Richard Matheson’s famed short story ‘Button, Button’ is often alluded to as a simplistic representation of drone policy. Imagine a man offered you a box with a big red button on it. He tells you if you press it, you will receive a hefty sum of money, no questions asked. There is only one consequence: someone you don’t know will be killed. It’s an interesting dilemma – would you press it, knowing some nameless person’s life rests in your hands?
Captain America: The Winter Soldier paints a similar scenario as a hypothetical. The primary villain, Alexander Pierce (played by a somewhat hollow Robert Redford), is justifying his nefarious purpose with Project Insight, an extreme version of NSA’s surveillance strategy combined with drone technology. “What if Pakistan marched into Mumbai tomorrow, and you knew they were going to drag your daughters into a soccer stadium and shoot them… and you could just stop it, with the flip of a switch,” he says. “Wouldn’t you?” One of the council leaders being addressed pipes up indignantly: “Not if it was your switch.”
Political allegory lies at the root of most such narratives, made just fantastical enough to offer recognizable relevance, albeit with plausible deniability.
It’s a telling sign that the movie never outright rejects the concept of mass surveillance or target killing. S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury spends a lot of time explaining and praising the intricacy of Project Insight, with its ability to track down potential terrorists by their DNA using a system of three armed helicarriers linked by satellite. Having already seen the corruption of absolute power up close on multiple occasions, and still reluctant to join S.H.I.E.L.D., Steve Rogers is understandably horrified. As the represe...
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...n shows up to a hearing at the Capitol defiantly claiming that none of them will be penalized, because the world needs heroes more than ever, as I’m sure we’ll see.
Like the country westerns of the ‘70s and ‘80s, comic books (and by extension, their cinematic adaptations) are never far from the historical context they are conceived in. Political allegory lies at the root of most such narratives, made just fantastical enough to offer recognizable relevance, albeit with plausible deniability.This new era seems to signal a change in tone, entering a much darker phase with greater stakes. And it seems to be stepping into the territory of criticizing modern governmental policies, both domestic and foreign. What this means for individual characters remains to be seen, but with at least a decade and a half’s worth of narrative to go, we might as well strap in for the ride.
Controversy has plagued America’s presence in the Middle East and America’s usage of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) contributes vastly to this controversy. Their usefulness and ability to keep allied troops out of harm’s reach is hardly disputed. However, their presence in countries that are not at war with America, such as Pakistan and Yemen, is something contested. People that see the implications of drone use are paying special attention to the civilian casualty count, world perspective, and the legality of drone operations in non-combative states. The use of drone technology in the countries of Yemen and Pakistan are having negative consequences. In a broad spectrum, unconsented drone strikes are illegal according to the laws of armed conflict, unethical, and are imposing a moral obligation upon those who use them. These issues are all of great importance and need to be addressed. Their legality is also something of great importance and begins with abiding to the Laws of Armed Conflict.
In addition, Byman argues that “drones have devastated al Qaeda and associated anti-American militant groups... and they have done so at little financial cost” (Byman 1). In the article, Byman compares the financia...
Through their use of allusion, symbolism and representation they portray many of societies flaws and imperfections. Such an imperfection includes the illustration of how totalitarian governments abuse the power they have acquired for their own gain, harming the people they are sworn to serve and protect. Through this abusive self-gaining government, we all are liable to become victims of consumer culture caused by the blind obedience to advertising and propaganda, being unable to form or voice an opinion of our own. But this lack of opinion can be at fault because of our own apathy, the ignorance and slothfulness that is contributed to the role we play in our society and the importance of that roles ability to motivate and inspire change. Whether you’ve read or viewed the novels or feature films I’ve discussed I have no hesitation in saying any text or film you have seen has been used in some way, shape or form to convey the criticisms of our ‘perfect’
Watchmen takes place during one of our country’s most recent politically intense era’s. The fear of government corruption along with the fear of the Soviet Union and nuclear warfare was very much a real thing. Alan Moore uses political symbols, real and fictional, to represent this rough time and create a realistic setting to an otherwise fictional plot of superheroes. By incorporating mature messages and illustrations it does not only appeal to young adults looking to be entertained by a picture book. It allows Watchmen to stand alone in the category of graphic novels and be looked at as an icon of its time.
In their graphic novel Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons establish their story during the Cold War period, when a group of superheroes tackle the task to save humanity from a potential World War III caused by tensions among governmental powers. Managed by the intelligence of Adrian Veidt, the worst was avoided after the attack of alien forces causes the death of millions of New Yorkers that leads to a temporary world peace. The representations of the Watchmen superheroes of Moore and Gibbons, particularly Rorschach, display the concept of heroism being a part of the real world, among the regular public of our society.
Perceptions of the superhero and supervillain are mainly based on subjective definitions of each concept. These observations often lead to a definitive dichotomy that precisely splits characters into two impermeable divisions. However, this stringent separation is unable to account for the characters that are not at the extreme ends of their respective side. Neither is this rift capable of classifying characters that flirt with both sides of the superhero-supervillain dichotomy. Therefore it is imperative to analyze the established criteria for both superhero and supervillain to derive a more adequate explanation. Most superheroes are not easily characterized, but rather fall somewhere between Superman, the bastion of moral purity, and Doctor Doom, the display of indubitable corruption. This solicits genesis of an entirely new notion about the differences between superheroes and supervillains. A more precise idea is that superheroes and supervillains are lined on a spectrum that spans from pure good to pure evil. Disparities between superheroes and supervillains are not black and white, but rather these characters are on a spectrum that radically changes based on individual cases.
Watchmen is not just a graphic novel, but also a unique representation of American idealism as expressed through character image. Although the characters are portrayed as "superheroes," each is psychologically complex in that they become symbols for the flaws of American culture. Together, the characters of Watchmen reflect an unflattering image of American identity. We sacrifice morals to defend principles, rather than saving people. We sacrifice ourselves for commercial gain and for the fame that comes from the worship of strangers.
...ng scripts, but offering to help with matters of verisimilitude” (Alford and Graham). Instead of changing scripts the CIA now offers filmmakers access to active-duty and “retired” case officers in order to help get the Agency’s image across in a positive light. The CIA to help influence the American publics’ opinion on Iran used Argo a recent thriller about the Iranian Hostage Crisis; this was done because of the increasing tensions going on between the West and Iran. Agro negatively depicted the Iranian government while showing the CIA in a positive and heroic stance. The film was in part to help boost anti-Iran feelings domestically incase things were to go south with current West-Iran negotiations. It shows the public that even while watching a movie the CIA is subconsciously sending foreign policy messages across the big screen.
The National Security Act of 1947 created the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). President Truman’s vision of the CIA was a peacetime intelligence agency that provided early warnings in the event of an attack. After President Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947, a loophole was found. The National Security Act “instructed the CIA to correlate, evaluate, and disseminate intelligence and to perform ‘other functions and duties related to intelligence affecting the national security’ ” (Weiner 2007). The CIA used this wording of ‘other functions’ to conduct secret operations overseas and to practice cloak and dagger methods in obtaining intelligence. Since its establishment over sixty years ago, the CIA’s implementation of cloak and dagger intelligence gathering has evolved to developing a componen...
Murphy, Dan. "Aerial Drones Serve as Weapons of War." Weapons of War. Ed. Diane Andrews Henningfeld. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. from "Briefing: Aerial Drones as Weapons of War." Christian Science Monitor (22 May 2009). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.
Homeland security entities are proactive in the fight against terrorism on American soil. Their mandate is to collect information relating to potential attacks and analyze it to find a solution to the danger. With this in mind, these entities employ numerous spying techniques to collect intelligence for safeguarding of the nation. Homeland security entities have spies in almost all the countries in the world, especially those that show aggression towards America. The main aim of these spies is to carry out espionage to determine threat levels and find ways of neutralizing threats (Randol, 2009). This involves deployment of secret agents to areas or countries that exhibit terrorism activity in a bid to collect information. The spies interact with local people and members of terrorist groups using aliases that enable them conceal their identities.
“The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him” (G.K. Chesterton). A soldier is a soldier no matter what. If they fight behind a screen, on the front line, or from a controller as long as they’re protecting this country, the people in it, and the people fighting for it they are honorable. Some think that because one does their fighting from a remote control drone means that they have no understanding of war, and in some ways that is true, but they are still taking someone’s life when they choose to press that button just like the solders on the front line takes someone’s life when they pull the trigger. Both people are fighting the same fight: they love the country they are defending the people in it they just do it from different standpoints. Drones
Automated warfare can take the place of soldiers in some scenarios, allowing a decrease in military deaths. Drones have advanced technology that increases accuracy while reducing the amount of noncombatant casualties. Veterans suffer unfairly from harmful repercussions as a result of combat; drone pilots have the ability to block out distractions and not get emotionally involved when they have to perform their duty. It is moral to use drone warfare because it reduces the number of U.S. soldiers lives that are put at risk, drone’s capabilities allow for target accuracy and a decline in civilian deaths, and they keep soldiers from having mental trauma in the future because they allow for emotional detachment. Though drones may appear small and simple, their abilities are vast, and their potential as warfare progresses is
One of the latest and most controversial topics that has risen over the past five to ten years is whether or not drones should be used as a means of war, surveillance, and delivery systems. Common misconceptions usually lead to people’s opposition to the use of drones; which is the reason it is important for people to know the facts about how and why they are used. Wartime capabilities will provide for less casualties and more effective strikes. New delivery and surveillance systems in Africa, the United Air Emirates and the United States will cut costs and increase efficiency across the board. Rules and regulations on drones may be difficult to enforce, but will not be impossible to achieve. The use of drones as weapons of war and delivery and surveillance systems should not be dismissed because many people do not realize the real capabilities of drones and how they can be used to better the world through efficient air strikes, faster delivery times, and useful surveillance.
The Golden Age of Comics was perhaps the greatest era in comic book history. Many people loved the comics during this time period because they were all stories about good triumphing over evil. Many of these stories reflected over historical events over the time period. “Pro-American characters were popular due to the time period occuring mostly during World War II.” (PBS)