Thursday, August 23, 2007

I want a President to Repair Relations

I want to see the next president repair our overseas relations. Now most people I know say it doesn't matter. They would love to see us thrown back to our isolationist days where we grew our own food, raised our own cattle, made our own toys, drilled our own oil and absolutely did not get involved with disputes outside our borders without prodding and incentive.
These days though the world is much smaller than it used to be. You can be from Atlanta to Seoul in a day; to London/Frankfurt/Rome before lunch and back after dinner. In Europe, you can drive to five different countries in one day.
Another noteworthy add-on here is that our economy is completely wrapped up with everyone else's. From Africa to Russia to Japan, I have seen Shell gas stations, Nike shoe just walk into Wal-mart -- everything is made in China or Taiwan. We are importing more goods than we export. The average person may not care but if we don't have good relations with the countries we trade with we may be on our own and right now we can not produce enough because we are not set up for it.
I don't think it's hard for the average American to understand how international relations affect them every day. Mexican immigrants are opening restaurants all over the place. Hispanics have replaced African-Americans (or Black Americans if you prefer like a friend of mine who made it clear that he was born in Louisiana not Africa) as the largest minority in the United States. Although we produce most of our own oil, we still import some from South America and Africa.
So for me it is very important to find someone who can make the dollar rise to the Euro. Someone to repair the image of Americans. We are strong, capable people who still act prudently. The world will remember that. Let's help them by choosing the right person.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

The Bourne Ultimatum


So I've turned into a movie critic but I had no choice. I just had the privilege to see the fruits of my labor. Rare in my business to be sure but I was able to finally see the results of all my long, hard days punching computer keys to send dozens of emails.

And this time it was in the gold medal of locations that I got to see these satisfying results. The big screen. The silver screen. The place that makes stars. I got to see my work in action as I watched "The Bourne Ultimatum." One of the hottest movies of the summer. And I helped make it happen.
Me. PR guppy in a little known organization had the privilege to help with the making of Jason Bourne's ability to find himself and answer three years worth of questions. It was my role to ensure adherence to even the most minor of details. This was so that Matt Damon's speeding across-the-world-in-search-of-answers super assassin would have sets as real and authentic as possible.
I pushed ordinary folks out of the way of the ticket line. I sloshed coke and popcorn all over the poor sap sitting in front of me so that I could get the best seat in the house. Sitting on the end of my chair, my teeth impatiently chomped butter and salt through endless, seemingly hours long previews. But I had to be there. First day. Had to see. To see what my boss had thrown on my desk as the umpteenth tasker of the week had grown into.
Secretary and security look alikes.
Yep. Extras. For "the London office." The people that my fast moving fingers requested through email. Now when Jason Bourne raced through the office building, it looked as authentic as possible. Like the international office it was supposed to be ... complete with office administrators and security guards.
My contribution to millions of dollars and millions of fans. Secretaries and cops for one of the coolest films this year. And was the urgency of my virtual note across channel worth it?
You bet. Action, drama, car chases, fight scenes, Morocco, London, Paris, New York. All the right places. All the right jaw jacking, butt kicking you'll need to satisfy a weekend craving for high speed, ground pounding battle rattle.
The coolest scene in the movie was at Waterloo station in London with a prepaid cell phone, thousands of people and two CIA assassins playing cat-and-mouse over a reporter with information so valuable to Bourne and so dangerous for the agency. If you haven't seen it, take from me...the Bourne trilogy extra requester, this is the movie of the summer!