Random Thoughts

So, I've found two new print ads.  And while they are not as striking as the first, they still make their mark.  I also found an article about the Marlboro Marine in the April 3, 2008 issue of Rolling Stone. And while the article has little to do with my quantitative research, it does have to do with this nation, the war and how little people in general know about the lasting effect war has on the human body, mind and soul.  

Reading the article about Lance Corporal James Blake Miller is emotionally exhaustive.  Reading about the unimaginable events he was witness to, the events that lead him home and the life he has forged out of necessity for survival is mind-boggling.  

Imagine being so overwhelmed by rage that you blackout, not knowing where you are when you come to or the events that lead up to it.  Imagine suffering from such profound Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome that you fall deeper into a pit of despair to find you've awoken to live another day.  Imagine knowing you need help, accepting it, in the form of psychotropic prescription drugs and finding that the medications made everything worse, especially the nightmares.  Imagine a government so warped with bureaucratic bullshit that you can't fight your way into a therapist unless your geographically desirable.  (Small town life makes it difficult for many Veterans to receive the aid they need on a consistent basis)  

It all makes you wonder.  How did America, the land of the free and the home of the brave, come to be a land that has forgotten many of it's heros?  How did we come to forget the countless men and women who have sacrificed their lives, literally and figuratively, for the freedoms we hold so dear?  Why do Americans fight so hard and so willingly for a country that does not fight for them as Veterans?

Do you remember the days (or remember seeing the footage) of when soldiers, home from war would be treated like royalty?  Parades, fanfare, streets blocked off for miles, thousands of people straining to see their loved ones as they returned home?  Where did that go?  Where did America go?  

Has it disappeared because the wars we have recently fought have not been so honorable or clear as to the right and wrong of it all?   Have we become so numb to the media images played for hours on end by 24 hour news outlets that we have forgotten that there are REAL people in those images?  Has "reality tv" replaced real tv in our heads?  Do we no longer see the images broadcast?  Are we not hearing or reading the stories being told?  Is no one listening?  Is there anybody out there who gets it?

When American soldiers, OUR soldiers, come home, regardless of your position on a war, they should be honored and treated with the utmost respect.  That includes being sure that they are provided with the BEST treatment possible for any and all ailments they may have.  Including, and especially, PTSD.  

I remember the government trying to cover up PTSD storied during Desert Storm.  It was nothing, a figment of their imaginations.  It couldn't be seen or physically documented, so, it wasn't real.  Tell that to the thousands of men and women living with it today.  I dare you...

This country and its Veterans need help.  Lots and lots of help.  And the government has disappeared behind its large fences, digging its way deeper and deeper away from its people.  Blinding itself from the needs of its people and the needs of the many who are brave enough and strong enough to defend the rights they hold so close to their hearts.  

So, what does it take?  What does it take for the government to be held accountable for its actions, or in this case inactions?  Who will stand up and be not afraid to point towards the government and say "You, sir/madame, should be ashamed of yourself for allowing this to happen to your people.  You're fired!"

Just as a side note, an election is just around the corner.  Every vote counts.

IF YOU DON'T VOTE, YOU CAN'T COMPLAIN!!!  

Am I Missing Something?

So, I have begun the literature review portion of my research paper.  I have narrowed my topic down quite a bit, just for this class.  I will study the use of fear and stereotypes by the US military in their TV and print ads since 9/11.  What I have found is perplexing.  There is a ton of material on the military, fear and stereotypes.  However, there is very little that I can find that correlates these ideas together.  

My little literature review looks like this:

There is not a lot of information to be found regarding the United States using stereotypes to induce fear as a means to control the population.  There are several books and articles on the military.  There are several books and articles on fear.  There are several books and articles on stereotypes.  But there are no reports that I can find, linking these ideas together.

 Some of the books include: The Psychology of Terrorism edited by Bruce Michael Bongar, which teaches how and why terrorism is so effective from a psychological stance; The Arab Americans: A History by Gregory Orfalea, which chronicles Arab Americans and Americas fears after 9/11; Collateral Damage: the Psychological Consequences of America’s War on Terrorism edited by Paul R. Kimmel and Chris E. Stout, which discusses among many topics the psychological effects of a viral media’s influence during times of war. 

Multiple literary articles attempt to define or categorize Arab stereotypes.  There are articles that discuss military advertising.  But there are no articles that tie the use of fear tactics within military advertising with keeping the American people subservient to the government. 

But then I stumbled onto a website called United for Peace & Justice (UFPJ) (www.unitedforpeace.org) “United for Peace and Justice is a coalition of more than 1400 local and national groups throughout the United States who have joined together to protest the immoral and disastrous Iraq War and oppose our government's policy of permanent warfare and empire-building.” (www.unitedforpeace.org) On their website is a link to a thought process called “racialization” and it’s ties to military advertising.  “Racialization” is defined as “…1. to impose a racial interpretation on; place in a racial context. 2. to perceive, view, or experience in a racial context. 3. to categorize or differentiate on the basis of race.” (www.dictionary.com) In other words, “racialization” is the process of constructing and imposing racial stereotypes.

UFPJ contends that the United States military uses this tactic in its advertising to different races.  The military advertisers stereotype different races, and then use those stereotypes to instill different reasons as to why one should enlist.  When studying different television ads (that can be found at www.youtube.com), as well as the two current print ads I have found, it is clear that the US military is using racialization to gain enlisters. 

In order to make the connection between the US military, advertising and fear, the use of studying the production elements, stereotyping and worldview will have to be examined.  It is my goal to show that fear is a powerful and effective marketing tool that has been used by the US government to coerce Americans into a perpetual state of fear.  I will only focus on print and television ads from post-9/11 times.

I feel that this is important work.  There is very little research that has been published regarding this link.  And it asks the question “Why?”  What is it about the US government that causes people to shrink in fear rather than question political ideas?  Why has there not been a study that focuses on the links between the military, advertising and fear-mongering?

Yes, not quite what I had hoped.  In fact, I am rather dismayed at the lack of information I could find.  I am perplexed that so few sources have made themselves clear to me.  Yes, I can define a lot of things: fear, stereotypes, advertising, the military.  I can prove through the use of production elements certain thought processes.  But can I find a link?  Can I find that one little piece of "Ah-ha!" information that links these ideas together?  Or am I thinking to far into a conspiracy theory that will make me sound and/or go insane?

I realized when I decided to do this that I was climbing an uphill battle, in hip-deep snow, without shoes or a coat during a blizzard in Alaska, in January.  I realized that I couldn't just knock on the doors of military advertisers and ask "Hey, do you use stereotyping and fear as a tool to keep Americans in a perpetual state of compliance?"  I certainly couldn't ask our illustrious Commander in Chief if he agreed.  He has enough trouble forming simple sentences, much less answering complex thought processes.  And it's not like any of them would say, "Why, yes.  Yes we do.  Why don't you come inside?  We'll have tea and discuss the entire thought process behind military advertising strategy."  Yeah, that's going to happen. 

Am I looking in the wrong places?  Isn't there some brilliant scholarly mind that has already answered this question?  Have I forgotten a key phrase that when Googled will give me the answers I am looking for?  Should I be looking for answers somewhere other than the library?  Am I a complete idiot for taking on this thought process?  Has Homeland Security tagged me yet?  Will I be able to get on a plane in June for the NMRC or am I going to have to take a ten hour road trip?  Not that I mind road trips, but with gas prices, it's actually cheaper to fly to Minneapolis.  

So, where do I go from here?  That's a really good question.  My thought processes are turing toward analyzing the production elements & stereotypical content of the current TV and print ads.  I still only have the two print ads.  But they are pretty powerful ads.  And the TV ads I have found on You Tube are, well, interesting.  

I do want to thank those of you who have been extremely helpful in this process.  Your support is essential and much needed.  THANK YOU!