Michael Moore Goes After…Himself?
by Cam CannonLast weekend, Michael Phillips and A.O. Scott reviewed, among other films, Michael Moore’s latest farce, “Capitalism: A Love Story.” I don’t know their track records or political leanings, but Phillips for one noticed that Michael Moore is growing tiresome. He didn’t mention the blatant hypocrisy of a multi-millionaire who has reaped the benefits of capitalism calling for its demise, but still, he’s getting tired of the schtick, which leaves me hopeful.
A.O. Scott raved about the movie, and I agree on one hand that Michael Moore has finally chosen the most logical topic for his kind of film. At least Michael Moore has the nerve to finally say it: he doesn’t like capitalism. It’s absurd, it’s ridiculous, it’s akin to Lieutenant Kaffee rising and sleeping under the very blanket of freedom that Colonel Jessep provides, then questioning the manner in which he, Colonel Jessup, provides it. I’m sure Goldman Sachs would rather Mikey just thank them and go on his way… but I digress…
Scott said something at the end of his review that made me mutter “typical liberal.” To paraphrase, he said that we should all see this movie even if we disagree with Moore. Again, I don’t know if he’s a liberal. He did say he wasn’t sure if he agreed with Moore or not.
My problem with this sentiment, even from someone who’s unsure of whether they agree with Moore or not, is that it fails to acknowledge that Moore’s work is propaganda. Furthermore, why do I need to see it? It’s just a movie. No one ever gets real serious and says to a liberal, “Even if you disagree with Ann Coulter, you should read her latest column.” And that’s what Moore’s movies are, commentary, the cinematic equivalent of a column.
Roger Ebert prefaced his latest Michael Moore interview with a similar disclaimer: “Whether or not you agree with Michael Moore, he has one piece of invaluable advice in his new film…” Moore goes on to explain derivatives and the stock market crash, and included in the interview is this non-sequitur:
One guy comes to the table and takes nine slices of the pie and everybody else at the table has to split the last slice. That’s not democracy; that’s not what Jesus said. All the great religions actually say the same thing, they all have the same basic beliefs about how to treat the poor and how the rich are not to suck everything up and make life miserable for everybody else.
There’s no real preface to this illustration, but a couple of things stand out to me. One, the illustration has nothing to do with Democracy. He’s confusing his targets here, and we’re not a Democracy, anyway. Two, he brings up Jesus. How come he gets away with that, and conservatives don’t?
My real problem with liberal attacks on capitalism, and I don’t need to see Moore’s MOVIE to know this, is that they’re not really attacking capitalism. They’re attacking greed. They say they want to regulate Wall Street, but they really think we can get rid of greed. This is, at best, naïve. Let’s regulate and eliminate lust, sloth, envy, pride, wrath, and gluttony while we’re at it. I know, Mike. That last one hurts, huh?
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by coco Samantha konski. coco Samantha konski said: RT @bighollywood: Michael Moore Goes After…Himself? http://bit.ly/7aUJ6 [...]
If what I have read is correct about Moore not using union labor to make his movie, then he is not only a hypocrite, but also an unwitting follower of classical liberal economic policy with regards to open competition for jobs among the labor force. Kudos to Moore for proving in more ways than one that free market capitalism is a success.
Hippo-crit, (Capitalism did nothing for me).
Quite the contrary, Capitalism provided Mr. Moore with an endless supply of food, that has contributed mightily to his excessive body fat. When hippo-ness is not lamenting the perils of Capitalism he uses his mouth to ravenously injest food as if the worlds resources in it were in peril.
On entering any super market, his stated goal is is the destruction of food through the consumption of it.
This well-stacked fat-lard is prosperous and wealthy, with an impressive FAT bank accout that he accumulated by his own labors that capitalism made possible—and he rails aganist the very thing that made him rich, more then enough to gratify his perpetual hunger.
Greed? GREED? But Wall Street is not taking half of what I earn to spend much of it it in ways I don´t approve of. CEOs are not bankrupting the country, just their (private) companies. Failing industries aren´t bailing themselves out. Businesses don´t write themselves checks to build bridges to nowhere. Government is doing that.
I don´t care if he´s a hypocrite. He is wrong. He would be wrong even if he gave all his money away tomorrow.
I'm confused. Yesterday I read a review of this movie–can't remember where; quite possibly here–that said that Moore's argument isn't against capitalism per se, but only against capitalism as it has been practiced for the last 30 years (since the dawn of Reagan). Now, I'm not sure exactly what he means by that, but I do know that pre-1980 capitalism in America was still more or less capitalism. The author of the piece I read also made a point of emphasizing that Moore is not arguing in favor of socialism, fascism, or communism.
If this is true, then the movie sounds pretty benign to me, at least by contemporary standards: lassez faire bad, government regulation good. Typical liberal position.
Michael Moore created a product, made it available in the marketplace, promoted it and profited from it.
Capitalism.
How difficult is it ?
When did the comic book guy from the Simpsons start doing movies?
He can downplay his hypocrisy and his undeserved multi-millionaire status all he likes, but one thing is for certain KFC shareholders can't thank Moore enough.
he desperately needs an education, i recommended this site:
http://www.conservative-resources.com/definition-...
I'm going to be repenting for this later, but… Michael Moore looks like he had a heck of a lot more than just nine pieces of that pie.
That's the zero-sum theory that people keep clinging to. Moore ends the film by saying that Katrina victims "are left with nothing. Because these people (the rich) took it all."
The pie thing is not capitalism, capitalism is someone says, hey, there's only one piece of pie left, I'll make
more and sell it to you. Then you can buy and eat as much as you want.
Besides, I might see this movie if it's free, that would be the opposite of capitalism.
Stop eating all the damn pies, Michael!!!
I argued last week with guy on the right as I sipped a beer and he did the same while smoking a cig. Once we nationalize health care it open alot of scary options. There are a heck of a lot of Americans that don't smoke and a bunch that don't drink. What happens when a candidate includes in his ticket " cigarettes are unhealthy. I vow to make cigarettes illegal which will greatly reduce our health care costs over the next 20 years.
Don't want to sound too ignorant, but what the heck is the "S" on his hat for?
"Stupid?"
"Simpleton?"
"sh** for brains?"
Inquiring minds want to know?
Michael Moore is just creating another point of weakness in American culture. These ignorant Social Marxists really don't know what they are asking us to believe in. Most hard Liberals I know personally don't have a tight grasp on politics and how "power" works from the top-down. They have a warm-fuzzy dream in their heads about the role of government, which will NEVER be reality. They are dangerous people, because they are chewing away at the fabric of a good country and creating a gaping hole in our future. If faux-Marxists were to, as useful idiots, unravel America, they would most likely be disposed of, just like in the Soviet Union. They had a function, they got the job done, then they were no longer useful. That's Marxist reality… Michael Moore would be screaming like a pig at what he helped create, he'd get an Oscar for Best Idiot, and then shot.
Capitalism is nothing more than the private ownership of capital, goods and property.
It is a revolutionary concept. It is the American Enlightenment.
http://www.popmodal.com/video/3626/State-Capitali...
I hate that stupid- "we all have to fight over the last slice of pie" arguement- because capital, unlike pie, doesn't get consumed and then disapears forever. It can be grown into more capital if we have the initiative. Capital is not a finite resourse, as Mr. Moore would have us believe.
PS- He argues that we go back to pre- 1970s capitalism. Didn't a couple of greedy guys named Rockefeller and Carnige do business back then?
The only question is where on the hit list to put his freakin name, and whether to to strangle him with the guts of other leftists or use his guts to strangle those others.
Target-rich environment…must restrain myself…
Michael Moore knows as much about capitalism, as David Letterman knows about self restraint, Whoopi Goldberg does about circumspection, Reid and Pelosi about fiscal responsibility, and Barrack Hussein Obama about humility…
Its pretty bad that the brains around there for the last week has been Polanski. He at least knows what would happen to him if they throw him into a jail population of criminals, more than a few of which got their futures ruined by someone just like him…
As a conservative, I really hate to say this…I really miss Bush…
Your link to the definition of capitalism is exactly what I hope is being made available to students in our education system. Lately I doubt it….
"noticed that Michael Moore is growing tiresome"
Growing tiresome? Moore has never not been tiresome. I don't know how his asinine personality and intellectual vacuity could possibly escape anyone's notice for 2 decades.
The response should have been to buy Ann Coulter's book, not read her column for free. Every day we have opportunities to vote our ideology, and we should all think about it before we do. Every purchase we make, and all of those that we don't, is our way of showing our support for or against that product, service, company, person, etc. It is stupid to suggest we pay money (i.e. vote) for Michael Moore's movies, even if we disagree with him. Moore doesn't care whether we agree with him or not. He only cares that we support him financially.
Every time you shop at store A instead of B, or pick product X instead of Y, you are voting your support for A&X, and expressing your dislike for B&Y. Wal-Mart isn't an evil monster trying to destroy small Mom and Pop businesses … you are. People vote for Wal-Mart and products made in China millions of times every day. They may talk a good game, but they walk into Wal-Mart to cast their vote.
Just like on election day, your vote counts. Think before vote, whether at the check-out or the ballot box!!
I was trying to point out the irony of the situation. Of course every time Moore opens his mouth he is wrong but his success is a testament to how the free market works when the government does not intervene in it. Every time he opens his mouth it should be brought up that his intitial success as an "independent" film maker, despite oppostion by big corporations, represents one of the fundamentals of the free market: a producer offers a good or service not currently offered by other producers and the public consciously decides to use some of their money to buy that good or service. It should be repeated over and over again that Moore, despite his words to the contrary, represents the quintescential free market capitalist entrepreneur. It will both prove our point and drive him insane.
"One guy comes to the table and takes nine slices of the pie and everybody else at the table has to split the last slice. That’s not democracy; that’s not what Jesus said. All the great religions actually say the same thing, they all have the same basic beliefs about how to treat the poor and how the rich are not to suck everything up and make life miserable for everybody else."
If it was me…I'd go to the kitchen and bake myself a freakin' pie. I mean, really. A free slice of pie and your complaining. That's what they want. A free slice of pie-no work involved.
Michael Moore can't even reach most of himself. I'd be hacked off too if I hadn't seen my wiener since Carter was president.
Touché
Good point Mr. Cannon about "even if you don't agree…" This plea never goes the other way…I try it at times…mostly folks say…"that's okay, they might make some valid points but I just think…" What they just think is whatever the hell they want to think and they aren't in the mood to work at validating it or *gasp* changing the way they think.
Didn't have the opportunity to sneak into this over the weekend because I'm curious but my wife will not let me "pay" to see a Michael Moore film…so "Whip it" and "Zombieland" got our movie money this weekend.
-M
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