Thursday, August 10, 2006
Wherein I Assert That Michael Moore Should STFU
The excerpt below is from an open letter on Michael Moore's website. It simultaneously conveys the fact that Moore's super-sized ego and rampaging delusions of grandeur are only outmatched in scope by his astounding lack of judgement. Warns Moore, invoking an army of Americans that he does not speak for, control or, to put it mildly, fully understand:
What sanctimonious and doctrinaire bilge. Note to Mike: there are far too many intelligent, talented and able men and women who supported this war, and that prior support should not be used as a rigid litmus test to forever discredit and marginalize them. It would be a grievous self-inflicted wound to shut out such a vast expanse of insight, creative thought and intellectual rigor.
And who, exactly, gave you the keys to the "promised land"? What makes you so certain you understand the motives behind this or any other electoral manifestation?
The reasons for opposing Joe Lieberman were many - and it certainly wasn't all about the war. Many hawkish Democrats will continue to enjoy the support of their constituencies because, unlike Lieberman, they remain committed to Democratic Party principles such as the preservation of Social Security, preservation of reproductive rights, preservation of separation of powers, opposition to torture (imagine that?) and defense of the right to criticize the President (who happens to be, er, a Republican). These Democrats, who shall not be hunted down by Moore's imaginary hordes, don't look for every opportunity to play the GOP's useful idiot by savaging their own party with the compulsion of an addict. That matters.
The Lieberman loss was as much about Joe being Bush and Hannity's favorite Democrat as it was about his support for the war - though his particular brand of support (detached from reality, as Michael Ware described, and refusing to acknowledge any error) was certainly a major factor.
So Mike, please, put a sock in it.
Speaking of foolish pontificating on the Lieberman/Lamont showdown, Ann Coulter just couldn't stomach the possibility that someone else might have something less informed and less intelligent to say than her on the subject. Although, unlike Moore and in his defense, Coulter comes with her typical dose of the vile. Says Coulter about African American Congresswoman Maxine Waters [emphasis mine]:
Paper hat, huh? Wow.
Let the resounding defeat of Senator Joe Lieberman send a cold shiver down the spine of every Democrat who supported the invasion of Iraq and who continues to support, in any way, this senseless, immoral, unwinnable war. Make no mistake about it: We, the majority of Americans, want this war ended -- and we will actively work to defeat each and every one of you who does not support an immediate end to this war.Hey Mike, honestly, did you get this screed from Karl Rove's playbook? Could there be a more damaging narrative than that of a strict ideological purge within the Democratic Party based on the Iraq War - one that not only expunges those candidates that currently support the war, but even those that have openly admitted to the mistake of their past support and advised a change in policy?
Nearly every Democrat set to run for president in 2008 is responsible for this war. They voted for it or they supported it. That single, stupid decision has cost us 2,592 American lives and tens of thousands of Iraqi lives. Lieberman and Company made a colossal mistake and we are going to make sure they pay for that mistake. Payback time started last night.
I realize that there are those like Kerry and Edwards who have now changed their position and are strongly anti-war. Perhaps that switch will be enough for some to support them. For others, like me -- while I'm glad they've seen the light -- their massive error in judgment is, sadly, proof that they are not fit for the job. They sided with Bush, and for that, they may never enter the promised land.
What sanctimonious and doctrinaire bilge. Note to Mike: there are far too many intelligent, talented and able men and women who supported this war, and that prior support should not be used as a rigid litmus test to forever discredit and marginalize them. It would be a grievous self-inflicted wound to shut out such a vast expanse of insight, creative thought and intellectual rigor.
And who, exactly, gave you the keys to the "promised land"? What makes you so certain you understand the motives behind this or any other electoral manifestation?
The reasons for opposing Joe Lieberman were many - and it certainly wasn't all about the war. Many hawkish Democrats will continue to enjoy the support of their constituencies because, unlike Lieberman, they remain committed to Democratic Party principles such as the preservation of Social Security, preservation of reproductive rights, preservation of separation of powers, opposition to torture (imagine that?) and defense of the right to criticize the President (who happens to be, er, a Republican). These Democrats, who shall not be hunted down by Moore's imaginary hordes, don't look for every opportunity to play the GOP's useful idiot by savaging their own party with the compulsion of an addict. That matters.
The Lieberman loss was as much about Joe being Bush and Hannity's favorite Democrat as it was about his support for the war - though his particular brand of support (detached from reality, as Michael Ware described, and refusing to acknowledge any error) was certainly a major factor.
So Mike, please, put a sock in it.
Speaking of foolish pontificating on the Lieberman/Lamont showdown, Ann Coulter just couldn't stomach the possibility that someone else might have something less informed and less intelligent to say than her on the subject. Although, unlike Moore and in his defense, Coulter comes with her typical dose of the vile. Says Coulter about African American Congresswoman Maxine Waters [emphasis mine]:
Congresswoman Maxine Waters had parachuted into Connecticut earlier in the week to campaign against [Sen. Joseph I.] Lieberman because he once expressed reservations about affirmative action, without which she would not have a job that didn't involve wearing a paper hat. Waters also considers Joe "soft" on the issue of the CIA inventing crack cocaine and AIDS to kill all the black people in America.Sweet. If I didn't know already that racism magically no longer exists in America, I might assume that mainstream media darling Coulter just stepped over the line.
Paper hat, huh? Wow.
