Ordinary Psychopaths

While listening to NPR this morning, I was reminded of Ayn Rand's definition of Art:

"Art is a selective re-creation of reality according to an artist's metaphysical value-judgements. By means of a selective re-creation, an artist isolates and integrates those aspects of reality which represent his fundamental view of man and of existence. " (from, "What is Romanticism?")

So, what does it say about the artist's view of man and existence that he would choose to make this ? Or that NPR would give it tacit approval by positively reviewing it? The movie is called "Hamburg Cell" and it attempts to portray the "real human side" of the 9/11 terrorists. The writers claim that it is based on facts and documents; and interviews of the terrorists' family and friends. They state that, "you have to try to understand your enemy....and not simply discount them as psychopaths...." and "What is exceptional about these guys is that they are very 'ordinary'....they were not psychopaths." Matt Cowen, the NPR reporter, describes the terrorist who piloted the flight that crashed in Pennsylvania in the movie as "peaceful and resigned."

At this moment there are no plans for this movie to be shown in the U.S. (the producers don't want to "offend" anyone, they say). It is being shown on British TV tonight.

Why is this being dramatized in the first place? Why is the first movie art about September 11th a FICTIONAL DRAMA and not a DOCUMENTARY (granted that Michael Moore has blurred the distinction; as well as the distinction between PROPAGANDA and DOCUMENTARY) ?

WHY THIS BLATANT ATTEMPT TO HUMANIZE THOSE PSYCHOPATHS?

Yes, I said psychopaths. These were not "ordinary" people. Ordinary people do not devote their lives to planning and then killing thousands of people. The 9/11 terrorists and all of al Qaeda ARE MASS-MURDERERING PSYCHOPATHS--nothing more, nothing less. Even psychopaths have families who frequently say in retrospect that they have no idea why the psychopath did what they did. Even psychopaths have mothers who weep for them. So what. These were concious individuals with free will. They CHOSE to do what they did. They CHOSE death and murder and destruction. Perhaps they chose it "peacefully" and "resignedly". I could care less how they "felt". Their behavior has condemned them for all time as MASS-MURDERING PSYCHOPATHS.

And how nice it must be for future Islamic mass-murderers --who at this very moment are planning to destroy millions of Americans-- that they can count on artists, producers and actors, probably even psychiatrists and psychologists--you know, all those sensitive people out there-- to portray their lives in a fictional drama so...humanely and commpassionately. And that the survivors of their moral outrages should be made to feel morally obligated to understand their behavior and even support their grievances.

But here is what I think: because of their actions, the 9/11 terrorists--and all that supported or nurtured or approved of them-- should be immediately expelled ex-post facto from the human race and given the complete oblivion and non-remembrance they so richly deserve. Consign them to the trash bin of history like all the other garbage.

UPDATE: Purveyors of Truth is a blog in Scotland and they have updates on the "Hamburg Cell" story.