An interview with João Silva, the New York Times photographer who lost both his legs below the knees in October 2010 after stepping on a land mine while on duty in Afghanistan. more ›

Narrative movies about war can be harrowing to watch, but it's easy to remind yourself that when the scene cuts, the actors go back to their trailers. Documentaries about war, while taking place in reality, rarely have the in-the-trenches gut-punch affect that draws us into their narrative counterparts. more ›

DCist spotted this small protest against sending more U.S. troops to Afghanistan moving through the streets around McPherson Square a little after 4:30 this afternoon. There looked to about 75 people marching in total, though the number of official police escorts, many of them on bicycles, easily rivaled the protesters' numbers. The marchers were banging drums and chanting, but appeared totally peaceful, so just keep an eye out for related traffic disruptions on your way home this evening. more ›

We had to read through this article from Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail three times before we decided it wasn't necessarily an elaborate prank. According to reporter Paul Koring, it seems that during a two-day military conference set to convene at the Embassy of Canada in Washington Sept. 23-24, Canadian officials plan to stage a mock Afghan village in the courtyard of the embassy, in which they will set off a series of fake explosions. The pyrotechnical spectacle is apparently intended as a demonstration of Canadian military might, and especially their troops' activities in Afghanistan. The paper reports that American military officials, U.S. Congressmen and Afghan experts are expected to attend the conference. Here's what they'll be treated to:

The mock village, complete with a small souk and peopled by nearly a dozen Afghan actors, will be created in the courtyard of the Canadian embassy, halfway between the Capitol and the White House. A handful of Canadian soldiers and, Col. Martin hopes, U.S. Marines will arrive to "see the village leader" just as the IED blows up, "critically injuring" at least one Afghan, who will get immediate first aid from a Canadian medic. more ›

A cynic might be a little saddened that the newfound freedoms of the Afghan people are manifesting themselves in their adoption of a segment of our pop culture as disposable as American Idol. But Afghan Star, the documentary about the analogous Afghan television show of the same name, shows that in a different context, that show's format can be seen as evidence of a people's liberation. more ›

“I want war. I don’t want peace,” says German armored-car merchant Fidelis Cloer at the beginning of Bulletproof Salesman. An hour later, in the doc’s final moments, he offers a slightly more nuanced view, pointing out that he did nothing at all to instigate or sustain the protracted conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan than have proved such a windfall for his company. As he puts it, Coca-Cola and Burger King have been doing good business in Iraq, too. “The difference is, we do not have to create demand for our product,” he observes. more ›