07.19.12
Dance and mime the mess and futility away
Eric Raum, who works for the United Service Organization, helped produce the video. On his blog, Raum explains how it all came about:
“A few weeks ago, a friend of mine here in Afghanistan, Randy Moresi, approached me about the song ‘Call Me Maybe’. I had just returned to Kandahar from the U.S. and had been taken back by how big of a hit it was, as we often miss out on the latest and greatest while in the ‘Stan and I hadn’t heard it before. She said that people were creating covers of the song, and that it would be a lot of fun for the guys and gals out here if we could create a military version. With a day off looming, we got to work trying to get things organized.”
Create a military version. Well, only a couple pages full of soldiers doing exactly the same thing, with varying degrees of production value.
So how do you pick who’s going to get the good video cameras, the dance move coaching, the hi-fi recording and the Final Cut Pro editing job? Rhetorical.
Meanwhile (you knew this was coming):
KABUL, Afghanistan—The Taliban said they detonated a bomb on a fuel tanker Wednesday and then opened fire on other NATO supply trucks in a morning attack that destroyed 22 vehicles loaded with fuel and other goods for U.S.-led coalition forces in Afghanistan.
Elsewhere in the country, a suicide bomber killed three Afghan soldiers at a checkpoint in the east, while militants killed nine more government troops in an ambush in the south. Three NATO service members were also killed in insurgent attacks.
The violence comes as Afghan forces are taking charge of security in more areas across the country ahead of the planned withdrawal of the U.S.-led coalition’s combat forces by the end of 2014. To show they remain a resilient force, insurgents are conducting targeted attacks, even in relatively peaceful parts of the country.
Such gay music. Good for morale. But it’s a shame to waste it so mindlessly on delusions.