Wednesday, June 30, 2004

I'm not even done reviewing Ann Coulter latest book, Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism, and I've learned that she is coming out with a new one to hit bookstores this fall, titled, How To Talk To a Liberal (If You Must): The World According to Ann Coulter. I'll probably read it, you know, by checking it out from a library as I did with Treason. I'd never give that bitch money. But as the Bible says, Know Thy Enemy. And so I set out to do so. But, you see, I already know her world outlook, and it is insane, so in all honesty I don't think I'll need to read her newest book, which you can pre-order on Amazon. It should be a funny read, nevertheless; but, not until I'm done reviewing Treason. (I don't know how I'm going to post that review here; it's sort of long.)

Tuesday, June 29, 2004

Now that Iraq is officially a 'free' nation, you know, because we transferred 'total sovereignty' to the interim Iraqi 'government', are our troops getting out of there anytime soon? Well, according to an article in the Christian Science Monitor: "US troops ... are suffering from low morale that has in some cases hit 'rock bottom.' ... 'Make no mistake, the level of morale for most soldiers that I've seen has hit rock bottom,' said ... an officer from the Army's 3rd Infantry Division in Iraq. ... 'Faced with continued resistance [from insurgents], [the] Department of Defense now plans to keep a larger force in Iraq than anticipated for a period of time,' Maj. Gen. Buford Blount, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, explained in a statement to families a month ago. ... The open-ended deployments in Iraq are lowering morale among some ground troops, who say constantly shifting time tables are reducing confidence in their leadership. 'The way we have been treated and the continuous lies told to our families back home has devastated us all,' a soldier in Iraq wrote in a letter to Congress."
I saw Fahrenheit 9/11 tonight. It is an excellent, brilliant work of cinema. I estimate that it's impact will be pretty huge. The New York Times has, in fact, a whole section devoted to the 'controversial' film ("Spotlight on 'Fahrenheit 9/11'"), including a review by A.O. Scott ("Unruly Scorn Leaves Room for Restraint, but Not a Lot") and an op-ed column by David Brooks ("All Hail Moore"). Rolling Stone gave the documentary a decidedly positive review, scoring it at ***1/2.

Monday, June 28, 2004

The US military handed over partial sovereignty to the interim Iraqi government two days before officially planned, due to the fact that Iraq is in a state of a sort of civil war. Iraqis will not have a fully sovereign, free nation, however, until the January 2005 election. Until then, over 100,000 US troops will still be in Iraq to maintain order, which seems to be rapidly slipping away. I hope for the best in Iraq; the Iraqi people have had a long, tragic history, and I hope that what we have done will, for the long run, be a good thing for the benefit of all.

Friday, June 25, 2004

Got the new CD by the Beastie Boys yesterday, To The 5 Boroughs. It's really great: evocative of the great, old-school rap and laden with adept delivery and masterful lyricism, embedded with a strong sense of social and political consciousness. Rolling Stone gave the album five stars; here's their review.
Seeing Fahrenheit 9/11 on Monday. Can't wait. I can see that it is quickly becoming perhaps one of the most divisive films in history. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Moore, for his courage, his views. My political perspective can be essentially boiled down to this: I believe in common sense, and I think that if doesn't make sense, then it's not worth my time and thought. That's all.

Monday, June 21, 2004

For the most part, I have decided to steer clear of any official reviews of Fahrenheit 9/11. As with most movies I go to see, I want to have a clear head on the matter and let me form opinions myself. That's fair, right? I think so.

Saturday, June 19, 2004

So fuckin' psyched to see Fahrenheit 9/11. Too bad I'll be at American University for two weeks (which will be fun; journalism stuff), but maybe I can still see it. Maybe I should get one of them advance screening tickets. I heard that Moore appealed the MPAA for a PG-13 rating, so that kids who might get drafted in a few years will at least be able to see what's going on in a country that they somewhere down the road might be sent to. Currently the film is "not yet rated," according to the latest TV spot, though it was rated R only a week ago.

Friday, June 18, 2004

There it is. I like it. And don't let the number fool you, 'cuz this site's been around for a while; and according to what I can remember, the counter was at around 1250 or around that when it fucked up and, uh, apparently self-destructed.

Thursday, June 17, 2004

A 27-member coalition -- Diplomats and Military Commanders for Change* -- is opposing the Bush administration, and does not want his reelection in November, on the grounds that it has not lived up to its responsibilities and "does not understand the world and remains unable to handle 'in either style or substance' the responsibilities of global leadership," according to a buried article** in the Washington Post.

Among the 27 members of the *DMCC are Admiral William J. Crowe, Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the Reagan administration, and Marine General Joseph P. Hoar, "commander in chief" of US CENTCOM during the Bush I administration. Only one of the twenty-seven in the group described himself as affiliated with the Kerry campaign: Ret. Gen. Merrill A. McPeak, who was a "former U.S. Air Force chief of staff and "the Oregon chairman of Republican Robert J. Dole's presidential campaign in 1996" and "joined Veterans for Bush in 2000." In a interview with al Jazeera on the DMCC's criticism of the Bush administration, State Secretary Colin Powell explained things clearly.

"I disagree that the United States is so isolated, as they say," [Powell] told the Qatar-based satellite television network. "I mean, the president has gone to the United Nations repeatedly in order to gain the support of the international community. We are in Iraq with many other nations that are contributing troops. Are we isolated from the Brits, from the Poles, from the Romanians, from the Bulgarians, from the Danes, from the Norwegians?"

It is very telling when a group composed of former envoys, ambassadors, generals, etc. (two of which are named above) goes against an administration that one would think they would endorse, at least implicitly; it is especially illustrative when former members of the Reagan and Bush I administrations are now opposed to that of Bush II. This looks like the beginning of the end for Bush, Rummy & Co. The DMCC's official statement can be found here.

**It's on page A22.

Tuesday, June 08, 2004

Tomorrow morning, early, at around 5 in the morning, I'm going to leave for Los Angeles for a few days, so that's where I'll be. Peace.

Saturday, June 05, 2004

Today I went to the protest in DC that I mentioned before. It is incredible. I would say there were people, of a large cross-section of races, ethnicities, and nationalities, in the thousands. The march, from Layfette Square to War Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's official residence (which I am sure is unprecedented in its audacity), went on for at least an hour, about two miles. It was one of the greatest things I've ever been involved with. You really feel like you're a part of something much, much bigger than yourself, a part of history. Although there were a few there that gave us a bad name (such as one who equated Israelis and the Palestinians with the Nazis and the Jews, or the ones with the sign that read: "Support the Resistance: Free Saddam," which was really ridiculous), for the most part the messages that most people there had were ones that any sane American can agree with. As we marched through the ghettoes, in particular, it was really something to see people on the stoop of their homes, shouting with us and cheering us on. I sensed some trouble (fortunately none came to pass) when the police barricaded most of us from getting any closer to Rummy's multi-million dollar mansion and one of the people was like, "Seig hail!" I sighed, knowing that that was a particularly stupid (and, yeah, retarded) thing to do. Fortunately, after we began chanting and all, the Feds caved in and let us through. Shouting "The People United Will Never Be Defeated!" we marched on through to meet up with the small group of protestors at the front who had inexplicably gotten through. A list of people made speeches there, including Michael Berg, the father of Nick Berg (who was beheaded by Iraqi militants). Ironically, one of the pitifully small group of counter-protestors who were closer to Rummy's house (of course) held a poster that included a photo of Nick Berg before his decapitation, and at the same time that man's father was denouncing the administration for letting it happen. You could really smell it in the air: the thunder of democratic change. Sorry. Excuse the lameness of that, but that's how it was. I tell ya: come November 2nd, we are going to see the closest election this nation has ever had, and the result will seal our fate (for better or worse). An Associated Press wire from the Washington Post has the story, although the article cites the number of protestors as "several hundred." The number of protestors went on as long as the eye can see; it had to have been in the thousands. But what do I know? After all, I was only right there in the middle of it, so what do I know? And the breaking news at this moment is the death of Fmr. Pres. Ronald Reagan, which is currently dominating headlines and will (no doubt) be the leading headline in the 'liberal media' tomorrow. But not to worry, those not in the DC area will hear about the massive protest if they flip through tomorrow's Post for a few minutes. They'll find it ... somewhere. But anyhow, the Great June 5 DC Protest is an event I'll never forget. All I can do now is quote the great Bob Dylan, who once said that "the times they are a-changin'"; they are, indeed.

Friday, June 04, 2004

Michael Moore's latest documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11, opens in theatres nationally on June 25th! The two distributors, IFC Films and Lions Gate Productions are both distributing the film. Shit, this is so dope: the film will be in "a record number of screens for a documentary," according to Moore on his website. I can't fuckin' wait.

UPDATE: I have just seen the trailer for the film, and I am really psyched about it. It's really gonna be great. You can check it out here, though the official site claims (due to high volume of traffic) that it is unavailable at the present time. (QuickTime req'd to view trailer.)
Upon his visit to the Vatican, Bush was greeted by half-a-million Romans protesting the war in Iraq. Oh, and the Vatican itself is strong opposed to the war. Thank God we have allies, right? Secondly, the June 5 protest in DC is, well, tomorrow. So, uh, I'm going. Tryin' to think of a good sign, though. Hmm ...