A serenade for Bush
The serenade of Marylin Monroe at John F. Kennedy's birthday is legendary. The "Un-President" George W. Bush has to deal with other kinds of serenades: "Bushflashs"
The Bush-Administration of the United States of America hasn't made a lot of friends since its assumption of office. George W. Bush personally provides a lot of points to attack for critics and satirists. Whole books about the verbal gaffes of the mightiest man of the world, in which Bush leads the "War on English language", have been published.
I want to thank you for taking time out of your day to come and witness my hanging.
The internet has brought a new kind of protest and satire on the political changes in the world: Moving pictures with background music - realised in the flash-format of Macromedia Inc. The software pirates and the P2P-networks made it possible for anybody wanting to make such flash-movies to get the necessary software. Free software like the flashbuilder came up later. The variety of results is multifaceted: From animations to games, from pornography to video collages.
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George W. Bush and his policy offer rich material. Before the war against Iraq Golf War 2 aka World War 2.5 turned up, months before the former CIA-chief James Woolsey proclaimed the 4th World War (Verbreitung des Terrors: Die Woolsey World Tour or here). Compared with the scenario prophesized in "Golf War 2 aka World War 2.5" the real war against Iraq was quite "lightly". Till now.
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As the prognoses and the fear this flash-animation was drawing matches not only with the fears of the opponents of the war but at least partly with reality: Suicide attacks of the Palestinians, radicalisation of the Arabic world, new activities of Hizbollah, conflicts in Iraq...
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Despite of the serious background story, humour and cynicism are part of most flash movies. Rather harmless comes the question of who's leading Bush by the nose. The search for Bin Laden was commented cynical in comic-style by the flash-makers. After Osama no longer being the number 1 of the desperado-list, Saddam Hussein took his place.
If you take the "right" pill on strike-free.net, you may have a look at "the real matrix". This movie shows, critics on the war and the policy of Bush doesn't stop at the bounderies of these topics. At the fringes are always links to commercialisation, the WTC-attacks, the ongoing cutting on the civil rights (keyword "Patriot Act"), the militarisation and the mix between truth and lies of the mighty, when it is about to reach their aims. As Michael Moore said at the Oscar show: We live in Fictitious Times.
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| The Real Matrix |
The most well-known website with political motivated flash-movies is Bushflash.com by Eric Blumrich. Blumrich, a freelance illustrator and web developer, started to make flash-movies in March 2003, moved by anger and frustration about the policy of his "unelected government". Obviously stimulated by the world-wide peace demonstrations on February 15, he created antiwar 2. He is supported mostly with researches by volunteers. The necessary work (design, animation, sound editing, graphics) takes - depending on motivation - from few days to 2 weeks.
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| Doctor Bushlove |
Blumrich's newest work only took 4 days and the trigger for it was a bootleg of the song "Idiot son of an asshole" by the punk band NoFX, which was recorded in the netherlands town of Zwolle. NoFX played a concert there at their tour for their new album War on Errorism. Blumrich underlayed the song with pictures of "Un-President Bush" (NoFX) and the lyrics of the song. Starting from that this "Bushflash"-animation exists in 7 versions with subtitles in many different languages: English, Portuguese, Italian, German, Spanish, Dutch and Korean! More translations, e.g. Arabic or Russian, couldn't be done yet out of a lack of translators.
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| From "Idiot Son of an Asshole |
What's the Media saying about Bushflash.com?
The media here in the US is corporate-controlled and the big networks would never give folks like Ralph Nader five minutes in the evening news, much less a guy like me.
He gave three Interviews to small, anyway critical radiostations like KPFA and there is a nomination for a media prize of the National Association of Muslim Women. Anyway he sees the Anti-Bush-Movement in the USA "active und growing":
Even Fox 'News' - the most pernicious disseminator of pro-bush media lies here in the US - is reporting that a majority of Americans want someone else than bush. The problem is
Is he suggesting conspiracy? "Time will tell..."
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Another animation exists on Bushflash.com with the song "I hate Republicans" of the Happytones but the best impression of what he does is Warcrimes, Victory and Grand Theft America.
He refuses the call for a forum at Bushflash.com: There are thousends of boards in the web, the people should talk to "real" persons instead of talking to people who already agree with them.
For Blumrich, flash is absolutely the "Media of the Little Man", but with the restriction, of flash being only available for those having access to the internet - which excludes the poor and menial workers. And what should the people learn from his Bushflash-Animations?
That Americans are a good people - don't judge us by the actions of our unelected government. Despite the aspirations, hard work and dedication of people here in the United States, our government has been illegally seized by a group of maniacal demagogues with no respect for decency, honour or freedom.
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