The Taliban is on the run. Machine guns blast their targets. Ruthlessly calculated bombing raids hit strategic points, bursting pipelines of dashed hopes. But with the decreasing attention spans of both the general public and simulation-experienced military, the call rings out for the big weapons … consequences be damned.

Yes, kids, Mr. President has entered the secret code, pulled off the glass case and with trembling thumbs … depressed a button no one ever thought would come into play. The button opens up a small hole in the Oval Office desk, from which a dusty red phone slowly rises from depths unknown. George W. Bush picks up the receiver and waits …

“Hello?”

“Ah, yes, this is President Bush.”

“I see. It’s come down to this. Yo, good thing I’ve been working out. If this would have happened when shooting ‘Copland,’ well …”

“Get your headband on, Sly Stallone. We need a hero & America’s counting on you.”

This situation isn’t just one of those “wacky” scenarios that fill the heads of delusional action movie fans. On Sunday, White House strategist Karl Rove met with Hollywood moguls in Beverly Hills to sip cocktails, talk about cool Web sites and discuss how the industry could aid the anti-terror initiative. Maybe Stallone was there, maybe not. We’ll have to wait for the Variety gossip columns for that information.

According to Entertainment Weekly, the entertainment posse didn’t discuss propagandistic feature films. Rather, the production studio heads heard a call for documentaries, movie trailers and public service announcements for anti-terror sentiments.

This situation, although laughable in its possibilities, also becomes worrisome after extended thought. What can we expect? Will we see signs of propaganda soon? And will this in any way affect the uber cool “Star Wars: Episode Two” trailer currently causing so much drooling in movie theaters nationwide?

The entertainment world certainly has supported initial patriotic activities, what with so many benefit concerts that even bands like Smashmouth have helped the nation. And if that doesn’t give you that conflicting feeling of sadness and acceptance, then nothing will.

But with many indications leaning toward a long, drawn-out struggle, this would allow Hollywood and the major studios to prepare things for at least a spring release on any creative efforts. Hey, don’t complain, stuff the quality of “Domestic Disturbance” takes time!

While some may argue the philosophical implications of entertainment intervention on the PR lines, we must realize that this is Hollywood and there are a few givens. One, execs are more out of touch than Mike Tyson at a linguistics colloquium. And two, nothing stands in the way of juggernauts & be it the American military or Harry Potter.

As the meeting took place Sunday, a fevered pitch reached thermometer-busting levels for “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Some in the entertainment world who are paid to guess about such things think that the movie could generate the highest first-weekend box office return in history. And like it or not, viewers will be much more upset over Potter’s roving lightning scar than the wily Osama bin Laden.

All dramatic tension is gone in this real-world-cum-cinematic-spectacle landscape. Sept. 11 brought sadness but the realization of inevitable come-uppance. Now, we don’t need Alec Baldwin talking about the troubles with terror. Instead, after dodging anthrax news reports and performing daily activities, most people just want to trust the military and its sheer power.

But if the U.S. really wanted to get Hollywood involved, there’s only one way. A cave-hopping, gun-toting John Rambo knows that three movies just isn’t enough for his bad-arse veteran exploits. Stallone should stay by the phone, just in case.