Generation Kill

[muck_a_luck]

Last night, I stayed up to watch Generation Kill again.

George Bush taught me one thing, way back when he got elected. Sympathy for the people who despised Bill Clinton - who really hated him. As a commuter in the DC area, I had become an NPR addict, but with Bush's election and the escalation in Afghanistan, I absolutely coudln't stand to listen to NPR anymore. It was always either the new president making some sort of irritating, inane speech, or the same story, over and over, from the new war. I shut the radio off, and in fact, mark that as the time I basically disengaged from interest in civic life. I stopped paying any attention to the news, either domestic or international. I kind of felt bad about it. Since seventh grade, when I was embarrassed not to be able to keep up with the older kids at geek camp and their opinions, I had definied my self by knowing all there was to know about world events. My degree was deliberately international. I planned a career in foreign service and took the exam. But I just couldn't bring myself to care anymore.

So, basically, I missed the invasion of Iraq. I mean, I knew it occurred. But I refused to pay any attention to it.

I (used to) know a lot about ICBMs and deterrence strategy, which is sort of macroeconomics to the microeconomics of how a war is fought on the ground, about which I have always had very little interest and know little or nothing. As such, I am also not really a fan of "realistic" war movies.

So, to the extent that Generation Kill is realistic - it is based on a book by a journalist who was embedded with an invading unit of Marines - it has been eye-opening for me.



Particularly, last night the opening scene was of four of our intrepid heros watching a "village" (of three houses) from which mortars might have been - probably were - launched at them the previous night. They have been watching for an hour through scopes and binoculars, and saw four kids and three grannies. They have reported this over their radios, stating that no adult males had been seen.

Then suddenly, the tiny place explodes. It is just engulfed in a massive wall of debris and dust so suddenly it's like nothing I've ever imagined. The buildings don't collapse or burst into flame or anything. They just aren't there anymore. And there was no noise of a plane anywhere. I thought it was going to be something the jihadists had done, but no, apparently someone called the village in to the Air Force and they just demolished it.

Now. Assuming the filmmakers are going for realism here, and that is what the event is really like, then they definitely instilled some serious shock and awe in me, right there.



The other thing that has struck me is the apparent power of the guns they mount on those HUM-Vs. I don't know anything about that stuff, but they showed an exchange of fire between a Zeus, some kind of big Soviet weapon, and the HUM-V mounted weapons, and that was frightening - the range and the power.

I suspend my disbelief a little, because you know, movies, but I'm also intrigued and may have to go poke around and learn a little more about modern warfare.

Comments

[cocoajava.livejournal.com]

I have never seen this. I'm not sure if I want to, but part of me is curious as all heck. Hmm.

[muck-a-luck.livejournal.com]

Ahem.

It's an HBO miniseries. Next week, they are showing a three episode recap in preparation for the final two hours. Don't know what your access is to HBO.

I may have to grab the book from the library, too.

Heh. Last night, I was getting a lot of laughs, since the journalist guy gets caught up in the ambush and is basically doing what I would have been doing under those circumstances, huddling in fear in the back seat looking like he might wee himself. :)

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

It's kind of horrifying the way the Bush yeas have beat down my interest in keeping up with current events. I get blips of horrible bits and pieces and duck and cover again. I can't wait for January 20!