Recent comments in /f/Documentaries

5meoz t1_ivla6yg wrote

Reply to The War Room (1993) - A behind the scenes look at Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos [01:36:04] by _CDXX_LXIX

This rebranding of The Democrats from The People's party to the servants of elites and the dark government is the biggest reason America is in the major shit fight it is today. Clinton removed the 1930's depression safeguards, which allowed the finance industry to have free reign, which created the 2008 financial crisis and the soon to be much bigger one. Clinton removed trade restrictions first with NAFTA and then the Free World Trade agreements. Which gutted Lower/Middle class America by obliterating American Industry and making China what it is today, a bigger threat than the U.S.S.R. was. Whole American factories had all their machinery placed in shipping crates to send to China, leaving thousands of empty warehouses and armies of unemployed. The funny/sad thing is that Ross Perot, the Billionaire third candidate who ran against Clinton and Bush, had his bean counters do the maths and said that America would have prosperity under free trade agreements for 2-3 decades and then basically become a basket case in massive debt, that would have to import the majority of its goods because it couldn't make them any longer. The U.S. now holds 31 Trillion in debt and here we are. Thankyou Mr & Mrs Clinton.

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FormerKarmaKing t1_ivl1787 wrote

Reply to The War Room (1993) - A behind the scenes look at Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos [01:36:04] by _CDXX_LXIX

Some historical context that might be helpful prior to watching. Prior to Clinton's victory, these were the recent the Democrat's presidential outcomes:

- 1988: lost by 8% to a low charisma candidate (George H.W. Bush)
- 1984: lost by 18% to a Hollywood actor (Reagan)
- 1980: lost by 9% to same
- 1976: won but by only 2% with an inspiring candidate (Carter) against an incumbent no one voted for in the first place (Ford)
- 1972: lost by 23%

Right or wrong, Americans flat out did not want anything further left than the neo-liberal third way at that point. And campaign managers do not work or win the world of hypothetical human beings.

This doesn't change that Clinton as a person is pretty scummy person (see Hitchen's "No One Left to Lie To") or that he happily sold out the working poor for the sake of his enormous ego.

But no one else in the Dem primaries even came close to Clinton's charisma or had any real chance of winning. And a second term of George H.W. Bush was going to be worse, not better than what Clinton did.

So at the time, this documentary was the story of some really scrappy political operators that finally got the Dems a win. YMMV.

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Shillforbigusername t1_ivks49a wrote

Reply to comment by mygodhasabiggerdick in The War Room (1993) - A behind the scenes look at Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos [01:36:04] by _CDXX_LXIX

Clinton was the worst thing to happen to the Democrats. It was during his Presidency that the party transformed into one that is Liberal in social policy only. Clinton even accomplished things Regan couldn’t when it came to free trade agreements and deregulation. Most modern Democratic voters don’t know about that backslide, though, because they compare the modern D Party to the modern R Party (which is obviously to the Right of Ds) rather than to what it was before neoliberalism nearly fully subsumed them.

And yes, there are some new policies that are more progressive/Left than old ones pre-90s, but many of these are being fought for in uphill battles.

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mygodhasabiggerdick t1_ivkiadm wrote

Reply to The War Room (1993) - A behind the scenes look at Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos [01:36:04] by _CDXX_LXIX

>"...focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos."

Both of which were third-way ding-dongs and are now seen as nothing more than Regan Republican-centrists who will never admit their hand in the decline of the US into full-blown fascism.

Happy Midterms, everyone.

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jesusismagic t1_it0vrt5 wrote

Reply to comment by 000111001101 in Lessons of Darkness (1995) - In 1991, retreating Iraqi armies set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait, creating a hell on earth. Werner Herzog explores this nightmare world, and the people who existed within it. [00:54:12] by _volkerball_

I guess that is a valid viewpoint, if you are comfortable with it. I just think there’s enough bullshit flying around for anyone to feel the need to go out of their way to creat more. That said, I was only talking about his documentaries. Obviously, “Kaspar Hauser” is a factionalized retelling of a true story and doesn’t claim to be otherwise. I don’t have a problem with that at all. But when I watch a documentary I want to learn new things and these “ecstatic truth” landmines are an obstacle. None of this detracts from my admiration for his work, however. The saga of the making of “Fitzcarraldo” is fascinating. “Heart of Glass” is pretty great too.

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moleculewerks t1_isz851t wrote

Reply to Lessons of Darkness (1995) - In 1991, retreating Iraqi armies set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait, creating a hell on earth. Werner Herzog explores this nightmare world, and the people who existed within it. [00:54:12] by _volkerball_

My favorite part of the film is the quote attributed to Blaise Pascal shown at the beginning of the film, “The collapse of the stellar universe will end like creation: in grandiose splendor.”

Werner Herzog made it up.

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DonArgueWithMe t1_isz3ba8 wrote

Reply to comment by wavy-seals in Lessons of Darkness (1995) - In 1991, retreating Iraqi armies set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait, creating a hell on earth. Werner Herzog explores this nightmare world, and the people who existed within it. [00:54:12] by _volkerball_

It's not arterial gushing, but it definitely squirted out. I'm not 100% up to date on my blood volume pedantry but it seemed like a "spurt" to me

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paradisepunchbowl t1_isz1zrm wrote

Reply to comment by DonArgueWithMe in Lessons of Darkness (1995) - In 1991, retreating Iraqi armies set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait, creating a hell on earth. Werner Herzog explores this nightmare world, and the people who existed within it. [00:54:12] by _volkerball_

“Spurting” is not what was happening in that video. Oozing maybe. But yes he took it well which is why I said that his response was reasonable.

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bike_fool t1_isyt9ub wrote

Reply to comment by lbsdcu in Lessons of Darkness (1995) - In 1991, retreating Iraqi armies set fire to hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait, creating a hell on earth. Werner Herzog explores this nightmare world, and the people who existed within it. [00:54:12] by _volkerball_

I saw this on a field trip and it deeply unsettled me. Here was a hellscape beyond my comprehension projected in IMAX right before my eyes. I think we all sat there mouths agape trying to process it

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