“BioShock Infinite” is a computer game set in the floating city of Columbia, which is run by a religious zealot and largely populated by xenophobic racists who wage war against the heathens of the world (i.e., those people who don’t live in Columbia). In this city the idea of “America” has become a kind of fetishistic religion and the founding fathers are worshiped as gods. Here’s an image from the promotional materials for the game:
I know, I know, you have to concentrate and remember that this is just a game. But “For God and Country, It is our Holy Duty to Guard Against the Foreign Hordes” is just too ironic since one of the figures in the image is a Native American Indian. Clearly the game is making fun of racism, but do the racists realize that?
Now here’s where we double down on the irony. The National Liberty Federation, a conservative “tea party” group from Florida. They post a lot of right-wing meme images and racist links to their Facebook page (which has 95K likes), and recently posted the above image. Seriously. A tea party group Facebooked an image meant to satirize the tea party.
And they aren’t the only ones identifying with a fictional racist video game. Over at Fox News, they illustrated a segment against immigration reform with the following logo:
In case that doesn’t look familiar to you, here’s the logo from the very same BioShock Infinite:
Apparently, Fox News not only blatantly copied their logo, they did it without realizing what it represents. Well, what do you expect from the same network that showed a waving American flag along with live images of the US bombing Iraq in 2003?
6 Comments
A must see set of DVDs “500 Nations” so you can feel and see the Beautiful America (North and South) the illegal immigrants invaded in the 1500s and turned into the mess we have now.
We who are not Native are the illegal immigrants.
Narrative by Kevin Costner who is part Native American. I would say the Natives are those who came here by land. I always want to ask people who object to other immigrants “What is your tribe?”
Are you sure it is satirical? I don’t game so I’m not familiar with this.
And can it be satire if the ones being satirized embrace it as upholding their beliefs?
It is satire. You play a detective and former soldier who is hired to sneak into Columbia and retrieve a prisoner being held there. You spend most of your time shooting the police, paramilitaries, and KKK-esque cultists that serve the leader of the city, who is worshipped as a prophet. In the alternate history of the game, the city (it flies) was used as a weapon at wounded knee, the boxer rebellion, and San Juan Hill. Each event being portrayed as a shameful event in US history and getting the point across that the inhabitants of the city are mostly nutters.
Sensing irony requires perspective.
I’ll never forget this breathtakingly accurate demonstration of ideological seclusion:
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/09/07/opinion/080712krugman1/080712krugman1-blog480.jpg
Yikes Dan, that is pretty breathtaking!
Also the same network that aired footage of Cliven Bundy, the rancher who doesn’t recognize the authority of the American government, riding around on horseback waving the American flag.
Dan: Great stuff!
That Guy: Sounds like satire related to Utah as well.
EBDoug: The NYPD character Andy Sipowitz said, when another Caucasian made a comment about immigrant cab drivers in NYC, something to the effect of, “So, Kelly is, what, a Cherokee name?”