Fahrenheit 9-11

Fahrenheit 9-11 will not be eligible for a Best Documentary Oscar. That’s because Michael Moore has decided to push it for Best Picture instead.

I saw the movie in New York on my fifth try, the previous four being sold out (and I mean with five or six consecutive shows sold out each time), and even then people were sitting on the stairs and on the floor to see it. The movie was also big in other urban areas, and was not even played in some parts of the Midwest. Republicans I know likened it to the Oliver Stone film JFK, meaning that it was a clever piece of fiction. Many Democrats lauded the film as an expose of the man who stole the White House. The truth, as always, lies somewhere in between.

The film obviously grabbed a ton of attention, but is it a Best Picture or even a good film? The segment on Bush sitting in that classroom like a moron on September 11th is quite damning, and the part with the poor mother whose son died in Iraq was powerful. I think he was less successful with the parts about the Bush family’s connections to the Saudis. The timeline was a bit off sometimes, and I wondered where he got some of the monetary figures. Regardless of your political beliefs, the film grabbed you in some way. In that sense, it was a good movie. Best Picture? I would have to say no, mainly because it is so unbalanced.

I must add that I hope it doesn't win. Since Bush really did win the election this time, the movie’s chances might have fallen a bit. In addition, a Best Picture win would give more ammo to all the conservatives who blame Hollywood for society’s ills. A “Michael Moore liberal” has become more evil than a regular liberal as far as conservatives are concerned, and this would turn many more people into “Moore liberals” and further infuriate Republicans. Why they’re so angry when they’ve controlled the government for a few years now and will continue to do so for at least two more, well, that’s a topic for another day. With all the attention Fahrenheit 9-11 got, it wasn’t enough to help turn Bush out of office. Nice try, but it came up short there, and ultimately, will and should come up short for Best Picture also.

Anger, Fury, Rage...and Humor

This ad was posted on craigslist.org and reported in Newsweek. It is not my ad, though I do wish I had thought of it and thank whoever did post it.

"I would like to fight a Bush supporter…If you are one, have a fiery streak, please contact me so we can meet and physically fight. I would like to beat the s--t out of you."

Thank you, Anonymous Poster.

Colin Powell- The Last of the Moderates

Colin Powell has resigned as Secretary of State and will be replaced by Condi Rice. This is scary, folks. Powell was the only moderate in the administration, the only sane one in a room full of hawks who wanted to invade Iraq ever since Bush found himself in the White House. They used 9/11 as an excuse to finally do so. Remember when Powell made that fantastic presentation to the United Nations showing our “slam-dunk” evidence that Saddam had WMD’s. He was used by the hawks to justify their upcoming invasion.

I like Powell. The only gripe I have with him is that he joined the Bush administration in the first place, signifying that he thought Bush had legitimately won the 2000 election. He was a good man in an untenable situation. However, now the inmates are in complete charge of the asylum.

John Podhoretz, a fire-breathing conservative, wrote in this morning’s NY Post that “Powell is supremely competent and effective. But he is not imaginative, and it's not surprising that his constant expressions of caution did not hold sway during the first Bush term. Caution is not a foreign policy.” He goes on to say “The great irony is this: He would have been a terrible failure as secretary of state if the president had listened to him more.”

Bush pretended to listen to this man, this beacon of caution and sanity in his administration. Now he’s gone, and that is very, very scary.

More People Fighting the Good Fight

New to this site are some links I found which may further your reading enjoyment. They're at the bottom of the page for now, until I can figure out how to move them and make them all pretty.

Please feel free to recommend more. I do have to add some reciprocal links, which I will do later on today.