Showtime’s Sleeper Cell
I finally finished watching all 10 hours or so of Showtime’s Sleeper Cell. Wow what a powerful show. I don’t know what the political critics are saying about shows like this. They say it portrays Americans fighting terrorism in the same light as the terrorists themselves. They say it makes terrorists sympathetic. I don’t understand how they can say that. I think shows and movies like this help to show the American public the complexity of this war on terrorism. You can only fight an enemy you don’t understand. To know your enemy is to better fight them and this provides a little more insight on what might be (and likely is) going on. Sure there’s some dramatization; sure there’s some racy scenes, but that’s just Hollywood for you. It isn’t a huge part of the story and in some part it just goes to show the hypocrisy and mindset of those we fight. What I most hope people can take away from this show is the war within Islam itself. Most Americans have absolutely no exposure to Islam and I think it does well to give them a touch of insight into moderate Muslim’s religion with a direct contrast to the militant fundamentalists that wish to do us harm. This mini-series is not for the faint of heart or young ones, but if you aren’t in those two categories I highly recommend it.
