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I've been watching this Documentary about the G.Is in East Anglia during WW2 - and I agree with all of it. But that's East Anglia and the USAF from 1941 to 1945 - not the intrigue riddled West Country from 1973-2010 isn't it!

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A Recommendation............................

There's a Series of DVDs produced by Cromwell Films called "The History Zone" and they're superb. You get plenty of Background to the Subject and the Story is narrated clearly and concisely, with re-enactment Groups augmenting the Presentation. What makes these Programmes watchable is how they don't glorify War either so you don't feel as if you've been somehow propogated to. This contrasts quite noticably with another Series - this one about the American Civil War - which has no Background at all and within a couple of Minutes the Confederacy has opened Fire on Fort Sumpter. The rest of the Programme is fine except that there's a tendency towards Hyperbole and Glorification - but there's no explanation as to why they are fighting at all. There's the Re-enactment Groups doing Battle, period Photographs and Music but nothing telling you why the US plunged into War. Why the Confederacy, what's the Angle on Slavery, any involvement from Europe? That sort of thing!!!!

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I never realised it before but "The Killing Fields" is another Goldcrest Production..........now lets fast forward to 1990-1 for a Moment!

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http://www.btinternet.com/~europeans/IHR.htm

What's the Film about again? Who were Goldcrest working with until 1986?

If anyone doesn't remember it's a Film about very real Journalists in a very real War and a very real Hostage in 1975!

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The "Killing Fields" is the Story of how New York Times Journalist Sydney Shambaugh and his Colleagues work in Cambodia at the time when Nixon has launched Rolling Thunder - the time when any Pretence of a strictly Vietnam Conflict became exactly that - and how the Country reaped the Consequences. It's 1973 and the Khymer Rouge have taken Pnomh Penh and Shambaugh along with any other Journalists are being evacuated. They have a Cambodian Interpreter and Friend called Dith Prahn and they desperately try to include him in the Evacuation. Unfortunately it all goes wrong and they can't - so Prahn ends up in one of the many K,R ran Camps for Years - where he sees and is subjected to Years of Torture, 'Re-education' and Death on a stupifying Scale not seen since the Second World War. While all this is happening Shambaugh is in the US - continuing as a Journalist - winning Awards for his Work - but keeping Prahns Memory alive - helping his Family as and when he can.

Prahn is befriended by a Khymer Rouge Cadre who asks him to take his Son to safety before he is killed by the Regime. Prahn does this - but the Son is killed before they reach the Border - so the Cambodian eventually makes his Escape - but on his own.

It's 1979 and Shambaugh and Prahn are finally reunited after nearly 7 Years of Struggle and resolute Determination.

This Film - about some very real People - was made in 1984 by Goldcrest Films. Brought to you by the Film Maker that produced "Ghandi" a couple of Years earlier, the "Killing Fields" was made at the time when Goldcrest began working with HTV on Robin of Sherwood. 6 Years later and a certain Human Rights Project - representing others disappeared for Years in the midst of a Conlict - some of whom Journalists like Shambaugh and Prahn - or even Daniel Pearl of more recent times - happens in Bristol!

You couldn't make any of this up could you!

I became the 'Hostage' on that Record Cover in 1990 - it's now 2010 and I don't feel particularly released or reunited with anyone. In fact - the Opposite seems to have happened!

Something is apparent though - and that's the difference between David Putnams approach to Film making and Creativity and the local Contingents Approach to Life. While one is inpired and inspiring - making some of the most influential or aware Films of the last 30 Years the other is just spiteful! cynical or manipulative! Maybe that's why Lord Putnam has become what he became while those others are mediocre..........mean spirited grasping corporate Droids - not C3PO or R2 either - Hyacinth Bouquet with Recording Equpiment and TV Cameras!

As for some People......................................here's a Quote from the Patriot that's relevant to them

Charlotte "You've done nothing to be ashamed of"

Benjamin Martin "I've done nothing - of that I am ashamed!"

And that was 2000 - I told you they were crap!

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Not all Media People are like that though......................

I heard a Story about how a BBC Producer or something dressed up as a homeless Person and pitched outside a BBC Premises doing the 'Hungry and homeless' thing to see who the Hyacinths were and who the Inspired might be. The Hyacinths were the ones who'd walk past as if he wasn't there - Nose in the Air - and being everso important. The Inspired would stop, maybe chat and give him some Food or spare Change!

From this he figured who the adaptable were - the ones who could do the Steetsy Documentary to the glamourous Stuff, those who wouldn't be a Liability to either Programme Making or Colleagues - and who the Preeners or Intriguers are.

Unfortunately there seems to be a lack of the former and rather a lot of the latter here!

So now you have rather a lot of that latter - now living quite bland and mediocre lives because they didn't think more like the former. When People whinge to me about it all I say "It was all there in the 80s and early 90s - you just botched it by being like the latter!"

And then they made it worse by telling Lies - the sort of hateful spiteful Lies any mean spirited ultra-conservative Careerist would come out with!

Oh yeah - Stuff gets back to People even when they are in the Gulag!

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If you watch the special features of "The Patriot" one Commentator describes thre Battles as "Russian Roulette" - while there's a Scene where the Character - John Billings - shoots himself in the Head. What was the Vietnam War Film called? What was the Actors name? What Game were they playing whren one of the Charecters - played by Christopher Walken - was a Prisoner of the Viet Cong, and who were in the Film "Out of Africa" - male and female?

How does "Last of the Mohicans" start?

And while all this is going on you have Herne the Hunter don't you - not just someone from a 1980s TV Proramme either!

Sorry the local Contingent is totally ultra-conservative designer Hippie crap everyone - and they know who they are!

So do I!

So do other People!

So how do you think I feel when all that Slime whinges to me about their precious Jobs?

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...........................And while you have the "Killing Fields" about a Group of Journalists in Cambodia and their Work to rescue Dith Prahn - you have the "Deerhunter" where DeNiro tries to rescue his Friend from Vietnam! A Group of Friends are sent to the War and some don't come back. DeNiro does but he knows that Walken has been trapped in Saigon. He goes back to rescue him but finds he's become a Casualty of the Khun Sah business Emporium - and plays Russian Roulette to finance it.

How many Narco-Hippies understood what the Film was saying - the ones who glorify all that druggy awfulness? From what I can remember about the 80s here that Narcoism - in all its Indulgence and Whimsy - always seemed to have precedent. It hasn't improved very much and all it seems to have done is changed its Soundtrack and Costume a few times. Having seen how much damage it has done - even to the Creative Economy - I've grown to dislike it enormously!

It's like if you didn't subscribe to it you didn't get anywhere! Life didn't seem to have any momentum at all!

Now they've all finished powdering their Noses and doing all that Pills Thrills and Gutrot Stuff what's left for those who don't or anyone else? Not very much - if anything!!!!

It's apppalling and that's why I feel resentful about it! It's outrageous that all of it got completely hijacked by druggy scum!

More Stuff for Tonys Archeology Team perhaps!

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I'd liken the local Creative Economics Community - if you can call it that - to the Farmer who gets their first Crop - keeps some of it for their Family, sells the rest and promptly buys a load of Luxury Items with no consideration at all for providing next years Harvest. Ultra-conservatives have no Notion at all about societal or creative Re-investment. Then you have the Intransigence. They persist in using that now totally stage managed High Street instead of the Technology that is available to them while their Media Unionists are either a disorganised Shambles that don't meet for Years or just patronising. They got away with this for Years until recently when the C.E Reality finally caught up with them.

Subsequently neither Bristol or Liverpool have an independent TV Company of any substance! Mersey TV wasn't even sold as a continuing Concern! Mr Redmonds former Studio is now a College!

I'm reminded of that famous Lyric by Joni Mitchell when she sang "You don't know what you've got till it's gone!"

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2 Years before they made "The Killing Fields" Goldcrest made "Escape from New York" - the one about the Rescue of a President. Although this one was fictitious it's as if a Theme was being established as long ago as 1982 - that continued until - and long after - 1991.

There;s even a Robin of Sherwood edition called "The Prisoner"!

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No one spoke him either!

Maybe they ought to have - huh!

Here's a Quandary though - that while all this TV and Film was going on I never got so much as a days Work as an Extra - in anything! Maybe that's something else that needed to happen too eh! That's in 30 Years ....................... not the last few Months!

Work that one out!

You can have the feeding Hand bitten so many times that your Arm receeds up to your Shoulder!

Ouch!!!!!!

WHY IS IT SO CRAP HERE??????????

It's so conservative it's murderous!

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So when those Media Hippies start whinging at me about their jobs, their jobs - their precious jobs - I say stuff 'em - all of 'em! While they lived it up from the 60s to the 90s Ormsby Gores Associate is either having a crap time at School, being exploited, struggling through the Industrial Estate or Training Scheme Circuit or being fobbed off with some crappy 90s Indie Groups!

Not one days work as a Film or TV Extra - in 30 Years - and they expect me to be all enthused for it all! You get more Money for a days Extra Work than either a Weeks Warehouse job or Employment Training Allowance - and it's going to be ever so slightly more vocational!

Ask Geof Barrow about that one - there are some names on that Debut Album of his who'll know what I mean here!

Except of course the same thing is happening with them as with all the others and they're not Associates of Lord Harlech either........................But they lived it up plenty too - you used to see them on a Friday or Saturday Night getting beered up before going to the Clubs in 90s Bristol!

The Pipelines were being built everywhere except here!

And then one day it all goes wrong!

None of this was managed very well at all was it!

My Hand has been bitten so many times my Arm has become a Stump!

Yippies eh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So go on - whinge at me again about those precious Jobs and I'll clobber you with me Stump!

Never even got Tickets to see his Band - ahh but we're such a Community of Creatives here aren't we!

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What would I say to them?

Stop being such patronising condescending Snobs!!!!!!!!

In an Area so intrigued, and with such an Opaquery and unaccountable culture of Evasiveness - even to those who've lived here for Years - are you surprised that it died out?

Evasive? There's our Project for a start - and those who got involved with it that I've had a total of 2 Minutes Conversation with in 20 Years! There's how not once in 2 Years did I see any of that Elite at any Concert I was working at from 1995-7, there's working somewhere for 3 Years where you feel as if you might as well not be!

So sorry Jacko - but you can put yer Hippie Propaganda Film where the Sun don't shine!

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The Pipeline Malarkey continued right up to the last few Months of 2007. I meet someone, it seems friendly so I send an Email. Almost instantly the Pipelines are being built everywhere - from 87 to 108 FM and even some TV. Anywhere except where it was most needed - my Email Inbox.

And this is exactly what I mean, why I began withdrawing from the World and probably why the Creative Economy is now withdrawing from the Area!

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I've lived here for 34 Years. It's not until the last 3 or 4 that I started finding out what had been happening here for nearly 3 and a half Decades. It's that opaque - you can't even access the things you help make happen - like our Project, maybe even some TV Stuff - heaps of it. It's that disgustingly conservative, corrupt, cynical, arrogant and sclerotic. If I was Caroline Kennedy for example - a former Media Exec - now NYC Senator - and I thought I'd try something like Ormsby Gore did in 1968, but start to see that an Associate of his has effectively been kept out of everything to the Point where that disgustingly conservative parochialist cliquist Cabal maintained an Opaquery that even Stalin would be hard pressed to continue in somewhere like Gorky how would I know what was going to happen to anything I was trying to do? I only started to find out in about 2004-5, despite having lived here since 1973, studied here, worked here, been unemployed here, been homeless here and even worked in its Media!

I wouldn't give it a Cent. And in 1985 I thought I was just helping to feed the World Mr Geldof - it transpires that we were feeding rather a lot more than that.

Every Dime they gave would go to that same disgustlingly conservative, arrogant, cliqueist Cabal - and just like before there will be some of us who never get to see any if it or any of the brilliant life enhancing things that happen because of it! It's all set up like that here!