6, November 2015 Lord
of the Rings Speaks Out
Viggo Mortensen, best known for his portrayal
of the warrior-king Aragorn in the blockbuster "Lord of the Rings"(LOR)
trilogy, spoke out against police brutality and American Empire. He is a fierce
advocate of progressive causes and social justice. His memorial line in LOR
"Let us together rebuild this world, that we may share in the days of
peace" is certainly relevant in today’s troubled world.
His book, Twilight of Empire: Responses to
Occupation, was published at the height of the ill-fated invasion
of Iraq which most pundits agree was the biggest foreign policy blunder in
American history. Mortensen paid homage to former Congressman Dennis Kucinich,
who was the only person in the House who voted against the invasion of Iraq.
In a recent interview he recalled the first
line of the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ –, "O say can you see," reflecting
that so few challenged the actions of our government who goad us into so many
conflicts using the Clinton doctrine that ‘America reserves the right to invade
any country in the world if our vital
interests are threatened - undeterred
that such pompous arrogance is a complete violation of international law. I
dare say many of those incarcerated on relatively minor charges would hardly
experience much pride in the last two lines , "Land of the free and home
of the brave." Mortenson was highly critical of police abuses, especially
of black people and Obama’s drone attacks which has resulted in over 90%
civilian deaths.
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