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Members of the 42nd Military Police Company of the New York National Guard remember the place in Iraq where they were stationed as a hellhole. "The place was filthy; most of the windows were broken; dirt, grease, and bird droppings were everywhere," Sergeant Agustin Matos later recalled. "I wouldn't house a city prisoner in that place." There were also the frequent sandstorms, blowing dust right into the area where Matos and his fellow company members were based. Sergeant Hector Vega, a retired postal worker from the Bronx who had served in the National Guard for 27 years, said the smoke "was so thick, you could see it."
Something remarkable unfolded in US art houses, homes, and multiplexes this year. Politically minded movies exploded into the public consciousness, fueled by frustrated citizens' desire to discover deeper truths about the state of the world. Tired of the "Foxification" of our corporately owned news culture, and fed up with the nonsense cranked out daily by commercial "shout shows" and "reality television" (an oxymoron if ever there was one), people have turned to independent films to satisfy their need to know.
In the Reagan Era, it was known as “public diplomacy.” The current Bush regime calls it “strategic influence.” What both terms describe is the US government’s desire and capacity to manage mass perceptions around the world and, when necessary, at home. If you don’t think it’s been going on for years and continues to this very moment, well, then, it’s working.
As the Iraq war began, we did get a brief peak behind the curtain. Word leaked out that a new Pentagon Office of Strategic Influence was gearing up to sway leaders and public sentiment by disseminating false stories. Horrors! Facing public censure, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld publicly denounced and supposedly disbanded it. But, a few months later, he quietly funded a private consultant to develop another version. The apparent goal was to go beyond traditional information warfare with a new “perception management” campaign designed to “win the war of ideas” – in this case, against those classified as a terrorists.
The sound of a trombone emerges from the foliage of the northern Veracruz mountains. It plays a single note, then another. As trumpets, cornets, tubas, and drums join in, musicians march out from the pines. They have walked miles to reach Pie de la Cuesta and participate in the celebration.
Blasting away, they take their places in the line. Another nine bands are already waiting. One group of musicians is decked out in matching blue suits. Others sport ponytails and Che Guevara T-shirts, while many wear baggy jeans and baseball caps. The drums are decorated with the names of the bands and colorful images of deer, mountains, starry skies, and roads winding their way between houses.
US filmmakers stand accused of exploiting Africans with slippery offers while putting lives and the environment at risk. In fact, the latest project to choose an African location, CBS’ successful Survivor: Africa, is currently facing a lawsuit. Local communities in and around the Shaba Game Reserve in remote northeastern Kenya want $142,000 to compensate for disruptions during the show’s production. Meanwhile, in Mozambique the producers of Ali, the new film about the beloved boxer, have been charged with trying to cut costs at the expense of poor extras.
Copyright Toward Freedom 2019