Looks like the Republicans are trying to use McCain-Feingold to punish the Left again. This time by getting ads for Fahrenheit 9/11 banned.
The proscription is broadly defined. Section 100.29 of the federal election regulations defines restricted corporate-funded ads as those that identify a candidate by his “name, nickname, photograph or drawing” or make it “otherwise apparent through an unambiguous reference.”
Basically, McCain-Feingold prevents any corporate money from being used directly in ads with a political message. The Fahrenheit 9/11 ads are bought by a corporation and are very political in nature. If the FEC doesn’t ban these ads then all a corporation has to do to put issue ads on tv is to make a documentary and then advertise the hell out of it.
Just a continuating demonstration that “Campaign Finance Reform” is nothing more than government censorship of political speach.
Armond White in the NY Press:
To pretend that Fahrenheit 9/11 is a work of art is disingenuous. Moore himself is part of the punditocracy that, like unscrupulous politicians, solicits trite sentiment. His exploitative title doesn’t measure temperature; it disgraces that sorrowful date just to inflame liberal guilt. For Moore, guilt covers everything that stemmed from Bush’s election and is only eased by blame. Moore doesn’t separate the election from the terrorists’ attacks or from the war on Iraq. As in Bowling for Columbine, he lines up unrelated points for a domino effect of dissatisfaction. This is not historical context; it’s a harangue.
The Briefing from Operation: Tiger Claw:
My name is Bryan Henderson and I am an 18 year old senior attending Princeton Senior High School. Better known as Templar_Crusader on the PW forum, I am the proud leader of the small but growing PHS chapter of ProtestWarrior.
Operation Tiger Claw was my first attempt at leading a protest against the apathy and leftism running rampant at my school. It all started on Friday, May 14th with a small act of conservative pride. My socialist history teacher was on another kick about how articulate Noam Chomsky was, when I finally reached my limit.
Read the whole thing, it is quite enjoyable.
I detest Michael Moore. He is a contemptable, lying weasel that has gotten rich off the sorrows of others and is now trying to add blood money to his horde.
Christopher Hitchens just really lays out the entire case against Moore in his review of Fahrenheit 9/11.
To describe this film as dishonest and demagogic would almost be to promote those terms to the level of respectability. To describe this film as a piece of crap would be to run the risk of a discourse that would never again rise above the excremental. To describe it as an exercise in facile crowd-pleasing would be too obvious. Fahrenheit 9/11 is a sinister exercise in moral frivolity, crudely disguised as an exercise in seriousness. It is also a spectacle of abject political cowardice masking itself as a demonstration of “dissenting” bravery.
The entire review is quite long, but a definate must read — either for educational or entertainment purposes.
To show just how morally bankrupt Moore is: Hezbollah will be aiding the distribution of the film. So Moore is fine with a major terrorist organization being on his side. I guess he’s for anything that will put more money in his pocket…
An excellent article on the hidden truths of the Inquisition:
“The Catholic Church’s response to this problem was the Inquisition, first instituted by Pope Lucius III in 1184. It was born out of a need to provide fair trials for accused heretics using laws of evidence and presided over by knowledgeable judges. From the perspective of secular authorities, heretics were traitors to God and the king and therefore deserved death. From the perspective of the Church, however, heretics were lost sheep who had strayed from the flock. As shepherds, the pope and bishops had a duty to bring them back into the fold, just as the Good Shepherd had commanded them. So, while medieval secular leaders were trying to safeguard their kingdoms, the Church was trying to save souls. The Inquisition provided a means for heretics to escape death and return to the community.”
Read the whole thing