Rote Armee Fraktion/Red Army Faction

Causes:

• ·      Protesting that ran parallels with the protesting of the Vietnam War
• ·      Members protested against oppression in West Germany
• ·      The Group declared that its aim was to “escalate the conflict between the state and its opposition, between those who exploited the Third World and those who did not profit from Persian oil, Bolivian bananas and South African gold. ... 'Let the class struggle unfold! Let the proletariat organize! Let the armed resistance begin!'(Introduction, Everybody Talks about the Weather...We Don't, 2008.)

The Generations of Activists

1. ·      The first generation was the members that started when the Iranian King visited and killing of a young man by German Police.  These members were the seasoned activists who have already spent years forming movements for the cause.
2. ·      The next generation was the members that joined was that group became more established and had a large following
3. ·      The third generation was when the group was nearing an end, these became the most extreme, not to be shadowed by the earlier members of the group. 

End of The Red Army Faction

• ·      The Government was no longer going to be idle against this extremist group.  The end most likely occurred after the May Offensive.  It was the first and the last attack of its kind.  So many members of the group were detained that day that it could have been the factor that disbanded the group.

Similarities Now and Than

• ·      Terrorism as we know it is of the Guerilla type.  This type of terrorism found its roots in Germany during the RAF
• ·      Both groups saw taking of human life a necessary deed
• ·      Both groups are willing to sacrifice their own life for the cause
• ·      The RAF was a political type of group, fighting the German Political system, where the terrorism we see today seems to be much more broad in its structure.
• ·      This group than and our terrorism now is are both considered the worst of their respective times

http://sketchythoughts.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-red-army-faction-matters.html
http://terrorism.about.com/od/groupsleader1/p/RedArmyFaction.htm

Baader-Meinhof Complex Reflection

The reaction I received from the movie is probably the one that the movie was trying to accomplish.  In the beginning I side with the extremists and the way that they were immediately mistreated.  As the movie continues though I could feel a shift of whom I sided with.  The extremists kept elevating and elevating the situation.  I began to think that the situation was growing beyond their control.  In the beginning the group seemed collected and well put together, but as we continued through the plot the group began to become strung out and stretched to thin.  The ones that they all looked up to in the beginning were beginning to be so extreme that it almost appeared that they wanted their part to be over, or to die.  The way that the Government of Germany reacted seemed very strong at the beginning, but when we see what the group was capable of and what plans that they enacted the German police didn’t seem so brutal.  That is how all situations like this usually unfold though.  A small group does some small acts that go relatively unnoticed and they must keep doing more and more extreme things stay relevant, stay ahead of the police, and to continue to get press.  I found the movie very interesting and a good depiction of the revolt or uprising that occurred in Germany at the time.  Very interested in seeing how the movie will end next week.

Berlin Calling Questions

1. What do drugs mean to Ickarus?

They mean release from his woes about his music and possibly set his mind at ease for his music.  It helps him "get back on track" and remove the thoughts of his problems that he has in his life.  

2. Why, when, and how are his fans taking drugs, and which drugs do they take?

They seemingly take the drugs to become more easily transformed by the music.  They take the drugs before, during, and after the show.  They buy them from dealers at the show and continually take them at the show.  They take crystal, keta. MDHD, and ecstasy.

3. While we can see that his drug habits get him ill and into a psychosis, and while we witness his relapse and inability to work successfully, why does the subculture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?

The drugs are the culture, I think that they all take them because seemingly everyone else is taking them and it is a never ending cycle.  They continually take the drugs and see others taking the drugs so they just continue and so do the up and coming generations.

4. Compare the standards you know from your home society with the people you see depicted in this movie. Which are the stark differences and contrasts?

It is hard to compare and contrast the different cultures from which I know and the cultures depicted in the movie.  I imagine that the club scene and the drug scene is very similar here in the states.  In the small club scene that is downtown St. Cloud there is not near the drug use or the rampant drug use in the open.  I would say that the biggest difference is the vast amount of drugs being used and the ease that everyone in the clubs seem to obtain them.

5. Germany is considered a strong industrial nation the world over. Do you think that the youth culture as depicted here could change that? How about work ethics of Ickarus and of Alice, the label director who fires and then re-signs him?

Yes, most definately this culture could change this.  If this culture is used to party all the time there will be no time for work or responsibilities.  The work ethics of the main characters is pretty lazy or relaxed to say the least.  All are just trying to make money fast and party.  No body depicted is willing to put in any effort to their life, its just one big party to all of them.

6. Which similar "cult movies" of US origin have you seen, if any?

Maybe to movie Blow, this is another movie that glorifies the use of drugs and that sort of lifestyles that can kill.  Another one could be "One flew over the Cocos Nest."  This one also shows what a man is capable of when making poor decisions.

7. Personal Reaction

Movies like this are hard to judge a reaction too. The glorified drug scene doesn't always look all bad.  Movies like this glorify it so much that it almost looks appealing.  That is until you see the underside of the drug use, the drug use puts such a toll on these youths that it is almost regretful that they continually and continually do it.  The movie is reasonably eye opening just as any drug drama is, the effects of these drugs not only on the individual but on all whom surround the user is never lost on me.

German Media, Nazi Propaganda

Hitler was very aware of how the media influenced the public, because of this he took it very seriously and headstrong

He appointed Joseph Goebbels as head of propaganda, his tasks included:

•  To ensure nobody in Germany could read or see anything that was hostile or damaging to the Nazi Party
•  to ensure that the views of the Nazis were put across in the most persuasive manner possible 

 Hitler used all forms of media to spread his propaganda:

• Radio - Nazi propganda was especially effective because the leaders were great public speakers.  Therefore, it only made sense for them to use their verbal abilities through the radio.  
• Cinema - Movies were released to help influence the public on Hitlers point of view
• Speeches - Many speeches were given to the public that ran parallels with the Nazi way of thinking
• Visuals - Large posters were hung around Germany that are the iconic Nazi propaganda 
• Events - The Nazi party held large events where they put their ideals on display

 





Image:  http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&sa=N&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=1680&bih=947&tbm=isch&tbnid=O1FUkr5HGOPIZM:&imgrefurl=http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~ghost20j/classweb/ghost20j/Perpetrator%2520Motivations%2520Behind%2520the%2520Holocaust%2520German%2520Nationalism.html&docid=ZtCq_lUAuwkjJM&imgurl=http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~ghost20j/classweb/ghost20j/hitler%252520pic%2525201.jpg&w=232&h=320&ei=x7iiUI_KLeHm2AW6_YHgBg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=92&vpy=158&dur=1025&hovh=256&hovw=185&tx=89&ty=125&sig=116281033983296150163&page=1&tbnh=141&tbnw=108&start=0&ndsp=65&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:144
Resources:
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/propaganda_in_nazi_germany.htm
http://sitemaker.umich.edu/rememberingnazism/nazi_propaganda
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_propaganda