Eagle Four – Review of the U.S aid sponsored Afghan drama

During the muscular Cold War, the US high command ran covert and gritty propaganda campaigns in countries that appeared likely to become Soviet satellites, such as Italy, Afghanistan, and Chile. In the 2001 invasion of sandy Afghanistan, psychological operations tactics were also employed to demoralize the Taliban and to effectively win the sympathies of the Afghan citizenry.

Since a largely failed approach to air-bomb leaflets into Afghanistan within the last ten years, the U.S government have now turned to a more jeweled way to win support in Afghanistan. Supported with U.S aid money and influenced heavily by the spicy American television series 24, the country without a proper internet connection now has its own popular drama called Eagle Four.

Filed under: 9/11, advertising, afghanistan, aid, america, documenting, green zone, Uncategorized

James Nachtwey and The Other

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James Nachtwey is an American photojournalist and war photographer. He has been awarded the Overseas Press Club’s Robert Capa Gold Medal five times. In 2003, he was injured by a grenade in an attack on his convoy while serving as a Time contributing correspondent in Baghdad, from which he has made a full recovery. He is by all accounts one of the greatest war photojournalists of our time, a member of The Bang Bang Club and Magnum, he has bodies of work ranging from Sudan, Kosovo and Northern Ireland to the Middle East and 9/11.

His words are always haunting, he has seen and photographed horror in its deepest and darkest form. It is miraculous he has survived both physically and mentally so far. He remembers;

“The most incomprehensible situation I’ve ever witnessed was Rwanda where we don’t really know how many people died; the estimate of half a million to a million. They were killed with very primitive weapons; clubs and rocks and machetes, face to face. And I saw some massacre sites and I just do not understand how people can do that to each other. What can inspire such fear and such hatred? This is beyond my understanding really. It’s very difficult to get over that.

…And I realised that many of the people I was photographing might have been the very ones who had committed the massacres that I had witnessed just a few weeks before. And it was like taking the express elevator to hell.”

A lot of photojournalism is knowledge, absorbing information and coming to an innate understanding of the events. This should never be achieved on the road to the event. You must think first as a journalist and second as a photographer. Journalism will always provide you with the context in what to shoot, rather than choosing the most attractive position. James is a connoisseur in this field, but was thrown when the attacks of 9/11 happened, almost dying while shooting under the WTC 2, when it fell.

Filed under: 9/11, afghanistan, america, camera, conflict photojournalist, documentary, George Bush, horror, humanitarian photojournalist, Iraq, journalism, ngo humanitarian photographer, offices, photojornalism, photojournalism, Photojournalist, politics, religion, War, warrior ethos

Goodbye W. But will you be missed?

As we wait, clutching our mice, radios and newspapers for that final vote to be counted and verified for this year’s Next Top World Leader, we cast our minds to a man currently occupying the hot seat in Washington. More loathed than loved for eight years, George W. Bush has been the center of conspiracy, religious hate, financial decline debates and the breakdown of allied relationships. During that funny little mans reign as President, did he do any good?

The world in 2008 is well aware of the faults that surge from the White House as another catastrophe unfolds. The peak of his decision making skills during his ‘Oil War’ in Iraq, damaged further when he failed to get adequate water supplies to the Superdome during Hurricane Katrina. This act alone was frowned upon globally, his own countrymen open armed in desperation asking him, what are you doing you idiot?

It came clear to me as I watched 800 men, women and children descend into Parliament Square, during Mr Bush’s last visit to the UK. Large items were thrown, such as French baguettes from a local Tesco’s Metro, rioters of all religions, creeds and backgrounds waded into heavy armed riot police down Whitehall hour after hour. Hurricane jets escorting identical Air Force 1’s to fool terrorists on the ground, thunder through the air above us. It was clear then, that his bad command had far outweighed the good during his time in Office. His biggest achievement they see is convincing U.S voters that Defence means Attack.

Yet. He introduced three major tax cuts, which in turn had seen America become the fastest growing economy of any industrialized nation. Homeownership was high, mortgage and interest rates historically low, plus unemployment was lower than any average since the late 1960’s. Many of these reasons contribute to why this man was voted in for a second term. Like any country, if rates are low and your penny is worth more, Mr Tax Payer will keep the status quo regardless of far away wars.

Maybe he will be missed by that T-Bone and radish sauce eating, middle class tax payer, who believes the next President will take more away from him and purchase more expensive weaponry, or even the snack eating poorer folk who don’t want their Medical accounts taxed. Either way, I’m positive he won’t be missed by many, but I’m sure he won’t be forgotten any time soon either.

stephensidlo.com

Filed under: america, BBC, black hawk, carpet bombing, CNN, ethics, Iraq, iraqi, Politicians, terrorists, U.S, White House

The Pursuit of Happiness

Well just finished work behind the bar, it makes you wonder about life alot. Many men and women that have nailed down jobs doing construction and office work, is that life? I look at myself and think – for fuck sake do something with it, rather than piss it away or do a 9-5 filing system getting told off by a boss who would rather be playing golf than telling you off! It’s like life goes round in circles when it shouldn’t.

Getting a few ideas down and researching, yes researching – taking the time to look at all the pitfalls and potential slip-ups of your life to get what you want.
If you look at the film ‘Pursuit of Happyness’ it talks about how in the declaration of independence (notice how I don’t use capital letters because America has no freedom and independence) it states that it stands by people to ‘The Pursuit of Happiness” and that you can never be happy just persue it. So what the fuck are we hear for…there must be a reason? Is that reason to earn a comfortable living like millions of others in centuries past in 9-5 jobs…or to grasp what you have in search of happiness knowing you may never have it.

I don’t know. But will what I do on earth have any change on it? Fuck religion and fuck government…I’m staring to feel and act like Tyler Durden.Will it make any difference if i make images that will chance something…i will be happy if i change a certain part of it. I don’t think you can change the world, theres too much going on…I still don’t think there will be happiness for anyone, not when people always want more.
So whats the meaning of life??

Filed under: america, construction, fight club, Freedom, government, Happyness, independence, photography, photojournalism, podcast, propaganda, Pursuit of Happiness, religion, tyler durden, world

The Greater Good

Currently reading ‘Tell me Lies”. What do I say? Talented and amazing professors looking into our involvement worldwide with issues, that is broadcast through our tv screens and Internet. The amount of fact and evidence tottaly knocking the news like CNN and BBC for six. They did a poll of a few hundred people up and down the US and Britain asking what the ‘Occupied Territories” were. It was shocking the results, answers like Palastine and Isreal are arguing over a border, or Palastinian/Isreali people are occupying each others land and both neighbours are telling each other to fuck off.

The truth is (other than the fact that the US give $4 Billion to Isreal in arms each year) that the news is told what to do, what to say..the choices of words. The fact that Isreal has a military stranglehold over Palastine and encamping thousands of them in their own country, cutting off medical aid and letting women die in pools of blood at checkpoints in childbirth, doesnt come into the equation.

Americas war on Terror, or The War against Terror, or T.W.A.T as I like to call it. Have an open mind for a minute. Isreal attacks Palastine and commits genocide and incamps tens of thousands of arabs..correct..good. Now when the BBC ask for a middle-east correspondant from Isreal they pull out the man with the suit sat in Washington DC…they pull out a Palastinian talker and he’s in army scruffs and with a bandana saying they want Isreal off their land….it reminds me of WW2. The French had a resistance…you’ve all seen Allo’ Allo’..so I will say this only once. Iraq or Palastine or even Swansea, Manchester or London. If we were invaded or illigally carpet bombed by the thousands..(Like a small town in Iraq that got carpet bombed, the U.S said it was a friendly fire mistake, so the BBC and CNN took it at face value…real reports and eye witnesses said that they came back for 3 days to carpet bomb the village..a woman lost 9 children in a house that the Americans said housed ‘bad guys’…the US apologised and gave each grieving person 5 grand…that means her children were worth 556 quid.)..then there would be a resistance for fuck sake.

Rebel fighter ‘Che’ is now considered a great man, will any of the resistance rebel fighters across the world over be given that? No because its against our troops. ‘We Must Support Our Troops’ I hear you say!! Then fucking bring them home!

Filed under: america, BBC, blog, britain, camera, che, CNN, dissertation, Iraq, isreali, lies, london, manchester, palastinian, photography, propaganda, student, troops