If Michael Moore didn't exist, what would fill the vacuum?

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I don't mean housecleaning.

As has been noted, MM's star has been in the ascendant ever since Bush came to power. He/his work seems to resonate with more people than he did in the Clinton era. And he's big budget/big news now of course. But the consensus on this board is that he does the left and liberal causes more harm than good. So do you imagine things better or poorer without him? Less comedy, more serious analysis? Would Bush have such well recognized opposition? Or perhaps you think,
as MM is so unnecessary, there would be NO vacuum, we'd get along just fine thankyou. I'd imagine a good proportion of people will say this question is dumb, speculation is worthless. Tell me that if you want.

discuss

― beagle 2, Friday, 25 June 2004 19:00 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm not sure that's the consensus at all, but I suppose Al Franken would fill the gap to some degree.

― Gear! (Gear!), Friday, 25 June 2004 19:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Ice cream

― 57 7th (calstars), Friday, 25 June 2004 19:03 (twenty-one years ago)

yeah, i don't think that's the consensus at all. i think you might be misreading some of our skepticism.

x-post

― amateur!st (amateurist), Friday, 25 June 2004 19:04 (twenty-one years ago)

I imagine things would be the same. Whichever reviewer pointed out that for all his strenghts, Moore can do little more than play to his crowd is spot on. He's never done anything (note: haven't seen Fahrenheit, maybe it is better) that would convince someone in the middle or on the right to come over to his side.

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Friday, 25 June 2004 19:04 (twenty-one years ago)

I suspect he has influenced a lot of fence sitters, perhaps only impressionable ones. I don't know that he's changed the way they might vote, but his movies certainly germinate conversations.

― Huk-El (Horace Mann), Friday, 25 June 2004 19:12 (twenty-one years ago)

though this belongs on that other thread, I am beginning to think that since the race is so close, his new movie might just tip the scales.

― Gear! (Gear!), Friday, 25 June 2004 20:30 (twenty-one years ago)

I think it fair to point out that Moore came to attention as part of an alternative-culture wave and began by exploring the ramifications of the collapse of traditional left-leaning strongholds and the dawn of the realisation of the age of the shareholder. The whole globalisation debate took off in the Clinton years anyway, but at least it left that section of the American public - which is larger than your average snob appreciates - which engages with the rest of the world in a knowledgeable and responsible way. Those two strands dovetailed nicely into a real window of opportunity for Moore, whose demeanour pretty much shields him from being seen as effete elite - and I can't manage that, so good on him. And then came Bush and a macro version of all the corruption he'd dealt with in Flint.

No, he is not subtle, but when I speak to people like my mom, who voted for Bush and is stubborn as fuck about America as responsible imperialiste, I can't help but think that there's a vast section of the population that needs to be taught some very basic lessons about power, money and expediency in the name of the status quo. With cudgels or something. Moore provides this service excellently, and I like a smartass anyway.

― suzy (suzy), Friday, 25 June 2004 20:54 (twenty-one years ago)

OTM suzy

― Richard K (Richard K), Sunday, 27 June 2004 07:29 (twenty-one years ago)

FWIW I think Howard Stern's positioned himself to be next.

― j e r e m y (x Jeremy), Sunday, 27 June 2004 20:12 (twenty-one years ago)

If Michael Moore suddenly ceased to exist, the resulting vacuum would cause the universe to collapse in on itself!

(that was the mandatory 'Moore is fat' joke)

― Andrew (enneff), Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:37 (twenty-one years ago)

Moore is most definitely not less.

― Krankenhaus, Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:41 (twenty-one years ago)

I would prefer a Moore-sized scoop of ice cream to Moore himself

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:46 (twenty-one years ago)

Especially if this ice cream were rocky road ice cream with xxtra marshmallow, accompanied by the chocolate-dipped waffle cone that will inevitably replace Bush as he slips into the void

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:47 (twenty-one years ago)

god I've never wanted a Moore-sized anything this badly

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:48 (twenty-one years ago)

with the emerging cult of personality around michael moore, and the attendant backlash, has anyone wondered why the liberal/left doesn't have a, well, more charismatic peg? i can understand the fat-schlub, working-man, aw-shucks, bourgeois-guilt appeal, but will we (editorial) really let him speak on our behalf?

needless to say he's a polarizing character; imo his endorsement of wes clark in the primaries knocked the general out sooner than he would have lasted otherwise...

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:57 (twenty-one years ago)

...which was a good thing, as far as I'm concerned

When you get results like this, I have no problem at all.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Sunday, 27 June 2004 22:59 (twenty-one years ago)

The responses on that board confuse teh head.

oh boy... wonders how he feels now that a marine has been taken hostage and now they're threatening to behead him.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Image if Moore had directed Supersize Me.

Woah.

(Haven't seen Farenheit 9/11 yet, hence my sillyness. I'm wondering whether to watch the copy I'll have finished downloading this afternoon, or wait until the 16th when there is an advanced screening for which I hold tickets.)

― Andrew (enneff), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Curt1sss, is that ('oh boy...') a quote or what? That's a totally insane thing to say.

― Andrew (enneff), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:05 (twenty-one years ago)

That's a quote from the site gabbneb posted.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh, no - he listens to 'gangsta rap'. He is fifth column.

― Kerry (dymaxia), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:07 (twenty-one years ago)

gabbneb: that link is insane. dale earnhart jr. is a traitor for endorsing moore's movie?? wtf?? why are conservatives so eager to lobby the accusation of treason?

and did you see this? i am in awe.

http://www.photodump.com/direct/BOAZO/hoo.jpg

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:08 (twenty-one years ago)

The person who defended the movie (I_killed_kenny) was banned for trolling

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:09 (twenty-one years ago)

that pic looks like it could be a limp bizkit cd cover.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

hatriot
Crockumentary
perrogative

Love the made up words!

― ..., Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

the thread has been pulled. dammit.

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:12 (twenty-one years ago)

'crockumentary' comes straight off of CNN

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:15 (twenty-one years ago)

"hatriot" is an awesome word!!!

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:15 (twenty-one years ago)

oh wait the "hat" is pronounced "hate" isn't it :(

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:16 (twenty-one years ago)

I can paste the whole thread up here if you want
(or is that against the rules?)

― ..., Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:16 (twenty-one years ago)

(I'll just note that my intent in linking the thread was to point out Earnhardt's comments, not the freepers)

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:18 (twenty-one years ago)

I guess they're a bunch of litigous assholes, so I'll leave it.

― ..., Sunday, 27 June 2004 23:27 (twenty-one years ago)

Each of the few times I've looked at the free republic site has made me think of the opening scenes of 2001

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Monday, 28 June 2004 08:09 (twenty-one years ago)

I think this is a great question by the way.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Monday, 28 June 2004 08:52 (twenty-one years ago)

Each of the few times I've looked at the free republic site has made me think of the opening scenes of 2001

-- Tracer Hand (tracerhan...) (webmail), June 28th, 2004 2:09 AM. (tracerhand) (later) (link)

does the home page load a midi version of "thus sprach zarathustra"?

― amateur!st (amateurist), Monday, 28 June 2004 11:36 (twenty-one years ago)

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