I had good intentions for this post to be the first of my icon series of articles, but this is taking longer than what I had originally intended. Anyway, today I just heard an excellent podcast from Brian Dunning that nicely linked with a previous article I wrote on peer pressure (http://beelzebubsbroker.blogspot.com/2009/05/convince-little-man-peer-pressure-in.html) Peer pressure wasn't the focus of Dunning's podcast, but it certainly has a strong role to play. Whereas I discussed how good people can do evil things, Dunning argues that intelligent people can think stupid things. Dunning warns us of the common ad hominem argument mistake made by his fellow sceptics when it comes to facing people who have erronous ideas. As Michael Shermer points out in his book "Why People Believer Weird Things", intelligent people can also think the craziest ideas and have the most odd beliefs. Of course, what we often find is that these bright people have had a certain circle of influence that has fed these peculiar ideas into their minds. In turn the zealous believer, regardless of his intelligence level, will use confirmation bias to cherry pick anything he feels supports his belief, often dismissing all contradictory evidence.
Here is the written script of the podcast, which I urge you to download. Please ignore the title the piece has little to do with politics: http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4160#
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“Grown up Digital” is Don Tapscott’s follow-up to “Growing up Digital”, a book that described the emerging “Net Generation” and their unique influences. This generation is defined by Tapscott as those who were born from 1977 to 1997. As he explains, they have often gone by different monikers including “Generation Y”, because they immediately follow “Generation X”, and the “Millennials”. Tapscott uses the “Net” to distinguish them, as this is the main tool he sees them using in their work and leisure. “Grown up Digital” is a study and reflection on how this generation is now changing our world and how the older members of society are succeeding or failing depending on how well they understand these new kids on the block.
Criticizing your era’s youth is nothing new. It’s not difficult either. We can find literature going back centuries, let alone decades, where the older generation discusses the shortcomings of their successors. In this sense Tapscott’s book is refreshing in the enthusiastic optimism he feels, as a member of the “Baby Boomer Generation”, watching the way the Net Generation are shaping business and society. He argues that the unique communicative services provided by the internet have helped develop the world’s first aligned global generation and helped promote more collaboration and less prejudice. The birth of “Web 2.0” has made this generation become more creative and interactive. They are less passive than previous generations whose main influence came from sources like the television. Web 2.0 has promoted such services as Wikipedia, Myspace and Facebook that encourage users to create their own content. Tapscott explains that a generation “bathed in bits” are used to customizing everything and their actual thinking process is geared towards contribution rather than just receiving information.
The book is fairly lengthy yet an accessible, which cries out for a massive paradigm shift in the way we run businesses and education. The author spends a lot of time rebutting the popular arguments about the Net Generation. The alienation argument is countered with the mass philanthropy and global community promoted by the ‘net. Although more liberal views regarding intellectual property are clearly a behaviour that puts this generation at odds with previous ones, Tapscott argues that this does not diminish the Net Generation’s creativity and is partly explained by their desire to be interactive. His most convincing argument is put forward regarding the apparent lack of physical activity displayed by this generation, a generation often condemned for being obese and lazy. Tapscott points out that the Net Generation don’t watch nearly as much television as the Baby Boomers and Generation Xers. In fact, television is used more as a type of muzak for this generation, played in the background whilst they got on with other activities. This brings us onto the argument regarding multitasking. Tapscott should be credited with the objective way he handled this topic. Although the studies mentioned do not prove that the Net Generation are any better at multitasking, it also shows that they aren’t any worse and their apparent lower attention spans demonstrate the sheer volume of activity they actually cram into a day.
Although, on the whole, Tapscott’s mission is to bang the drum and promote a better understanding of the Net Generation he does also mention some of their shortcomings that are not easily countered. His main word of warning is the way net users freely divulge private information on the web, information that has affected people’s careers. I read “Grown up Digital” at the same time I was reading Damian Thompson’s “Counterknowledge”. It was interesting to note what Tapscott viewed as a scrutinizing and critical generation inspired by the constantly peer-reviewed internet, Thompson saw their susceptibility to misinformation, conspiracy theories, pseudohistory and pseudoscience. They are both correct, of course, but the scrutinizing Tapscott sees as a trait of the emerging generation can often manifests itself in pseudoscepticism. This is demonstrated by the egregious conspiracy theory films created for the net such as “Zeitgeist: The Movie” and “Loose Change”.
Having not read “Growing up Digital” and being completely new to Don Tapscott’s work I viewed his latest work as a standalone piece. It is recommended reading for anyone involved at least in teaching, where it provides some superb new initiatives and insights.
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How did the premier highflying wrestler, Jody Fleische, get accused of being a female prostitute? Did EWW attempt to invade the fledgling “New British Wrestling” promotion, FWA? Why did EWW get banned from Southsea? These questions are often prompted by subtle hints dropped by Chris (former “Mr Hardcore” now “Extreme Enforcer” and sometimes “Mean Gene”) O’Regan from time to time, but have never really been answered. As I write this next passage in my recollections of my short stint as a pro wrestling promoter I can’t help feel it is confession time.
EWW had thrown the gauntlet down in the smallest subculture of subcultures, British Wrestling. We rightfully stated that we were the first and only truly hardcore promotion in the UK in 1998. We were only the second UK promotion to hold a match in a steel cage and the first in the world to have it as a tournament final. We had also liberally used numerous props including chairs, fireballs and chains throughout the show that were, at best, special additions in other British promotions. Our attitude was aggressive and antagonistic like the American ECW, but our storylines were intended to be even deeper and more original than this now legendary stunt-filled promotion. Nothing in British wrestling had been so adult-based. CCW (Commonwealth Championship Wrestling) had been our springboard and immediately we would eclipse them on the British wrestling scene, but little did we realize others were also being inspired and a new generation of British pro-wrestling promotions was emerging.
It is arguable that the origins for these new promotions had grown from the scattered parts of CCW’s second and highest profile official show “Animal Instincts”. Phil Lowe, whose role in CCW I have never really been able to ascertain, had decided to form his own ill-fated promotion, the British Wrestling Alliance. However, it was the modest lightweight wrestler I had last seen scratching his bollocks on the way to the ring at “Animal Instincts” who would arguably make the biggest immediate impact on the British wrestling scene over the years – or rather it would be the promotion he created.
The Fratton Wrestling Association apparently had been in existence since 1993. Going by what I have since heard, and I may be wrong, it was virtually a prototype for the controversial backyard wrestling that would become popular in 1999 onwards, run by youngsters who had some formal training, but were mainly self-taught. We were first seriously alerted to their presence when an advert was emailed to us picturing Mark Sloan being slammed through a flimsy pasting table. We were young, proud and fired up about our position in pro-wrestling and immediately saw them as jumping on our extreme bandwagon. The stunt seemed like an insult to the stunts we had pulled off and, worse still, the show was using most of the wrestlers we had incorporated into our storylines.
Inspired by Lee Edwards’s Welsh DJ friend, we decided to visit the new promotion to suss the scene out. The outing was organized by Lee’s friend - we’ll call him LY - and there was clearly a mixture of agendas on the card. I felt that LY was after aggravation whereas the rest of us had varying degrees of curiosity and annoyance. Our ensemble included Stu “The Dominator” Allen, Josh Perry (our technical manager and “sleeping” partner), Jay “Pain” McDonald, Chris O’Regan and me. We followed LY’s car into Fratton, Portsmouth, the home of FWA, and out into Southsea...and then almost off the end of peer. My mobile phone rang. It was LY: “I haven’t a fuckin’ clue where I am goin’ mate!”
Eventually after being cruelly taunted by the various other establishments we could have booked rooms in we ended up at a godforsaken £16 per night bed and breakfast. We were greeted – if that was the word – by a landlady that had the measure of us from the start: a bunch of lads with a night of trouble on their agenda. However, we were polite and listened to the house rules carefully. One rule would be tested that night and prove not to be applicable: “If you want anything please use the bell before 11pm”.
“It’s the mystique I love” said Lee as he watched a fully costumed and very nervous Mark Sloan rush out to the front of the house to check the ticket situation. We were expecting a travesty of a show. We anticipated seeing old school British wrestling mixed with the backyard scene in a dismal attempt to replicate the Americans. The poster was an unimaginative affair. Described as “FWA: One” it was a monochrome picture featuring a ladder as the main star. This piece of gossip had already reached us: FWA had bought an official WWF ladder from America for a ladder match. It seemed like a big waste to us. The idea that the whole promotion was pinning its hopes and reputation on this gimmick made us feel less and less intimidated by the competition.
As we walked into the main auditorium we were more than a little surprised. Mark Sloan had created perhaps the best wrestling ring in the country. Modelled on the American design, it had a titanium spring underneath the matted area and knuckle pads in the corners. It would be a joy for all British pro-wrestlers who worked in it and eventually my bane for the Dead Souls routine. Behind the ring stood what I felt at the time was an ostentatious and superfluous video projection screen – or “video wall” as everyone liked to call it. I say superfluous as the point of a video wall with a live feed is to allow an the audience who are too far back to watch the action on the stage in a huge stadium venue. Most people who worked in what was soon to be labelled as the New British Wrestling movement didn’t support my view. My guess is that many saw the inclusion of a video wall as a prop associated with the big promotions in the US rather than as a functional service. On the other hand I was very much in favour of the use of the walls to provide animated graphics, entrance videos, action from outside the venue and as extra dramatic material to advance the storylines.
The show was being professionally filmed by someone I would learn was a partner in the promotion, Elisar Cabrera. Elisar, like me, came from a showbusiness family. His worked in the film industry and even produced some low budget exploitation films before his involvement with the FWA. The way he turned the whole of FWA: One into a promotional video showed great vision and potential. We were all surprised when an “Old School” wrestling match, which we shook our heads at in sad disbelief when we watching the show live, were used very cleverly to show the contrast between the “World of Sport” generation and the New British Wrestling provided by FWA. This contrast was the marketing tactic taken by most of the new promotions, starting with our previous promotion CCW. Seeing the then growing regard and mainstream popularity of US and Japanese wrestling the world over, we felt our number one priority was to show the UK that the new movement was very far removed from the days of Giant Haystacks and Big Daddy.
The audience certainly seemed to be behind the show. Even we, as hostile and biased spectators, had to admit this, if not to each other then to ourselves. Nevertheless, we enjoyed chanting “MFI” in reference to the offending pasting tables instead of the “ECW” chant that wrestling fans would make when a “hardcore” stunt was carried out. Our chagrin at this element eventually resulted in Stu paying LY £20 to “accidentally” fall through one of the tables situated around ringside while he was covering the event for his online show. It didn’t take much for the table to give and the act, although perhaps a little petty in retrospect, was one of the most entertaining moments of the night. LY, despite claiming a “black belt in karate”, was a rather unfortunately shaped individual and the sight of his rotund physique doing a Buster Keaton after leaning on one of the tables will always be up there with the Del Boy fall in “Only Fools and Horses”.
The show culminated in a “Rumble”. This was an American variation on the Battle Royal formula and was a popular annual fixture in the WWF’s calendar. It was around this time that we were beginning to get hot under the collar. Alcohol fused with a tribal protectiveness of our product made Stu and I particularly annoyed by the Gothic characters that seemed to be popping out to wrestle. We were very protective of our Dead Souls product and did not take too kindly to imitation. A wrestler called En?gma arrived on the scene with a black beard and a black Regency style shirt. This immediately irked Stu. In those times of paranoid rivalry it looked like to all of us as a blatant rip-off of Stu’s newly created Dominator character. Little did we realize that En?gma was one of the FWA’s original partners, he took his character role very seriously (perhaps a little too seriously), he would go on to improve his wrestling ability to a standard that would win him praise in the British wrestling press and that he was actually a very nice bloke. A not so amiable character was the far less creative “Crow” copycat who it was alleged was the cause of the problems that would occur later that night. Finally the icing on the cake and perhaps the only excuse Stu, Lee and I were going to need to have serious words with the promotion was the sudden blast of “Malice through Looking Glass” that announced the arrival of previous CCW wrestler, Excalibur. This little known yet anthemic black metal track by Cradle of Filth had been a Dead Souls mainstay since before my time with EWW.
Then something happened that changed everyone’s plans. From what I recall, and the facts remain blurred to this day, Jorge Castano flipped over the top rope during his match in the Rumble and accidentally kicked a member of the audience in the face. The woman he kicked turned out to be connected the Crow wrestler in some way. Matters then apparently kicked off. We must have ducked out when this happened because all of a sudden the music was off and the show was stopped with half the wrestlers being held in the changing rooms whilst rumours of a riot via the Crow’s supporters were heating up at in the bar. An empty ring surrounded by puzzled spectators who were being told that their money would be refunded served as the confusing middle to this incident. The next thing we knew EWW were being requested backstage to act as bodyguards for the wrestlers thought to be at risk by the Crow and his supporters. I couldn’t see any sign of the supposed trouble and nothing did happen, but Stu got his £20 back!
Later that night Jonny Storm, Jorge Castano and Jody Fleische and his girlfriend joined us for a meal out. Big Jay got quite wasted and his pranks swung between creating his interpretation of a hedgehog with traffic cones and attempting a strong man act with a car. We invited the guys to stay with us at our bed and breakfast. We knew we would have to smuggle them in, but we didn’t expect the sardine situation that ended our night. Stu did the classic mistake and locked his keys in his room. After spending a long time ringing the bell for our landlady to no availe we decided to crowd everyone into the remaining rooms. I got the better end of the deal with Jody and his girlfriend having to fight over a flannel on my floor. Whereas Big Jay, Stu, Josh and Jonny all piled into one room! Recalling the size of those pigeon coups the landlady called rooms, it’s a wonder there was enough oxygen for that ensemble.
It had gone midnight and most of the EWW brigade was asleep in drunken stupors. The Dominator didn’t sleep though. A mysterious creaking noise disturbed his kingdom of darkness. Then suddenly it was punctuated by an abrupt sound. Bang! This was immediately followed the sound of a small Essex accented curse, “Shit! Missed!” The creaking sounds continued and then another loud bang. This time the creaking noise stopped altogether “Ow!” and the Essex accent turned into a celebratory cackle. It became clear to The Dominator; the creaking noise was the unlikely snoring of Pain and the bangs were Jonny’s two attempts to shut him up by chucking a pair of boots at him.
The next morning breakfast was missed in a desperate attempt to pay the bills and to smuggle the four extra guests out via the outside catwalk. Jody, for some inexplicable reason, hadn’t figured out that he wasn’t down as a registered guest and wondered if he could get in a shower and perhaps some toast before we all left. Meanwhile I was doing my best to cover for his ad his girlfriend's stealthy exit whilst paying for the bill. The landlady was telling me off about the racket we had made the previous night. I was apologizing and explaining that we had asked for help to get into Stu’s room well before her 11pm cut-off time. My protest fell on deaf ears, as she had just clocked Jody and his girlfriend rushing up the stairs. She was in hot pursuit, but was not quite fast enough. Chris O’Regan’s room had the fire exit with a wardrobe conveniently placed in front and quickly aided their escape. This was the exit the more switched on Mr Storm had used as soon as he figured the game was up. Jody and his girlfriend just made it. However, the bizarre thing was the landlady, who arrived in Chris O’Regan’s room after them acted as if she didn’t know there was a fire exit there and began searching Chris’s room. She eventually conceded that the “two black girls” (poor little Jody and his ponytail) were hiding somewhere and would jump out on her later on in the day. There must be something in the water down there.
After paying my bill I was duly threatened with being blacklisted on the Hotel Watch for the whole Southend-on-Sea region. When Stu came to pay his bill after me he was apparently threatened with the middle-aged bodybuilder who was a regular resident at the bed and breakfast. Frankly the landlady was a more intimidating sight!
And thus began 1999 and our relationship with FWA. We had three shows ahead of us, plus a guest match on FWA’s second show and loads of controversy culminating in police involvement and even a spot on the Jerry Springer Show.
Don't forget to check out Jamie Clubb's main blog www.jamieclubb.blogspot.com
The tagline for the entertaining two-part 2003 TV mini-series “Hitler: The Rise of Evil” is the famous, yet sometimes contested[i], quote popularly attributed to Edmund Burke, “The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing”. Unfortunately history reveals that “good” men (and women) have not just been passive or apathetical, they have also contributed to evil. Peer pressure wields an incredible amount of power over otherwise moral, respectable and rational people, as does the force of a natural leader, orders from a respected authority or a strong enough cause.
Another two-part mini-series, “Jack the Ripper” (1988), has Sir William Gull give Inspector Abberline these profound words when trying to explain how one person could convince a co-conspirator to aid him in committing a terrible crime:
“Convince a little man that he is serving some great cause; some grand experiment and he will do practically anything for you…He’ll burn witches for you, torture your enemies and he’ll do it with a smile if he thinks it is right”.
It’s a phenomenon that prompts many debates, especially among those arguing the case for or against religion or atheism. Cinema and television have used it as a focal point in many productions. The most obvious examples seem to be the film adaptations of William Golding’s novel “Lord of the Flies”. The story focuses on how the lure of savagery under a brutal leader is far stronger than leadership under the forces for reason, fairness and order. Jack’s path, in the story, is an easy and simple route akin to the “Social Darwinism”[ii]of the “Me Generation” that just believes in survival of the fittest and the most violent.
Classic bullying takes this extreme a stage further with the strong not just attacking whoever they feel challenges their authority but actually preying on the weak as if it were a right. “Ben X” is a Belgian film made in 2007 about an autistic boy’s eventual revenge on the bullies who humiliated and physically abused him. The film explores several interesting subjects including a genuinely sympathetic attempt to show the world through the eyes of someone with Asperger’s syndrome, the internet as both a place of sanctuary and persecution, and the fact that even in these supposed enlightened and politically correct times the afflicted are still openly abused. Perhaps the most disturbing issue raised is the way the main character’s main two persecutors are supported by the majority of their peer. The peer pressure in this instance is the lure of ridiculing the weak.
German cinema in the early 21st century has thrown up two films that deal with peer pressure in institutions, both inspired by dubious and controversial experiments, “Das Experiment” (2001) and “Die Well” (2008). The psychology behind what allowed Germany; now a liberal country with strict laws against extremism, to become an autocracy in relatively recent times is a subject that has fascinated many Germans. Interestingly both the experiments mentioned were conducted in the USA.
“Das Experiment” (The Experiment) is clearly inspired by the 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment. This was an experiment to determine how institutions, such as prisons, affect human behaviour. A group of predominately white middleclass volunteers were made prisoners and another group were made guards. The experiment was cancelled after only six days. Apparently the inmates had been increasingly humiliated and brutalized by the guards. “Das Experiment” dramatically took the whole matter to extremes and emphasized the point that brutality was bred by such conditions. The Stanford Experiment has been heavily criticized in academic scientific circles, as it was not peer-reviewed and some argue it was orchestrated for a predetermined conclusion. “Das Experiment” has a similar moral core to “Lord of the Flies”, but rather than putting normal middleclass boys in a savage uncontrolled environment they look towards a heavily controlled institution and argue that it produces a similar result.
“Die Welle” (The Wave) is based on the alleged 1967 Third Wave experiment[iii]. This experiment was conducted in a high school history class over a week to demonstrate how easily an ideology like Nazism could win the hearts and minds of many normal people. Through a series of exercises to inspire strict discipline and community, the students saw immediate positive results and began recruiting others to the movement. There is even more controversy over the Third Wave experiment as very little material and no accounts are given outside those written by the school teacher who claims credit for conducting it. Nevertheless, there have been documentaries, two fictionalized feature films, an award winning young adult novel and even a musical based on the story. Whether the events happened or happened in the way popularly described is not the issue. There is something in the core idea of mass conformity that fascinates us as a species of individuals.
“Die Welle” seems to take a lot of its base material from the novel written by Todd Strasser[iv], where the whole experiment quickly gets out of control and members of “The Wave” start intimidating other students and even resorting to violence. In the novel, “The Wave” the teacher is able to convince his followers to abandon his movement after revealing to them the comparison with Hitler. However, Die Welle’s teacher leaves matters just a bit too long before he comes to his senses and reminds the students of the original purpose of the experiment and dangerous path they are now taking. Die Welle puts a far darker spin on the book’s ending. In the novel an enthusiastic and successful member of the now defunct movement expresses his sadness at the experiment’s termination because it gave him the popularity and also gave his life meaning. Before hand he had been unpopular and lacked motivation. In “Die Welle” the equivalent character takes matters to extremes and pulls a gun, wounding another student and killing himself.
“A Few Good Men” was a major US motion picture based on the Broadway play of the same name starring some of the biggest names in Hollywood. Of all the films and TV specials mentioned here it is easily the most commercial, but that doesn’t mean it handles the topic of peer pressure less seriously. The institution this time is the military, the US marines stationed in Guantanamo Bay. The story revolves around a legal defence team in the court-martial of two young low-ranking marines accused of murdering one of their fellow marines. It transpires that the accused marines had been covertly ordered to “train” the unfortunate victim with a “Code Red”, a type of unofficial discipline administered by fellow marines, when he went out of the chain of command to request a transfer based on his substandard performance and poor health. The victim is disliked by his fellow marines and superior officers, and his willingness to trade information on one of his soon-to-be killers disgusts the bullying Colonel who gives the order for the Code Red. This unintentionally ends in tragedy. Orders are justifiably a very serious matter in the military, but there is much controversy regarding unofficial rituals and methods carried out by fellow officers that range from “hazing” to outright persecution.
One small scene highlights the essence of herd instinct. After hearing witness testimony on Code Reds from a serving marine, the prosecution demonstrates to the court that this is not an official procedure. He requests that the marine show him where in the Marine Corps Outline for Recruit Training or any other official documentation issued to soldiers will he find information on Code Reds. The witness laughs and admits that there is none. “No further questions” the prosecution says smugly heading towards his seat, the manual in his hand. Without missing a beat the lead defence lawyer moves in for his questioning taking the manual off his opposition before the latter can return to his seat and asks the witness where in the book he will find the mess hall. The witness replies that the mess hall isn’t in the manual either. Following the logic implied by the prosecution, the defence makes the conclusion that the witness has never had a meal during his time at Guantanamo Bay. The witness replies that this isn’t correct; he gets “three squares a day”. When asked how he knows where the mess hall is when it is not in the book he answers, “I guess I just followed the crowd at chow time, sir”.
However, sometimes the excuse cannot just be pinpointed on a great cause or seduction by primal instinct or even the charisma of a strong leader. All too often the “little man” does terrible things knowing that they are wrong and he does them when he puts his standing in a group ahead of his conscience. The fear of being excluded or ostracized by a group can have a very controlling effect on a person’s actions. This is a far harder subject for us to consider and even fewer films address it. There are two, however, that do a very convincing job.
“The Accused” is quite rightly critically acclaimed for tackling many difficult aspects of the issue of rape. Breaking with the stereotypical convention, even in the late 1980s, the lead character is not a virginal heroine who is pounced upon while she is minding her own business. She is a working class girl who decides to go out, get drunk and do what many people do when they want to get their own back on an ex-lover. In a horrific turn of events a flirtatious dance ends up with the girl being gang-raped in a bar in front of a crowd of jeering spectators.
The peer pressure is evidently displayed in the effect these onlookers have on the rapists. A student, Bob, feels compelled to join the rape presumably under the pressure of wanting to prove his masculinity to the older males, even though his fellow student, Kenneth, is disgusted and rings the police. The third rapist, a formidable looking thug called Kurt who holds the victim down throughout the previous two rapes, comes across as a slow witted man who aggressively throws off the student and then joins in to stave off the jeers he is receiving from the onlookers. Although already actively involved in the crime this character’s further actions are clearly influenced his peers.
Such action can be seen in the way a crime is committed by a group of people. Often we see them behaving in a frenzy, but as time goes on individuals feel the need to make their own personal contribution often trying to “better” the violence administered by the person prior to them. It is not unheard of for people not involved with the initial assault to be drawn into making a violent contribution[v].
Perhaps the film that most characterizes the effect of evil peer pressure is the Brian De Palmer directed “Casualties of War”, which was also based on a real incident. The film tells the story of a squad of American soldiers serving in Vietnam whose much-deserved leave time is cut short when they are re-deployed to a native village suspected of being sympathetic towards the Vietcong. The squad’s mentally unhinged sergeant, angered by losing his leave time and also vengeful because of the death of a comrade decides to order his squad to kidnap a village girl. The squad are then instructed to beat and rape the girl before eventually and clumsily murdering her – she is first stabbed and then gunned down on a railway track. The crime is then intended to be concealed by the cover of the war. However, this is not to be thanks to the conscience of Private Max Eriksson, the only man in the squad not to contribute to the rape. After he is almost murdered by one of the squad, an investigation is made and the murdering rapists are convicted.
The film largely focuses on the conflict between the sergeant and Eriksson, however, the relationship between Eriksson and another soldier, Private Antonio Diaz, which reveals the effects of peer pressure. Under normal circumstances Diaz would probably have never committed the indefensible crime of rape and murder. Diaz is reluctant to rape the girl and Eriksson knows this, trying hard to convince him not to join in the madness. However, in the end fear of the sergeant and the primal fear of going against the group force Diaz’s decision.
Diaz’s role is important as sadly he is very identifiable in most groups of people and therefore his fall is all the more uncomfortable to watch. He is the everyman: sociable, amiable, friendly, inoffensive and non-confrontational. Unlike various fallen anti-heroes we have seen in drama from Macbeth to Anakin Skywalker, Diaz was not gradually seduced by evil nor was there any valour salvageable from his crimes. He deserves our contempt, but deep down we know he is not a bad person. By comparison Penn’s sergeant may not be a straight-cut villain - the film opens with him saving Eriksson’s life and he clearly has some compassion for his fellow soldiers - but ultimately he and his main supporters are the agents of evil. They bully, they terrorize and they commit evil to satisfy their own warped sense of entitlement. Likewise, Michael J Fox’s Eriksson is not a formidable presence as the champion for good when the gang rape is being committed, but he certainly comes up to scratch before and after the murder. Diaz is Eriksson’s hope that there is some humanity left in the squad, a hope he sees dashed in front of his eyes. Diaz’s psychology behind the whole incident is summed by the response he gives to the prosecutor at his court martial.
“Prosecutor: You're saying, then you involved yourself in rape to avoid being ridiculed?
Antonio Diaz: When you go out on a patrol, sir you're not gonna be as good as you wanna be. These guys aren't helping you do anything. There's gonna be four people on that patrol, and an individual. And so I did what I did, and I got remorse about it. But I also got remorse about talking at this trial. I have a loyalty to the men I was out there with”
The loyalty Diaz speaks of is the need to be a part of a community. From our primate ancestry to the very origins of our civilisation we are social animals. We seem to operate best in small groups. The successful individualist who breaks from his caste may be aspired to and worshipped, but this has probably more to do with leader-worship than a desire to be alone. Chronic loneliness has been connected to life threatening conditions from mental disorders like clinical depression to cancer or even strokes. Some people, of course, are happy to be alone, but they are the exceptions that prove the rule. The solitary are often persecuted and enforced solitude through ostracizing a person is a common form of punishment. And yet the hope many of these films offer comes from lone individuals like Eriksson in “Casualties of War”, Kenneth in “The Accused”, Markinson in “A Few Good Men” and Karo and Mona in “Die Welle”. Even the autistic hero of “Ben X” has his supporters. These characters are not leaders and not overtly strong people, but individuals nonetheless whose sense of morality or principles stopped them from conforming to something they could see was fundamentally wrong.
Footnotes:
[i] “There is no record that Burke said this. The quotation became popular after John F. Kennedy began using it in speeches but after careful research by many persons, no source could be found. Bartlett's discontinued attributing the saying to Burke” – Zendam, “Quoteland.com” [ii] I use the term “Social Darwinism” not as any slight to the great Charles Darwin and his great Theory of Evolution, but in the negative sense opposed by the famous Darwin supporter, Richard Dawkins. [iii] This experiment was allegedly conducted by Ron Jones to demonstrate the appeal of fascism to is sophomore history students. Apart from write-ups in three issues of the student newspaper, The Cubberley Catamount, the only other documentation of the experiment was an essay written by Jones. [iv] This is the pen name of Morton Rhue. The novel, although essentially a novelisation of the 1981 TV movie “The Wave”, won the Massachusetts Book Award. [v] Geoff Thompson often remarks in his seminars, his book “Watch My Back” and other works how the more lethal injuries in a fight come from those not previously involved.
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There is a highly contagious disease sweeping the globe. It has already infected numerous numbers of people in various different countries. However, the disease I am discussing is not the current swine flu outbreak; rather it is the contagion of irrational fear of the “pandemic” that is spreading at a far faster rate than any biological virus. And it didn’t take long for other parasites to start feeding off this fear to bolster their own transparent agendas.
This type of scare is obvious fuel for the tabloid media. Growing up in the UK I have seen widespread panic induced by the salmonella scare of the late 1980s, which was followed by the “Mad Cow Disease” BSE scare and then at the beginning of the millennium the petrol strike had the general public scurrying to stock pile like a swarm of fat, terrified squirrels.
Then there are other areas that are quick exploit the situation. A public health info-mercial broadcast at regular intervals on a local radio explained to everyone that one of the best preventative measures against the virus is to – wait for it – wash your hands! It never ceases to amaze me – and this comes from someone who has to regularly write risk assessments for work that involves animals – that we have to remind the general public of the 21st century in a developed country about basic hygiene. The public information broadcast seems as patronizingly dreadful as the one that was created to remind men that non-consensual sex is rape. I echo comedian Ricky Gervais’s exasperation in his “Fame” stand-up show – how have we got to this stage in our society that we need to tell people these things. On the back of the regular hand-washing revelatory message household cleaning product supplier, Domestos, saw the perfect opportunity to remind everyone of its product’s germ-killing potential and their commercials swiftly followed.
However, another type of parasite is out there too. It didn’t take long for the conspiracy theorists to misuse the information that the swine flu in question is a combination of several other forms of influenza and work it into the idea that it was manufactured as part of a devilish plot by – you guessed it – the New World Order. In an act of breathtaking paranoia, unscientific speculation and lack of any evidence whatsoever con-theos claim the swine flu outbreak is a beta test before the infamous Illiminati goes for the big one. I guess this would explain why this strain of swine flu has been proven to affect anyone in a manner that differs from conventional influenza. It is hardly anthrax!
For a succinct scientific response to this latest piece of disinformation please read this link from “New Scientist” magazine (unless, of course, you believe that all scientists that deny the N.W.O. are on the Illuminati . It includes the direct link to the website putting around this con-theo nonsense, so you can read it in all its paranoid glory. I haven’t gone into detail here because, quite frankly, it isn’t worth the effort: http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2009/04/is-swine-flu-a-bioterrorist-vi.html
Seeing as many conspiracist’s default position is to retreat into a children's nightmare, where everything they hear on the news is linked the infamous New World Order, I thought I would leave you with a more positive and intelligent imaginary world. We go to the hundred acre wood, where paranoia has spread to Pooh Corner.
Don't forget to check out Jamie Clubb's main blog www.jamieclubb.blogspot.com
Geoff Thompson has a theory regarding laws of attraction. He says that we should always be aware of our circle of influence i.e. millionaires hang out with millionaires. My concern is that somehow I have attracted conspiricists. By publically showing my general sceptical approach and love of history, I have somehow given off the wrong signal. Within the past two weeks I have had a martial arts instructor trying to get me to watch Zeitgeist: The Movie (from reading the synopsis it sounds like the Da Vinci Code on steroids sold as fact with a bit of 9/11 paranoia thrown in as well), a relation of mine preaching the “cancer is literally a fungus, all scientists who say otherwise are being paid to cover it up” plus “oil companies are killing people who have figured out how to make cars more efficient” and another New World Order believer (I really thought I’d heard the last of them when they said the driver killed Kennedy!) The strange thing is these people are not talking to me in response to my scepticism of con-theos they are doing because they think I will be sympathetic to their cause! There is clearly something in my personality that seems to attract them. Strangely enough this used to happen with religious fundamentalists (there's a thought, are conspiricists the religious fundamentalists of secularism. Shermer said something about them exhibiting a similar psychology). Being a self protection coach who teaches the importance of promoting the right attitude that does not attract trouble, this does have a degree of concern. Perhaps I could develop a conspiracy theory of my own. I was programmed by the Illuminati to use ration, reason and my own instinctive questioning nature to assume the position of doubt when someone starts saying "This is all information suppressed by the powers that be and anyone who comes up with arguments doubting these minority claims are clearly being paid". I have to re-learn that obscure medical claims do not need to be peer-tested and double blind tested in order to prove they have some credibility. I have to learn that any alternative history viewpoint is the equal or superior of any established historical facts, and not ask for indepedent convergeant data. The truth is I am probably getting paranoid about con-theos... but I don't care because they are all out to get me and all evidence to the contrary is provided by people paid suppress this information!
All the students were excited about the new technique application they were about to be shown. Few were as enthusiastic about the new move as young Eimaj, a green belt known for his boundless energy and his curiosity. His usual affable nature was further heightened when sensei turned to him and said “Eimaj, you will be my uke”. Eimaj jumped up from the seiza position and walked towards sensei. Sensei smiled and began to explain the technique to the rest of the class as he put Eimaj into position. Eimaj was instructed to put sensei in a bear-hug. Sensei would then respond with a gakune pressure point attack to Eimaj’s hand and set him up for the sankyu arm lock. Eimaj went for the bear-hug and clamped it on hard. He thought he heard a gasp from sensei, the sort of noise someone would make if surprised. This was not possible, he thought, sensei was always ready. Sensei was probably putting breathing into his technique, centring himself, using ki or something else that Eimaj had never been able to grasp in his own training. Then suddenly Eimaj smelt something. It was a distinctive boggy odour that had sharply gone straight up his nose. He didn’t have long to think about it. Within a split second he felt the sharp pain in his wrist and then all of a sudden his elbow was being twisted towards the ceiling. He tapped quickly and sensei let go. There were many times that sensei wouldn’t let go and would just give the hold a bit of slack while cracking jokes to the rest of the class before putting it on a few times. Often he would use it to drive Eimaj or whichever other hapless uke he was being tortured either into the mat or into an ukemi (fall). This time, however, there was no showboating. Sensei just released Eimaj and moved the class over to another part of the dojo to further discuss the technique. The only thing going through Eimaj’s mind this time, however, was not the pain in his wrist or elbow, just an undeniable fact he had just experienced: sensei had just farted!
After the lesson Eimaj joined the rest of the club down the local pub for a drink. It was a regular ritual and despite not being a drinker Eimaj would sit with his classmates and engage in some lively discussions. Curiously the discussion rarely centred on martial arts. This was something Eimaj had difficulty understanding. The worst subject he could raise was whether or not a certain technique would work in a real-life situation or to discuss self defence in general. Tonight Eimaj began this line of discussion again. It just seemed like the natural thing to do. After all the techniques were done hypothetically or theoretically surely this meant that they were ripe for testing in some way. The conversation was struck did a few seconds. Sensei furrowed his brow at Eimaj, the way he often did when the young green belt started talking about real fighting. It wasn’t an angry look, more a look of barely veiled condescension. He smiled at Eimaj like an adult might do to a toddler. Sensei was in his 40s, Eimaj was in his early 20s, but at this particular moment Eimaj felt like he was looking up to a wizened old mystic with limitless knowledge and experience. If sensei had a long wispy beard he would be stroking it now, thought Eimaj. Ignoring the questions Eimaj was asking, Sensei asked, “What do you want from the training?” Eimaj wanted to say to be a better fighter or to at least know how to protect myself properly, but knowing the general feeling among his colleagues he mumbled something that sounded vaguely spiritual.
A student who had recently been graded above Eimaj took advantage of the awkward pause that followed this unconvincing reply and made his own unsolicited response: “I don’t train in martial arts to be a better fighter; I train to be a better person”. It sounded so profound and Eimaj was humbled by such responses. Eimaj often felt that mentioning real world violence or discussing the practicality of the martial art was the conversational equivalent to what sensei had done before the sankyu technique. Eimaj really felt like he was missing something that his older and clearly wiser companions understood. And yet it all seemed so contradictory. Sensei would often explain the application of a technique and even adjust it for a “real life situation”, but he wasn’t willing to discuss it much further than that. Then after class everyone seemed to be more into beer than discussing martial arts.
Years later and Eimaj found himself with many senseis that farted. They didn’t seem to try to cover it up and some were even quite sadistic with it. They were quite different to Eimaj’s previous sensei in many ways. Low on ritual Eimaj noticed that these senseis invited debate so long as the students were willing to test their argument. He also noticed that they loved martial arts. When lessons were over they could be seen regularly grappling on the mats with each other and other students. Eimaj had seen his previous sensei spar, but it was just so different from these instructors. These instructors encouraged their students to try to beat them and the more inexperienced the student was the more chances they gave them. Eimaj’s previous sensei also always won, but sparring was more one-sided. You started the bout mentally accepting that sensei would win as you had already seen him easily beat the other students. You did this almost in the same way as you allowed sensei to put painful holds on you and then joke about it as you permitted him to keep hurting you in front of everyone.
After sensei farted Eimaj went through several phases. It didn’t take him long to start to dismiss the incident. This was common with Eimaj, he understood denial all too well. Perhaps it was another student, perhaps he had done it. However, in his heart of hearts he knew that it had been sensei, and this made Eimaj think of many other times he had questioned his sensei’s infallibility. Sensei always seemed to say the right thing. He always had the right answer and, crucially, he knew how to make you feel bad for asking the question. This was not something just embodied by Sensei. Under him the descending ranks were not to be questioned and always seemed to be right. This was the hierarchy of the dojo; it was a type of feudal table, where everyone knew their place. However, you could aspire to be a higher grade and over time you would attain these grades, but as you attained these grades you became more agreeable with the other belts. You all learnt how to tow the line together.
Within a few months of leaving his dojo Eimaj’s whole outlook on training changed. Some of his new classes still had a hierarchy, but this was more like a race. There were never moments in Eimaj’s training, where he felt he could have beaten someone or that he had given up because he felt that was the right thing to do. All his victories were hard earned and all his defeats were truly undeniable. Grades were generally very transparent, but there were times when lower grades did overtake the senior grades and the senior grades had a job to catch up again. There were social events, but much of the students’ spare time with the club was spent enthusiastically trying to improve each other’s training. When Eimaj left the mats he knew those who were staying on after him would be those who beat him or would be beating him soon. As Eimaj climbed the grading ladder he became very aware of his own mortality. He couldn’t just rest on his laurels with a lower grade. In fact, he knew a lower grade was often hungry to prove his ability.
Outside of class Eimaj often thought of his old school. He knew he could probably beat all the students he used to train with and was tempted to return just to knock that smug grin off all the higher grades’ faces. This idea passed though. After some time Eimaj met many people from different martial arts and soon started to understand the type of subculture they wanted. He found students who were scared to leave their schools and others who once they had broken away sought out similar schools. Eimaj could still never really understand why someone would want to study a martial art for any initial reason other than for self defence or as a sport. Surely, he thought, there are enough other forms of exercise, schools of philosophy and religion that would better cater for every individual’s non-combative needs. As Eimaj looked back through history he started to discover that most martial arts were originally created as a means of combat. That was their original purpose. Suppression through politics, religion, occupation by another country and a need to recruit larger numbers of students had been some of the reasons why the arts had altered their combative objective. There were other reasons too. Over time old warriors become sick of violence. They loved practicing their arts, but the limitations of violence were restricting them. So, they used martial arts as a channel for expressing themselves. This approach quickly replaced the old combative side and soon a generation of students emerged that had never experienced any form of combat.
This last point reminded Eimaj of the sage words his old sensei had said to him, “You cannot stay in the forge forever”. It sounded very profound at the time and seeing what history had done to these warriors and how they had mellowed over time he could appreciate it. However, Eimaj couldn’t help thinking, “Yes, but you have to get into the forge first!”
Don't forget to check out Jamie Clubb's main blog www.jamieclubb.blogspot.com
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