January 30, 2004

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Palo Alto Online

Humor for a heavy topic

by Elizabeth White

Using humor to analyze the tragedy of Sept. 11 could be seen as insensitive, or at least counterintuitive. But activists and artists say it is the best way to introduce people to their take on what really happened on that historic day and the weeks leading up to it.

In an effort to raise people's consciousness, Carol Brouillet, a longtime Palo Alto activist, has spearheaded the planning for "Behind Every Terrorist There Is a Bush," a benefit performance featuring comedy, music, film and spoken-word poetry. The event is aimed at audiences who may doubt the government's account of the attacks and want alternative sources of information.

"A lot of people are very scared by this issue," said Brouillet, a stay-at-home mother of three. "We want everyone to have a good time and to laugh and at the same time raise money for a serious inquiry into 9/11."

The show, which will run Sunday at the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco and Feb. 2 in Palo Alto at Spangenberg Theatre, is a benefit for Phase One of the International Inquiry into 9/11, which will take place March 26-28 in San Francisco. All proceeds beyond the cost of putting on the event will go to the inquiry, Brouillet said.

Both shows will feature comedians Will Durst, Bill Santiago and Rene Hicks, musician David Rovics and spoken-word poet Drew Dellinger. Eric Hufschmid, author of "Painful Questions," a book and companion video about the physical destruction caused by 9/11, will share the bill. The evening will also feature two films by Take Back the Media, "The Protest that Never Was" and "Bush Not a Nazi."

Brouillet said her choice of entertainers was based on her goal of providing humor, diversity and serious content to the audiences.

"We really wanted not a white male show," she said, noting the diversity of the cast.

Brouillet herself will give a five-minute introduction to the show looking at the Republican Party and what she calls their "goal of making money at any social cost."

Brouillet became involved in activism after seeing the film "JFK" in 1992. She went to the Palo Alto library, started researching the CIA and former President Bush's involvement with the organization, and said she was shocked.

"I felt a responsibility as an American citizen to do something about it," she said.

Brouillet became a media activist, promoting films about people such as author Noam Chomsky, and she has continued her involvement in the aftermath of 9/11.

"The information is very sobering," she said. "The fact that the government has been lying -- there's obviously a cover-up going on and the big questions are not being answered."

Brouillet said those questions include why former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was appointed to head the 9/11 investigation commission (he's since quit), and why "al-Qaeda was formed and funded by the United States and Saudi Arabia to the tune of $4 billion from the CIA and $4 billion from Saudi Arabia."

The show's name is derived from the Bush legacy of supporting terrorism, Brouillet said. It all started with Prescott Bush, the current president's grandfather, who was a Nazi sympathizer and financer, she said, and it has continued with clandestine political support for Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

Santiago, based in New York City and San Francisco, said comedy about such weighty issues is the "best way to package the truth."

"I don't always do political humor but it's very appealing to me," he said. "That sort of gut, visceral response to authority is why you get into it."

Santiago said with Bush, the "patron saint of the functionally dimwitted," the United States is going through a "cerebral recession or a renaissance of stupidity," depending on the spin.

"Basically, (the routine) is as cathartic as actually lighting Bush on fire in effigy," he said. "Instead of going that route, I tell jokes."

"I'm compelled by political convictions that these issues need to be publicized," said Boston-based musician David Rovics, who will play a few songs at the show.

Rovics said he plans to sing at least two politically motivated tunes, "Reichstag Fire" and "Operation Iraqi Liberation." The latter, he noted, was originally the name of the U.S. Operation in the Middle East but was subsequently changed because of its ironic acronym, OIL.

"The song is about all the double standards associated with the invasion of Iraq," he said.

While Rovics said the show isn't a substitute for reading books and news content on world politics, he did say it can serve as a first step toward an education on the issue.

"I hope that (the audience) will get a somewhat deeper understanding of the whole situation," he said. "A part of an event like this is to be the media in a sort of way."

The show is a sort of sequel to an event Brouillet also helped organize last April. She and others raised enough money through their circulation of "deception dollars" -- money look-a-likes that provide sources of information on 9/11 -- to show the film "Aftermath -- Unanswered Questions from 9/11" at both the Herbst and Spangenberg Theatres.

Poet Dellinger is composing a new five-minute piece for "Behind Every Terrorist There is a Bush." He says poetry can raise awareness of the situation and promote a renewed sense of engagement with politics.

"We're in a really treacherous time," he said. "Our democracy has always been imperfect; it's imperiled right now."

The March conference/inquiry will feature Mike Ruppert of From the Wilderness Publications, Daniel Hopsicker of Mad Cow Morning News and Barrie Zwicker, producer of "The Great Deception." That conference is merely a warm-up for a more elaborate inquiry that will take place worldwide in June, Brouillet said.

"Hopefully what we really want is to create space for new witnesses to come forward," she said. "We hope that this inquiry will be so big that we'll break this issue into the public mind. If we could get it out there we could stop this government from its criminal activities."

What: "Behind Every Terrorist There Is a Bush," a benefit for the international inquiry into 9/11. The show will feature comedians Will Durst, Bill Santiago and Rene Hicks, musician David Rovics, spoken-word poet Drew Dellinger and author Eric Hufschmid. The evening will also feature two films by Take Back the Media, "The Protest that Never Was" and "Bush Not a Nazi."

Where: Spangenberg Theatre, 780 Arastradero Road in Palo Alto.

When: Monday 7 to 9 p.m.

Cost: Tickets range from $12 to $22 and are available through City Box Office. Tickets are $9 for students and seniors.

Info: Call (415) 392-4400 or visit www.cityboxoffice.com
A second show will take place on Sunday from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco.
Elizabeth White can be reached at lwhite@paweekly.com

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