The Fog of War

[Basstrap]

You really should rent this movie
it's all narrorated by Robert Macnammara, former Secretary of Defense for the US during the kennedy administration

this is just a really good documentary about war, and learning from past wars.

it's actually very moving at parts. Like when he admits that he and lemay were acting as war criminals in fire bombing japan and nuking them.
I've actually thought about that one before.

BUt no worries! This isn't extreme liberal media, it's an honest and candid look at the purpose and morality of war.

 

[Pinball Wizard]

Did you ever notice that fog is the phonetic breakdown of effigy?

An interesting paradox when you consider that one word means something solid, and the other something lofty and undefinable.

Clever title indeed.

 

[Basstrap]

he explained the phrase.
He said every honest general or military commander will admit to having made mistakes...much of this is due to the 'fog of war'...i.e. the complexity of war fogs your reason.

other points he brought up:

he said the US should never attack unilaterally. Because if you can't convince other nations that the war is just than you should reconsider your reasoning.

War is evil. plain and simple. Even if it is for a good cause, war is evil.
it should be avoided at ALL costs
It was very disturbing listening to tapes of Johnson wanting to stick it to vietnam. The reasoning was just fucked for that war

anyway, it was good. Also because you just never see people this high up do documentaries.

I wonder who will be admitting mistakes 40 years down the road????

 

[verte76]

I definitely want to see this.

 

[Keocmb]

I saw this in the theatres. There was a rat that ran across my foot in the middle of it, but somehow it seemed fitting...

It's a really great film.

 

[TylerDurden]

Wow. I saw this last night and was going to start a thread in here tonight and see who else had/what they thought.

I thought it was amazing. The fact that he has the balls, from such a high position, to say those things, and just the common sense and lessons as well.

It was very moving in many ways, either those firebombing stats compared to the populations of US cities or just how McNamara carried himself.

Clever film as well. Notice the end sequence, where they ask him straight out, "Are you guilty about the Vietnam war?" and he says something along the lines of he's damned if he says he is and he's damned if he says nothing, and he'd rather be damned for saying nothing. Then they fade out and show that little piece on how he's spent the time since then working in areas of poverty in the 3rd World etc. Really well done.

GO RENT IT!!