tina wrote:
] And thats why people were clapping. They started to realize
] they weren't offending people, that a lot of people actually
] agreed! You can love your country and still love peace, you
] can question your government without questioning democracy.
] These truths seem so self-evident, but when's the last time
] you heard them being said while bunch of people clapped?

Tina's response to my 9/11 post is worth a read.

RE: Fahrenheit 9/11 in 4 Sentences

] Jihad today has become an individual duty that applies to
] each and every Muslim. It is forbidden for a person to
] remain silent. When the Muslims fought in
] Afghanistan they destroyed the Soviet Union, which was a
] superpower. It collapsed and Allah willing, so will this
] [the U.S.] collapse.

A sampling of the state run television in Saudi Arabia

Rattle wrote:
] The election was bullshit. The Bush family has many financial
] ties to the Saudis. The Bush family makes money from war.
] The troops are the real victims, support the troops. Eat the
] rich.

The first thing about this movie is that it didn't piss me off as much as I thought it would. Thats mostly because Moore's cheap shots didn't overpower his footage.

Footage of soldiers in Iraq. Their attitudes. What life is like over there. Amputees. Innocent bystanders with their faces burned up. Mothers on both sides screaming at the camera over their lost children. People crying in fear. All of the horror of what is going on juxtaposed with the insolence of business development types who are salivating at the opportunities presented by an open Iraq. Juxtaposed with our stupid media coverage.

You should see it because it is the raw war footage thats been missing from the television. If there is any point that Moore makes that I absolutely agree with, its that the giddy, sports fan coverage that the U.S. media gave of the invasion of Iraq was absolutely disgusting, absolutely disgusting, when held against the horrific reality of what was going on. It was death as a spectator event. Like the roman coliseum. When you see the reality of it held next to our news coverage, our attitudes, you will not think us such an advanced culture.

The movie is worth seeing for that reason.

Does Moore lie? Yes, he certainly does. He says most of the people in Congress haven't read the Patriot act. He says Iraq never murdered Americans. He says that most of Al'Q and the Taliban have escaped. He raises numerous conspiracy theories about Florida, including the implication that Fox News had something to do with it, without providing any proof. He makes the unqualified statement that people who died on 9/11 died "as the result of our actions." The insane leftist attitude that Al'Q are like children who can't be held responsible for the things they do.

The movie, on the whole, presented, in a propagandistic way, the view that wealthy people are bad people and that poor people are good people. The audience blindly applauded on many occasions through the film upon being told, by Moore, what to think. Like sheep. It was even more disgusting to me that they had emotionally recovered from some of the footage enough to be excited about a statement and applaud it. The movie certainly did not leave me in any mood for applause.

Is Moore wrong about everything? Most certainly not. Could you have sat in that room for 15 minutes, staring at the wall in fear, after being told that the United States was under attack? Is the business relationship between leaders of the US, England, and Saudi Arabia a good thing, in that it ensures a strong working relationship, or a bad thing, in that it is more important to those involved then the interests they've been elected to defend? Moore makes a compelling case that this relationship may be a significant conflict of interest.

I do think its important people see this film.

RE: Fahrenheit 9/11 in 4 Sentences

] RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- Paul Johnson's beheading
] sent a shiver of disgust throughout the world. Except the
] Arab world, that is.

Elonka says:

This is an essay by a columnist for two arab-language dailies. I have to admit that I haven't seen much about Johnson in the Arab news either. Not even on Memri.

Strange Silence in Arab Media over Paul Johnson's Death

] Earlier today on Politech we saw a critique of People for
] Internet Responsibility's take on whois privacy.
] Following are some replies from Politech members.

Some discussion following from my open letter to PFIR...

Replies to critique of PFIR and Whois privacy [Politech]

"We foresee a future with less choice for consumers."

AT&T to Stop [Competing]

] Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, said the law would simply
] cut off a revenue stream for companies that are knowingly
] providing the tools to commit crimes.

Why is everyone screaming at Hatch? Hatch is a known IP industry tool. We should be screaming at Leahy. I'm so disappointed to see him backing something like this. He is usually computer literate. I used to think he was one of the few people in Congress whose positions I could trust. Unfortunately I'll have to view him with suspicion from now on. He has consorted with the devil.

Bill to Curb Online Piracy Is Challenged as Too Broad

BAGHDAD—As the Coalition Provisional Authority prepares to hand power over to an Iraqi-led interim government on June 30, CPA administrator L. Paul Bremer publicly touted the success of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
As the Coalition's rule draws to a close, the numbers show that we have an awful lot to be proud of," Bremer said Tuesday. "As anyone who's taken a minute and actually looked at the figures can tell you, the vast majority of Iraqis are still alive—as many as 99 percent. While 10,000 or so Iraqi civilians have been killed, pretty much everyone is not dead.
According to U.S. Department of Defense statistics, of the approximately 24 million Iraqis who were not killed, nearly all are not in a military prison. Bremer said "a good number" of those Iraqis who are in jail have been charged with a crime, and most of them have enjoyed a prison stay free of guard-dog attacks, low-watt electrocutions, and sexual humiliation.

Onion | Coalition: Majority of Iraqis still alive.

] Justice Scalia wrote, in the biting tone that has become
] his trademark, "The Framers would not have thought it too
] much to demand that, before depriving a man of three more
] years of his liberty, the state should suffer the modest
] inconvenience" of submitting its accusation to a jury.

Justice Stevens rox...

Justices Tighten Limits on Judges in Sentencing

Oh fuck yes!!!

Ghost in the Shell 2 - In theaters Summer 2004