Andy Levy and Molly Jong-Fast dive deep into the current state of political dysfunction in the U.S., focusing particularly on calls for the impeachment of South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, dubbed satirically as "Ice Barbie." The duo critiques congressional Democrats for not acting more swiftly or decisively in the face of mounting scandals and Republican obstruction. They emphasize that fighting back—even if seemingly symbolic—is critical, particularly when injustices are brushed aside or unaccounted for. Their discussion veers into broader issues such as the abuse of power by ICE, the disfunction of the DOJ, political corruption, and the dangerous normalization of extremist violence. With biting humor and sharp insight, they dissect the illusion held by MAGA supporters that their views represent the broader public, debunking this myth with urgency and clarity, all while calling for proactive steps—even if imperfect—to uphold democratic principles.
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Fifty years ago tomorrow, thousands of antiwar protesters
marched on the Pentagon. Armed troops formed a barrier outside the
building; hippies stuck flowers in their weapons. Demonstrators dressed
as cheerleaders chanted "Beat Army! Beat Army!" Other protesters tried
to storm the structure, with a handful managing to get inside. And some
of the political pranksters who would later form the Yippies led a ritual to exorcise the demons from the Pentagon and then levitate it into the air.
Abbie Hoffman claimed in Revolution for the Hell of It that his crew had come out to measure the building some time before:
Icarus Films
"67-68-69-70-"
"What do you think you guys are doing?
"Measuring the Pentagon. We have to see how many people we need to form a ring around it."
"You're what!"
"It's very simple. You see, the Pentagon is a symbol of evil in most religions. You're religious aren't you?"
"Unh."
"Well, the only way to exorcise the evil spirits here is to form a circle around the Pentagon. 87-88-89…"
The two scouts are soon surrounded by a corps of guards, FBI agents, soldiers and some mighty impressive brass.
"112-113-114-"
"Are you guys serious? It's against the law to measure the Pentagon."
"Are you guys serious? Show us the law. 237-238-239-240. That does it. Colonel, how much is 240 times 5?"
I suspect the dialogue didn't go exactly
like that, but it's a funny story anyway. When the day of the
demonstration arrived, the levitators chanted "Out, demons, out!" but
did not in fact form a ring around the building, prompting Norman Mailer
to declare that "exorcism without encirclement was like culinary art without a fire."
The protest was captured in The Sixth Side of the Pentagon, a short documentary by the French directors Chris Marker and François Reichenbach. (Marker is probably best known for La Jetee, the science-fiction film that inspired Terry Gilliam's Twelve Monkeys.)
Antiwar veterans marching in formation, Castroites carrying "Avenge
Che!" signs, Nazi counterdemonstrators, a preacher in a hydraulic crane
denouncing communism: They're all here. And of course there's footage of
the hippies trying to levitate the building—though not, alas, of the
building actually leaving the ground. I guess the camera must have been
pointed in a different direction when that happened.
Marker later reused some of that footage in A Grin Without a Cat,
his mammoth 1977 documentary about the global New Left and its times.
Besides the bigger canvas, there was a substantial change in tone
between the two pictures. The Sixth Side of the Pentagon was made by a couple of radical partisans who believed the march had marked a shift from "protest" to "resistance." A Grin Without a Cat was made by a guy who still dreamed of a utopian society but had seen a lot of defeats and betrayals in the last 10 years.
Bonus links: For a Washington Post story on the anniversary, go here. For an oral history of the exorcism of the Pentagon, with appearances by everyone from Kenneth Anger to the Fugs, go here. For past editions of the Friday A/V Club, go here. For another Friday A/V Club with Yippies in it, go here.
