There has been a lot of coverage of the upcoming docu-drama "The Path to 9/11" on this and other websites ... calls for boycotts, letter and email campaigns to ABC and sponsors, and other ways to voice out outrage about this piece of Republican propaganda are all good net roots tacits.
I went to the ABC website to try and find a little more information about this docu-drama and what I found was even scarier than anything I have seen written about this "television event" so far ...
The downloadable "Path to 9/11" discussion guide for high school teachers to use in their class room available on the linked to Scholastic website
http://content.scholastic.com/...
These ready made lessons for teachers include 5 downloadable PDFs. The first two are resource sheets. Resource sheet one is a summary of important places and terms ... it's full of lovely tidbits about various middle eastern countries, some information on Al-Qaeda. Including these gems --
On Iraq:
The dictatorial government of Saddam Hussein was
overthrown in 2003, following an invasion led by the
United States.The U.S. government believed that Hussein
had been developing weapons of mass destruction that
he planned to use against American and other targets.
The Iraqi government became a transitional democracy
in 2004. In 2005, Iraq held its first election since
Hussein's downfall, electing Jalal Talabani president.
A new constitution was written and approved later in
2005. Coalition forces still maintain a presence in the
country, battling insurgents who want the United States
to pull out.
There is never any mention of the fact that no WMDs were ever found.
On Iran:
Relations between Iran and the
United States have been strained since the country
became a theocracy in 1979.The U.S. government has
deemed Iran a threat to the safety and security of the
Middle East and the Western world. Iran has long been
suspected of harboring and supporting terrorist
organizations in the country and abroad.Over the past
decade, threats of Iran's nuclear capability have made
many nations, including the United States, uneasy.
hmmm not sure how this plays in to the "Path to 9/11"
On the USA:
The current president is
George W. Bush. Following the
terrorist attacks on September
11, the United States began a
global "War on Terror" to stop
terrorist groups and statesponsored
terrorism.As part of
the "War on Terror," President
Bush has led the United States
into Afghanistan and Iraq and
reorganized the national
government in an attempt to
combat terrorist activity.
it speaks for itself really.
For direct link to the PDF
http://content.scholastic.com/...
The second PDF is a resource sheet on the US Intellgence community. Lots of flag waving here.
The third sheet is a discussion and debate guide for use in the class room after viewing the first night of the mini-series. The two discussion questions are interesting ... the first one asks students to discuss how actions taken by Bill Clinton helped or hindered the war on terror ... the second points to the depiction in the mini-series of the boarder guard stopping the millenium bomb plot and appears to foster discussion of racial profiling, but is very clearly colored to result in a debate favorable to racial profiling.
The fourth is similar to the third, only for after viewing the final half of the mini-series, it's also fairly biased in the slant of its questions.
The fifth is a group activity sheet which seems to be designed to help students understand why they can't trust the news media to tell them the truth.
The bow on top of it all is of course the link to the letter by the Hon. Thomas H. Kean, Chairman of the 9/11 Commission. In which he states in part:
As the Chair of The 9/11 Commission, I worked closely with the filmmakers and the
network to ensure the miniseries accurately reflects both the facts and the spirit of the
Commission's findings. In addition to my input, the film reflects the guidance of many
people who were involved in the events depicted--from the CIA, the FBI, the Secret
Service, and the White House.
Because of that commitment to accuracy as well as a sincere respect for the subject, The
Path to 9/11 provides a unique opportunity for educators to bring those lessons into the
classroom, spark discussion, and help students gain understanding about what led to such
a defining moment in our country's history.
So there you have it, the "Path to 9/11" not just an opportunity to put Republican propaganda on the TV with lmited commercial interruption about a month before national elections ... but an educational opportunity.