Blood money

Mayfair Set (Documentary, 1999)
Produced, Written, Directed by Adam Curtis


#1 Who Pays Wins
With an uninspiring name like that, I thought the documentary would deal with something related to British affairs. The only Mayfair that I knew was the most expensive property in the original 'Monopoly' game. (Dark Blue, together with Park Lane)
Glad I watched it as it opened another Pandora Box of evil that lurk in what appear to be a kind gesture. Again, the dictum, 'there is no such thing as a free lunch' holds true.
It narrates the concept of mercenary soldiers and arms sales business that helped to sustain and rejuvenate the British economy after being battered in the World War 2. Colonel David Stirling, a gung ho nationalistic soldier ran SAS (Special Air Services) in Northern Africa, a mercenary army during the fight with Rommel.
After WW2, he led a quiet life in Rhodesia but got embroiled in its politics there at a time of Black nationalism, through the Capricorn Party to safeguard the interests of the whites there. This movement was not, however, supported by the then government.
He then returned to London to start a gambling den named Clairmont in Mayfair, in a building befitting the grandiosity of the past history of Britain. It catered exclusively for the aristocrats and the rich and famous.
His big break came in 1958 when President Naseer of Egypt (who is considered to have the blessings of the Russians) attacked Yemen. An important seaport Aden which is of British interest is situated there. As Naseer had humiliated them in Suez, the British government was not keen to get involved in the debacle. As Saudi was scared of being attacked, SAS offered their expertise for a fee, of course.
This was the beginning of the era of arms dealer like the American stooge, Adnan Kashogi.
1964 saw England, under the Labour Government, in an economic quagmire. The pound sterling  took a tumble and foreign funds started moving out. Spending was cut back, the British troops were pulled and Britain was no longer 'Great'. What better way to make money than to sell off the remnants of the arsenal of weaponry left over from the second World War.
Naseer was defeated.
UK, unofficially, through private ventures continued selling weapons of high sophistication and auxillary support (radar, training, etcetera). Corruption started rearing its ugly head as whitemen tried to sell their arms to the royal Saudi family via agents. Modern off-shoots of arms trade flourished between Saudi and UK.

Colonel Sir Archibald David Stirling, 

DSO, OBE (15 Nov 1915 – 4 Nov 1990) 

During the Nigerian civil war, UK supplied arms to the federal army. It was leaked to the public view by a journalist, Jonathan Atkins. A brouhaha ensued in UK, while its watch-dog continued supplying mercenaries to influence and prevent violent overthrows of despots in the Middle East and Africa.
In 1974, Stirling was involved in a bad accident.
After recovering from it, he found his den in London infiltrated by rich Arab big gamblers with oil money. These nouveau riche found pleasure in mingling with aristocrats of their former masters.
With the increase in industrial revolt and unemployment, Stirling, the nationalist, yearned for the good old days where Britain was great. He and his group of friends had a contingency plan to take over the executive powers of the country if political chaos were to occur. They infiltrated into the trade union.
Arab money return to UK to buy as tension in their land escalate. Corruption set in the UK as the Arab buyers started bribing their British sellers for merchandise.
Looks like the whole Arab thing went a full cycle, Arabs bribing the British as they did to the Arabs 20 years previously. To top it all, Stirling's castle in Scotland was bought over by an Arab.
And move over to the second episode....

A feeble attempt to justify a just war!

Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

Yet another American glorifying Muslim bashing terror slashing military procedural film which looks at American problems as world problems. Their gung ho way of handling terror is through more violence and more might and fire-power!

I was quite surprised that this movie received many rave reviews and praises from critiques. Personally, it is just another lob sided depiction of terror without addressing the issue holistically but from a very miopic unintelligent view of a jaundiced American vision. I guess this type of 'patriotism' is gaining momentum of late. 

History tells us that Hollywood plays its stellar 'tour of duty' role whenever the going gets tough in America. During WW2, the silver screen played its role as a morale booster when the war was heading nowhere. It cushioned the sad news of the fall of their young soldiers by trumpeting American's just fight for liberty and freedom. After its faithful duty all these while, now, of buffering its economic recovery, what better way can there be then to fan nationalistic sentiments. Evidence of this is evident in the number of patriotism reminiscing movies by big directors - like this one by Kathryn Bigelow, Lincoln by Spielberg, Django by Taratino (but looking at US history in a rather cynical way).

Kathryn Bigelow who, in 2009, received many accolades for her other patriotic flick 'Hurt Locker', did this movie in the same fashion. Fighting in a just war, trying to protect their homeland from invaders who do not their idea of liberty and freedom, Maya, a green horned CIA agent, who was head hunted from high school, goes on personal vendetta on a crusade to hunt down terrorists with the information obtained through her interrogations of suspected terrorists. The interrogation techniques which were in the news for all the wrong reasons like violent torture, water boarding and 'walking the dog' are shown here. 

This story is a semi historical narration of the events which precede and subsequently ended with the death of Osama Bin-Laden. Stereotyping of Muslims are its fullest heights here. I wonder why all the leaders who were crying foul over the depiction of their counterparts in 'Vishwaroopam' are mum here. Well, we all know that all the hullabaloo which preceded its launch was business in origin, not religious in origin. What better way to stir emotions for personal reasons than to fall on racial and theological sentiments?   

James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano of the series 'Sopranos') plays a memorable role as a CIA chief here. His way of acting is exactly like how he acted in 'Sopranos' as a mob boss- with the arrogance, attitude and the explicit superlative expressions. Guess they are all the same - law enforcers and law breakers, only that one uses the law as a shield whilst the other shield themselves from the law with lawyers!

Maybe because I do not particularly fancy purposeless shooting of people just because they wear a turban! And it is quite difficult to fathom civil servants fighting their superiors because of public interest.

Arms costing more than an arm and a leg!

When Soong and Anne dropped in at my home back in November 2010, his parting line was, "I am not sure I'll be able to make for your Deepavali function next year, as my book is due to be out and it is going to be explosive (?pun intended). I don't know whether I'll be inside or out!" Listen to this podcast and you will know why.


There are many intelligent people around in Malaysia. Just that they all stay away from the mainstream and are happy doing their own thing, without raising an eyelid or a hand to change the slow evolution of things around them. Others take the easy way out by emigrating. Those who stay will be stirred when their piece of the Malaysian pie shrinks and are restricted from satisfying their ever unquenchable thirst for the Money God!