Porkins Policy Review
From Our Interesting Times:
Pearse Redmond of Porkins Policy Review returns to the show to discuss the 2016 Presidential race and his research regarding the Disney Corporation’s ties to the CIA. We talk about the assistance Disney received from Langley in building Disney World and the Magic Kingdom’s other connections to the intelligence community.
Today my guest is researcher and host of “Surviving Scientology Radio” Jeffrey Augustine. Jeffrey and I have an in-depth conversation on the growing relationship between The Church of Scientology and the Nation of Islam. Jeffrey relates the history of how these two groups came together, and describes the role that Christian minister Alfreddie Johnson has played as a top Scientologist recruiter and spokesman, particularly through his Scientology front group, the World Literacy Crusade. We discuss how Johnson deeply involved Nation of Islam’s Tony Muhammad, who in turn brought Louis Farrakhan into the fold. We explore how the Nation of Islam has essentially been turned into a Scientology franchise, which now requires all high-level members to go “clear.” Jeffrey and I discuss the future of these two cults and how their relationship may evolve over time. Jeffrey closes out the conversation by discussing some of his recent work looking into the financial affairs of Scientology. We cover a lot of ground in this episode, so we plant to have Jeffrey back on the show again soon!
Show Notes:
Louis Farrakhan renews call for self-determination among Nation of Islam followers
Speech by NOI Minister Tony Muhammad to the Church of Scientology
Thetans and Bowties – The Mothership of All Alliances: Scientology and the Nation of Islam
From the Land of the Seminole and Osceola to the Clear Water Mecca of Scientology
Farrakhan delivers a warning and offers a healing for spiritual leaders and humanity
Calling for ban on electroshock of children
Tony Muhammad receiving Super Power at Flag Land Base
Tony Speaking at Scientology graduation
Something funny Jeffrey found online
Today I spoke with Media Roots co-host (and filmmaker behind “A Very Heavy Agenda”) Robbie Martin. Robbie and I talk about the seemingly improbable rise of the Neocons and the impact they are having on the election cycle. We discuss the Neocon love-fest going on right now with Hillary Clinton, as well as their disgust with all things Trump. Later, we explore the DNC leak and throw in a few of our theories about who might have been behind it. We also consider the notion that Putin and Trump are working together. Robbie and I also discuss the sad decline of the Libertarian Party, and Gary Johnson’s embrace of neocons such as Jeb Bush. We close out with an examination of the rumors (speculations) that Bill Clinton is dying and Hillary Clinton is on drugs.
Show Notes:
GOP National Security Experts Ask Congress to Investigate DNC Hack
The List of Republicans Supporting Hillary Clinton is Growing Quickly
Sophisticated Spy Malware Found on Russian Government Computers
Rounding off this second season we take a look at SALT, the 2010 action thriller starring Angelina Jolie as a CIA officer accused of being a Russian sleeper agent. We chart the development of the film, from its origins as an attempt to recreate the Bourne franchise, through Amy Pascal and Jolie’s conversations about making a female-led spy thriller. SALT is one of the less well known CIA-assisted productions, but along with technical advice from former CIA officer Melissa Boyle Mahle the producers also consulted with the CIA themselves in a video conference. The producers also employed Kurt Wimmer, one of the screenwriters from The Recruit. There is also a very weird story involving one of the extras in the opening sequence in North Korea.
We analyse the mystery of Evelyn Salt’s underwear and then the conversation hones in on Russia, who in 2010 were not on the news agenda, and how this movie predicted the rise of the ‘new Cold War’ that is commonplace in most current spy films and TV shows. The whole notion of a sleeper agent Russian spy ring was risible at the time but before long this exact story hit the news in a big way. We touch on the transhuman disguise that Jolie employs in the film and how this relates both to Argo and to Mission: Impossible, two other CIA-assisted movies. We round off looking back on season 2 of The CIA and Hollywood and suggest a possibility for doing season 3 in a different way.
Download The CIA and Hollywood ep 15
Show notes:
The Ultimate Action Hero – Salt (Making Of #1)
Spy Disguise: The Looks of Evelyn Salt (Making Of #2)
Today I spoke with researcher Brian Heiss about his work looking into the OJ Simpson trial. We discuss Brian’s excellent film OJ Veritas: The Furhman Tapes, and the impact and role that Fuhrman played during the trial. Brian and I also discuss his comprehensive timeline of the murder, which plainly show how OJ could not have murdered Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman. We also discuss some of our general theories on the case. We will be talking again with Brian soon to expand on these ideas.
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Show Notes:
LAPD Interrogation of OJ Simpson
3 Things That Make You Go Hmmmm: LAPD Interrogation of OJ Simpson
Robbie Martin is our final guest for this season as we dissect the 2012 docudrama Zero Dark Thirty. We discussed the difficulty in defining what kind of film this is – somewhere between a spy thriller, a documentary and a dry European art house movie. We get into the well-documented CIA support for the film and ask why this is the only major movie about the Abbottabad raid to get ‘Bin Laden’ and why it wasn’t particularly successful. Was the film meant to serve as a substitute for any real evidence of what happened in Abbottabad in 2011? Did the filmmakers even care whether what they were portraying was true or were they blinded by the excitement of the special access they were granted?
After summarizing the role of senior CIA and DOD intelligence officer Michael Vickers (who is portrayed in Charlie Wilson’s War) we discuss why so many CIA agents are portrayed in movies and TV. The conversation then zeroes in on ‘Maya’ – based on the real life CIA officer Alfreda Frances Bikowsky, who was critically involved in the 9/11 intelligence breakdown and the post-9/11 torture program. Getting back to the film we talk about the raid sequence itself which is very dry and realistic but we never actually see Bin Laden. We conclude that Zero Dark Thirty is like a rorschach test where you can bring your own expectations and prejudices to your experience of watching the movie. We round off talking about the portrayal of torture in the film and ask whether the controversies around the film were created as a smokescreen to avoid people asking the question: was it really Bin Laden?
Download The CIA and Hollywood ep 14
Show Notes:
CIA Memo on Rewriting Zero Dark Thirty
Zero Dark Thirty the CIA and DOD files
The ‘Dynamite’ Pentagon Interview Behind ‘Zero Dark Thirty’
Bin Laden Burial took place on Top Gun ship
CIA Inspector General’s Report on Engagement with the Entertainment Industry
CIA’s Queen of Torture Married to Former CIA Official Who Urges War Between Sunnis and Shiites
For this inaugural episode I am joined by my good friend and frequent collaborator Tom Secker. We begin by discussing the bizarre life and career of the CIA Hollywood liaison Chase Brandon. We then move onto the relationship between entertainment and the security services. We explore the notion that this going beyond mere propaganda, and instead represents a significant distortion of our culture and perception of reality and world events. Tom and I finish off by discussing the recent coup attempt in Turkey and some of our problems with the way the alt-media has covered this event.
Show Notes:
Biggest ever FOIA release from Pentagon Entertainment Liaison Offices
CIA Inspector Generals Report on Engagement with the Entertainment Industry
We are joined once again by our good friend Robbie Martin to discuss the final part of the film trilogy “A Very Heavy Agenda.” Robbie and I begin by discussing the film series as a whole, and its overarching themes. We then move on to how the neocons operate within the larger deep-state apparatus, touching on how the neocons are able to influence and control the foreign policy agenda through the use of only a handful of experts and policy makers.
Later we explore the role of “hipster propaganda” by looking at the increasingly influential role of Vice Magazine in indoctrinating young people into the neocon mindset. Robbie and I talk about the early days of Vice, and the lasting effect Gavin McInnes has had on the culture and political ideologies the news outlet spreads. We talk about Vice’s bizarre approach to politics: making the president look hip and cool, spreading anti-Russian hatred, and spreading neoliberal and neocon talking points to young people.
Next we move on to the current state of affairs within the neoconservative movement. Robbie and I discuss our views on the neocon influence within the Obama administration. We explore the idea that Obama may have tried to curb some the more psychotic foreign policies decisions put forth by those like Bob Kagan. I relate my pet theory that Obama was attempting to help the CIA by ridding them of some Bush era cronies. We finish off the conversation with a look at the 2016 election. We discuss how the neocons’ racist rhetoric is very much to blame for the rise of Donald Trump, and how Trump is very much an unexpected creation of the neocon agenda, even though he disagrees with them on several keys issues. We also talk about the the latest re-branding efforts which have led the neocons to embrace Hillary Clinton.
After the podcast I answer my first every Patreon subscriber question, and thank everyone who donated this month. I also talk about my new radio show due to start this Tuesday, from 4-6pm EST on American Freedom Radio.
Show Notes:
PPR ep 37 A Very Heavy Agenda with Robbie Martin
PPR ep 45 Robbie Martin on the New Neocons
Music:
From Our Interesting Times:
Pearse Redmond of Porkins Policy Review joins the show. We discuss his monthly series Porkins Great Game and the series he does with the UK’s Tom Secker CIA and Hollywood. We talk about the CIA’s involvement in the entertainment industry and deleterious effects it has had on society. Later we talk about Pearse’s research into the OJ Simpson murder trial and the several interviews he conducted with journalist Stephen Singular who wrote the book Legacy of Deception: An Investigation of Mark Fuhrman and Racism in the L.A.P.D.
James Evan Pilato is our latest guest as we dissect the 2009 Disney UFO adventure Race to Witch Mountain. We start off looking at Disney as a corporation – its long standing interest in UFOs and extraterrestrials, the connections to government agencies and their recent takeover of the fantasy genre. We then get into Race to Witch Mountain itself – a strange blend of a kids’ movie, a love letter to the UFO culture and an homage to spy thrillers especially Enemy of the State. Next, we examine the deliberately hyperreal nature of the film and dwell on the effects of a fantasy movie set in the real world with real people. A children’s movie about ‘illegal aliens’ being pursued under the Patriot Act is not Hollywood’s typical output.
Then the conversation moves on to the mysterious CIA involvement in Race to Witch Mountain, which the CIA themselves deny but the director Andy Fickman insists took place. After discussing the CIA Inspector General’s Report on their Engagement with the Entertainment Industry we move on to the question of infiltration of the UFO culture, and the use of UFOlogy to infiltrate alternative cultures more broadly. We round off looking at the effect of films like this on people’s perceptions and expectations of government secrecy, and we each try to answer the question ‘are you a believer?’.
Download The CIA and Hollywood ep 13
Show Notes:
Silver Screen Saucers (book by Robbie Graham)
ClandesTime 076 – Walt Disney and the FBI
A Look Back … Robert Carey Broughton: From Walt Disney to War Movies
CIA’s Role in the Study of UFOs, 1947-1990
A History of Government Management of UFO Perceptions through Film and Television
“Alien language” presented by CIA & Disney
UFOs and Disney: Behind the Magic Kingdom
Robbie Graham – UFOs, Hyperreality, and the Disclosure Myth – Copenhagen 2014
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