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6- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday September 22, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate.The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Commentary Guest Columnist NEIL OLIVER Publisher JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production Metroland Media Group Ltd. includes: Ajax/Pickering News Advertiser, Alliston Herald/Courier, Arthur Enterprise News, Barrie Advance, Caledon Enterprise, Brampton Guardian, Burlington Post, Burlington Shopping News, City Parent, Collingwood/Wasaga Connection, East York Mirror, Erin Advocate/Country Routes, Etobicoke Guardian, Flamborough Review, Georgetown Independent/Acton Free Press, Harriston Review, Huronia Business Times, Lindsay This Week, Markham Economist & Sun, Midland/Penetanguishine Mirror, Milton Canadian Champion, Milton Shopping News, MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA CALHOUN Circ. Manager WEBSITE oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver is a division of IAN OLIVER Group Publisher Operation Connection Bonnie Brown Bonnie Brown, Oakville MP Media Group Ltd. Mississauga Business Times, Mississauga News, Napanee Guide, Newmarket/Aurora Era-Banner, Northumberland News, North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Oakville Shopping News, Oldtimers Hockey News, Orillia Today, Oshawa/Whitby/Clarington Port Perry This Week, Owen Sound Tribune, Palmerston Observer, Peterborough This Week, Picton County Guide, Richmond Hill/Thornhill/Vaughan Liberal, Scarborough Mirror, Stouffville/Uxbridge Tribune, Forever Young, City of York Guardian RECOGNIZED FOR EXCELLENCE BY: Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Suburban Newspapers of America THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: T United Way of Oakville TV AUCTION he Oxford Dictionary defines propaganda as "information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view." A little known Canadian military operation is engaged in precisely this kind of activity. It is the most aggressive and focused military "public relations" effort since the Second World War. What's most disturbing is that it is being organized and directed by the military itself, under the direction of Chief of Defence staff, Rick Hillier. "Operation Connection" consists of an internal publicity machine that dwarfs all federal government promotion offices. An incredible 500 public affairs staff have been given the responsibility of managing Canada's perception of the Afghan war and the Canadian military in general. They take their jobs seriously and admit that they are influenced by, and share, "best practices" with their more experienced American and British military counterparts. To achieve their goal they operate on a number of fronts. Personalities such as Don Cherry are enlisted to promote the military spirit amongst our youth at various venues. Military promotional exhibits have become common at local fairs throughout the nation. The school system is directly targeted, as well. At a Defence Association conference in February 2006, General Hillier made the aims of the Canadian Forces' massive new recruitment effort crystal clear. He said, "We've got to make recruiting every service man and woman's business and I mean this. Going from 300 recruiters at present to very quickly 30,000 recruiters and then eventually to 80,000 recruiters touching every community, geographical and ethnic, in Canada." General Hillier has been true to his words and the military is now infiltrating Canada's public school system bringing American-style military recruitment tactics to bear on the youth of this nation. However, the military's perception management goes well beyond this. For example, "Combat Camera" is the military's own media production unit. It gathers film footage and photographs, edits them to conform with prescribed messaging then transmits them through the internet and to news media outlets. Budget-conscious TV newsrooms can then take this footage and show it as "news," unconstrained by the impartial objectivity that is crucial in a healthy democracy. Even those media companies that can afford to send reporters to combat zones are subjected to strict military control of their reporting as part of the process of "embedding" journalists, also adopted from the American military playbook. Millions of tax dollars are being spent to ensure that the images we see and the stories we learn about the Canadian military and its role in Afghanistan conforms to those which the military sanctions. Rick Hillier estimates that 40 per cent of his time is spent on public relations. See Propaganda page 7 Traveling alone across the universe just to see a musical O n hiatus from husbanding, on pause from parenting, I took temporary leave of both my senses and our country hideaway last weekend and I trekked into Toronto -- so far from home I might as well have been traveling across the universe -- to catch a movie. Without accompaniment. Solo. All alone. Sound desperate? Well, I admit I was feeling a little desperate. My faithful film companion -- who doubles as my wife, and with whom over the years I've seen myriad movies that run the range from A to Z (Annie Hall to Zorro) -- was away with our daughter, and a movie that I was dying to see had just come out in limited release. How badly did I want to see this particular film? I couldn't wait, not for a minute since I first heard of its creation. And I certainly could not wait until this weekend when the movie opens in full release. All of which explains how I came to find myself all by my lonesome in a darkened theatre in The Big Smoke waiting for a movie to begin that had premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and that has had many reviewers raving and some retching, with precious few less severe reactions in between. It's one of those movies, love it or hate it. And on which side of the fence did I fall? I loved it. But before I tell you why, let me digress. Back in 1967, John Lennon was being nagged by his then-wife Cynthia. As she was "going on and on about something" the following words popped into John's head: "Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup." And so was born the opening line of one of my favorite Beatles songs, Across the Universe. In an interAndy Juniper view, John called this lyrically lush, image-intense song one of the best and most poetic lyrics he'd ever written. All of which brings me to the movie that bears the name of that beautiful song. Across the Universe is a musical ­ and lord knows, I generally abhor musicals! ­ directed by Julie Taymor, starring the likes of Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess, with killer cameos by Bono and Joe Cocker, and featuring 33 songs written by The Beatles and performed by this able cast. This film is a love story, set in the turbulent sixties -- rifling through events like the Vietnam War and race riots in the United States -- all played out via the lyrics of songs penned by the Fab Four. Critics of the movie say it's all style and no substance, that it glosses over a decade that changed the world. Critics have called it goofy and pompous and bizarre. Then there's J.R. Jones writing in the Chicago Reader: "If a bullet hadn't killed John Lennon, this Beatles-scored musical might have." Well, J.R., a few people disagree with your view. The Chicago Sun-Times gave it praise and a perfect score. The Globe & Mail said: "In the more than two flamboyant hours of Across the Universe, Julie Taymor doesn't cheat us for a single second." And The Seattle-Post Intelligencer said, "This film is a strange, nostalgic, suitably outrageous ode to a very real revolution in consciousness." Across the Universe gave me goose bumps. This movie is a visual treat, every scene exploding with flair -- at times full of fury and at times full of fun. The love story connects, the images are spectacular and the music is, well, the music is The Beatles (to boot, fodder for the fanatics, the film is overflowing with amusing Beatle references). As for those concerned that the film glosses over the era, please keep in mind: this is a musical. If you want a detailed account of the decade, rent a documentary. Andy Juniper can be visited at his Web site, www.strangledeggs.com, or contacted at ajuniper@strangledeggs.com.