Power of Nightmares: Part 2

 All in all, I found “Power of Nightmares: Part 2” to be even more engaging than Part 1. It was loaded with information about the American neo-Conservatives and radical Islams, and because the material was more relevant to my age group, with explorations into Clinton’s presidency and so on, I found myself enjoying it more because I really understood it. It is very disturbing to learn about the neo-Conservatives’ agenda, as they continue to see themselves as revolutionaries setting out to change the world, because their tactics are so morally corrupt. What struck me in “Part 2” was that the neo-Conservatives did not even see Islams or Saddam Hussein as their real enemy. They were too busy tearing down the liberal party in America and putting up a front that the goal was just to spread democracy. The tactics are just so extreme. Lying, manipulation, a total overhaul of Clinton’s time in office to try to get him impeached. Watching these videos it is difficult to feel inspired about American politics at all. It seems like the only tool in our toolbox is deceit and mind games, always trying to get the upper hand, the power. 

 

In the Conservative party, the “harsh moralism” the film describes is not really about morals at all. The focus on religion seems to be more about condemning people for being bad than looking to a higher power for the purpose of self-improvement. The myth about religion leads into the huge myth in American discourse that American military prowess had anything to do with the fall of the Soviet Union. All these lies build the U.S. up as a country, but it’s a house of cards. It’s all things we tell ourselves, messages that are crafted especially for the public, to make it feel one way or the other about a given policy. This film shows the ins and outs of this manipulation, using Islams and neo-Conservatives as a backdrop.