Aragorn: "We went into Iraq and made a friggin' mess"

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

The man who would be king
In an exclusive interview, Viggo Mortensen, who plays Aragorn in "The
Lord of the Rings," talks about his photography, his indie publishing
house, and why Bush will go down in history as the Sauron of American
presidents.

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By Scott Thill, salon.com

Oct. 24, 2003  |  If you're a hardened J.R.R. Tolkien fan feasting on
the "Lord of the Rings" largesse that's possessed popular cinema over
the last few years, then you don't need an introduction to Viggo
Mortensen. But for those who haven't followed Mortensen too closely
before he landed the meaty role of Aragorn -- the king-in-exile whose
ascension to a scrupulously avoided Middle Earth throne is one of many
subplots embedded in "The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King," the
vastly popular trilogy's final installment, opening Dec. 17 in theaters
around the world -- then now's the time to, as they say in hip-hop,
recognize.

Mortensen has been a busy man since his debut in Peter Weir's 1985
thriller, "Witness." The New York native, who just celebrated his 45th
birthday, has put together a series of compelling roles in films by
auteur types like Gus Van Sant ("Psycho"), Sean Penn ("The Indian
Runner") and Jane Campion ("Portrait of a Lady"), as well as a couple of
blockbusters ("Crimson Tide" and "G.I. Jane") from the Bruckheimer and
Birnbaum wing of Hollywood. He's spent years in Southern California's
arts scene, whether participating in poetry readings at Venice's Beyond
Baroque Literary Arts Center, jamming with Buckethead and other fixtures
in L.A.'s sonic landscapes, or exhibiting paintings and photographs in
well-established galleries.

Along the way, he teamed up with Pilar Perez, a curator and former
editor at Smart Art Press, and formed the independent Perceval Press.
Perceval's first few books were an assortment of books by Mortensen and
various young, lesser-known artists, and their popularity allowed the
start-up to stash money away for further offerings featuring figures as
diverse as L.A. artist and poet Georganne Deen (with Sonic Youth's
Thurston Moore), "City of Quartz" author Mike Davis, Japanese artist
Yoshitomo Nara and more.

"There was no particular goal in mind, no ideology other than the desire
to put information and images out there that might otherwise not be
available," Mortensen explains; his latest book, "Miyelo," follows that
free-flowing train of thought perfectly. Filled with one-take panoramas
of Lakota tribesmen re-creating the controversial Ghost Dance -- a
practice that brought the full force of the United States Army down on
South Dakota's Native Americans, and led to the massacre at Wounded Knee
-- "Miyelo" is also a current installment at L.A.'s Stephen Cohen
Gallery, through Nov. 8. It offers a significant amount of commentary
and context on what remains a relatively obscure and tragic chapter in
American history.

But exploring the dark chapters of history and experience is something
in which Mortensen seems to take pride. An upcoming Perceval book on the
Iraq nightmare -- "Twilight of Empire: Responses to Occupation,"
featuring contributions from Amy Goodman, Naomi Klein, Mark Levine, Mike
Davis, Kristina Borjesson, the embattled Joseph Wilson and more -- lays
bare the unbridled corporate arrogance at the heart of the Bush empire.

Then, of course, there is Peter Jackson's amazing vision of Tolkien's
"Return of the King." Ever since its publication half a century ago,
Tolkien's masterpiece has had nothing but sad tales to tell about those
who use and abuse power for its own sake. By the end of his "Lord of the
Rings" run, Viggo Mortensen will have graduated from mercurial
Renaissance man to full-fledged star.

(clip)

Salon: What do you think about the fact that many in the U.S. want part
of the money we give Iraq to be considered a "loan" to be repaid with
oil revenues?

Mortensen: [Vice President Dick] Cheney was speaking to a bunch of
Republicans the other day, and he said that the U.S. taxpayer would not
pay a single cent for the Iraq reconstruction. He said Iraqis would have
to do that themselves. I think this is not only a lie -- one that he is
quite conscious of telling -- but the statement itself, true or not,
displays the horribly arrogant attitude of the current administration.
We went into Iraq and made a friggin' mess for no reason at all -- well,
for economic reasons that will benefit a lucky few -- and we've
seriously undermined any kind of global community.

As many problems as the U.N. has had and as much hypocrisy as it has
displayed, I would rather have them taking care of business over there
as opposed to our government's piecemeal, self-serving efforts. To see
the president of the United States and his administration admonish the
U.N. and individual wealthy nations to pitch in with reconstruction now
that such a mess has been made by the U.S. government -- which, as
everyone knows, chose to deride and completely ignore the grave concerns
expressed by the community of nations when invading Iraq in the first
place -- displays a degree of arrogance that's as frightening as it is
ridiculous. For the American citizen, real dialogue and balanced
information about these matters has been largely choked off. In some
way, I think that small companies or individuals that are willing to
help draw a broader picture, offer more information and contrasting
views, are especially valuable at this time. They're worth their weight
in oil! [Laughs.]

Salon: You have to speak in terms the administration will understand!

Yeah. If I said, "They're worth their weight in gold," one might think
it sounded a little corny.

Salon: That's so 19th century.

Worth their weight in uranium?

Salon: Has the political volatility of our time hindered your ability to
travel significantly? You've been to Cuba, and I know that you were
thinking of going to Iraq before the war started.

Mortensen: Last year, I had made plans to visit Iraq and Israel. I was
interested in seeing those places a little for myself, to take pictures,
get to know people. Unfortunately, due to professional and personal
obligations, I was unable to go. Later I read that Sean Penn and others
were going. The mainstream media in the United States were highly
critical of Sean for having gone to Iraq, calling him "Baghdad Sean" and
the like. Those who run this country and hand-feed carefully crafted
propaganda to the media will immediately and automatically label a show
of genuine curiosity about the world and the role of the U.S. government
in it -- which is how I view Sean's trip -- as unpatriotic.

How is it unpatriotic for him or anyone else to want to go to Iraq or
any other place to educate themselves? How is it unpatriotic to want to
go visit other people, other human beings, on this planet? By all means,
go find out the truth for yourself, if you are fortunate enough to be
able to! Bring back your observations and share them. Just having got
back from Morocco where I was working on the movie "Hidalgo" in the
Sahara desert, it seemed obvious by the end of September to anyone with
eyes and ears that the invasion of Iraq was on a fast track. The
business decision and arrangements had been made. The show had already
been budgeted and planned, just like a movie.

The money had already been allocated and it was run -- to the detriment
of the soldiers and Marines -- like a movie schedule. Generals and
commanders were being dictated to by people like [Defense Secretary
Donald] Rumsfeld, who don't seem to know their ass from a hole in the
ground with regard to military tactics and the requirements of
leadership in the field. They were telling soldiers to advance a certain
amount of kilometers a day, that it didn't matter if they outstripped
their protection or supply lines. Which is idiotic, and had tragic
consequences for the military personnel trying their best to do their
duty in the desert.

It's about as stupid as sending English soldiers out to march around in
the American woods in bright red uniforms during the Revolutionary War,
only to be picked off by sharp-shooting colonials. We certainly
shouldn't have gone there in the first place; there was no real reason
to go, other than for the sake of the ego and greed of the Bush family
and its friends. Of course, when a person points that out they are
accused of defending Saddam Hussein and terrorism, of being a vile traitor.

full: http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/int/2003/10/24/viggo/index.html

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