Several years ago, a ragtag group of internetizens decided to go to Darfur, then the subject of a good deal of hand-wringing and tutting by Concerned Important People – including, of course, a number of Hollywood celebrities of one or another of the alphabetical lists — to see what conditions were like in that genocide ground. Their idea was that they would create a documentary – though none of them had any experience doing so – and so they scraped together whatever money they could by emptying bank accounts and begging from friends, family, and online for equipment and travelling money. Then, after convincing their wives they were going to attend a web technology conference in Vegas, they went first to Addis Ababa, then Chad. There they visited refugee camps full of exotic people of color, and eventually met up with rebel fighters. After a long struggle, and many, many apologies, they’ve managed to bring their documentary to the public.
It’s called Christmas in Darfur, though it could be called Lip Service. And because that’s so, I thought it would be a perfect fit for Big Hollywood. The introductory segment features some of the heroic exploits of actors and musicians in order to throw into relief the puny efforts of determined regular people to try to make a difference. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll come forcibly to the conclusion that only celebrities and high-profile policy wonks and UN diplomats are capable of focusing the world’s attention on such a problem in a way that will make any difference at all.
I should probably mention that it was recently announced, to the consternation of many good-hearted people who were appalled by the numbers, that there may have been something flawed about the Lancet report which claimed the eeeeeevil Bushitler regime had caused the deaths of some 655,000 innocent Iraqis. It’s all technical nonsense about “methodology,” of course, which I’m sure NPR and Bill Moyers will soon clear up to the satisfaction of a citizenry well served by its traditional media, and who am I to carp over such trivialities? Coincidentally, about that number have probably perished in Darfur, but I have to admit that once again I’m disappointed by George W. Bush’s inability to live up to his press.
At the same time, non-partisan elder statesman Lanny Davis has asked us to set aside our differences, and has undertaken the noble initiative of The Civility Project. In keeping with this new spirit of comity, I invite any and all to join my movement, Civility NOW! which you can read about at Jeff Goldstein’s blog, Protein Wisdom.
Because only by throwing in with the impetus of such noble-minded and altruistic humanitarians as Lanny Davis can this country become the country our Founding Fathers – had they not been narrow-minded 18th Century putzes – would have wanted us to be. We are the Shirley MacLaine we’ve been waiting for. And without further ado, below is a clip from the movie, and the entire documentary can be seen here.
[youtube 7-Gtgr4UKe0 nolink]
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You can bail these fellows out of their quixotic silliness and help pacify their wives by donating at either their film website or their blog.
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