Conspiracy Entertainment 2006-2007

This TV season has been especially good for conspiracy/paranoia entertainment, and featured three new shows. First we had the now-cancelled Vanished which looked to be a cross between the Da Vinci Code, Numb3rs and the X-Files (just the conspiracy of powerful string pullers, not the alien or supernatural aspects. It was quite good until cancellation. Next we had The Nine, which definitely had conspiratorial elements to it. Finally we had Jericho, the only of the three to survive. Possibly, because it centered on a very real fear: nuclear attack and what happens when communications collapses (not to mention the government).

And of course, the inimitable 24 which has returned with a fifth conspiratorial nightmarish day for Jack Bauer.

Of these four, the only two which are still on are ones that explicitly address the threat of terrorism, much in the same vein that Cold War films and TV mini-series were popular in the '80s became hits. It seems conspiracy's that ensnare government officials in non-terrorist activits is ok for our downtime reading, but the anti-terror alpha waves better be conveying terrorist-related conspiracies.

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PS Threshold made a short return on the SciFi Channel, but one year of episodes is not really enough to become a regular show without the creation of new episodes.

Battlestar Gallactica's Occupation/Resistance Theme

Thas been the occupation/resistance theme on Battlestar Gallactica, that began with a series of webisodes over the summer to give the fans small fixes until the return of the show.

What was compelling about that storyline is that it showed how a conspiracy (the resistance) forms and how its aims are not always domination at first but distraction. During that storyline Col. Tighe gins up the resistance to harass the occupier Cylons and maintain morale until Admiral Adama can return with the Battlestar and stage the rescue.

Additionally, others have written about the above story line being a critique of the US occupation of Iraq. That may be an interesting post-modern point. I enjoy that critique, but still want our troops to succeed in their mission of pacifying Baghdad and restoring enough order for the Iraqi government to finish the job. Therefore I choose to view that storyline as fitting into the very American meme of David defeating Goliath in an epic struggle (e.g., The Revolution, Civil War and WWII) to achieve/retain freedom.

The ABC 9/11 Docu-Drama & The Red Dawn Effect

Democratic officials are extremely upset about ABC's planned miniseries on the 9/11 attacks. They claim (accuracy to be determined) that the mini-series is inaccurate and unfair to Democrats.

Is it possible that they're afraid of the "Red Dawn Effect"? Red Dawn was a great Cold War movie that came out in October 1984 in which the Soviet Union and Cuba invaded the United States. Patrick Swayze, c. Thomas Howell, Leah Thompson, Jennifer Grey and Charlie Sheen all starred in this movie which featured a bunch of young freedom fighters rebelling against Soviet Occupied America.

Many Democratic analysts credit the movie's October release with helping Ronald Reagan win his 49-state landslide victory the following November.

It's possible that's why earlier today the Executive Director of the Democratic National Committee sent out the email below:


Dear Fellow Democrat,

Does a major national broadcast network want to stain itself by presenting an irresponsible, slanderous, fraudulent, "docu-drama" to the American public?

Not if you and I have the last word -- but either way, we're about to find out.

The ABC television network -- a cog in the Walt Disney empire -- unleashed a promotional blitz in the last week for a new "docudrama" called "The Path to 9/11". ABC has thrown its corporate might behind the two-night production, and bills it as a public service: a TV event, to quote the ABC tagline, "based on the 9/11 Commission Report".

That's false. "The Path to 9/11" is actually a bald-faced attempt to slander Democrats and revise history right before Americans vote in a major election.

The miniseries, which was put together by right-wing conservative writers, relies on the old GOP playbook of using terrorism to scare Americans. "The Path to 9/11" mocks the truth and dishonors the memory of 9/11 victims to serve a cheap, callous political agenda. It irresponsibly misrepresents the facts and completely distorts the truth.

ABC/Disney executives need to hear from the public and understand that their abuse of the public trust comes with a cost. Tell Walt Disney CEO Robert Iger to keep this right-wing propaganda off the air -- we'll deliver your message:

But we still know enough, thanks to news accounts and crack research, to fact check "The Path to 9/11" as a biased, irresponsible mess. Here's what you need to know:
Richard Clarke -- the counterterrorism czar for the Clinton administration, now himself a consultant to ABC News -- describes a key scene in "The Path to 9/11" as "180 degrees from what happened." In the scene, a CIA field agent places a phone call to get the go ahead to kill Osama Bin Laden, then in his sights, only to have a senior Clinton administration official refuse and hang up the phone. Sandy Berger, President Clinton's National Security Advisor, called the same scene "a total fabrication. It did not happen." And Roger Cressey, a top Bush and Clinton counterterrorism official, said it was "something straight out of Disney and fantasyland. It's factually wrong. And that's shameful."

Another scene revives the old right-wing myth that press reporting made it impossible to track Osama bin Laden, accusing the Washington Post of blowing the secret that American intelligence tracked his satellite phone calls. In reality, responsibility for that blunder -- contrary to "The Path to 9/11" -- rests with none other than the arch-conservative Washington Times.
The former National Security Council head of counterterrorism says that President Clinton "approved every request made of him by the CIA and the U.S. military involving using force against bin Laden and al-Qaeda," and the 9/11 report says the CIA had full authority from President Clinton to strike Bin Laden. Yet chief "Path to 9/11" scriptwriter Cyrus Nowrasteh, a friend of Rush Limbaugh, says the miniseries shows how President Clinton had "frequent opportunities in the '90s to stop Bin Laden in his tracks -- but lacked the will to do so."
ABC asked only the Republican co-chair of the 9/11 Commission, Tom Kean, Sr., to advise the makers of "The Path to 9/11". The producers optioned two books, one written by a Bush administration political appointee, as the basis of the screenplay -- yet bill the miniseries as "based on the 9/11 Commission Report."

This is a picture of bias -- a conservative attempt to rewrite the history of September 11 to blame Democrats, just in time for the election.

Tell Walt Disney president Robert Iger that you hold his company responsible -- and that this community demands that ABC tell the truth:

But ABC isn't the only company pushing this gross revision of history. ABC has enlisted the reputable education and children's entertainment company Scholastic, Inc. to send 100,000 letters to high school teachers, urging them to show students "The Path to 9/11". Scholastic has also created a discussion guide for teachers to use to encourage students and their families to watch this irresponsible fraud and then discuss it in school. The discussion guide does not in any way point out the concerns and criticisms that have been raised about the validity and accuracy of the film.

We've got to stop this now.
ABC/Disney must face an accountability moment. You can ratchet up the pressure on ABC by sending your own letter to Walt Disney CEO Robert Iger -- tell him to keep this propaganda off their air.

Uneven Steven is on Hiatus . . .

For the past few months, I have been working to make the world safe for Democracy. I'll be back around December.

Please do not de-link me. Like McArthur, I shall return. . .

More Good News in the War on (Some) Drugs

Heavy marijuana use not linked to lung cancer

"Despite popular belief, a new study shows that people
who smoke marijuana do not appear to be at increased risk of developing lung
cancer.

It seems even heavy, long-term marijuana users do not appear to
increase the risk of head and neck cancers, such as cancer of the tongue, mouth,
throat, or esophagus."

Well, it looks like another of the arguments against decriminalizing marijuana (the health one) has fallen to peer-reviewed science.

Conspiracy TV - And how to bring it back

Ok, all three conspiracy-related related shows from the major networks have been cancelled. These were, in order of quality/preference: Surface, Invasion, and Threshold. (Hmm, I hadn't noted the single name theme). I believe that these were all engaging, entertaining shows that could have a life on cable. To that end, I believe we should start a campaign to have them bring one or all (or an amalgam of all three, which I'll go into below) to the SciFi Channel, which has a history of picking up SciFI shows like Stargate SG-1. You can reach the SciFi Channel at: feedback@scifi.com

Anyway, here is my thought on how to combine Surface, Invasion, and Threshold: You have Miles, Rich, the doctor and Nimrod (from Surface) survive the tidal wave and monster and then make their way back inland. They find more clues, and stumble upon Dave (from Invasion's blog). Thinking there may be some kind of connection between the orange glowing creatures and the creation of Nimrod's species. In the meantime, Dave stumbles across the doctor's viral video of Nim's fellow monsters and tries to seek out her, Miles and Rich.

At this point, you can a few episodes of Dave and the doctor playing complicated computer tag trying to figure out if the other is legitimate or dangerous. During this time, they would both be gathering clues (including some from the military and some from the X-Files-like conspirators in Invasion and Surface. At some point, it would be revealed that Nimrod's species was engineered to counter the threat of the orange water creatures, but have become overly aggressive.

Meanwhile, the Airforce in Southern Florida would initiate a program similar to that in Threshold with the idea of tracking down Zura as well as the other hybrid escapees. Additionally, you could throw in elements of The 4400 where some of the hybrids are beneficial, but still have to be tracked down, and quarantined.

Anyway, I think that would be a good show and that SciFi should pick up invasion and Surface to make it work. It could be called Surface Invasion to combine the two and make the point that both undewater creatures do make it on land.

Democratic Political Corruption in DC

Ok, lots of people keep $90,000 in their freezer. And lots of people use their official office to funnel vast amounts of money to non-profits groups they founded. What's the big deal?

The big deal is that these are both uncommon occurrences. No one with $90,000 in cold cash keeps it in the fridge. If you're going to keep that kind of cash around, you're going to have a wall or giant fireproof safe. Plus, not only having the bribe on tape, but having Congressman William Jefferson joke about evading any FBI investigation does not help Democrats in their quest to tie the corruption issue around the necks of Republicans.

It also doesn't help, that their top member of the Ethics Committee is being investigated for corruption in using his position on the Appropriations Committee to reward his family, friends, supporters and non-profits.

What's likely to happen now that the issue is becoming bi-partisan is that Repubicans can go after Dems for corruption. And there are enough of them that have been lobbyists or engaged in dubious financial issues that Dems could be in for a rough ride. I bet RNC opposition researchers are already looking through annual financial disclosure forms are well as lobbying clients registrations and possible ties to Jack Abramoff.

The Delicious Irony of Bribery Taxes

I love the government's sentence of Duke Cunningham (The Republican Chairman of one of hte powerful Appropriations Subcommittees) for bribery. Not only does he go to jail for 8 years and 4 months, he has to pay $3.5 million in "penalties, restitution, and back taxes." It's the back taxes part that really pleases me: essentially all his bribe money (which he has to pay back) was also undeclared income which means he never paid taxes on it. He now has to pay taxes, interest and penalties on all of that money. That's like getting punished twice for the same crime - which he deserves for betraying the public trust.

At least we get to keep SOME civil liberties

CNN.com - House approves Patriot Act renewal - Mar 7, 2006

Ok, it's not as bad as it could be. And, some of its original provisions WERE necessary. Hopefully, as the War on Terror winds down, we can keep watering down this monstrosity and gradually win back our inalienable rights.

Joby Fortson & Texas Redistricing

The New Yorker: Fact

Once again, a private email that Joby Fortson sent to a small group of his friends has made it into print in a story regarding the Texas 2002 redistricting. The original article, as well as this one, is unfair to Joby for a number of reasons:

(1) The original email was a personal message sent to a small number of friends, it was chock full of inside jokes that the general public, not being part of that social circle, didn't get; Because it was an email sent to friends, and not intended for outside distribution, comments on its grammar etc. really should be ignored.

(2) Joby is not, nor has he been, a political operative; rather, he is a very well educated person working in politics who took the time to do a quick and dirty analysis of the potential Texas redistricing results. Joby's analysis cannnot be taken to imply any work or assistance by him on the redistricting process;

(3) Any inferred malice on Joby's part was nothing more than good natured ribbing of his many Democratic friends. In fact, as a result of the email's inside jokes, Joby personally apologized to U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in writing after the email became public.

(4) Politics is a contact sport, and as Joby points out, the Democrats in 2002 reaped what they has sown in the 1990 re-districting.

How do I know all of this? I am a professional colleague of his.

The fact that institutions like the New Yorker continue to use Joby's analysis as proof of Republican malfeasance, simply shows how far the liberal media has to stretch to malign the Republican Party and its members.

Good news for small "r" republicanism

Rise in Online Fundraising Changed Face of Campaign Donors

Excellent quotes from today's Thomas B. Edsell article at the Washington Post (Page A03)

" . . . The surging number of campaign contributors in 2004, especially the small donors who gave online, changed the character of one of the most important constituencies in U.S. politics, the people who finance presidential elections.
This key group has become more reflective of the middle class, has a higher percentage of women and is far more willing to contribute without being directly solicited. . .

" . . .More than half of Democrats gave online, more than double the percentage of Republicans. More than 80 percent of the contributions by people ages 18 to 34 were made online. Almost half of all small, online donors gave without being asked first by the campaigns. . . "

This is very good news for our Republic. It shows the beginning stages of movement away from television-centered, one-way mass communications, and back to a more grassroots involvement in the political process. After all, elections and politics belong to the citizen voters, not the politicians we elect.

Brownie is the new Jewel

I'm so happy these tapes surfaced to vindicate Mr. Brown. Like others, I had found fault with him; however after reading about and viewing the tapes on the news, and watching his interview, I have changed my mind. He was a scapegoat for the highest powers; they rewarded his loyalty by throwing him to the wolves. Much like Richard Jewel, he was simply a man trying to help others, and was then crucified by the media, and others (including me).

He deserves credit, and an apology, from all of us.

The Subtle Pessimism of Earl

My Name is Earl is supposedly a show based around a (flawed)conception of Karma; or as the show puts it "Do good things and good things happen; do bad things and bad things happen." Therefore the show seems appropriately upbeat. But this is only a superficial reading of the television program.

Despite the nobleness of Earl's mission to right the wrongs he has committed, it is never easy for him, and usually costs him more trouble than he caused in that particular instance. Therefore, in essence, My Name is Earl is really a show about a different concept: that no good deed goes unpunished. A proper lesson for our cynical/realist age.

Modern Technology: Turning War into a Videogame

Will Saletan has an excellent article about this interesting topic in Slate on Feb. 12 called Joystick vs. Jihad. Below are a few choice quotes to give you the flavor of the article...

This is the future of warfare: hunting enemies abroad at little or no risk to ourselves. A year ago, at least 750 unmanned aerial vehicles were assisting American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan; by now, the number is probably closer to 1,000. The Pentagon's budget and its Quadrennial Defense Review, released last week, propose a near doubling of our arsenal; within two decades, "45% of the future long-range strike force will be unmanned." ...

... In the Cold War, we used satellites to spy and intercontinental ballistic missiles to deter. We could track the Red Army level Moscow in minutes. But those devices won't work in the age of terrorism. You can't see an army, because terrorist don't have one. You can't threaten cities, because terrorists don't own any and don't care how many people die. Our lame attempt to kill Osama Bin Laden with cruise missiles in 1998 exposed the obsolescence of satellites and missiles. We need machines that can hunt and kill closer to the enemy...

...Drones fit the bill. In Kosovo, we used them to spy. After Sept. 11, we armed them with missiles. We hunted and blew away one al-Qaida operative after another—at least 19 hits in the last four and a half years, according to U.S. officials. Whenever a commando assault in unfriendly territory risked too many casualties, we sent a drone to do the job. We couldn't match terrorists' love of death, their willingness to take their own lives in the course of taking ours. But we could counter their expendable human killers with expendable inhuman killers. The joystick answered the jihad....

...Reluctance to kill was a big problem in World War II. By one military estimate, fewer than one in four American riflemen in combat pulled the trigger, and "fear of killing rather than fear of being killed was the most common cause." The Army tried to solve this problem by making its training exercises feel more like real combat. But what if we could do the opposite? What if we could make combat seem unreal? What if we could turn it into a video game?

Very interesting article that is worth a look in Slate.

DVR Undermines Olympics Ratings

Ratings of Games take dive for NBC�-�Sports�-�insider.washingtontimes.com

The real reason that the Olympics ratings are down compared to other television is the growing use of DVR. Many people watch their primtime shows while recording DVR so that they can fast forward through parts of the olympics they don't like (for me that would be all figure skating, biathlon, and some of the women's sports).

Because Nielsen doesn't yet provide reliale ratings for people who timeshift the primetime shows, it looks like olympic viewership is going down. However, I suspect that most people w/ DVRs (a growing share of the population) are simply watching the olympics during the pre-primetime hours and that total viewership is static compared with previous years.

Clinton Abandons Freedom of Speech

ISLAMABAD: Former US president Bill Clinton on Friday condemned the publication of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) caricatures by European newspapers and urged countries concerned to convict the publishers.

What a coward. There's a reason that we, the United States, preserve and protect the freedom of the press - because it is essential to have as many different viewpoints as possible when operating a Democracy, as well as a basic human right (the right to free expression without fearing violence). But Freedom of Speech does not end becase somebody else is offended.

Now, I'm not saying the European Union is a democracy, because it's not. But civilized Westerners have been fighting for free expression since long before our Revolutionary War. The fact that Clinton would ask the US convict publishers shows that he really doesn't care about the values enshrined in our Constitution.
Clinton is backing away from American principles to appease the middle east and those in the West who sympathize with them. It really makes you wonder (again) whether he has any real principles at all, or is just a very talented opportunist.
Shame on him.

The Value of Lobbyists

The rise of the lobbyist is directly related to the poor pay on Capitol Hill and the Executive Branch. Every year or so, the Office of Personnel Management, the General Accounting Office, or the Congressional Management Foundation put out studies comparing the salaries of Hill Staff and Federal employees with their private sector counterparts. The results show private sector employees with the same education and background making upto TWICE as much money as their public sector counterparts.

Why does this matter? Because the people who do the legwork and have institutional memory leave the Hill or Executive Branch due to "status-income disequilibrium" (see Bobo's in Paradise by David Brooks). In other words, their salary is not commensurate with the prestige of the job they hold. So they look for a new position that pays more money. Thus Members of Congress thus lose the people who know best which policies and strategies have and haven't worked in the past.

However, Members still have access to those former staffers turned l0bbyists, and the former staffers still have access to their contacts including members. Without these former staffers turned lobbyists continuing to advise members, individual Congressmen and Senators would have to continually reinvent the wheel.

In short, lobbying provides a valuable service to Members of Congress, which is why they continue to flourish.

Oh- and the idea that a staffer can be bought off for a $50 lunch is absurd. Staffers value their positions, and want to protect their respective members, too much to do so.

Failed Equivalence btw Clinton Impeachment and Putative Crimes of W

ABC News: The Note: Hailing the Chief: "Wethinks doing everything you believe to be legal and justified to protect Americans against terrorism is not at all viewed the same way by the American people as doing everything you believe to be legal and justified to protect yourself from an intern sex scandal."