The Shock Doctrine
Thursday, September 24
7:00 PM
Mercury Cafe
2199 California St, Denver
$5 suggested donation or 1 hour volunteer

The Shock Doctrine is the latest documentary from acclaimed director Michael Winterbottom (The Road to Guantanamo), co-directed by Mat Whitecross. Based on Naomi Klein’s bestselling book, The Shock Doctrine argues that America’s ‘free market’ policies have come to dominate the world through the exploitation of disaster-shocked people and countries.

Both the film and the book argue that governments all over the world exploit natural disasters, economic crises and wars to push through radical free market policies. Klein calls this ‘disaster capitalism’ and in her view, disaster capitalism is as effective as psychiatric shock therapy at wiping our collective memory.

The film concludes that the result is often catastrophic for ordinary people and hugely beneficial to big corporations. The documentary also adds to Klein’s thesis - which was written before the recent market turmoil - and includes an analysis of how the financial world got into its current troubled state.

Congolese liberation leader and first Prime Minister Patrice Émery Lumumba was assassinated in January 1961, less than seven months after coming to power. He aspired to make Congo an independent nation but was rejected by the US for help before turning to the USSR, igniting his assassination.

What I find most disturbing about this is doc is the cold sociopathic attitude of his killers, even after all this time for reflection.

How many sociopathic agents are active today?