Memories of Dictatorship in South Korea

https://consortiumnews.com/2024/12/03/south-koreas-6-hour-martial-law/

In what seemed like a power grab, President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law but when challenged he backed down. Now the fallout.

Revisionism and the Appropriation of Bonhoeffer

https://religionnews.com/2024/10/21/stop-taking-bonhoeffers-name-in-vain-scholars-warn-eric-metaxas-and-other-christian-nationalists/

https://baptistnews.com/article/bonhoeffer-family-and-scholars-warn-against-metaxas-and-christian-nationalists/

Evangelicals are excited. There's a new Bonhoeffer movie coming out from Angel Studios, the same people who produced The Sound of Freedom - based on Tim Ballard, a Mormon QAnon advocate and liar. And from everything I've read, this Bonhoeffer movie is basically another example of twisted history and propaganda. But this is nothing new. Bonhoeffer was hijacked by the Evangelicals years ago.

The Christian Right's Fantasy Realm of Reagan-Land

https://www.christianpost.com/voices/reagan-moviea-great-reminder-of-what-a-president-should-be.html

The myths and legends were emerging even before his death in 2004. Now twenty years later they've blossomed into full-blown fantasy. This latest film (praised by Richard Land) is undoubtedly an exercise in both hagiography and revisionism.

Inbox: Christian Movie Reviews

I have been asked from time to time about recommendations for Christian movies, what review sites to trust and the like. The answer is very simple – none of them are to be trusted and I can't recommend any that I know of.

Smoke and Mirrors: Drug Cartels and the State

https://www.democracynow.org/2022/10/12/mexico_military_drug_cartels_ayotzinapa_ministry

The GOP is screaming once again about the border. Biden visited El Paso on his way to a North American Summit meeting in Mexico City. The Right has been howling for months about his failure to visit the actual border. So then when he shows up they go on the attack.

'How dare he!'

'It was a mere photo-op!'

Undoubtedly this is the case. This is what politicians do. Here's the question. If Biden had showed up and took a list of demands made by the governors of Florida and Texas and agreed to meet all their demands, what would they say?

The Context for America's War on Somalia: Drawdown or Reset?

https://www.mintpressnews.com/americas-half-century-war-somalia-comes-end-sort/274956/

I was pleased to see a connection made with the Cold War and the fact that the US has been involved in the Horn of Africa since that time. Overall the article is excellent, a concise and yet probing and even poignant summary of events, and most importantly it provides the larger context that helps to explain the US role in the region and the cynicism the people of the Somalia and the larger Horn must feel toward Washington.

How Should We Then Live Part 1: The Roman Age

Many if not most readers will already be familiar with Francis Schaeffer and his famous series which first appeared in the late 1970's. The Fundamentalist circles I was in during the 1980's would not have bothered too much with someone like Schaeffer and would have viewed him as strange and too worldly.

The Dust is Still Settling from the Years of Lead

http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2020/01/09/former-terrorist-gets-life-for-1980-bologna-bombing_6d16ec5c-a46d-4cd6-88dc-b126ff3c186b.html

Apart from the kidnapping and assassination of Aldo Moro in 1978, the worst incident in Italy's Years of Lead was the Bologna Bombing in 1980. It was a wake-up for some as the perpetrators seemed to be not the Leftist Red Brigades but Right-wing fascist groups.

Anti-Sodomite Vigilantism in Brazil

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-brazil-violence-christmas/brazilian-comedy-group-hit-by-molotov-cocktails-after-film-on-gay-jesus-idUKKBN1YT0KJ

Though few leaders are going to come out and openly support it, I believe many American Evangelicals support this type of Christian-on-Pagan violence, or would if given the chance. They're frustrated, they've had it and they want to lash out. Frankly the theology and culture promoted by Evangelicalism leads to this. It fosters vengeance. From the lawsuit and politics to the gun and the glorification of the military, Evangelicalism has embraced violence and power and has chosen to completely ignore if not negate the ethics of the New Testament.

With regard to Brazil, at this point we're not sure the fire was started by 'Christian' vigilantes but there's every reason to believe that it was.

Logic on Fire: The Life and Legacy of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

I had been waiting with some anticipation for a few years to view the Lloyd-Jones film Logic on Fire and after viewing it I must say I was quite disappointed.

Real World Elements in The Bourne Legacy (2012)

As a follow-up to the piece I wrote about Jason Bourne (2016), I thought some might be interested in a similar piece on the 2012 film.

Not as popular as the Matt Damon installments this movie also contained some interesting and suggestive elements. In some ways this episode took on a slightly more science-fiction based theme.

Prouty at 100 and The Secret Team

http://progressivepilgrim.review/steal-this-book/

I enjoyed reading this and I had to chuckle about his comment regarding Prouty's 'The Secret Team'. It is almost unbearable in its detail. Tedious only begins to describe what it's like to wade through it as I did many years ago. It still sits on my shelf and I will upon occasion get it out while searching for something.

New Data on Angleton and Cold War Counter-Intelligence

https://theintercept.com/2018/01/01/the-complex-legacy-of-cia-counterintelligence-chief-james-angleton/

I don't have much to add to this article but I did want to post the link. Angleton's name is well known to those familiar with the unrestrained years of the CIA, the period extending from its founding in 1947 to the congressional investigations of the mid-1970's. Prompted by Watergate and the growing unease surrounding rumours of dark deeds and assassinations, many hoped the investigations would turn a new leaf and begin a new era of legality and transparency. The recent death of J Edgar Hoover in 1972 also prompted such hopes from those within and critical of the FBI.

Remembering The Sand Pebbles

This article caught my eye because it referenced The Sand Pebbles and I immediately thought of the old Steve McQueen movie. I remember watching it many years ago and being baffled... why were American troops in China during the 1920's? It got me to digging.

Dominionism, Fascism and The Handmaid's Tale

http://evangelicalfocus.com/blogs/2662/The_handmaids_tale_review_no_balm_in_Atwoods_Gilead_review

I remember when the original movie came out in 1990, but at the time I was somewhere between a pagan and a confused ex-Evangelical. I wouldn't have fully understood the context. I still have not seen the movie and doubt I will, but this review was quite interesting.

Air Force One: Hollywood Lies and Regime Propaganda

Even though the movie came out some twenty years ago, I had never seen it before. It was pretty much what I expected but actually the more I brooded on it, I became angry.

Many will remember the angst of the 1990's as the US and its entertainment industry sought new enemies. The fall of the USSR had eliminated the old stand-by 'bad guy'. The Serbs just couldn't quite fulfill that role.

The Economist: Right Wing Movements and Medievalism

http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2017/01/medieval-memes

This tendency to romanticise and even glorify the Middle Ages was already at work within the Christian Right during the 1990s and certainly received a boost in the climate created by the 9/11 attacks.

Real World Elements in Jason Bourne (2016)

For those already initiated into the world of Jason Bourne and the re-booted movies of the 2000's, the story elements reflecting the MK-ULTRA revelations and many other aspects of the US Deep State are nothing new.

However I noticed several elements woven into the plot of the 2016 Jason Bourne film that were of interest and thus far I have not detected a great deal of online comment with regard to these points.

These themes grabbed my attention even though I must confess the movie was something of a disappointment. It had a lot of potential but failed to deliver in several areas. My intention here is not to write a review but simply highlight a few points that were of particular interest to me and my readers.

For those interested in the film, consider the following...

Aerial Antics and a Russian Pilot Inspired by Hollywood

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36177405

https://theaviationist.com/2016/04/17/russian-su-27-interceptor-performs-top-gun-stunt-over-u-s-spyplane/

The US is outraged that a Russian pilot challenged an American plane that was getting a little too close to its shores. Apparently he pulled a stunt and the US is trying to act outraged but instead they're looking pretty foolish. The US is calling Russian actions provocative and irresponsible.

But when Tom Cruise does it to the Russians, then it's cool, he's a hero and we all laughed and clapped.

30 April 1945: Der Untergang

or Downfall.

This very dark 2004 film depicting the final days in the Fuhrerbunker is nothing less than powerful. In my opinion it exceeds all the previous attempts at portraying these events. Bruno Ganz as Hitler is amazing.