Michael Moore Is A Big Fat Stupid White Man
Posts: 666
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 10:15am
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0060763957/ref=pd_nfy_3/002-9158467-3673654?v=glance&s=books

Someone was bound to go after Michael Moore eventually and this book holds nothing back. An immensely popular figure to political left-wingers, Michael Moore presents himself as a regular working-class guy in a baseball cap with the courage to take some rich and powerful folks to task for their corrupt and deceitful ways. David T. Hardy and Jason Clarke say this populist, muckraker image is pure whitewash. Believing that this charade has gone on for too long, and done too much damage to the U.S., they have written this book to expose Moore as narcissistic and irresponsible and his body of work "as manipulative as totalitarian propaganda."

To prove their point, they pick apart Moore's books and movies to illustrate how he is consistently manipulative, dishonest, and, at times, simply absurd. They show how he altered the timeline of Roger and Me in order to unfairly blame things on General Motors that happened before their layoffs, not as a result of them. Regarding Bowling for Columbine, the authors explain how he took quotes out of context and reassembled them to give the impression that people made speeches they did not make---most famously his interview with Charlton Heston, then president of the NRA. They also illustrate how Moore manipulated statistics in his books Dude, Where’s My Country and Stupid White Men to fit his theories, making some truly outrageous claims in the process.

The authors have certainly done their homework, and it's impossible to view Moore's work the same way after reading this book. "How does a man with so many contradictions manage to blind his enormous trove of followers to how hypocritical he really is? How does he get away with it?" they ask. If the authors have their way, he won't much longer. Now that Moore has joined the ranks of the rich and powerful, Hardy and Clarke have engaged in bit of muckraking of their own.


Well, it's definetly an eye-catching book title.
Posts: 4291
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 11:23am
Somehow, I'm not worried. It'll be all bollox and gasps, but since I'm not one to turn down a book that feels it has something relevent to say, I'll give it a look in Chapters.

Of course, people have always been gunning for Moore, but now I suppose he'll be getting bigger hunters. I doubt there will be much more then character assassination crap (Did ya hear what happened to Mccain in 2000? Probably the same sort of stuff) and trying to say that wether Charlton Heston did or did not say his catchphrase at Columbine really matters.

Besides, even if it turned out Michael Moore himself was not a nice guy, does that somehow make what he has discovered wrong? If he reports that the President is not fit for the job and says why, is an effective counter-point really "Yeah? Well, you suck, so what you say doesn't matter."

*shrug* There is a "mini cottage industry" on the right for Moore-Bashing, I doubt they'll have anything worthwhile to say.
Posts: 666
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 11:26am
"Yeah? Well, you suck, so what you say doesn't matter."


I don't think this is the point of the book, rather to outline any half-truths that Moore might have used in his works. Whether or not Moore is 'nice guy' is irrelevant. It's what he's said, and lead people to believe, that the authors are questioning.
Posts: 122
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 11:27am
Looks like an interesting book.

Besides, even if it turned out Michael Moore himself was not a nice guy, does that somehow make what he has discovered wrong? If he reports that the President is not fit for the job and says why, is an effective counter-point really "Yeah? Well, you suck, so what you say doesn't matter."


Sorry to say this Dolash, but this is a typical view of someone who supports someone who is discredited, liberal or conservative.

If you were talking about someone who's view you disagree with, such "not nice guy" wouldn't be trustworthy helping your grandmother across the street, let alone discussing politics.
Posts: 2462
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 4:49pm
I read the first couple of pages last time I was in the book store. It was basically "Moore sucks, Moore is a liar, we're better than you!", with no real support or arguments as to why. Granted, maybe they get more serious, but I doubt it. In all liklihood, the book presents the same tired arguments as dozens of Conservative websites that like to claim Moore is a liar. Reading some of the posotive reviews of this book is enough to discover that it is pure and unadulterated lies:

in Bowling for Columbine, he splices 2-3 different speeches that Charlton Heston gave (10 months apart),

As everyone on TRF by now knows, he edited one speech and added an infamous Heston quote to introduce the man. Hardly "splicing" two (or three) speeches.

I'll try and pick the book up next time I'm at the library, and I'll tell you exactly why you shouldn't believe everything you see in print. This is a book designed to give the Conservatives who have been targetted by Moore a little sense of revenge.
Posts: 1913
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 5:32pm
They were afraid of him. They had to try and do what he does to them, to him.

Unfortunatly, Exposing lies is one of those things that doesnt really work two ways.
Posts: 1142
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 5:39pm
The Republicans can't even be creative in their book titles. Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot has been out for a while. Ooh you really got us with the Moore title...
Posts: 2462
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 5:46pm
But they combined two funny liberal author's titles into one supertitle!!!! It must be good!!!!
Posts: 666
  • Posted On: Sep 7 2004 6:49pm
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I support the book or it's message. Then again, I don't really support Moore and his message either.
Posts: 2462
  • Posted On: Sep 8 2004 5:34am
Oh, I wasn't trying to bash you for liking the book, or anything stupid like that. Whether you do or not is up to you (though I frown upon it...). I'm just ranting about stupid white men writing stupid books about other (stupid would be a matter of opinion here) white men...

I mean, has White America finally realized racism isn't okay and started targetting itself? 'Cause that's just fucking dumb...