In 1940, the Three Stooges broke the mold and each other's faces with a spoof on Adolf Hitler and Nazi-Germany in a 17-minute short called "You Natzy Spy!"
The short was the first Hollywood film to satirize Hitler, with the permanently enraged Moe playing a puppet dictator placed in power by three war hawks who find the wartime economy more lucrative than in peacetime.
Though the short is a classic, based on its effective satire of Hitler as a buffoon capable only of shouting fits and causing concussions, it is also a piece of history. The short serves as anti-Nazi propaganda. Characterizing a leader of another country who would steer his people toward new levels of destruction - a continent bulldozed by tanks or flattened from air raids and an attempt at systematic genocide - seems like no laughing matter. Still, the Stooges used their talents in screwball humor to send a message to civilians and servicemen - laugh, and laugh hard.
Social pleasantries may tell us it is bad form to make fun, but war is hell. Comedy can be just as persuasive as a teleprompted speech beaming live from the Oval Office, motivating individuals to fight together against dangerous leaders with the universal power of laughter.
With our country in a full assault on Iraq, we again look to the opinions of those in and out of the government to inform and persuade us about our actions as the head of a shaky alliance, as well as the actions of those opposed.
These past weeks have shown that our citizens are fully capable of discussing the prospects of war and peace, with protest marches and pro-war rallies spilling into city streets. The time for propaganda is here, whether it comes from the mouths of politicians or from politically minded citizens.
Recently, some of our elected officials have employed propaganda against both Iraq and other countries opposed to war. The House of Representatives announced last month French fries and French toast would no longer exist in capital cafeterias. Now they dine on Freedom Fries and Freedom toast, as a reaction to the French, who largely disapprove of the war with Iraq.
This is propaganda at its most ridiculous, and the true question is whether our elected officials see the name change as a politically charged prank or an attempt to distance the concept of "freedom" from the disagreeable French. The action singles out only one country among many others with the same anti-war stance and mocks it. Reports of anti-French demonstrations have colored newspapers and television screens in the past weeks almost as much as rallies fueled by anti-Iraqi sentiment. Some think that pouring out wine and stomping on Brie sends a necessary message to the French; if you are against the war, you are against freedom and you are not welcome in the "land of the free."
As silly as adjusting a name may seem, politicians should be aware of their responsibilities to the rules of the republic and its place in the world as one among many other nations, not a global police force spurned when it does not receive the support it feels it deserves. Peace springs from an ability to understand viewpoints and participate in informed discussion that reaches an informed decision, not backhanded jibes that may disable diplomatic ties. Leaders who defend an invasion of Iraq believe they are protecting the citizens of this country, but creating more enemies by enflaming tensions with those opposed to a war will only ensure further problems in the future.
The Stooges made propaganda against Nazi Germany a laughing matter, spoofing a regime that would destroy millions of lives. The use of propaganda in the months ahead should be used against true enemies, not simply those who disagree. Only then can this country ensure that it will not become the laughingstock of the global community.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
