violence
GRITtv: Andrew Bacevich: Serious Thinking About US Military Action
According to retired Colonel Andrew Bacevich, Barack Obama "is a problem solver, he's surrounded himself with problem solvers at a time when maybe we need some creative thinking." This week saw the announcement that General David Petraeus would be taking Leon Panetta's spot as head of the CIA, while Panetta would be moving to replace Robert Gates as Defense Secretary. Bacevich joins Laura in studio to discuss the changes in the administration and the ongoing situation in Libya and Syria, and notes that at a time when the Arab world is undergoing deep changes, it should be a time for modesty in the US and a reconsideration of military power and the use of violence to achieve goals.
Email this pageGRITtv: American: The Bill Hicks Story
Comedian Bill Hicks "was really obsessed in some ways with the idea of getting people to think for themselves, confronting them with ideas they might have on a big subject," says filmmaker Matt Harlock, one of the directors of the new documentary American: The Bill Hicks Story. Hicks died in 1994, but his influence lives on in today's political comics and his critiques of the first Iraq war sound remarkably prescient years later. Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas join Laura in studio to discuss their film, Hicks' work, and why political comedy remains so important.
GRITtv: James Carroll: Jerusalem, Jerusalem
"The notion that destruction is the way to salvation is like a Gulf Stream current running underneath the surface of Western civilization," says James Carroll, author most recently of Jerusalem, Jerusalem. Carroll, a former Catholic priest, looks at the way the city of Jerusalem has been central to the Western imagination, conflict, and resolution to that conflict, and notes that he still has hope that we can find away around the violence that has been so central to our lives for millennia. James joins Laura in studio to discuss his book, his travels to and relationship with the city of Jerusalem, and what he hopes we can learn from that city.
GRITtv: Got Docs: Pushing the Elephant
A little over a year ago, Rose Mapendo visited us in our New York studio to tell us her story. Rose escaped from the Democratic Republic of Congo with nine of her ten children, and she became a humanitarian activist. Pushing the Elephant picks up ten years later, as Mapendo reunites with her daughter and is struggling to heal her family and homeland as an advocate for refugees. The documentary exposes the hidden effects of war on families, and the collective power of women. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: City Of Joy is What Investing In Life Looks Like
This weekend saw something revolutionary -- not just in Egypt, but in Congo. The V-Day foundation, led by playwright and GRITtv guest Eve Ensler, opened its first City of Joy, a compound that will help Congolese women, many of them rape survivors, heal and learn, as V-Day puts it, to "turn their pain to power." The compound cost around $1 million, and hopes to graduate 180 women per year. Ensler told the New York Times, "You build an army of women," and they take power for themselves. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Mubarak's Last Cairo Crackdown
"What we are seeing is nothing less than an Egyptian Tiananmen Square," says Khaled Fahmy of American University in Cairo. He watched today as bands of armed men descended on peaceful protesters in Cairo, heading for Tahrir Square. Some of the people, who Fahmy called "thugs" rode through crowds on horseback and camelback, trying to drive them back. Mubarak "has burned all his bridges with his people," Fahmy notes via phone from Cairo, and the violence today was a last gasp for the regime. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Salvador Reza: Creating a Climate of Hate
Immigrants rights activist Salvador Reza wasn't as shocked as the rest of us when he heard that Gabrielle Giffords and several other people had been shot in Tucson, Arizona. He's used to what he calls the "climate of hate" in Arizona lately, especially around immigration and children of immigrants. From Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the Minutemen to State Senator Russell Pearce and bills that demonize immigrants while loosening gun regulations, Reza notes, Arizona has been building its reputation as a state on the brink. Reza joins us via Skype from Phoenix, Arizona to talk about why it's important to note the political conditions in Arizona--and why the hate isn't going to stay in his state.
GRITtv: Rep. Raul Grijalva: Despite Threats, Shooting Unexpected
"In a very human way you just don't ever think something like this can happen," says Tucson Representative Raul Grijalva, whose district is near that of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, shot on Saturday at a community event. Six people died in the shootout, which left Rep. Giffords and others in critical condition. Grijalva and Giffords' offices had both seen attacks over the past couple of years, during the campaign season and the fight over the health care law, and Grijalva joins us via phone from Washington, D.C. to talk about his experience this weekend, the political climate, and how he will handle his interactions with constituents in the future.
GRITtv: The F Word: WikiLeaks and War Spending
Last week we spoke to Ethan McCord, who featured prominently in the first bombshell release from WikiLeaks. On Friday there came another massive revelation, documents confirming all our worst suspicions about the Iraq war. Iraq Veterans Against the War, of which McCord is a member, said “We believe that real national security is created where government transparency and accountability, free press, and an end to spending on illegal wars and occupations are the norm.” Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: The F Word: Is the Drug War a Class War?
The war on drugs. We keep calling it that, it seems, because we like wars on abstract concepts. Like the war on terror, the war on drugs racks up one hell of a body count, and its victims are mostly innocent civilians with no more love for the corrupt regimes that rule them than we have. Molly Molloy, who runs Frontera List, which focuses on border-related news and specifically Ciudad Juarez, and Charles Bowden, author of a new book on Ciudad Juarez, both call it not a war on drugs but a war on the poor.
