By Steve Hynd
It's as good a plan as any Obama has.
Speculation that at least some of the next Bond adventure will be set in the volatile southern province of Afghanistan has been running high since a member of the Foreign Office's drug-busting team in the country began acting as a consultant for the Bond franchise last summer.
The official involved, who has since left the Foreign Office and Afghanistan, is believed to have signed a confidentiality agreement with the filmmakers preventing any discussion of the project.
UK diplomats have long joked about the need for a Bond figure to turn round the situation in Helmand, where thousands of British troops have struggled against a resilient, drug-funded insurgency.
None of them, however, expect the film to faithfully portray the realities of daily life for British officials stationed in Lashkar Gah, the dusty capital of Helmand, where diplomats live in fortress-like conditions and are only allowed out with teams of bodyguards and bomb-proof vehicles.
Buttloads of money on a fantasy that ignores grim real life in favor of wishful thinking that looks great if you suspend disbelief. Loose cannon special agents with licenses to kill. Expensive gadgets and guns instead of clean water and viable cash crops. Collateral damage galore in glorious technicolor. Are we sure this isn't Obama's plan?
No comments:
Post a Comment