hard currency-Canada, Mexico, and the United States have become one government under the dictatorship of "the Last Imam" Barak Obama. Your job as a good patriotic American is to battle Obama's loyalist forces, black nationalists, and militant Islamists to restore peace, prosperity and gun rights. Check out the game here and an article about it in Mother Jones here. The designers, adamant Ron Paul supporters, openly admit that there are trying to capiltalize on the paranoid and factitious climate in American politics. Apparently it's worked; they already have 1000 players after three weeks.

Attack Shuts all Pakistani Schools.

All schools and universities are reported to have been closed across Pakistan a day after suicide bombers attacked an Islamic University in the capital, Islamabad.

Four people are said to have died and 18 others wounded in the two blasts which took place at the University. At the moment no place in Pakistan is said to save due to number of attacks at various places.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said there would be more violence unless the army stopped its offensive in the tribal areas of south Waziristan.

Source: BBC News.

By Victor.

60 Television Shows Agree to Incorporate Obama's "Spirit of Volunteerism" into Their Scripts

Besides the traditional public service announcements and appearances by celebrities the message of volunteerism will be propagated through the story lines of popular television shows on all the major networks throughout the year. Whether or not this is a direct action by the DNC, it reflects Obama's call for a greater degree of community service and fits with his administrations perception of a more perfect society. The EIF's announcement can be accessed here.

Moore Turon

Bombing Kills at Least 29, Iranian Media reported.

A man carrying explosives is said to have blew himself up as participants headed to a conference between Shia and Sunni groups in southeastern Iran. At least 29 people are said to have been killed, Iranian media reported.
ple were killed in a militant attack a day earlier, state media reported.

Images from Iranian TV show debris and carnage from a suicide bombing Sunday in Sarbaz.

1 of 2 Source: CNN.

By Victor.

Left Quotes Mao, Right Gets Nostalgic for the 70's

Last time we looked at some of the crazy which fuels the conservative opposition in America. But if the American Right is a comedy of the absurd the left is tragedy. Much noise has been made accusing the left of communist ambitions and indeed it might have been easier to drain the Aral sea than it is to get health reform passed. That is the tragedy of the modern intellectual left who seek to "guide the invisible hand of the market": control. They, perhaps in academic innocence, perhaps in a sort of Nietzsche-esque "will to power", overestimate the effect of human action and underestimate the complexity of its consequences. That Obama's head of communication Anita Dunn quotes Mao Tse-tung at length to high school students, however moving or ironic the speech might have been in a more appropriate forum, is just a symptom of this gap between public opinion and the white house's internal ideology. Of course the Obama administration is not the Shining Path and anyone who tells you it is is selling something; Obama's team has definitely confused the Academy with the political arena. The speech in question and the obligatory return shot from the right with its predictable call for "simpler times":

"simpler times":

Moore Turon

Blast in Southern Lebanon Village.

An explosion in a building believed to be linked to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon has killed at least one person, security officials said.

The blast is said to have destroyed a house near the port city of Tyre. Initial report said a Hezbollah official and his son were killed in munition explosion in the village. But Hezbollah later denied any deaths and said only one person had been injured in the explosion, report said.

Hezbollah is banned from conducting any military action in the area, under the terms of the UN ceasefire after a conflict with Israel in 2006.

Israeli Authorities have Destroyed Two Palestinian Structures, in Defiance of International Call to Stop such Actions.

Palestinian reports say a family of five was forcibly evicted from their home in the Beit Hanina district before the building was demolished. Israel bulldozers then destroyed the foundation of another building nearby.

UN officials have said such demolitions violate international law and raise serious international concerns. Israel said buildings subject to demolition orders have been built without permits.

Crisis in the Middle East./Asia.

On my part I would like to follow crisis in the Middle East/ Asia. The continent has been bedeviled with crisis like violence, terrorism etc. which I would like to monitor as my subject.

Victor.

british politics and the media...

Hi,
For those of you who are british and reading this article... you know the extent of influence the media has on british politics, there is not one day where we have some new contriversial issues that weaken publics trust in the goverment. I wish one day we could just have normal unbiased news. We sometimes dont even know if the news we are recieving is unbiased.. the media can choose to reveal some articles and not publish the others, thus influencing our opinion.

chris hartland

Traditionalism in U.S. politics

My section of this blog will detail how U.S. politicians and media use hope and fear, the idea of utopia and supposed 'traditional' values to build consensus. Today I'll look at the latter. A good piece that outlines how these two groups view the world is Nicholas D. Kristof's article Would You Slap Your Father? If So, You’re a Liberal (New York Times Published: May 27, 2009). In this article he discusses how people who identify themselves as conservative are more likely to to base their decisions on disgust for things they see as contaminating society and respect for authority, whereas, according to the article, liberals' morality is rooted in fairness. While elements of this are obviously biased toward a liberal point of view, there is some truth to it too.

An extreme example of how conservatives seek to restore 'purity' and shun what they perceive as contamination is the conservative bible project which is attempting to remove liberal bias and promote conservative values (such as hell and free market capitalism) by rewriting the bible. Another would be the 'birther' movement which seeks to remove president Obama from office based on the unfounded suspicion that he was born in Kenya. An article on it's main proponent Orly Taitz can be found here

To someone who hasn't lived in American this could seem like the same kind of crazy rubbish that exists on the fringes of every society but according to a Pew research poll 41% of Americans have heard something about the birther debate with 28% of them believing that it is under-reported. These are significant trends whose emotional content effect the direction of center politics and ones that the media (to sell advertisements) and politicians (to guide political discourse) are not reluctant to use.

Moore Turon

Twin Bombings Blast Northwestern Pakistan, Killing at Least 16.

Two powerful suicide attacks struck different areas of northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, 26th September, 2009, apparently targeting the country's security forces.


In another incident, Israel raid killed three Gaza militants . Three Palestanians are said to have been killed in Israeli air strike on the Gaza Strip last Saturday, officials said. The members were from militant group, Islamic Jihad.

dear reader

we are devoting this blog to three specific subjects; crisis in the middle east/Asia, Hope and fear as political tools in American politics and the media's influence on public opinion of the labour party in the UK.

we are current students of Anglo-American University in Prague, Czech Republic studying mass communications. Our goal is to develop our subjects individually and also to recognise similarities and differences.

we encourage you to comment and express your opinions