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“Was nothing real?” --Truman
Was Truman’s reality real?
Do the following quotes from the film relate in any way to our reality?
• “As Truman grew up, we were forced to In what ways is our reality like manufacture ways to keep him on the island.” the reality of Seahaven? • “If he was absolutely determined to discover the truth, there is no way we could prevent him. …Ultimately, Truman prefers his ‘cell.’”
Deaths in 2001
• 9/11/01 Attacks = 3,063 • Deaths at Work = 5,915 Let us talk more about our reality: • Pedestrian Accidents = 6,071 • Homicides = 15,517 • Passenger Accidents = 18,675 • Tobacco = 450,000
--Source: Dr. Richard Sullivan, Sociology professor, ISU
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Dominant Reality Dominant Reality
• “This is going to be the kind of work that will probably take years • “America was targeted for attack because because the focus has to be not just on any one individual, the we're the brightest beacon for freedom and problem here is terrorism.” –Dick Cheney, Meet the Press, 9/16/01 – MR. RUSSERT: …If we determine that Saddam Hussein is also opportunity in the world.” harboring terrorists, and there's a track record there, would we have any reluctance of going after Saddam Hussein? • “We will make no distinction between the – VICE PRES. CHENEY: No. – MR. RUSSERT: Do we have evidence that he's harboring terrorists? terrorists who committed these acts and – VICE PRES. CHENEY: There is--in the past, there have been some activities related to terrorism by Saddam Hussein. But at this stage, those who harbor them.” you know, the focus is over here on al-Qaida and the most recent events in New York. Saddam Hussein's bottled up, at this point, but • --George Bush, Address to the Nation, 9/11/01 clearly, we continue to have a fairly tough policy where the Iraqis are concerned.
• --Vice President Dick Cheney and Tim Russert on Meet the Press, 9/16/01
U.S. “Regime Changes:” Dominant Reality Successful* and Attempted
• “Americans are asking, why do they hate us? • Costa Rica 1970-71 • Grenada 1983 * • Somalia 1993 …They hate our freedoms. …They want to • Bolivia 1971 * • South Yemen 1982-84 • Yugoslavia 1999-2000 * overthrow existing governments….” • Chile 1973 * • Suriname 1982-84 • Ecuador 2000 * • Australia 1973-75 * • Fiji 1987 * • Afghanistan 2001 * • --White House News Release, 9/20/01 • Angola 1975, 1980s • Libya 1980s • Venezuela 2002 * • Zaire 1975 • Nicaragua 1981-90 * • Iraq 2003 * • Portugal 1974-76 * • Panama 1989 * • Haiti 2004 * • Jamaica 1976-80 * • Bulgaria 1990 * • Somalia 2007 to present • Seychelles 1979-81 • Albania 1991 * • Libya 2011* • El Salvador 1979-92 • Iraq 1991 • Syria 2012 • Chad 1981-82 * • Afghanistan 1980s * • Ukraine 2014*
https://www.globalresearch.ca/overthrowing-other-peoples-governments-the-master-lis
Dominant Reality Dominant Reality
• “Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward • “Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward America and to support terror. The Iraqi regime America and to support terror. The Iraqi regime has plotted to develop anthrax and nerve gas and has plotted to develop anthrax and nerve gas and nuclear weapons for over a decade. This is a nuclear weapons for over a decade. This is a regime that has already used poison gas to regime that has already used poison gas to murder thousands of its own citizens, leaving the murder thousands of its own citizens, leaving the bodies of mothers huddled over their dead bodies of mothers huddled over their dead children. This is a regime that agreed to children. This is a regime that agreed to international inspections, then kicked out the international inspections, then kicked out the inspectors. This is a regime that has something to inspectors. This is a regime that has something to hide from the civilized world.” hide from the civilized world.” • --George Bush, State of the Union Address, 1/29/02 • --George Bush, State of the Union Address, 1/29/02
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Dominant Reality
• In Secretary of State Colin Powell’s speech to the United Nations, 2/5/03, he used the phrase, “weapons of mass destruction,” in association with Iraq 10 times. • “Ladies and gentlemen, these are not assertions. These are facts, corroborated by many sources, some of them sources of the intelligence services of other countries.” • —Colin Powell, UN Speech, 2/5/03
Dominant Reality as of March, 2003
• “Terrorists” are an existential threat to the United States because we are free and they hate freedom We re-invaded Iraq, 3/20/03 • Iraq is harboring “terrorists,” has “weapons of mass destruction,” and is connected to 9/11 in some way • This “war on terror” will be long-term and far- reaching
Implications of Dominant Reality Implications of Dominant Reality
• Cost of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11 • Over 6,800 US service members and over 6,900 = over 1.6 trillion dollars (conservative estimate) contractors have died in the wars in Iraq and – Between 4 and 6 trillion if you count “long-term Afghanistan. medical care and disability compensation for • An unusually high percentage of young veterans service members, veterans and families, military have died since returning home, many as a result replenishment and social and economic costs,” of drug overdoses, vehicle crashes, or suicide. --Harvard economist, Linda Bilmes • Coalition partners have died in large numbers: approximately 43,000 uniformed Afghans, Iraqis and other allies have died as of May 2014.
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Implications of Dominant Reality Implications of Dominant Reality
• Afghan civilians killed = over 26,000 • The Nobel Prize-winning International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and other groups • Pakistan civilians killed = over 21,000 examined the toll from the so-called war on terror in • Iraqi civilians killed = ? three countries — Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The investigators found "the war has, directly or indirectly, killed around one million people in Iraq, 220,000 in – Deaths Data from Brown University’s Watson Afghanistan and 80,000 in Pakistan (i.e. a total of around 1.3 million). Not included in this figure are Institute for International Studies, May 2015 further war zones such as Yemen. The figure is approximately 10 times greater than that of which the public, experts and decision makers are aware. ..." • Democracy Now!, March 25, 2015
Let me tell you a little story… The Iranian people democratically elected Dr. Mohammed Mossadeq to be Iran’s Prime Minister, who’s administration nationalized the AIOC in 1953.
Everyone, meet Dr. Mossadeq:
the British government was none too pleased about this.
And neither was the government of the United States.
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A government friendly to Western interests was re-installed under the control of the Shah, who became the American Central Intelligence increasingly autocratic. Agency (CIA) engineered a coup to oust Dr. Mossadeq and overthrow Iran’s nationalist government.
The CIA was successful.
The continued economic and Many Iranians were none too cultural influence of the West and pleased about this, the repressive nature of the Shah's as you might be able to imagine. regime led to the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
What started as popular revolution against the Shah by people from all walks of life, including everyone from communists to islamists, eventually became co-opted by the islamists, culminating in the establishment of an “Islamic Republic.”
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Everyone, meet Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini: The Shah was overthrown and exiled, and the new Islamic Republic of Iran was established, led by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Then, starting in 1980 CE, Iran fought a The US openly supported Iraq throughout the war, supplying Saddam Hussein with several war with Iraq that lasted until 1988 CE. billion dollars worth of economic aid, technology, weaponry, intelligence and training.
the US not-so-openly supported But… Iran in some ways too.
(and this is kind of a big “but”) (it is weird and complicated – let me try to explain)
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Before the Shah was overthrown, the US had been supplying Iran with weaponry and intelligence. Also… In fact, in 1979, before the Shah was ousted, the US warned Iran that Iraq was about to invade. (and this is the weirdest part)
the Reagan administration covertly sold arms to Iran during the war and then secretly used that money to fund Meanwhile… militias in Nicaragua – the Contras. Here’s, yet, another part of the story: But that’s a whole other story known as the Iran-Contra Affair.
The US government and the Saudi royal family have been kickin’ it since about 1933 CE. The two are still on relatively good terms today.
They want our money; we want their oil.
And as long as that oil is flowing…
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we turn a blind eye to Saudi Arabia’s But there is hope, as many women are repressive government. fighting for equal rights in Saudi Arabia.
So when our old buddy, Saddam, Suffice it to say, the US and Saudi invaded Kuwait in 1990, the Saudi Arabia have had a relatively stable royal family welcomed the US troops relationship. we stationed their to fight our old buddy. (built entirely around oil) (A few Saudi’s were none to pleased about US troops being stationed in the holy land. We’ll come back to this later on in the story.)
Iraq wanted to annex Kuwait 1990 – 1991 CE, the First Gulf War (for their oil)
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We haven’t even talked about these The US wanted to defend Kuwait guys yet – Afghanistan’s mujahideen: (for their oil) and also to stop Iraq so that Saddam (who used to be our buddy) wouldn’t endanger our allies in Saudi Arabia (again, oil).
A pro-soviet government took Many Afghans were none to pleased power in Afghanistan in the late about this. So they organized a 1970s CE. resistance movement.
Which is when the US CIA began At this point, the Soviets attempted funding, arming, and training the to quash the resistance. mujahideen.
We HAD to! I mean, come on!
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This war in Afghanistan lasted through the 1980s CE, and was followed by a civil war in the 90s.
1961
1962
2019
2019
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1980s
I bet you can’t guess who was funded, armed, and trained – in part by the US CIA – during this conflict…
Yep! This dude: Osama bin Laden was from a wealthy Saudi family.
After fighting with the mujahideen he founded Al-Qaeda.
He was a religious fellow with very extreme views.
Remember this, the First Gulf War?
bin Laden was none too pleased when the US stationed troops in Saudi Arabia – the holy land – to fight Saddam.
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This was a formative event in his life that helped to inspire his contempt for the West in general and the US specifically.
So he came at us.
February 1993 truck bomb attack on World Trade Center, killed 6, injured over 1,000
August 20, 1998, Bill Clinton ordered cruise missile strikes on Al Qaeda bases in Afghanistan and a pharmaceutical factory in Sudan—in response to the embassy bombings
August 7, 1998, US Embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya
October 12, 2000, bombing of USS Cole while refueling at a harbor in Aden, Yemen.
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Iraq had nothing to do with this
US War in Afghanistan, 2001 CE – present.
And, of course, after that we invaded Afghanistan.
But we didn’t stop there! We also invaded Iraq.
Oh no.
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The US openly supported Iraq throughout the war, supplying Saddam Hussein with several billion dollars worth of economic aid, technology, weaponry, intelligence and training.
Dick Cheney
• Chief of Staff for Ford • In House of Reps. from 1978-1989 • Secretary of Defense for George H. W. Bush • CEO of Halliburton from 1995-2000 (Halliburton is an oil field services company)
Dick Cheney
• Chief of Staff for Ford • In House of Reps. from 1978-1989 • Secretary of Defense for George H. W. Bush • CEO of Halliburton from 1995-2000 • Vice President under George W. Bush from January 2001-2009
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US War with Iraq (Second Gulf War) 2003 CE- ? The war with Iraq is now over (supposedly) yet we are maintaining a force of some troops and “private contractors” that numbers in the thousands…
plus the largest embassy in the world:
Why?
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“Unocal was one of the key players in the CentGas consortium, which attempted to build the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline to run from the Caspian area, through Afghanistan, to the Indian Ocean, at a time after the recent Taliban siege of Kabul in 1996.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unocal_Corporation
Social Construction of Reality: Implications of Dominant Reality Summary • Equipped with a sociological imagination we • Reality is a social construct, not an immutable fact can discover and highlight processes through • Some individuals and groups have more power to which reality is constructed, how it is define reality than others maintained, and how it effects people’s lives. • Constructed realities have real consequences for • With a sociological imagination we can: people – Face up to “inconvenient facts” • Reality is constructed by humans, therefore people are able to change it! – Challenge official explanations • The sociological imagination helps us see the – Overcome incorrigible propositions processes through which reality is constructed and • Beliefs held despite evidence to the contrary how it effects the conditions in which people live
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