Last night with the usual crews that likes Hollywood action movies, we went to see Body of Lies. In brief, great acting by Crowe and DiCaprio taking out the bad guys (terrorists) in Iraq and Jordan. It certainly aims to leave you believing that one more dead from that part of the world is a good thing. That is my take at any rate, but one reviewer takes a more nuanced stance, saying:
…..it’s all about even-handedness and realizing that (1) every side in a conflict has a point of view, which, to itself, is perfectly valid; and (2) every side has people you’d probably like and some you really wouldn’t, (3) the way to peace lies with understanding (1) and (2); and not with having just one point of view, no matter how righteous it may appear. Both, Islamophobes and Islamophiles–or those on the extremes of any aspect of the political spectrum–will probably find ample elements to dislike about this film. Others of a more moderate and even-handed disposition will find much to like and appreciate.
The most fascinating character in the movie is Hani, the Jordanian security chief played by Mark Strong, who is of Italian & Austrian parents but portrays a rich and powerful fellow toiling to keep the king in charge and the bad guys tortured and spilling the beans. He is the only “moral” person in the movie, in the sense of being true to his principles, which we are lead to belive are the principles of the Arab world: never lie, honor the old, and look after the family first.
Thus we are set wondering if Rio Tinto honored these principles in pulling out of a $10.5 million Saudi aluminium smelter project yesterday. Here are some of the details:
[Rio Tinto] said this month it would cut 14,000 jobs, more than halve capital spending next year to $4 billion and sell mines as demand slows and as it seeks to pay off $38.9 billion of debt. The Saudi state-owned metals producer, also known as Ma’aden, said in May the project cost had increased to $10.5 billion, from the April 2007 estimate of $7 billion, on rising raw materials costs and design changes. Rio’s saving on capital spending in future years will be $3.5 billion, Bertolli said, adding that an updated cost for the project was yet to be completed.
Things are so bad in mining that my Vancouver Liberal lady friend is getting worried that her dream of less mining and a more socialistic world will transpire and her financial support from Rio Tinto will dry up. i.e., will her ex still have a job?
With all this financial collapse, who cares about things like truth, honor, and family? The share price is first, the shareholders second, and the golden parachute third. Afterall, this irritating Saudi project was not born of Rio Tinto, it came with one of those (in retrospect) silly take-over deals:
Rio inherited the 49 percent ownership of the joint venture project, which was scheduled to start production by 2012, through its $38.1 billion purchase of Canada’s Alcan Inc. in July 2007.
Thus we can but watch the mining industry shed assets, jobs, employees, families, corporate commitments (promises), all in a desperate bid to avoid going the way of GM, Ford, and Chrysler. There is almost no point any more in going to a violent movie anymore—the real world of mining is providing fascination and violence enough of its own.
The snow keeps coming down and I must end to leave to get up a steep hill before everything freezes up as a reality and metaphor for the economy, mining, and life. Keep warm.
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