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In Reply to: Yes, sort of like... posted by Joe S on April 18, 2000 at 14:52:39:
Human beings have been on that mission for the longest time. Still, the inventiveness of the evil mind sometimes is striking.It can be argued than no intelligent person should go through life without reading the Gulag Archipelago. In that endless narration there is a particular interesting moment.
The chapter deas with the subject of latrine bucket and its effects on lives of former human beings, now denied any rights. The author notes that it is common to talk about the bucket as the symbol of suffering and opression, of complete lack of any comfort and of total humiliation. People talk about prisoners sleeping on top each other, of having to step on many bodies on your trip to that bucket. About the horror of being placed, and forced to sleep right next to it. Of an awfull smell...
All that is not real horror, the author states. The *real* horror begins when the bucket is removed from the cell.
... the next Hollywood war epic coming soon to a theater near you will surely miss. I dont wnow if you've heard about it yet but a production is in the works called "Pearl Harbor". Word is the director is planning to show the US putting up a rather spirited and more or less successful defense. When it was pointed out to him that the battle was one of the US's more thorough and profound defeats he is reported to have said something to the effect that "To hell with historical accuracy. It's my movie and this time we win!"I can't wait. Want me to preorder a ticket for you?
But back to the more profound for a moment. Yes, the ability to systematically inflict pain and suffering is a most remarkable aspect of the human species. History has proven time and time again that civilization is a veneer on human existence which is tissue paper thin. It take precious little to disrupt it. And the fall into chaos and behaviors that are otherwise unimaginable is remarkably rapid.
joe
In a sense, the out of place clean shirts, uniform pants with belts, and leather jackets Victor complains about in Stalag 17 have a long heritage. WWII was a terribly messy affair. Disorganization, incompetence, and simple stupidity at all levels. The U.S. military wanted us to see an orderliness which in reality wasn't there. It enlisted the aid of Hollywood and was largely successful. Films such as Stalag 17 are descendents of the propoganda produced during the war era. They inherit the veneer, which is part of the genre.Hogan's Heroes relentlessly transfers disorganization and incompetence onto the enemy.
I think thats the province of all goverments attempting to rally a population behind a war and maintain morale. The puffery of the movies lends itself quite handily to the purpose. The psychology of rallying public support for war is aided by the dehumaization of opponents or the depiction of them as oafs and fools making it all the easier to rationalize to the public why we should and will triumph - of course every country is doing the same thing with their popular media at the same time. Whose right? Whoever actually wins. They get to write the history books. Of course thats the cynics view (who me?).And dammit, yes it was messy. But what war isnt?
Hogans heroes? I suspect the depiction of Germans as likeable oafs (those silly Nazis, what are they up to now?) had more to do with cold war politics and depicting a necessary ally in a positive light rather than as cold blooded monsters.
joe
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