So who do you trust?  A Kurd elected President in Iraq or Michael Moore*, who never went to Iraq after the war started?

Let nobody mislead you, the Iraq that we inherited in April 2003, following the British and American-led liberation, was a tragedy.

The Ba’athist criminals had starved the country of an infrastructure and the people of their freedom.

Apart from the Kurdish safe haven, Iraq was a playground for thugs and a prison for the innocent.

Saddam’s war against the Iraqi people was on-going; we have evidence which demonstrates that the regime was executing its challengers until the last days of its rule.

It was that war, lasting almost forty years, which was the true war of Iraq.

We have all heard of the genocide, gassing, ethnic cleansing, mass murder and the environmental vandalism of the territory of Iraq’s historic Marsh Arabs.

We understand that there is no turning the clock back. Instead, we press ahead with democratisation and justice.

Unfortunately, Saddam’s former henchmen and religious extremist associates have chosen to fight their losing battle, which in turn has made post-liberation Iraq less stable than we would have wished.

Yet true Iraqis have largely shunned the terrorists, and their cowardly acts are increasingly becoming limited and confined to certain areas.

Please, save the “puppet” comments. You’ll need clear and concise proof that these aren’t the feelings of the Iraqi president, and I doubt you can provide it.

* Insert any other big mouth anti-war celebrity or pundit or politician here.  For obvious reasons, I choose Moore.

Giving A Little Back

Here’s a follow up to my post from yesterday about Mikey’s astonishing $5,000 scholarship fund.  I wrote:

Yes, my friends.  Michael Moore is ponying up five whole grand for the cause of “free speech.” The truly ironic thing is that this is roughly 1/6 of what he would have earned from the speaking engagement had it been allowed to take place.

Just in case anyone out there was doubting my math, here are the numbers.

(University vice president for student affairs Francine) Martinez said Moore’s $25,000 speaking fee and $12,000 security and travel accommodations would have come from a combination of funds, from the university, from student-paid campus fees and $6,500 that student government leaders voted 12-3 to spend.

Okay, for one night’s “work” Michael Moore was going to rake in almost $40,000.  According to Mike’s website the Slacker Uprising Tour was going to visit 60 cities.  Now, making the very logical assumption that Mike’s speaking fees were similar at every event, he made $2,400,000.  Not a bad haul, huh?  Especially considering that this is coming entirely from student and/or school fees of one kind or another.  Making a small stipend for your time and trouble is one thing.  Making this much profit from students is another entirely, especially in light of the fact that he ponied up a pissy $5,000 for a four-year scholarship.

(Link via A Clear Voice.)

Giving Back to the Dumbest People

Multimillionaire leftist Michael Moore, who thinks that Americans are “the dumbest people on the planet,” is taking some of the $100 million he earned from F9/11, and the $30,000 a speech he earned during his Slacker Uprising Tour, and donating to the cause of higher education.

Maverick film-maker Michael Moore on Wednesday announced a “freedom of speech” scholarship for students at a Southern California university who defy the administration and stand up for student rights.

Moore, whose popular documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11” helped polarize America in the run-up to the 2004 U.S. presidential elections, established the $2,500 award for students attending California State University San Marcos.

Moore was barred from an October 2004 speaking engagement at the university, about 35 miles north of San Diego, because there was not enough time to arrange for a speaker from the opposite side of the political spectrum.

Students responded by organizing their own protest and holding a 10,000-strong rally and concert at an off-campus venue where folk singer Joan Baez performed and Moore gave a speech.

The scholarship will be awarded to two students, for a minimum of four years, who have done the most to fight for issues of student rights by standing up to the Cal State San Marcos administration, Moore said.

“I hope this scholarship will encourage students to show courage and stand up for what they believe in,” Moore said in a statement. “The university should not be a place for fear, but a place for bravery, free thought, and a little bit of rebellion.”

Yes, my friends.  Michael Moore is ponying up five whole grand for the cause of “free speech.” The truly ironic thing is that this is roughly 1/6 of what he would have earned from the speaking engagement had it been allowed to take place.

Keep giving him your money, lefties.  Someone has to bankroll his filthy, capitalist, corporate lifestyle.  It might as well be you.

Draw a crooked line.

So yeah, things have slowed down a little bit in the world of Michael Moore commentary, but let’s be honest, it would seem Moore has virtually sequestered himself behind a big ol’ plie of money for the past few months, hence, we don’t have a lot of new stuff to talk about here.

That is, until today, when I received this e-mail from Moore:

Friends,

How’s it going? Ready for the next step?

Let me know what you’ve been up to and any ideas you have about what our next move should be (write me at the addresses below).

Meanwhile, I’ll be in conclave this week handing out goodie bags and running for pope.  Wish me well!

Yours,

Michael Moore
[email protected]
[email protected]
www.michaelmoore.com

Nope, it’s not a joke. Michael Moore has apparently run out of ideas. At least he’s out of ideas to the extent that he is appealing to every schlub (me included) on his mailing list for ideas.

I’ll tell you what I think “our” next move should be. For one, let’s kick around the idea of disbanding the whole “us and them” mentality for starters. How’s about just “us” for once? I understand that the prospect of making another 50 million bucks is appealing, but is it worth all the money in the world to continue trying to divide the country into two halves?  I think not.

Moore has the opportunity to make his next project something to really be remembered, not that Fahrenheit 9-11 won’t be remembered, but for perhaps the wrong reasons. For example, I was talking to my very Liberal next door neighbor the other day and “outed” myself as a Moorewatch writer to her. I was surprised when she lamented that all in all, she was very unhappy with Michael Moore because he basically set a tone in which everything ever said by Liberals in the future would have to be taken with a grain of salt. She said that because of the way he played fast and loose with the facts in F9/11, much of the focus about things that should be looked into got missed, like the break-down of the intelligence community’s ablity to do it’s job. Moore laid all the blame squarely on the shoulders of George Bush, and from there on the debate centered around that “thesis”, rather than really searching for the truth. She also agreed that any future criticism from Moore about Bush would be taken lightly because of the way he blew it with F9/11.

I couldn’t agree more.

So, for Moore’s next project, I’d like to suggest that he try something completey new; Investigate each issue based soley on it’s merits, and report only the truth. Moore tends to draw a straight line with his ideology. It seems he thinks that if an idea comes from a person who hails from the other side of the line, then it is dismissed as so much right wing quackery while on the other hand, any transgressions coming from folks on his side of the line go completely unscrutinized. I’d suggest he draw a crooked line, using not political party as the divining indicator, rather, right and wrong. Plain and simple.

I’l admit that ‘s probably not the perfect recipie for a blockbuster documentary, but damn, it would be refreshing.

So there, Mr. Moore. That’s my idea. Stop pretending George Bush is Satan for daring to question the solvency of Social Security (our single biggest expenditure in the US Govt.) and stop pretending that Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and a lot of other Democrats never made some very compelling arguments in the case for war in Iraq. If you do that, Michael, you might just find some allies on this side of the line who would be willing to help fight against things like “decency laws” and “national I.D. cards”. You might even gain back some of the respect you lost from your former fans.

Oh, and stop worrying about Tom Delay, Republicans eat their own. If it turns out the guy is dirty, the GOP will boot him. That’s what they do, just ask Gingrich and Lott.  They don’t play the “save our guy at any cost” game like the Dems do. If he’s not dirty, or at the very least maintaining the status quo of all politicians from all parties, then you will again look like the boy who cried wolf.

In other news:

I just received a copy of “Fahrenheit 9-12”, by Aaron I. Reichel, Esq.  I actually decided to go get a P.O. Box for “Moorewatch Only” material, and this newest book about Moore is the first thing I received. I will be reviewing it in a few weeks for you here. On first glance, it seems to go theme by theme for the entire movie, with the debunkings from Reichel, referencing noted Moore critics as Dave Kopel, Lee Troxler, Christopher Hitchens,and Dr. Kelton Rhoades. It looks very interesting and comprehensive, although I can’t seem to find any mention of Moorewatch in there.  I will give my impressions when I finish the book. In the mean time, if any of you feel you need to send me anything ( books to review, DVD’s to watch, pictures for my fridge, money (heh)) e-mail me, and when I’m satisfied you aren’t going to send me an envelope full of anthrax, I’ll tell you my address.

Open Mic: Long time no post!

We know.  Nothing to say though save for the info in Byron York’s new book, which is pretty much spelled out here.

Consider this an open thread: You make the topics!

Pest Control

Following up on the Australian gun control post from a couple of days ago, I found an interesting illustration of the differences between the US and Australia whilst perusing the news feeds today.  It seems that in Wisconsin here is a slight pest control problem, for which a uniquely American solution has been approved.

Despite passionate opposition from cat lovers, Wisconsin residents supported a plan that would allow hunters to take out wild felines that kill birds and other small mammals.

Residents who attended the meetings of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress voted Monday night to allow hunters to kill cats at will, just like skunks or gophers - something the Humane Society of the United States called cruel and archaic.

Wild, feral cats are to be treated just like any other wild pest.  Okay, now let’s compare that to Australia, which has a poison toad problem.

Poisonous toads causing a menace across northern Australia should be clubbed to death with cricket bats an
d golf clubs, an MP has said.

David Tollner’s crude tactic has understandably outraged animal rights campaigners.

But the Liberal Party politician said the method for dispatching cane toads proved successful when he was a child.

Mr Tollner, member for the Northern Territory, told ABC radio: “We hit them with cricket bats and golf clubs and the like.

“I think if people could be encouraged rather than discouraged (to attack them) the better the chance will be of stopping the cane toads.”

Two similar problems, two totally different solutions.  It reminded me of the difference between Australian and American attitudes towards self defense.  In Australia, if you hear someone breaking in your house in the middle of the night, you should grab whatever non-lethal piece of sporting equipment you can find and try and scare the intruder off.  In America you just shoot the fucker.

Tax day?  No way!  Buy-A-Gun Day!

It’s that time of year again folks.  If you’ve been looking at a particular firearm and longing to add it to your collection, why not make a statement at the same time?

Unfortunately I do not have the funds to participate this year, but you can bet your butt that when I do...I will.  So let me live vicariously...if you decide to buy one, drop me a comment and tell me what you got so I can get good and envious. 

Live From Beyond the Grave

Believe it or not, I am still alive, which might not have been evident from my utter lack of posting here for at least the past few weeks.  But I have a couple of posts up regarding gun control over on my main blog, and I thought that you Moorewatchers might find them interesting.  The first post is called Self Defense.  It ended up generating a thoughtful response from an Australian reader, which I responded to in this post called Master Blaster.  Enjoy!

Update: I’ve got one more you might be interested in, covering how the Republicans wasted their political capital.

A positive view of Iraq

Drumwaster has a piece that everyone who opposed action in Iraq should read.

It’s worth a few minutes of your time.  Take a look, digest what he’s saying and then reply.  And think how Moore portrayed the people that made it happen.

Now ask yourselves: Is this someone from whom I should get ideas about how the world really is?

A favor

OK, love us or hate us, you’re here.  Every day.  So help a brotha out.  Look in the upper right-hand corner.  See that ad for ipodlounge’s Buyer’s Guide?  Click it.  ONCE!  Maybe once every few days.  I’m trying to win a pair of very expensive headphones because mine are dying.  They happen to be giving away the very ‘phones I swear by, the Shure E5c.

Actually my E5s are turning green and the plastic sheathing on the wires is disintigrating.  It’s kind of gross.  So I need new ones.  No money need change hands...just click, ONCE PLEASE, they are tracking IP numbers.

If I win...I’ll..umm..do something.  For you.  As long as it doesn’t involve my nipples.  Or fire.

Since this is an off-topic bleg...let the free-for-all commence.  Comments are open to any and all topics except Terry Schiavo and the Pope.  Let’s be a Schiavo/Pope-free zone, whattya say?

The Minutemen of Mike’s dreams

This is worth reading if you’re interested in developments in Iraq.

Seated before an Iraqi flag, the dejected and cowed prisoners answer questions from an off-camera inquisitor who mocks their behavior. Some sport bruised faces and black eyes. Far from appearing to be confident heroes battling U.S. occupation, they come across as gangsters.

“I watch the show every night, and I wait for it patiently, because it is very revealing,” said Abdul Kareem Abdulla, 42, a Baghdad shop owner. “For the first time, we saw those who claim to be jihadists as simple $50 murderers who would do everything in the name of Islam. Our religion is too lofty, noble and humane to have such thugs and killers. I wish they would hang them now, and in the same place where they did their crimes. They should never be given any mercy.”

They are the REVOLUTION, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow—and they will win.” - Michael Moore, 4/14/2004.

So...do I have to say it, or will Moore’s sychophants finally admit it?

Sabah Kadhim, an Interior Ministry spokesman, added, “The last few weeks have been incredible in terms of tips coming in from the public.”

Officials launched the program, Kadhim said, after realizing that Iraqis did not believe that insurgents were being arrested. “Talking to people in the street, they say, ‘Is it really true? . . . Why don’t you show it?’ “ he recalled. “The demand for this came from the people.”

They are the REVOLUTION, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow—and they will win.” - Michael Moore, 4/14/2004.

Mikey, Mikey, Mikey.  Are you determined to forever be on the wrong side of every single thing in America?  Because that, ultimately, is your legacy.  Even your fans know you;re a liar and that you go too far.  I suppose the money fills the hole in your soul that drives you, though.

Many of the suspects are former policemen who claim they were coerced into joining the insurgency by threats against their families. Though many claim to have attacked U.S. forces, the interviews focus on their atrocities against Iraqis and payments they allegedly received from Syrian and Saudi paymasters.

They are the REVOLUTION, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow—and they will win.” - Michael Moore, 4/14/2004.

Some Minutemen you got there, Mikey.

The company we keep, an ongoing series

Mikey sure knows how to pick his friends.

With an early fundraising blitz, the online liberal advocacy group MoveOn.org has shown both its potential as a Democratic asset and a Republican target in the 2006 elections.

In less than three days last week, the group’s political action committee raised from its members nearly $833,000 for Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.), who next year could face his first competitive race in decades.

Isn’t that nice.  MoveOn is supporting a man who was the grand kleagle of the Klu Klux Klan.  I guess this is “progressive.”

Hey MoveOn: why not ask your friend SpongeMike to appear at rallies for Byrd?  You could dress him up in a California King-sized sheet and everything.  He’s got a great track record at getting politicians elected, I swear.

No, seriously, he does, why are you laughing?