US Treasury Dept. Vs. Michael Moore
I agree with questioning all of those things. But Moore is a questionable journalist at best, and an over-sensationalist documentary filmmaker. His latest film reportedly has some of the most questionable tactics of all. "Sicko" is supposed to be an indictment of the US healthcare system. Something that is long overdue, in my estimation. But this time, Moore has gone too far in his zeal to make a splashy and uber-dramatic case against the healthcare system; he took a plane to Cuba without getting the proper clearances documented for the trip. Now the U.S. Treasury Department is investigating Moore for violation of the travel embargo to Cuba. Moore will no doubt cry foul on this, but he seems to have blantantly disregarded the law. And on this one, Michael, you've underestimated your opponents far too much. Richard Nixon had his enemies list, and while George W. Bush is no Nixon (he can't even pass muster as a Wal-Mart-styled Aaron Burr), he is acutely aware of the power of the Oval Office to make life unpleasant for any thorn in the President's side. Moore has taken complete leave of his senses trying to fly to Cuba after making a film like Farenheit 9/11. It's exactly what Bush's cronies in the enforcement department have been waiting for. Chances are that up til now, they've been hoping to catch Moore in some sort of hideous prescription drug scandal. Images of Moore and Rush Limbaugh grinding up and snorting Oxycontin or injecting one another in the ass with synthetic morphine are too horrible to contemplate. But now, the man behind Farenheit 9/11 is in hot water for nothing more salacious than a plane ride. And it is his own damn fault for not putting two and two together. Just how stupid are you, mister Moore? Sadly, his brand of stupidity is the same exact brand that he accuses our president of having. Who could entertain the notion that it's a good idea to commit a nation to a world-wide war on terrorism without so much as a real timeline as to how long we might need to send our youngsters into the meat grinder? George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, Moore has the same lack of long-term thinking that Bush does. Except in Moore's case, he forgot to look backwards (to the pre-election Farenheit 9/11), whereas Bush refuses to look forward. In the end, the two could be accused of being cut from the same cloth. Moore is just the inverse of Bush; plenty of answers, but with no means to carry them out. The President has plenty of means, but no grasp on what the solutions are. Moore's future in all this is uncertain, just as Bush's future has a question mark after the next election. In ten years, we'll probably find them golfing together at the same country club, laughing about being political jousting partners once upon a time. Except that the country club will probably have to be in Scotland, as I can't see Moore sticking around to face the music when the Treasury Department nails his ass for violating the Cuba travel embargo. He'll be on the first plane out, yammering about being a political refugee. His final film before he fades into retirement will no doubt be a three-hanky saga on what a sad waste it is for him to be on the run as a political pariah. Just don't expect me to sit through it. Joe Wallace E-mail This Page | Talk About It | Return to My Column You can Bookmark & Share this article by clicking here:
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Michael Moore is a bit of a problem for me. I sympathize with some of his ideas, but his methods are complete crap. In his film Bowling For Columbine, for example, Moore railes against fearmongering in the media, the utter tastelessness of holding an NRA rally shortly after the Columbine High School massacre, and the shocking ease which people can get their hands on weapons.
