"Charlie Wilson's War" has a good history lesson
Submitted by plowerman on Fri, 12/28/2007 - 19:48
Charlie Wilson was the Congressman who started the Afghani resistance to the Soviets in the 80's with weapons and training. The end of the movie plays into the beginnings of "radicalization" in Afghanistan.
The movie is rated R for violence and nudity. Also mentions Giuliani since he was prosecuting Charlie Wilson at the time.
I suppose someone might interpret the film as an argument for nation building, but I think this movie helped my parents realize that our interventionist foreign policy does have unintended consequences.
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The lesson is
that a superpower can run itself into bankruptcy by fighting an endless war against people running around in their own caves. We should learn from this.
Yeah, saw it with my EX
and she was SO ENRAPTURED by the character, that I feared she was going to morph into an interventionist.
I did some fast talkin' and one point I tried to make was that they were facing a for real "evil empire", not 19 jerks with box cutters.
I also compared the Soviet Empire to our neo-con empire to good effect.
P.S. I also love this plot synopsis:
"Obscure Texas congressman changes U.S foreign policy"
Only another example of how
entanglements with other nations can have disastrous unintended consequences for America and her people.
While I didn't see the movie, I did watch the special that was just aired on the History Channel about "old good time Charlie."
His intentions may have been good, but the subsequent results that has put America's security in jeopardy was not.
Ron Paul is absolutely correct, we need to talk and trade with other countries and stop meddling in their affairs.
Just look at how we feel about Mexico interfering into the running of our government. Especially the prosecution of Ramos and Compean. And of course, their trying to influence Congress into passing "comprehensive immigration reform." Not once, but on numerous occasions.
Multiple those feeling by a hundred, now you will begin to know why people of other countries resent our interference into what should only be their business...not America’s No matter how good our intentions, they are not our countries and they are not our people.