I couldn't make it out to see Bourne Supremacy, adding that movie to the list of things I wanted to see but haven't seen yet:
Kill Bill vol 2
Manchurian Candidate
I, Robot
and Fahrenheit 9/11
I only recently saw Michael Moore's other film, Bowling for Columbine. I actually went into seeing the movie with some very low expectations, given the amount of criticism and flaws that had been pointed out in Bowling's production since it's release. I came away from the movie with a much different experience; to me I didn't see the movie as a criticism of gun control or gun ownership, it's biggest message to me was one that I've echoed for quite a while: a criticism of the mass media.
Reading things like Ted Turner's take on big media further illustrate the problems with mass media today. I'm eager to see Fahrenheit 9/11 not because I think our foreign policy has deteriorated beyond belief, but because I'd like to see how much Moore takes the media to task on the reasons we are where we are today. Unfortunately the masses still aren't being taught exactly why things are the way they are, instead it's deemed much more important to report on vague terror alerts, the daily death toll in Iraq, etc... I'm all for reporting all the bad stuff along with the good in the world, but I think a huge duty of the media is also to educate, to truly inform and not just to drive up ratings. I spent my middle, high school learning more than I wanted to know about European history again and again, but never really understanding the middle east and how it came to be. It wasn't until I made the decision to take a class on it in college did I begin to understand the origins of why that part of the world is in such a mess in a lot of senses. Unfortunately, it's all too easy to hate and a little less easy to learn first, which definitely doesn't help the situation at all.
I've got a Macdate coming today, I felt the need to write some before I went to bed though which is where this post came from :)
Goodnight folks.
Kill Bill vol 2
Manchurian Candidate
I, Robot
and Fahrenheit 9/11
I only recently saw Michael Moore's other film, Bowling for Columbine. I actually went into seeing the movie with some very low expectations, given the amount of criticism and flaws that had been pointed out in Bowling's production since it's release. I came away from the movie with a much different experience; to me I didn't see the movie as a criticism of gun control or gun ownership, it's biggest message to me was one that I've echoed for quite a while: a criticism of the mass media.
Reading things like Ted Turner's take on big media further illustrate the problems with mass media today. I'm eager to see Fahrenheit 9/11 not because I think our foreign policy has deteriorated beyond belief, but because I'd like to see how much Moore takes the media to task on the reasons we are where we are today. Unfortunately the masses still aren't being taught exactly why things are the way they are, instead it's deemed much more important to report on vague terror alerts, the daily death toll in Iraq, etc... I'm all for reporting all the bad stuff along with the good in the world, but I think a huge duty of the media is also to educate, to truly inform and not just to drive up ratings. I spent my middle, high school learning more than I wanted to know about European history again and again, but never really understanding the middle east and how it came to be. It wasn't until I made the decision to take a class on it in college did I begin to understand the origins of why that part of the world is in such a mess in a lot of senses. Unfortunately, it's all too easy to hate and a little less easy to learn first, which definitely doesn't help the situation at all.
I've got a Macdate coming today, I felt the need to write some before I went to bed though which is where this post came from :)
Goodnight folks.
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bluewall21 - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
You should also read Michael Moore's book, Dude, Where's My Country.Gino - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
The criticism of Fahrenheit 9/11 is way overblown. Unless you’re a total Republican partisan, the film’s take on Bush isn’t very controversial. Rich people get rich. Poor people get poorer—and then die in Iraq.Cynical Gen Xers like myself won’t find it earthshaking.
See the movie before criticizing it.
roostercrows - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
I can't imagine that you have any "free time" but if you like "kill Bill" consider watching the "Zatoichi" series that Quentin watched to get ideas to make "Kill Bill". very cool! If you have time to read, try "World on Fire" by Amy Chua. You will never look at globalization and ethnic hatred, free markets or imposing democracy on third world countries/economies the same way again.Kerry 04 - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
Anand,You should go here http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/f911notes/ it's Michael Moore's direct response to david kopel's article. Michael has proof and cites sources as well.
Anand Lal Shimpi - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
PorBleemoThey're coming, I will address that in today's Macdate :)
Stuart
I appreciate your comments and it's good to see that we can have pro and anti-bush supporters in the same thread having a civilized discussion. I think you hit the nail on the head with your comment about sports teams.
I never think either side of the fence is completely right, it's always a compromise between the two that ends up being the best overall solution. But then again, who ever roots for both teams in basketball? Maybe more people should :)
Take care,
Anand
Anand Lal Shimpi - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
GTaudiophileIt's even worse than that. People here turn on the news and see so much hatred for the US, especially from the middle east, and no one is ever told why - other than the vague and horribly incorrect "they just hate freedom" garbage that's spewed all too often. Doesn't anyone ever wonder what made Iraq such a mess in the first place? All we hear about in World War I is about who started it and who won, the ramifications of the war on the middle east are rarely touched or understood. We hear - Germany lost - end of story. Does anyone wonder how Bin Laden got to have such a powerful army of devote supporters?
A "problem" with our short presidential terms is that the decisions that are made while someone is in office are only designed with a maximum 8-year scope in mind. It's a great defense against a dictator staying in power indefinitely, but it's also a great way to ensure that the jobs of future presidents are spent fixing the mistakes of past presidents.
I agree with you GT to some degree on Iraq. I thought it was the right decision to go in, but it's a decision that honestly should have been made long ago. If you're going to "free" people then do it at the first signs of injustice, not almost 20 years later and then claim it was to free the people. But I do agree that now that we've done it, we need to stay and finish the job.
There was a point in middle eastern history that the middle east actually favored the US - it's been in relatively recently (past few decades) that the tides have turned to hatred.
It's not an easy problem to solve, but educating the masses is a critical and necessary step to bridging the gap in my opinion. It's not like people in the middle east get up every day and think of ways to hate America; and on the flip side, it's not like Americans get up every day and think of ways to invade and oppress middle easterners - yet I think to a certain extent, people on both sides may believe a bit of that.
As far as Moore goes, I don't like that he takes things out of context (if the allegations are indeed true). However the one thing I've realized is that the people that have criticized Moore in the past are largely much more confrontational than Moore himself. By reading all the debate about Moore I expected Bowling to be a clearly biased overly liberal movie about gun control, and maybe it's just me but I didn't see that at all.
I don't believe Moore does the best job of bringing these issues to light, but he does a better job than anyone else I've seen.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I honestly think the media has failed in a number of areas recently, especially when it comes to educating the masses on why things are the way they are. Too many people have died already, we lost thousands of innocent lives on 9/11 and more since then. Yet the public is only being told how many died, not why. Organizations like CNN, Fox News, etc... should exhibit a bit more responsibility and try to put out news that's a bit more informative than what they do. It's like only posting benchmark graphs and no architectural information on why a chip performs the way it does when we review one - a lot of you would go elsewhere for your reviews. The problem with world news is that there are no alternatives that do a better job.
Take care,
Anand
Stuart - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
Anand,Just for reference, I find myself on the Pro-Bush side of the fence. I feel that the "documentAnand,
Just for reference, I am on the Pro-Bush side of the fence. I feel that the "documentaries," mentioned above are more interested in proving their points, than in telling the *whole* story. IE what Adam said. I would also argue that the "right" choice in life isn't always an easy choice. Sometimes it's lose (Fight an unpopular war) - lose (Back down after n UN resolutions & related violations). However, I understand that politics is very much like sports, in that you always see your "team's" motives as pure, and the other "team's" motives/actions as wrong.
HOWEVER, what really made me post, was to thank you for posting your political thoughts in an appropriate forum, like this Blog. Too often I see political swipes sneak into my favorite websites and TV shows. I'm talking about places like this site's competitors and shows like TechTV's X-Play. I've never noticed anything like that on Anandtech though. Kudos to you and your crew!
PorBleemo - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
Speaking of Macdate, when could we expect an article for the Macintosh section? :)Adam - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
Anand,Here is the web address of a critic of Farenheit 911. This is the most intelligent and careful critic I have read. He hyperlinks extensively to his sources (as well as to any relevant rebuttals (usually indirect) by Michael Moore). The writer is a libertarian and a contributor to the conservative National Review. He does nitpick in some cases; nonethelss, for its careful logic and links to a huge variety of sources it is worth a look.
http://www.davidkopel.com/Terror/Fiftysix-Deceits-...
And here is an example of one of the worst "deceits" -- actually this is flat out distortion.
...
Fahrenheit shows Condoleezza Rice saying, "Oh, indeed there is a tie between Iraq and what happened on 9/11." The audience laughs derisively. Here is what Rice really said on the CBS Early Show, Nov. 28, 2003:
Oh, indeed there is a tie between Iraq and what happened on 9/11. It?s not that Saddam Hussein was somehow himself and his regime involved in 9/11, but, if you think about what caused 9/11, it is the rise of ideologies of hatred that lead people to drive airplanes into buildings in New York. This is a great terrorist, international terrorist network that is determined to defeat freedom. It has perverted Islam from a peaceful religion into one in which they call on it for violence. And they're all linked. And Iraq is a central front because, if and when, and we will, we change the nature of Iraq to a place that is peaceful and democratic and prosperous in the heart of the Middle East, you will begin to change the Middle East....
Moore deceptively cut the Rice quote to fool the audience into thinking she was making a particular claim, even though she was pointedly not making such a claim. And since Rice spoke in November 2003, her quote had nothing to do with building up American fears before the March 2003 invasion, although Moore implies otherwise.
W 04 - Friday, August 6, 2004 - link
If you want to be truly informed then Fahrenheit 9/11 is the wrong movie to watch.