Skip to main content

Conflict of Interest

Watched an interesting movie called 'State of Play'.  I may have blogged about this few years ago when I first saw it.  But since I forget what I saw and what I remember this may be a repeat title /topic - except that it might be a bit different take on the same story.

So this story with a wonderful cast (Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe,  Robin Penn and Helen Mirren) is about a truth seeking journalist (Crowe) who is friends with a now Congressman (Affleck) from Pennsylvania.  At the heart of the story is two unrelated incidents or so it seems.  A couple of guys get shot in a Washington alley and a lady staffer on the congressman's research team dies in a mysterious train accident.  The journalist smells it and gets on it because he is only trying to earn his living.

The story was originally written as a BBC series and Hollywood made a movie of it.  Who says the left coast does not copy a good story?  I have not seen the original deal but this movie production is not bad at all.

Multiple conflict of interest  themes weave across the storyline as the protagonist tries to get to the bottom of the pool and see what is what.  Confounding his research and diligent hunt is his once sexual affair with the congressman's wife who is also good friends to both in a past life. 

In a parallel story another legislator on the hill position's the lady staffer on this congressman's team to spy on his activity to discredit overpaid mercenary outfits contracted by the government to fight their wars.

Somewhere in the storyline is also this question that makes you wonder - whether there is any room left for morality and ethics to coexist with capitalism and consequently greed?

What is showcased is not far from some of the truth around how the world of politics, power and armed might might work.  Something about absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Labels:

Comments

  1. RajendraJune 7, 2014 at 10:45 PM

    now that capitalism is unchallenged, chances are it will get worse around the world. Gun production and use shows no sign of abating in our civilised world!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

On the go(zay masta) in Japan again

Cool cat the Japanese are Tokyo at dusk  My second visit to this land of the rising sun after almost a decade. Back then clearly I was wet behind the ears product manager and likely didn’t pay attention to all (efficient) things Japanese. But today I did and of course continue to be impressed. It is as much the obvious stuff like on time travel that is both clean and comfortable and all that which makes it possible. The impressive landmark and landscapes that these humans have put together despite their cramped (or because of it) surroundings and precarious geological conditions could amaze a novice architect among us. But it’s also the little things that someone had to think about which have a phenomenal impact on day to day lives that make the Japanese stand apart. Below are few random examples- 1. Providing a very fine machined wooden toothpick in every packet of wooden chopsticks. The said chapsticks are simply set on the To Go counter of any food vendor/ convenience store wher...
Post a Comment
Read more

A few good books

 On an informal mission to read one book a week as long as the eyes allow for such ambition. Fiction or non is not important as long as it entertains and /or educates. To that end the past few weeks have brought a bounty in the form of some wonderful and then not so engaging literature. Among the notables are - Non fiction category: 1. Good arguments by Bo Seo (how to handle a dispute or debate the most efficient way possible) 2. Genesis by Eric Schmidt (and former US Secy of State Henry Kissinger, who recently passed) - how AI might affect our lives as we know it 3. One in a billion - Zarna Garg (an autobiographical look at an Indian born American woman with a bindi narrated in a standup format - yes it is at times cliched but still funny) Fiction: 1. Personal by Lee Child (a vigilante story with Jack Reacher the giant, nomad protagonist of Child's novels goes hunting for a sniper) 2. Ramayana unraveled by Ami Ganatra (she might disagree about it being a work of fiction but oh wel...
Post a Comment
Read more

Back in DC

This time for a tech conference in the realm of what else? AI. But applied to an oft neglected space called Knowledge Management. The latter is a community of practice that focuses on analyzing, organizing and making available reams of data that have been gathered over time by various functions within an organization for anyone in the company to utilize. This function or process is ripe for applying AI agents (or agentic AI framework) and optimize for better outcomes. It was informative. More rewarding was getting acquainted with folks who practice this craft as well as learning of what they see in the corporate or public sectors. Since the venue was Washington DC it also afforded me the chance to take evening strolls albeit the weather was trying. With wind chill in the single digit it still is a glamorous place to perambulate through history absorbing what this country has been through since its founding days. I was able to visit the place Lincoln was killed along with his monument t...
Post a Comment
Read more