Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Outrage of the Day
The US sent billions of dollars in cash to Iraq on pallets and it’s gone without a trace.
“Who in their right mind would send 363 tons of cash into a war zone? But that’s exactly what our government did,” the California Democrat said during a hearing reviewing possible waste, fraud and abuse of funds in Iraq.
On December 12, 2003, $1.5 billion was shipped to Iraq, initially “the largest pay out of U.S. currency in Fed history,” according to an e-mail cited by committee members.
It was followed by more than $2.4 billion on June 22, 2004, and $1.6 billion three days later. The CPA turned over sovereignty on June 28.
Paul Bremer, who as the administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority ran Iraq after initial combat operations ended, said the enormous shipments were done at the request of the Iraqi minister of finance.
“He said, ‘I am concerned that I will not have the money to support the Iraqi government expenses for the first couple of months after we are sovereign. We won’t have the mechanisms in place, I won’t know how to get the money here,“‘ Bremer said.
This is one Democrat investigation that deserves to happen. One of the worst things about the Bush presidency is the flagrant way it has dumped taxpayer money down rat holes. It’s a sad day when a Republican is being investigated by Democrats for blowing the people’s money.
Bureaucracy • Democrats • Iraq • (2) Comments • Permalink •
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
The Soldiers Speak
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Secrets of Writing: Characterization pt 2
Contradictions
As we’ve discussed, choices help define a character. But so do their contradictions.
None of us are one dimensional beings. Even the most boring people you know are multi-dimensional personalities. We all have secrets, fetishes, fears, hatreds, illusions, beliefs, dreams, nightmares, needs and desires. Sometimes our traits don’t quite seem to match. But that’s normal. Human beings don’t make sense. If they did, the world would be a much better place.
When you look at the contradictions that exist in a person, you get a sense of their inner conflicts. From their contradictions you see their true dimensions. And thus you see the complexity of their persona.
In a story, you need to show only that which is relevant to your tale. It’s not a good idea to make your characters too convoluted unless it serves a purpose. In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the title character is one complicated dude. But that’s exactly what he needs to be for the purposes of the story.
You don’t want to write one dimensional heroes and villains, even two dimensional, but make sure you stick to the relevant issues that bolster your premise. It’ll make for a stronger story.
Relational Characterization
Aside from the choices a character makes, and their contradictions, we have a third technique for defining them. I call it Relational Characterization.
Characters are also defined by the people they associate with. Who they choose as friends and lovers, who they make their enemies, can tell you a lot about a person. But more importantly, the manner in which people inter-relate defines their relationships with each other and reveals some of their sides.
We all react to different people in a different way. Some people turn us on. Some annoy us. Some make us mad. Some make us crazy. Some make us laugh. But not all the time. You may love your mom, but she may also drive you nuts. You may hate your boss, but you had a great time with him at the company picnic. There is a standard mode we have when dealing with certain people and there are other modes depending on our mood, the nature of the conversation, and the situation.
When you ask a friend for a loan, you probably use a different manner than when you are talking to him about a movie or asking him what you want to do for the evening. When using relational characterization it’s important to stay aware of the context.
We also use different voices with different people. We might put on our sexy voice for our lover, a high-pitched cutsy voice for our pet or children. We may use a tense, guarded voice for people we don’t trust. And this defines not only our relationships with those people, but the way we feel about them.
The way certain people effect us can create impulsive emotional responses that we later regret. If someone hurt our feelings in the past, something may remind us of that in a conversation and all of a sudden we start saying mean things. These kind of responses are useful to be aware of. Such reactions can clue the Audience to important back story elements that are revealed later.
Like I said, choice is a powerful indicator. In most cases we choose who we love and hate. And the reasons for this can speak volumes.
REMEMBER: A character is defined by their contradictions, choices, and relationships.
Symbolic Characterization
In addition to the above, there’s a little technique you can use called Symbolic Characterization. This is mainly reserved for supporting characters. But it can be used for the Hero or the Villain, if done carefully.
Symbolic characterization is used when characters appearance and lifestyles are metaphors to enhance the premise, to set mood, or establish a theme. This is usually done through the use of archetypes in archetypal settings.
Comics love to use symbolic characterization because it’s a medium of extremes. It started out showing people as exaggerated caricatures and it never quite lost that tendency.
Batman is a symbolic character. He dresses like a bat, lives (for all intents and purposes) in a cave, and only comes out at night. The Human Torch is a hot headed young man who turns into a living firebrand. Shakespeare made Richard III a ugly hunchbacked character, despite the fact that he was nothing of the kind in real life. He’s visually symbolic of his persona.
But, it’s dangerous to do this sort of thing without first making sure your character is well rounded. Otherwise they can become cartoony and unbelievable.
This hasn’t stopped a lot of comic book writers from creating characters who looked like their personas. They are exactly what the seem. If you do this, don’t expect too many readers to be impressed. It’s been done to death.
You can also use symbolic characterization in contrast to the premise. Or to enhance some theme you’re playing with in the story. There are a lot of ways to use it beyond the obvious.
REMEMBER: Characters need to be believable, even if they look strange.
Friday, December 29, 2006
Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish
Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has been executed by hanging at an unspecified location in Baghdad.
Iraqi TV said the execution took place just before 0600 local time (0300GMT).
Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death by an Iraqi court on 5 November after a year-long trial over the 1982 killings of 148 Shias in the town of Dujail.
Two co-defendants, Saddam Hussein’s half-brother Barzan al-Tikriti and former Iraqi chief judge Awad Hamed al-Bandar, were also executed.
“Criminal Saddam was hanged to death,” state-run Iraqiya television announced, as patriotic music and images of national monuments were broadcast.
A scrolling headline read: “Saddam’s execution marks the end of a dark period of Iraq’s history.”
Not all mass murderers meet justice. Most, like Stalin, Mao, Hitler, Amin die of old age or by their own hands. Kim Jong Il and Fidel Castro will probably die in their beds.
It was America who gave the Iraqi people the chance to see their tyrant fall. For this we have received all kinds of scorn and recriminations. So it is important to remember what it is that Saddam did.
He invaded Iran
He invaded Kuwait
He killed thousands of Kurds.
He murdered thousands of Iraqis
He tortured many more.
He stole billions from his people and built palaces.
He financed Palestinian terrorists, including Hamas and the families of Suicide Bombers
Hanging was too good for him.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Iran and the Iraq Mess
Iran is a major instigator in the problems in Iraq. This has been well documented. One of the motivations may be they want to increase Shia dominance in the region. But there is another reason even more obvious. It’s all about oil.
Iran’s oil exports are plummeting at 10pc a year on lack of investment and could be exhausted within a decade, depriving the world economy of its second-biggest source of crude supplies.
A report by the US National Academy of Sciences said rickety infrastructure dating back to the era of the Shah had crippled output, while local fuel use was rising at 6pc a year.
“Their domestic demand is growing at the highest rate of any country in the world,” said Prof Roger Stern, an Iran expert at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore.
When Saddam was overthrown it created a power vacuum. And those nations who were held at bay by Saddam figured they could pull a guerrilla war, which we would inevitably bow out of, thanks to the Democrats propensity for bailing at the sign of trouble. Of course, this war is costing us insane amounts of money. And we’re forced to try to get the Iraqs to defend their own country. Which they supposedly wanted. I mean, wasn’t that the big leftie story? That the Iraqis want us out and that’s why we’re fighting us?
Wrong. Ba’athist holdouts may have been motivated that way. But al-Qaeda wants to kill Shiites and non-Muslims. Iranians want to kill Sunnis and take over. It’s greedy relatives trying to carve up a rich man’s estate. We’re in the middle.
The biggest problem we have is Iran. But what to do? We can’t invade. We have enough trouble holding on to Iraq and Afghanistan. If the western nations were smart they would help us solve the problem, but many are too busy looking the other way or selling Iran nuclear power technology.
Arab countries who have a lot to lose by a powerful Iran need to step in to help. Chide the French all you want, but it’s the Arabs who really are in bigger peril. The Taliban want to overthrow the Arab monarchies and the Iranians have dreams of their former empire. Neither of which is good for world peace, And none of this is our fault.
Saddam would have fallen sooner or later. Those countries who don’t help us are in for a world of hurt.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Secrets of Writing: The Premise
THE PREMISE
The premise is an important component because it serves as the soul of the story. It’s the point. Without it, you have what is known as a “shaggy dog” story, which is a rambling mess without a clue of where it’s going.
The premise is the destination your story needs to reach at the end. Try to think of a story as a desert highway stretching out before you. At the end of the road is home (the premise). You want to go home. If you follow the road, you make it. You validate the premise.
But…if you drive off the road and go somewhere else, you’re lost. You failed the premise and you’re out in the desert without a clue.
A premise is an argument and it’s your job to prove it. We’ll get into how that’s done in a minute, but let’s take a look at some examples of a premise.
THE WIZARD OF OZ: “Home is where the heart is.” Dorothy ran away from home to save her dog and ended up in a beautiful, sometimes scary place known as Oz where she met a lot of people she came to love as friends. But in the end, she knew that there was no place she’d rather be than home. To her, home was where her loved ones were, even though Oz was much nicer and more interesting than Kansas when you get down to it .
KRAMER VS KRAMER: “Family is more important than a career.” Mr. Kramer found himself becoming a father for the first time when his wife left him with his son. Until then, he was too busy to give his kid much attention. Now he had to learn all the things a parent must know, including responsibility for your family. It made him less effective at work, so he lost his job and had to get another. But in the end, his family was the most important thing to him and it also made him more fulfilled as a human being.
MY FAIR LADY: “Men and Women need each other.” In this story Henry Higgins is a middle aged bachelor with no time for women. That is, until he decides to teach Eliza Dolittle how to speak and act like an educated lady. Higgins falls in love with her. The story shows that men and women can be independent, but they still need each other to be complete human beings.
FORREST GUMP: “Don’t give up your dream and you’ll eventually be rewarded.” Forrest Gump wanted to marry Jenny, and he didn’t bother with any other women until she finally came around. He also stuck with the service until they discharged him and did all right. He stuck with the shrimp boat even though he was failing at it and eventually came out rich in the end.
JFK: “The Government is not on your side.” This film mixes fact with speculation to show how a conspiracy involving corrupt individuals in and around the government changed the course of American policy and mired us in the Vietnam war, all to make some rich people richer. The premise of this movie suggests the government serves the interests of the elite, not the common man. But it should be the other way around.
So, the premise creates an argument which you have to prove to make the story work. If you fail to make your premise convincing, your story is going to fall flat. If you lack a premise, people will come away from your story feeling they’ve wasted their time. Premises give a sense of worth to a story. The reason is…
Stories are metaphors for life
Fiction has the power to give meaning to the meaninglessness of life. Life is chaotic and hard to understand for many of us. Fiction can bring order and sense to it all. You, the writer, have the powers of a god when you craft a story. You decide what happens, when, and how. You must construct events in a logical, but unpredictable pattern that points inevitably to the conclusion raised by your premise.
Because stories are about life, understand that life means change. Every second of our existence brings us closer to new experiences. It brings us closer to love, sex, money, pain, illness, joy, fear, despair, triumph, and yes…even death. No matter how dull your personal existence may be, change is going to affect your life one way or another. But more importantly, for the Audience, change is something they need to see. Anything static is boring. Stories that don’t affect the characters or don’t make a difference are generally dull stories. There are exceptions to this rule. But we’ll explore that later.
Your story needs to effect change on the main characters whether they like it or not. And the changes need to verify the argument of the premise. This is done is by employing the power of choice.
The choices your character makes in the course of the story should further enhance the statement of your premise. This way, the Audience lives through the Hero’s experiences and witnesses the validation of the premise.
Fact is neutral. Stories are interpretations of facts. You cannot do any documentary without coloring it to your opinion or a theory. You can’t tell a story without choosing which “facts” you want to present. Reality is superior to our little paper world. We can only objectify reality through the subjective lens of our minds.
What a good writer does is create meaning from all the events of the story by confirming their premise.
REMEMBER: Until the premise is put to the test of the story’s conflicts, it’s nothing more than an theory. Your job is to prove it.
THE COUNTER PREMISE
In order to make your premise believable, you have to present compelling arguments for the opposing side. Otherwise, your story becomes preachy and one sided.
This is done via the counter premise.
In most cases, the counter premise is the Villain’s agenda. In Kramer Vs Kramer, Mrs. Kramer was trying to get custody of the son. The argument she used in court was that she was a better parent because she now makes more money, she’s the mother, and that Mr. Kramer cared more about his job than his family. Her lawyer points out that Kramer lost his job and was now making a lot less, so he isn’t a good provider. In other words, “Your career is critical to your family’s well being.”
This is the counter premise. In the end, the premise wins the argument because the boy chooses his father and the wife sees he has become a better parent because of his choices. His choices validated the story’s premise!
Another example, JAWS. In Jaws the premise is: “Nature can be a real Mother! Adapt or die!” The counter premise is: “Man doesn’t have the right to mess with nature.” In order to get the shark, which is the force of nature in the story, they have to go to the shark’s element. The sea. It becomes clear that man does not belong out at sea. He is vulnerable, unequipped to survive in the ocean without his precious technology. Indeed, even with his technology, nature can kick his ass. The hero of the story barely survives, only with cunning. His choice is to adapt as best he can. And by making this choice, rather than giving in, he validates the premise.
The counter premise needs to be a compelling argument. Perhaps as compelling or almost more so than the premise. When the counter premise is used properly, the Audience worries about the hero. Your hero is the champion of the premise, whether he’s aware of it or not.
Finding your Premise
When you begin to formulate your story, you may not know what the premise is. That’s okay. You can find out what it is when you have more of the plot constructed. The premise isn’t something you need to have in mind from the beginning. Even if you have it in mind, you may find it changes as the story unfolds. Stories by nature are organic. As characters come alive, as scenes take shape, new meanings and insights can form. This can alter your original premise. So first, figure out who your characters are, what they want, what the Grail is, then start putting scenes together. Soon after, you’ll start to see a pattern take shape. The Premise will come into clarity. Then you can fine tune the story until your premise and counter premise battle it out with the kind of effectiveness your story needs.
Whatever you do, never tell the audience point blank what your premise is. If you need to have a character say it out loud, you’re showing how ineffective you are as a writer. The audience should be able to get the point on their own. Once you start preaching, you start boring.
Once you’ve found your premise, evaluate the scenes you’ve come up with and see if they can’t be modified to make the arguments that you need to make. In the Star Trek film GENERATIONS, the premise is explored in almost every scene. The film’s premise is:
“Life is short, so make your mark the best way you can.” Picard is always regretting the fact that he never had a family. This is echoed by Kirk, as well. To these men, a family is how they would have liked to made their mark. But by the end of the story both men realize their destiny is to save the world and bringing justice and peace to the galaxy. They recognize they’ve mattered in the scheme of things and find their peace in that.
If you study this film, you’ll notice the writers squeezed the premise into almost every scene. It gives the story more resonance.
You can also use subplots to play off the premise with themes. A subject we will delve into at length in a later chapter. Just remember that a story without a premise is a story without a soul.
REMEMBER: The story must show conflict between the Premise and the Counter Premise. A strong Counter Premise makes for a strong story.
Copyright © 2008 James D. Hudnall. All Rights Reserved
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