If you are a slacker like yours truly, please make the effort to go see Michael Moore's ground breaking film Fahrenheit 9/11. Last night the last horse finally crossed the finish line. Liz and I decided it was time to indulge in some lefty entertainment, but we ended up getting more than expected. We settled into the Lowe's on 3rd Ave for a 6:30pm showing of the documentary. By 9pm we both realized that everyone in America should sit down and allow this information to fuse into your conscious.
Despite the various Michael Moore lefty travesties such as his attempt to get Congress(wo)men to sign their children up for a tour of duty in Iraq, the film was packed with facts that characterized our current chief administration as a group of liars, cheats and shady businessmen. There was gore. There was disenfranchisement. There was sensationalism. Moore employed graphic images and outlandish comparisons to get his point across. The loud and clear message carried throughout the film is a general fear of another four years with Bush behind the wheel.
Besides the shudders and cold sweats that broke out during the 9/11 portion of the film (I still can't believe we resided in NYC during that uncertain period) the section of the film that affected me the most involved two Marine recruiters who cruised around Flint, Michigan attempting to enlist kids in the armed forces. It reminded me of my last couple years in high school. My friends and I used to hang around the neighborhood skating and smoking stogs on a daily basis. An army recruiter named Sergeant Quinn used to drive by and harass us. Eventually he persuaded my friend Trevor to join the army. Fortunately Trevor just missed a tour in Iraq, but the point is that Quinn's tactics did not resemble the Marines in the film. Quinn made it a point to beat down your self confidence. He repeated told us we weren't smart enough for good schools. He told us our ambitions were pipe dreams, but with some help from the army there is a chance they could be actualized. He specifically told me I wasn't smart enough to go to NYU in the same breath as telling me I'd be in poverty for the rest of my life due to loan payments. Though the latter may be true, I took great offense to his claims and he ended up threatening me to kick my ass. At that point I decided it was necessary to skip the armed forces tests they administer at my high school. For one (or two) days you get out of class to take standardized tests sent to the school by the military. There's some tax dollars at work. Anyway, my skipping of school for those two days coupled with Quinn and my poor relationship got me removed from their list of possible recruits.
In short, I highly recommend you catch this flick. If you’ve already seen it, see it again or call you parents, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles and cousins and explain the necessity of taking in this piece of historical entertainment. Together we can beat Bush and his rich friends. Or you could just agree with this clown.
They want to amend the Constitution! The fucking Constitution! Yes, that’s right folks, the Republicans are at it again. Today the Senate will vote on a Constitutional Amendment that would ban gay marriages, (thanks Builder). Are they serious? The same document that establishes our equality under the law could have a 28th Amendment that prohibits two people from sharing a life together (in our free country) due to their sexual preference.
Funny note: Some people in my office were talking about the absurdity of this proposed Amendment. When I commented that this could develop into a slippery slope that could open floodgates for something ridiculous like an Amendment stating that only women could wash dishes and men could mow the lawn, a coworker said, “Well, god didn’t tell us to do that.” WHAT THE FUCK! Does god have anything to do with it? The moral fabric of our society is not upheld because some rich people still invest in the notion of an all powerful being, it lies in the Constitution and those who believe it is the one document whose truths set us apart from the rest of the civilized world. God? Where the fuck was your god on September 11th? Where were they when I had to put someone I loved in the ground? People are idiots, and if you want to continue investing in an unfound idea, go right ahead, but don’t pull my country (and in turn my lifestyle) down with you.
9 Comments:
that last part about your coworker is fucked up. i never understood republicans and religeon have always been paired. scat turdly
scat, the funny part is, she is a liberal, but the damn grips of christianity have a hold. the funniest part is that she converted from a strick jewish way of life. to understand the link of republicans and religion, or better yet the lure has to do with the idea of control. control breeds power. republicans need a controlling agent that is above the law, without it they are no better than liberals. i completely agree with religion as a basis for morality, but thats the same as saying i believe in tradition as a basis of morality. catholics, jews, christians, whoever didn't come up with the notion of murder as a sin because god told them so. it was established because of fear for security. the republicans could benefit by some locke or mills. or better yet some rousseau. we should allow the laws defined by our appointed (but what does that mean after florida '00) officials to dictate our behavior, not the musings of a early first century story teller.
My favorite part of the documentary was when he was praising the french... :)
Oh i forgot to sign:
- audrey
audrey, i would have guessed it was you... you may be the only empahtic french girl i know, and quite frankly the only one i need to know. how was miami? will i recognize you with your new tan?
that's interesting. however, while locke, mills, and rousseau are totally applicable, i think the guy that nails this issue the hardest is herbert marcuse of the Frankfurt School of Social Criticism. if you've read him you'll know his essay on Affirmative Culture in which he explains why it's beneficial for the rich or ruling class to promote religeon and whatever else distracts the poor or downtrodden from the material inequalities of their society. i mean it's alot more involved than my stupid scentence but it's really well written and awesome to read. i don't know why i didn't think of this guy in the first place. your explanation is really interesting though. you've got me thinking pretty hard about this issue. scat turdly
Do your research. It is all lies.
sorry, you've lost me man. what research are you recommending? and what lies...?
and scat turdly which is me, i guess, wrote the above.
Post a Comment
<< Home