[Marxism] Olbermann: Is Fox's "24" just conservative fear-porn?

[dwalters@xxxxxxxxxxxx]

It's a good spot by Keith on this show, I think, however, that instead of
generating fear, the show "simply OK's" ones prejudices that already exist as
part of the popular culture. That's why in my reivew, I emphisized the
anti-Arab/Muslim nature of this new twist in plot line, in the way it's
deviated from the past. I don't blieve "24" is part of some great cultural
conspiracy exercize that Keith suggests.

In my review I tried NOT to give away too much of the plot but others have
simply forged ahead. One should put "SPOILERS" in any comments on current
running TV shows or movies so as not to spoin the plot for the viewer. Oh
well...

The torture thing is "old" as it was part and parcel of the show since season 1.
Even if, as some suggest, that the show "OKs" the use of torture in
'exceptional' circumstances, the lead character routinely tortures innocnent
people just to get to the bad guys.
Baur blows shoots the wife of a right-wing conspriator in the leg to get the
hustband to talk in one season. I mean, you don't want to be anywhere near this
guy ever. There seems to be good reasons placed in the plot for all this, but I
think most people are horrified (addicted to it, can't turn away, sure) at what
he does.

Baur, in this season, has second thoughts about what he's doing. He tells the
President, others, "I can't do this anymore". He's a totally broken man...he
absolutely doesn't care if he lives or dies anymore.

S P O I L E R



He actually quits in part IV but after a small, 1k ton nuke goes off in suburban
LA (about 20 miles north of the city) "he's back in the game". Since there are
four more of these suit-case nukes, he has to be the man to stop this insanity,
in his view. Go get'em Jack. I'm really hoping they kill him off this season.

On the Chinese Embassy thing...yes, Danielle is right, that while Jack Baur
doesn't kill the Chinese Consul, he is leading a raid into foriegn territory,
illegally, breaking every law in the world (so he can get a rogue Chinese
nuclear engineer, to torture him too, into revealing secrets) and so the
Chinese do abscond with Baur at the end of the last season, and, obviously,
torutre him too, all too visable when Baur removes his shirt.

Basically this is the thinking-person's Mel Gibson S&M-o-thon. It's what Gibson
would produce if he wasn't actually as mad as the characters in "24".

David


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