Dancing with Fire's definitions

26th of July Movement

The 26th of July Movement (Spanish: Movimiento 26 de Julio) was the revolutionary movement led by Fidel Castro that overthrew the regime of Fulgencio Batista in Cuba in 1959. Its name commemorates an attack on the Santiago de Cuba army barracks on July 26, 1953. The movement began formally in 1955 when Castro went to Mexico to form a disciplined guerrilla force. The leaders of the movement remaining in Cuba to carry out sabotage and political activities were Frank País, Armando Hart, and Enrique Oltuski. At this time the movement espoused a reform program that included distribution of land to peasants, nationalization of public services, industrialization, honest elections, and mass education.

Prominent leaders of the 26th of July Movement included Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raúl Castro, Camilo Cienfuegos, Frank País, and Juan Almeida Bosque.

by Dancing with Fire April 9, 2013

Medellin Cartel

During the 1980s, Pablo Escobar became known internationally as the Medellin Cartel gained notoriety. The Medellín Cartel is said to have controlled roughly eighty percent of the shipments that entered into the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic with shipments brought mostly from Peru and Bolivia, as Colombian coca was initially of substandard quality. Escobar's product reached many other nations, mostly around the Americas, although it is said that his network reached as far as Asia.

Escobar bribed countless Colombian government officials, judges and other politicians, and he often personally executed uncooperative subordinates and had anyone he viewed as a threat assassinated, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of individuals. Corruption and intimidation characterized the Colombian system during Escobar's heyday. He had an effective, inescapable strategy that was referred to as plata o plomo; Spanish for "silver or lead", intended to mean "accept a bribe or face assassination." Escobar was also responsible for the killing of three Colombian presidential candidates who were all competing in the same election, as well as the bombing of Avianca Flight 203 and a Bogotá security building in 1989. The Medellin Cartel was also involved in a deadly war with its main rival, the Cali Cartel, for most of its existence.

by Dancing with Fire July 9, 2011

Operation Mockingbird

A covert campaign run by the CIA to influence the media.

Starting in the early days of the Cold War (late 40's), the CIA began a secret project called Operation Mockingbird, with the intent of buying influence behind the scenes at major media outlets and putting reporters on the CIA payroll, which has proven to be a stunning ongoing success. The CIA effort to recruit American news organizations and journalists to become spies and disseminators of propaganda, was headed up by Frank Wisner, Allen Dulles, Richard Helms, and Philip Graham (publisher of The Washington Post). Wisner had taken Graham under his wing to direct the program code-named Operation Mockingbird and both have presumably committed suicide.

by Dancing with Fire October 28, 2013

Blue Hill Avenue

Blue Hill Avenue focuses on the rise of the drug trade in Boston, as seen through the eyes of three childhood friends. The time is the late '70s, and Tristan (Allen Payne), Money (Aaron D. Spears), E-Bone (William Johnson), and Simon (Michael Taliferro) are all high-school pals and petty thieves on the mean streets of the city's South Side. Their antics bring them to the attention of Benny (Clarence Williams III), a charismatic drug dealer who takes the four friends under his wing. The most straight-and-narrow of the bunch, Tristan manages to keep his nefarious trade under the radar of his parents. As the years pass, however, the dealers introduce crack to their line of narcotics, and Tristan's sense of guilt over his neighborhood's demise leads to an inevitable betrayal of Benny, followed by a grisly showdown.

Blue Hill Avenue was the winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Director at the 2001 Urbanworld Film Festival.

by Dancing with Fire November 3, 2011

Caravan of Death

In October 1973, Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet organized the “Caravan of Death," a military death-squad charged with eliminating perceived opponents of the military regime. Flying a cross-country circuit by helicopter, the Caravan of Death landed at military bases throughout the country and tortured and summarily executed at least 75 political prisoners.

Many of the victims of what became known as the "Caravan of Death" had voluntarily turned themselves into the military authorities. Prisoners were taken from their cells and summarily executed, often without the knowledge or consent of the local military authorities.

by Dancing with Fire April 9, 2013

Mossad

One of Israel's intelligence agencies, noted for its expertise in wet affairs. Literally translated as "institute." Never referred to as the Mossad, but rather simply called Mossad.

Mossad launched missions, dubbed Operation Wrath of God, to track down and kill those alleged to be responsible for the murder of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian gunmen at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.

by Dancing with Fire September 3, 2012

Pentagon

The pentagonal building serving as the headquarters of the US Department of Defense, near Washington, DC. The Pentagon's unique shape makes it a highly efficient office building. Although the Pentagon has 3,705,793 square feet (1,129,526 meters) of office space, it is possible to reach most points in the building within 10 minutes, a remarkable architectural achievement. In a building which coordinates the armed forces of the United States along with organizations responsible for intelligence and security, workers often need to be able to access each other quickly.

The idea of the Pentagon was conceived in 1941, when Brigadier General Brehon Sommervell was trying to solve the problem of limited space for the Department of Defense, a serious issue in the Second World War. It was agreed that a new building was needed, and a groundbreaking ceremony took place on 11 September, 1941. It took just two years to complete the building on former marshlands along the outskirts of Washington, and the Pentagon was quickly filled with communications equipment and staff to coordinate the Department of Defense.

by Dancing with Fire September 6, 2012