The Heritage Foundation hosted a program yesterday on the hit show "24" and the reality of counter-terrorism.
Take it from Michael Chertoff: The Homeland Security Department is no "24." Chertoff, the department's secretary, said Friday he doesn't have a way-cool, state-of-the-art Counter Terrorist Unit like the one on the Fox TV show. Bad guys aren't foiled on an hourly basis. And not everybody is romantically involved with co-workers.So by the time the clock stopped on a two-hour panel that included "24" cast members, Washington policy wonks and Rush Limbaugh, some mythical similarities between the show and the government's counterterrorism campaign had been debunked. And that was none too soon for Mary Lynn Rajskub, who plays techno-chick Chloe O'Brian on "24," and clearly had her fill of those who take the show a mite too seriously.
"I got into acting to avoid politics and so I can remain in a fantasy world," said Rajskub, who seemed bewildered at questions about how closely "24" cleaves to reality. "And you guys are kind of bringing me out of it."
Gregory Itzin, who plays the nefarious President Charles Logan, said he has had to defend himself from one or two people "about the fact that the show does have torture issues and how could I live with that."
"It's a show!" he said. "I've done Shakespeare and have killed people with a sword."
Coolness: Heritage has posted a link to the video of the entire program. C-SPAN will air the program Sunday afternoon.
Posted by Alan at June 24, 2006 12:36 PM