Episode
VICE: The Afghan Money Pit & the Pacification of Rio
Overview
The U.S. has spent nearly $100 billion on reconstruction projects in Afghanistan, the most spent on any country in history. But John Sopko, special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction, has found that much of that money has been wasted and misused, and has even fallen into the hands of the Taliban. Shane Smith heads to Afghanistan for a tour of American taxpayer dollars gone down the drain. Rio de Janeiro is working hard to remedy its reputation as a drug and murder capital in time for the upcoming World Cup and Olympics. The Special Police Operations Battalion (BOPE) has been charged with pacifying the slums (favelas), but BOPE's military occupation of increasing numbers of favelas has been criticized as heavy-handed. Some corrupt members of the BOPE, together with ex-police, have formed militia gangs of their own and are controlling many favelas by sinister means, openly extorting, torturing, killing and making criminals disappear. Still, there are hundreds of favelas, untouched by pacification, that remain under the control of drug gangs who act with complete impunity. Ben Anderson looks behind the picturesque façade of Rio's marketing campaign to reveal the dark underbelly of the city.
Details
- Series
- VICE
- Season
- Season 2
- Episode
- Episode 1
- Air date
- 2014-03-14
- Runtime
- 30 min
Episode context
The Afghan Money Pit & the Pacification of Rio is Episode 1 in Season 2 of VICE. It aired on 2014-03-14. The runtime is 30 min.
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More episodes from this season
Episode 3: American Scrap & Children of the Drones
David Choe examines the scrap metal trade in America and Suroosh Alvi explores the effects of drone strikes in Afghanistan.
Episode 4: A Syria of Their Own & White Gold
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Episode 5: Terrorist University & Armageddon Now
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Episode 6: Rocky Mountain High & North Korean Defectors
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Episode 7: The Pink Gang Rebellion & Genetic Passport
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Episode 8: The Resource Curse & Deliver Us from Drought
As humanity’s appetite for energy grows exponentially, the extraction industry scrambles to the most remote regions on Earth to satisfy demand. In the undeveloped Melanesian country of Papua New Guinea, America’s Exxon Mobil has staked its claim to a $19 billion dollar liquid natural-gas project expected to start production in late 2014. Vikram Gandhi heads to Papua New Guinea to investigate. Over in Texas, Thomas Morton investigates the climate catastrophe, and discovers firsthand the local responses, which often involve reaching out for divine intervention.
Episode 9: Crude Awakening & The Enemy of My Enemy
Shane Smith heads to Louisiana to report on the lasting effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Then, Ben Anderson goes deep into Houthi-controlled territory to learn about the group that’s fighting, and beating, Al Qaeda in the east, Saudi Arabia in the north, and Yemen’s central government in the south.
Episode 10: Playing with Nuclear Fire & No Man Left Behind
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Episode 11: Heroin Warfare & The Coldest War
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Episode 12: Surveillance City & The Forgotten War
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