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Ruby Rodriguez
ENGL 112
February 26, 2015
The Issues With Government Hierarchy
Word Count: 1211
Kirby Dick is a film director who makes films on common issues taking place where a person would least expect it. He directed the film,
The Invisible War
, in which he informs the audience of rape taking place in the United States Military. He also directed the film,
Outrage
, a film dealing with closeted politicians who, hypocritically, are openly against the LGBT community. Although the films were great and had plenty of information on the topics, they were lacking in certain areas. Both of these films discussed issues with government officials, they were presented in similar ways, but one film lacked information in a certain area.
The films dealt with different issues but both regarding government officials. They show just how much power government officials have and how they abuse of it. In the film
The
Invisible War
, sergeants had the power to ignore or throw out complaints of rape in the military.
They chose to pay no attention to the complaints to avoid getting into trouble with their higher commanders. In the film
Outrage
, politicians abuse their power to hide information from the media, allowing them to live a secret life. Some politicians wholeheartedly campaigned against gay marriage even though they were gays themselves.
In the
Invisible War
, the team sergeants have the ability to dismiss reports of rape happening in their squad. Women constantly went up to their commanding officer to report being raped, however, the officer would take no action to solve the issue. Many times it was even the

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commanding officer who committed the rape. Both men and women are often being raped in the military. There are a couple reasons which could explain why the commanding officers do not give justice to the victim and don’t punish the perpetrator. It may be that there is not enough evidence to support the victim’s claim, it is an issue of “they say, I say,” or it may because the officer does not want to get in trouble for having rape occur in their squad. The squad leaders believe it is a sign of no control of their team if they have a rape incident occur under their watch. It may even be because the perpetrator is a good friend of the commanding officer and won’t take action against them. Lastly, it could be because the perpetrator, himself, is the commanding officer. There are many reasons that may explain why there is no action taken, however, neither one of them is justifiable. The people who are meant to protect our country can’t even protect their own soldiers from the awful experience of being raped. What’s worse is that they often make it seem as if it is the victim’s fault for being raped and no disciplinary action is taken against the rapist.
Kori Cioca, was a victim of rape in the military. Her rapist hurt her jaw during the rape.
She had to leave the military before her two years of service because of the unbearable pain. She now does not qualify for any of the military health benefits because she did not complete the two years of service. However, her rapist still serves in the Coast Guard. (1:32:31). Michael
Matthews served in the Air Force. He was struck from behind and gang raped by his peers. The identities of his assailants are still unknown to today. Michael and his wife help promote awareness of male rape in the military. (1:33:11).
It is clearly obvious that the officers are abusing of their power to save themselves from being punished. They could care less about another person’s suffering as long as it does not

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affect them. It is as if all their morals were forgotten once they became part of the military. The military is one of the places that is most prone to rape. It is a place filled with predators, soldiers who abuse others to get things done their way.
In the film,
Outrage
, politicians harshly campaign and discriminate against