Selfish Hedonist

I like saying "Suck it!"

In a backwards but interesting cover story in USA Today (today), talking about how there's lots of war movies & TV shows comin' out, and how people are careful not to "attack the troops," aka, show them as complex and multidimensional beings with agency and responsibility for their actions. My favorite quote is this:

But not any and every angle of war is being depicted. One aspect is glaringly absent from most projects: negativity. The U.S. soldier is the hero; his cause is just. Storylines featuring the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal or war protests are no-nos.

"That gets you into arenas of policy," says Bochco, who has written four episodes of Over There, which is filming in Santa Clarita, Calif. "We'll be telling the story about young people's experience in war. I've always tried to stay off a soap box. I don't think proselytizing is good storytelling."

Well, Steve, guess what: the entire Iraq conflict is a question of policy. Wars aren't just inevitable things that make up the day-to-day fabric of our lives. Wars aren't fucking cotton. I can promise you that the story of Lynnie England is 1,000 times more interesting, complex, and harrowing than anything you could ever dream up for "Over There." Her story is part & parcel of the war experience, particularly this war, what with its outsized propaganda and flat-out lies. Thanks for helping everyone simple-mindedly buy into it all. Why don't you go produce a beer commercial where people are clapping for soldiers who are walking through an airport? I love America AND I love beer!!!!