Ronin

I’m a huge fan of Toshiro Mifune and the whole samurai movie genre. My travel DVD collection is packed with a few dozen films depicting ancient Japan and battles between tragic sword-welding heroes and villains. Mifune seems to always plays an out-of-work samurai, or ronin, looking get by however he can. The movie plots go to great lengths to describe Japanese society at the time, depicting the vast numbers of unemployed warriors roaming the streets in search of honorable employment.

Laying on my bunk the other night I was watching a particular scene in Samurai Banners, that depicted an unemployed Mifune plotting as to how he was going to secure a job with one of the local lords. I was immediately struck with the parallels between that scene and the direction that the current security contract business is heading.

Before long the entire security contracting business will undergo a sea change and tens of thousands of gun-slinging contractors are going to find themselves without work, ronin if you will. I’ve often wondered what will happen to them, where will they go? If you look at Japanese society after the battle of Sekigahara in 1600 I think that you may find a lot of the answers to those questions. Some will always find work, others will turn to alternative professions and trades, and still others will use their skills for personal profit and crime as in Robert De Niro’s movie, Ronin. Interesting parallel I think.

Signs Of Progress?

I haven’t dug my camera out yet, so I still don’t have any photos to post. I hit the ground running here and haven’t had a moment to really settle in. Between the intense jet lag, a cold, and the pace of work, I'm pretty well 'knackered' (British term).

Iraq has become better, or so I’m told. The media is focused on how things are clearly improving, evident in almost every way. The stories coming out of Baghdad are “good news” stories highlighting the improving quality of life for this city’s citizens. I guess I don’t really see any dramatic difference from the last time that I was here two months ago. Police sirens still dominate the soundscape, PSDs and the Iraqi Army continue to insolently clog the roadways, and armored vests and AK’s are the dress du jour. Maybe I’m hoping for too much too fast.

Quick Stop In Dubai

I’m currently in Dubai, jet-lagged out of my mind, and just finishing up breakfast at 2:00 a.m. The flight from Atlanta was uneventful as always. I’m convinced that if you have to travel to the Middle East from Atlanta that the direct Delta flight to Dubai is the way to go. The 777-200’s are big and roomy and it’s about as comfortable as you’re going to get on a 13+ hour flight.

I only have a handful of hours in the hotel before I push on to Iraq; just enough time to grab a shower, a quick nap, and room service. It seems like such a waste of a very nice hotel room.

Now, Be Careful

A mother’s hands are full as her child runs to and fro at a children’s Christmas party.

Being a parent is difficult at times, almost unimaginably so. Caring for a toddler is like having a walking, talking example of Murphy’s Law 24/7. If it can be broken, marred or, destroyed, it will be. I watched my three year-old son explore a real jet airplane this afternoon, and in the back of my mind I heard myself saying, “now be careful, don’t break it”. Amazing.

I leave tonight for the Middle East. I'll miss my little jet fighter explorer.

MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart's Lament

One of the things that I do with my free time is play the Great Highland Bagpipe. I’m currently working on a classical tune, piobaireachd in bagpipe parlance, called MacDonald of Kinlochmoidart's Lament (No. 1). It’s a wonderfully haunting piece and infinitely complex. Like all piobaireachds, it starts off with a basic theme known as a 'ground' or urlar, and then progresses through several variations of the ground, with each becoming more complex than the last. The piper speeds up and slows down at will adding expression to the tune. In the end, the tune returns to the ground, completing the circle.

Ed Neigh plays the tune in the player below.

Garden

A freshly planted Black Bamboo (Phyllostachys Nigra) backdropped by a reproduction of an ancient Japanese lantern

It’s a huge contrast, returning from the chaos of a conflict zone to our relatively serene home in Atlanta. Our house has several Japanese sukiya elements, which make it a particularly peaceful abode. We’ve installed straw tatami mats in one room, diffused the lighting, painted with a soft earth-tone, and made it into a quiet little getaway where you can sit and play a game of Go over flasks of sake or just stare at the wall for a bit.

This last trip home we planted two different bamboo groves in the backyard, which little by little is taking shape into a traditional Japanese garden. It’s an on-going project that we plan to work on over the years; a project without any end nor goal in mind. It gives my wife and I a chance to talk, plan, and work side-by-side on building something that we both deeply enjoy. What a great adventure life is!

Democracy Wins!

It was one of those times that I wish I had brought my camera and was free to take photos. We spent the night at the Opposition headquarters in Caracas awaiting the voting results from the referendum. Hundreds of students, press, and concerned others occupied a large, walled villa in a fashionable neighborhood. Outside the iron gates others waited in the streets, peering through the gates searching for some sign of how the vote is going.

As the night went on the crowds exponentially grew. The polls closed at 8:00 p.m. and in the subsequent hours more and more people occupied the streets surrounding the villa. We set our gear up in a darkened corner of the courtyard next to the Al Jeezera crew, sharing the same power outlet, and waited along with the rest.

By 1:00 a.m. optimism had grown along with the reveling crowds. The delay in the official announcement of the results was interpreted as good news for the pro-democracy students. Rumors abound of the military generals warning President Chavez to respect the results, and the police surrounding the neighborhood to protect the students from revenge-seeking Chavez supporters.


Finally at 1:15 a.m. the announcement came. The hushed crowds stacked in front of television sets, the world balancing on the head of a pin. All at once a thundering explosion of cheers rocked the night. The pro-democracy movement had defeated President Chavez’s sweeping constitutional reforms designed to move Venezuela to a full-totalitarian state.

The doors and the gates of the villa were thrown open and we were immediately swimming in a wave of screaming and crying people. We tried desperately to protect or delicate position with it’s crisscrossing net of cables precariously linking us to our satellite up-link as the people poured in around us.

The remainder of the night was spent doing chaotic interviews and 'live shots' from the middle of tens of thousands of celebrants. Screaming, crying, waving flags, hugs, fireworks, megaphones; all carrying on through out the remainder of the night. Democracy had won.

Marathon Press Confrence

We were invited to President Chavez’ press conference today. For those that have never been this is truly an event. We were told to be there at 11:00 a.m., Comandante Chavez didn’t show up until 2:15, and he didn’t stop speaking until over three hours later. The entire international press corps here in Caracas was completely wiped out as it dragged itself out of the Palace after the marathon session.

Chavez seems to have taken a page out of Fidel’s book with these long-winded speeches and press conferences. One of the CBC reporters commented, "He's been on the first question for an hour now, and has just now taken the second one".

During the “presser” President Chavez repeated his now-standard bashing of the United States and continued his specific criticism of CNN. In his speech yesterday President Chavez strongly threatened to kick us out of the country if CNN were seen to be trying to influence the vote in any way. We all agreed that it would be a very astute political move on his part if were to deport the “imperialist media” just prior to Sunday’s referendum vote.

Singing in Caracas

More of the same today; broadcasting from the patio of the hotel and staying away from the massive rallies downtown.

We watched President Chavez’ speech on Venezuelan television this evening. It was surreal in some respects. He spent the first fifteen minutes leading the crowd of tens of thousands of red-clad supporters in song, singing national songs as well as Christmas carols. It had to be one of the oddest things that I’ve ever seen.

The rest of the speech was spent bashing the United States, the King of Spain, Colombia's President Uribe, CNN, and other assorted interests. I fear that he has a sort of elevated idea of his country’s importance in the grand scheme of the world.

Room Service Please

Student protester getting ready for a confrontation with government security forces.

Today has been full of adventure. We were set to cover the massive opposition rally in downtown Caracas this morning but in the end we pulled back and chose not to broadcast from that location. Instead the day has been spent “shooting lives” from the roof of our hotel in an effort to remain impartial to the political fight that is bubbling around us. International media has been accused of taking sides and has come under some “scrutiny” from the Venezuelan government. We’re trying our best not to be culpable in any way.

I’m happy. I’m not getting gassed or shot with a water cannon, and we can get room service up here on the roof.

Protests 101

The first rule of covering any protest is that the security forces always win. At the end of the day you want to be on the winning side no matter whom you are cheering for. I failed to adhere to that rule and paid for it this afternoon.

We covered an illegal student protest just outside of the one of the major Caracas universities. Hundreds of students marched out from the campus gates and blocked a busy highway, all in full view of the awaiting and ultimately well prepared Venezuelan National Guard.

The security forces, after watching the students rant and rave for an hour or so, decided enough was enough and let fly several volleys of tear gas followed by blasts from a mobile water cannon. At that particular moment I was standing on the student side of the protest and got severely gassed and then hammered with stream of water.

I made my way back to the ranks of the police only then to be pelted by large rocks and bottles being thrown by the offended, albeit hastily retreating students. I’ve had better days.

Back To Venezuela

Heading back to Venezuela today to cover the country's referendum vote. This time I'll endeavor to bring all of the correct gear so that I can post photos.

One-ness

Contemplating one-ness

We are all under this misconception that we are somehow separate from everything else. It’s something that's programmed into us from our very early days, and we continue on down this road for the rest of our lives. It’s a falsehood, and a mirage.

We are not separate from anything, quite the opposite. We all breathe the same air, drink from the same water, and enjoy the same sunshine. Our bodies take all of this in and then cast it off again for others to use in the same manner. The molecules that make up our bodies are traded by the hundreds millions every day, with everything in a constant state of change. We're never the same from moment to moment and we are sharing the entire universe with each other. How could it be any different, that we are not all joined together in this swirling mêlée of existence and non-existence?

Demonstrating For Democracy

We spent yesterday covering the student demonstrations taking place here in Caracas. These are marches that are considered illegal by the Venezuelan government because they do not have the necessary permissions, and subsequently are not tolerated very well by the security forces.

The students from one of the universities decided to march along (in) a major highway that cuts through the city. I stood there in horror witnessing these kids with hastily painted signs scurry about in four lanes of high-speed traffic yelling unfathomable slogans. The story here looked as if it was going to be the demonstrators getting flattened by speeding trucks.

We stood off to the side and filmed the students as they rallied support for their side of the upcoming referendum. Hundreds of these kids were marching for a pro-democracy movement, against a Socialist government that was demanding even greater Socialist reforms. How times change.

What's In A Name?

I spent yesterday walking around some of Caracas’ poorer neighborhoods shooting pictures and video with our cameraman. It was a great time working next to a professional and seeing what he’s looking at and how he frames his shots.

Later in the day he relayed a funny story to me about Venezuela’s President Chavez. Apparently El Comadante believes there are just too many peoples’ names in Venezuela and wants to pass a law (decree) that would make it illegal to name a child anything other than what is on his approved list of 200 or so names. I’m pretty sure “Hugo” made the list.

Welcome Back

I feel at home in Latin America, much more so than the Middle East. I think I’ve spent most of my adult life kicking around the countries down here, and when I arrived I felt a great sense of familiarity, almost a relief in a way.

Caracas is a city in turmoil right now. Both the city and the country of Venezuela as a whole are facing an election on a constitution amendment that would give current President Chavez almost unlimited powers. The streets are littered with “Si” or “No” propaganda as the people head towards the referendum. There have been marches both for and against, with more than just a little violence.

It will be interesting to see how this polemic comes out, but for the time being we’re covering various stories associated with the elections, and are getting plenty of opportunities to travel around the city to visit neighborhoods, both pro and anti- Chavez. The scenes are frantic with highly politically charged emotions that can only be experienced in Latin America. I had forgotten how passionate Latins are with their politics. Welcome back.

Caracas

I’m currently in Caracas, Venezuela covering the opposition rallies to the Chavez-proposed constitutional amendments. We spent the morning filming from within one of the rallies, but I didn’t have the opportunity to take any photos because I was busy doing what I get hired to do. Thousands of people milling around, shouting, chanting, and just being generally chaotic. We got what we needed and called it a day once the rally broke up.

When I got back to the hotel room I realized that I had left Atlanta in such a rush that I didn’t pack the USB cable that I use to download pictures from my camera to the MacBook. As a result the blog will be photo-less for a couple of days until I can get back to Atlanta.

... A Warrior's Life For Me.

A wee warrior just back from a battle with a paint brush

I received an email from a friend of mine, who also grew up in the military special operations community. While no longer serving in the military he wrote that he still considers himself a “warrior”, and opined that one doesn’t need a weapon nor a war to carry that moniker. I couldn’t agree more.

Being a warrior is a state of mind; cliché, I know. It’s nonetheless having the courage to do what’s right in the world, making hard decisions, and tackling life’s obstacles with determination, humor, and honor. You don’t have to dress in a uniform everyday to meet that definition, and I can assure you that there are plenty in the military that don’t.

Things that I consider and feel free to add some of your own:

- Try to improve upon everything that you do. Seek perfection in even the smallest and mundane of tasks.

- Have patience and empathy for those around you and even yourself.

- Practice self-control and discipline. Listen to your inner-voice. It knows the difference between right and wrong even if your ego doesn’t

- Concern yourself with small matters. The large ones will take care of themselves.

- Treat everyone as if they are your mother, father, son or daughter. Give respect to everyone and don’t demand it in return.

- Live softly. Be gentle, graceful, and humble.

- Laugh at yourself. You are a constant source of great humor.

Perfect

Replica of an ancient Japanese stone lantern stands against a backdrop of autumn leaves.

Everything that has a beginning has an end. Autumn is the perfect season to highlight this and that’s why I think that I really enjoy it so much. Much like the Japanese Cherry Blossom Festival, this time of year displays the impermanence of life and all things within it. Perfect.

What's Dat For?

Today’s a banner day. My three year-old son just now entered into the “What’s dat?” stage. He’s discovered interrogatives, which is now driving him to ask about everything and anything, affording my wife and I the opportunity to explain the entire known universe to him. Joy!

I wonder what the world is like for him, existing without any of the baggage that comes along with learning definitions, purposes, names, etc… A three year-old is a blank slate and happily wonders through life knowing that an apple is good to eat, and that’s about it. He doesn’t care about photosynthesis, organic farming, supply and demand, or migrant labor. It’s just an apple, and he’s happy with that. What a great way to look at the world.