Jumping the Rubicon

[stefano]

I agree with Jack, these types (almost all criminals, I think) have a worldview that sanctifies what they do as for the greater good. And that gets handed down by the media as normal, from Nicholson's Colonel Jessup in A few good men down to this series (which sounds good, I'll make an effort to get it). Always some higher ethic, one different to the morality given to the herd. They sleep fine at night, basically. Yeah it is very Platonic.

[thatsmystory]

Yet the plot of Rubicon turned out to be that Spangler and his pals were profiting from terrorist attacks they helped orchestrate. Which happens to fit the suspicion of many people in relation to 9/11.

A creepy meme introduced is the notion that people who profit from terrorist attacks they help orchestrate are doing so because they truly believe it is good for the country. This notion was put forth to explain Spangler. This is an underlying meme surrounding 9/11.

Creepy, and in no way exculpatory of crime, but very likely true. These are not great philosophers or moralists. People who persuade themselves of a geostrategic imperative to which the many are blind, which therefore requires them to deceive and even play god for the greater good, will have no trouble persuading themselves that they can, should, and indeed must profit from their actions. Should they not be rewarded for seeing the greater good and defending it? Should they not have control of resources that allow them to keep defending it?

Other way around also applies: The same kind of people have never had trouble persuading themselves that what profits them is also the higher good. Many ideologies dating back to Plato exist to support this combination: the invisible hand, the master race or caste, the Christian elect, the Philosopher Kings. If you're rich, it's because you're good.

.

I watched the first two episodes of MI-5 season 5 and it may as well have been an insider view of 9/11. An oil exec (I believe by way of the revolving door) plotted with some high level British government officials to establishment a deep state government by staging al Qaeda attacks. They said they were doing it for the greater good. Tough times (coming resource scarcity) require tough measures. Of course the conspirators were corrupt and full of shit. The real motive was all about attaining power.

[MinM]

In memory of Rubicon I've taken to doing crossword puzzles on my breaks at work.

By the way, apropos of nothing in particular, a few weeks ago the city of Cairo figured prominently in one of those.

[thatsmystory]

The recent secrecykills podcast about two CIA agents who obstructed pre-9/11 al Qaeda investigations reminded of this thread. The public is conditioned to roll their eyes when they hear that these agents and others were promoted after 9/11. Typical bureaucratic CYA and government dysfunction. That is preferable to the disturbing possibility that they were promoted for a job well done. As Top Secret America makes clear the security industry has been extremely profitable.

[82_28]

Well if you're gonna talk about a podcast, please provide the link.

[elfismiles]

Well, thanks for bumping anyway ... inspired me to check to see if the DVD's been released or streamable on ye olde netflickr

http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Rubic ... 1/70126505

... it aint.

EDIT: Well it IS available and streamable on Amazon...
http://www.amazon.com/Gone-in-the-Teeth/dp/B003RS7FXM/

[thatsmystory]

Well if you're gonna talk about a podcast, please provide the link.

Investigative audio documentary

Transcript of documentary

[MinM]

In memory of Rubicon I've taken to doing crossword puzzles on my breaks at work.

By the way, apropos of nothing in particular, a few weeks ago the city of Cairo figured prominently in one of those.

Rubicon Crossword Puzzle

Inspired by Will's discovery of a code hidden within newspaper crossword puzzles in episode 1 of Rubicon, the puzzle wizards at The New York Times created an original Rubicon-themed crossword puzzle prior to Rubicon's premiere. Initially, the puzzle was only available on the Times website, but now it's available exclusively here on amctv.com.

Click below to download and print out the puzzle, and see if you're as good at solving crossword puzzles as Will is. (If not, don't worry -- we've also provided a link to get the answers.)

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/08/c ... crossword/

The 5 people who totally dominate my crossword grid...

1) Mel Ott
2) Eva Peron
3) Jean Arp
4) Eero Saarinen
5) Dwight Eisenhower (or Ike)

Honorable Mention:

Dag Hammarskjöld
Edgar Allen Poe

[MinM]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/ar ... ds-newsxml

..."The Americans," a solid spy vehicle for its strong cast, fits right in with this sullied-homefront trend. Maybe mom and dad aren't necessarily fighting whatever lurking menace threatens the family: Maybe mom and dad are the threat.

In this brisk period drama, which may do for Guess jeans and boxy cars what "Mad Men" did for slicked-back hair and narrow-lapel suits, Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys play a matched pair of Soviet operatives living on an idyllic street outside Washington, DC in 1981. In the pilot's bravura opening sequence (which should send a classic Fleetwood Mac sequence shooting up the iTunes chart on Thursday), the spies are in full-on "Three Days of the Condor" mode, but soon, they're baking brownies, going to the mall and checking on the kids' homework...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maureen-r ... f=politics

EDIT: So far it really reminds me of Three Days of the Condor (1975)...

That was my first impression as well. From the type of work they do, to the office setting, they are very similar.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBZf7vifXmY

http://www.npr.org/2013/01/30/170584534 ... lt-to-last

viewtopic.php?p=488039#p488039

[MinM]

‘Three Days of the Condor’ to Be Remade for TV

Posted on Wednesday, March 11th, 2015 by Russ Fischer

"When someone mentions “paranoid ’70s thrillers” as an inspirational set of films, one of the movies they’re talking about is Three Days of the Condor. (Anthony and Joe Russo, for example, namechecked it often in the runup to Captain America: The Winter Soldier.)

Sydney Pollack’s original film featured Robert Redford as a low-level CIA analyst whose entire office cohort is murdered while he’s out at lunch; he spends the rest of the film eluding his own death while trying to figure out what’s going on. And now David Ellison’s Skydance Productions, which backs the Mission: Impossible and new Star Trek films, is developing a Three Days of the Condor remake for TV...

http://www.slashfilm.com/three-days-of- ... or-remake/

... or Nuking It ... or Hijacking It ...

RUBICON the tv series from AMC:

Watch the entire pilot episode online before it premieres August 1st.
http://www.amctv.com/originals/Rubicon/



EDIT: So far it really reminds me of Three Days of the Condor (1975). Oh, and there is a character named Miles. Seems like that name has become increasingly popular in television series.

AMC's NEWEST ORIGINAL SERIES: RUBICON

AMC production on Rubicon, its newest original drama series, began on Monday, March 29 in New York City. The show is a conspiracy thriller starring James Badge Dale (who earlier this year headlined HBO’s The Pacific) as an analyst at a New York City-based federal intelligence agency who is thrown into a story where nothing is as it appears to be. Henry Bromell (Homicide, Chicago Hope, Brotherhood) has signed on as showrunner. The one-hour, 13-episode weekly series is produced by Warner Horizon Television and premieres this summer. (Click here to watch a sneak preview of Rubicon.)

"Rubicon is an incredible story about trust and power born out of the desire to find a way to capture the intensity and mystery of the best conspiracy thrillers in a series. It is a show that appeals to everyone who has some skepticism about the relationship between big business and our government, which we think is pretty much everybody,” said Joel Stillerman, SVP of original programming, production and digital content for AMC. “Our stellar cast and creative team allow us to continue to present premium television on basic cable."

The series cast includes James Badge Dale (The Pacific, The Departed), Oscar®-nominated actress Miranda Richardson (Sleepy Hollow), Dallas Roberts (Walk the Line, Flicka, The L Word), Jessica Collins (The Nine, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation), Christopher Evan Welch (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Lauren Hodges (Law & Order), and Arliss Howard (Full Metal Jacket, Natural Born Killers, The Sandlot).

AMC’s Stillerman along with Susie Fitzgerald, senior vice president of scripted development and current programming and Jeremy Elice, vice president of original programming, will oversee the development and production of the new drama.

Rubicon’s pilot was produced in New York City and was directed by acclaimed film and television helmer Allen Coulter (The Sopranos, Hollywoodland, Damages, Nurse Jackie) and Kerry Orent (Michael Clayton, Rescue Me) is the producer.

Greenlit to a full series order in June 2009, Rubicon marks AMC’s third original series. In summer 2007, AMC debuted its first original drama Mad Men, which went on to receive unprecedented critical acclaim and garner history-making awards recognition, including back-to-back Emmy and the only series to ever win the Golden Globe, three times in a row, for best drama series on television. The series returns for a fourth season this summer. In January 2008, AMC premiered its second original series, Breaking Bad, which landed on countless critics' top ten lists and also won back-to-back Emmy Awards for outstanding lead actor for Bryan Cranston’s portrayal of lead character Walter White. The series returned for its third season on March 21.

About AMC
AMC reigns as the only network to ever win the Golden Globe® Award for Best Television Series - Drama three years in a row and the only basic cable network to win back-to-back Primetime Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Drama Series. Whether commemorating favorite films from every genre and decade from the most comprehensive library or creating acclaimed original productions, the AMC experience is an uncompromising celebration of great stories. AMC's original stories include the Emmy® Award-winning dramas Mad Men and Breaking Bad, and insightful non-scripted programming such as AMC News. AMC further demonstrates its commitment to the art of storytelling with curated movie franchises like AMC Hollywood Icon and AMC Complete Collection. Available in more than 95 million homes (Source: Nielsen Media Research), AMC is a subsidiary of Rainbow Media Holdings LLC, which includes sister networks IFC, Sundance Channel, WE tv and Wedding Central. AMC is available across all platforms, including on-air, online, on demand and mobile. AMC: Story Matters HereSM.

About Warner Horizon Television
Warner Horizon Television (WHTV) is one of the entertainment industry’s fastest-growing television companies, specializing in the creation of scripted series for the cable marketplace, and primetime reality series for both network and cable. Founded in 2006, this second production entity allows the Warner Bros. Television Group to expand its programming offerings and explore creative options made possible under a new business model. WHTV is producing more than a dozen series for broadcast and cable networks in 2009–2010.

http://www.amctv.com/originals/Rubicon/about

[elfismiles]

Damn - had completely forgotten about this show ... did it continue?

[Grizzly]

Just finished the 13th episode on Friday the 13th...lol Damn, ...