Four Hours at the Capitol

[DanaK]

Quote

HBO's FOUR HOURS AT THE CAPITOL, debuting WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20 (9:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT), is a harrowing and immersive chronicle of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, when thousands of American citizens from across the country gathered in Washington D.C. to protest the results of the 2020 presidential election, many with the intent of disrupting the certification of Joe Biden's presidency. The film is executive produced by Dan Reed (HBO's "Leaving Neverland", "3 Days of Terror: the Charlie Hebdo Attacks," "Terror At The Mall") and directed by Jamie Roberts. An HBO Documentary Film presentation in association with the BBC, FOUR HOURS AT THE CAPITOL will debut on HBO and be available to stream on HBO Max.

 

[revbfc]

It’s supposed to be on HBOMax right now, but I can’t find anything but the trailer.

What’s going on?

[DanaK]

1 hour ago, revbfc said:

It’s supposed to be on HBOMax right now, but I can’t find anything but the trailer.

What’s going on?

Sometimes I’ve noticed HBO Max doesn't have something available until maybe later in the evening or the next morning. At the very least, I’d wait until HBO actually starts showing it at 9pm ET/PT

[revbfc]

OK, I’m watching it.

I know the rules against partisan political speech around these parts, but it’s impossible to talk about a partisan attack on democracy without taking a side.  Those insurrectionists will never get the justice they truly deserve, and the con men who told them to  participate in their coup attempt  deserve worse.

They’re not patriots, and no amount of violence by them will change my mind.

[cpcathy]

That was devastating. Everyone should view it.

[Anela]

7 hours ago, revbfc said:

OK, I’m watching it.

I know the rules against partisan political speech around these parts, but it’s impossible to talk about a partisan attack on democracy without taking a side.  Those insurrectionists will never get the justice they truly deserve, and the con men who told them to  participate in their coup attempt  deserve worse.

They’re not patriots, and no amount of violence by them will change my mind.

Agreed.

[Guest]

I watched this. And I also watched the excellent NYT doc about that day. Every American should.

I wished there were more Ashli Babbits in the crowd. One shot was all it took to take out that psychotic criminal -- and to make the other cockroaches with her scatter. I know the police were hesitant to use their weapons, but look how successful one bullet was in that violent situation. That's exactly what the use of force by the police is for. 

Also had to laugh at the load of ginned up, overweight, illiterate morons thinking they were cosplaying storming the beach at Normandy. 

"Who's house? OUR HOUSE!" 

proceeds to break into "their" house then wander aimlessly around in it, then smoke some weed, then shit on "their" own floors

I don't know who the wheelchair-bound, backyard-cinematographer traitor was but I laughed my ass off when all his good buddies just dumped him on the steps at the end of the day with no way down. Then the police, who his like-minded friends just tried to kill for the last four hours, had to do assist him down. 

[bkathi]

I've watched a few docs on this day and appreciated the participation of both sides.  I am in awe of the police officers who showed composure and bravery.  And I pity those who blindly followed a con man and his family.  It looks like a few eyes were opened.  Sorry if this is too political - but as a resident of Northern Virginia this was just too close for comfort, especially in light of our current Governor's race.

[Rlb8031]

The image that was the most compelling for me was the video of the cop being dragged down the stairs as his bodycam recorded "Get his gun, shoot him with his gun" all under the waving Blue Line American flag. 

And yet, the cops seemingly were still amazingly restrained in their descriptions of - and feelings about- the protestors. Not one comment about skels, creeps, thugs, etc. Even the woman whose husband committed suicide didn't seem to want to go as far as blaming protesters outright. 

The cognitive dissonance of the Cowboys 4 Trump guy saying that he was pro-death penalty and pro-corporal punishment, but his not being able to shower for nine days was cruel is simply amazing...

[bilgistic]

We watched it tonight. The rage and dismay was even stronger than what I felt watching the events unfold on the day of. Here are the current stats on the (far too few) federal cases against the Insurrectionists, per the George Washington University Program on Extremeism.

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Today's Numbers
The number of federal cases against individuals involved in the Capitol Hill Siege stands at 651. According to our latest analysis of the cases:

•Average age: 39-years-old
•Individuals came from 44 states and the District of Columbia
•Cases have been brought against 563 men (86%) and 88 women (14%)
•The largest numbers came from Florida (72), Texas (59), and Pennsylvania (57)
•The majority (>85%) were charged in part using evidence from their personal social media accounts, others' accounts, or both
•77 (12%) have military experience (71 Veterans, 2 National Guard, 3 Reserve, 1 Active Duty)
•117 (17%) have pleaded guilty

-endquote-

It was planned online for weeks if not months beforehand. It just broke that some of the siege organizers say they participated in planning meetings with members of Congress and White House staff.

The call is coming from inside the house.

Edited November 1, 2021 by bilgistic

[zenithwit]

The thing that struck me the most from this documentary was how long they waited until clearing the Senators and Representatives from their respective chambers.  It seemed like they moved Nancy Pelosi fast but dragged their feet on everyone else - including Mike Pence (which is surprising because the crowd was chanting his name as well).  It must have been really scary for the Representatives left in the balcony.  As violent as the day was already, it was shocking to see the number of "near misses" that would cause the violence to escalate even further.

Watching the crowd grab and swallow the Metro PD officer was terrifying.  I hope they are able to identify and charge whoever was tasing him.

[the eskimo]

This was very interesting to watch and some of the footage was amazing. I did appreciate that they interviewed people from both sides, but I think there was a missed opportunity to ask some of those protestors how they felt about some of the violence towards police, the destruction of such a beautiful monument to our country/democracy, the beating of a policeman under a "Blue Lives Matter" Flag...just the overall blatant hypocrisy exhibited by those people that day (and in general, but I digress). I wish they had shown them some clips and showed their reactions.

I know the preacher or whatever in the cowboy hat made an offhand comment about "hating to see the violence," but then shifted focus to the "peaceful" crowd, but I feel like the tough questions were left unasked of many of these participants. 

Mostly, this was a frightening reminder of the dangers of mob mentality. I bet most of those men (and women) on any other day would say they would never threaten a police officer, or use American flags to break things or beat people, but when caught up in that mob...something else takes over. 

I thought one of the most poignant moments was when that poor police officer started screaming "I have kids," and you could almost see something click in one of the "protestor's" face, and these same men who were about to literally rip this guy apart started helping him through the crowd. It was like they came out of a daze/animal frenzy and were almost shocked by what they were doing...or maybe that's giving them too much credit. 

It must be very tough for a lot of these police officers to feel like they had to battle against "their own kind," but also a good lesson that violence can come from anyone who wants to commit a violent act. 

I have zero sympathy for Ashli Babbit. How did these people think they could break down doors and threaten our government officials with no chance of being shot at or killed? Entitlement. These are people who have never felt persecuted. These are people who have always felt that law enforcement is on their side. They felt above the law. I hate that she is being painted as a martyr, and I'm sorry for any loss of life, but you just can't act like that and not realize that you're risking your life. Unfortunately, the fact that she was a woman, white, a vet, etc. make it easier to paint it all in a more tragic light, rather than just someone who was breaking and entering, destroying property and threatening the lives of our Congress men and women. 

I'm just very interested in this psychological and sociological phenomenon that is taking place right now. It's complicated and multi-layered, but I hope some very educated experts write some interesting theories about this form of "mass hysteria" that's spreading like wildflower in this country...

[Hanahope]

i wanted to pull out my tiny violin for the guy who whined about not getting to shower for 9 days.  wah!

and the rep who was all upset that "his people" were blowing the culture war they were winning by rioting and storming the capital.  

and that guy that still thinks children are being raped and killed?  really?  that's what you are going to say for a documentary?  just wow.

i hope we get a part 2 when the behind the scenes info from the committee is finally released.