An Islamist parliamentarian took Egyptian officials to task on Wednesday for permitting state television to broadcast the movie "Air Force One," which he claims sends a message of United States wisdom and invincibility.
The 1997 movie about the hijacking of a fictional US president's jet, broadcast during the weekend, sends the message "that no one can conquer the American authorities, that they can defeat anyone," Mohammed Mursi told AFP.
The parliamentarian, a nominally independent MP backed by the Muslim Brotherhood, said he had submitted a list of questions on the broadcast to Information Minister Safwat al-Sherif and Prime Minister Atef Ebeid, and hopes for a written answer.
"The taxpayers of Egypt pay for this airtime," Mursi expressed. "What do we want to teach our children? Every society wants to teach its own culture. Do we want to spread American culture? "Why do we broadcast such a movie now?" Mursi asked, charging that Washington was currently trying to pressure Cairo to back down from opposition to a strike on Baghdad and other positions at a variance with US foreign policy.
Movie Review
A terrorist group has taken an entire plane hostage, demanding the release of General Alexander Radek, a tyrant who has been exploiting the remains of a Russia in shambles. Unless their leader is freed, the terrorists will start methodically killing passengers.
One man must weigh the fate of his family, who is on board, against the fate of the world. That man is the President of the United States. The plane is Air Force One.
United States President James Marshall (Harrison Ford) makes an impassioned speech to a room full of Russian dignitaries: no longer will the greatest power on earth tolerate human rights violations such as those recently suffered under the fascist tyrant General Radek (Jurgen Prochnow) in Kazakhstan. He hails the joint Russian-American commando raid that resulted in the capture of Radek.
Later, the President joins his wife (Wendy Crewson) and daughter (Liesel Matthews) aboard Air Force One. En route to Washington, the plane is hijacked by Radek supporters posing as Russian journalists. They plan to force the release of their chief by holding the President hostage.
The burden of stopping these terrorists ultimately rests on the shoulders of the President himself, who has secretly remained on board the plane. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
