# Does Michael Moore have the straight dope on bigots?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079>\
**Category:** The BBQ Pit\
**Created:** [August 16, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079 "2004-08-16T14:08:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 6

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**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/101 "2004-08-18T10:00:42Z")

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My wife, who has seen BFC, says it’s better than F9/11. Would you agree? My feeling about F9/11 was that it was rather uneven, with the Bush-baiting holiday stuff actually likely to dissuade neutrals (if such a category exists) of the President’s stupidity, immaturity and cowardice. The stuff on Rumsfeld, Cheney and big business (and the Bushes in this regard) was powerful, although of course I’d wish to read the other side of the story (there always is one) before going with the flow. But, at the time, my reaction was that ALL politicians are involved in this kind of chicanery to a greater or lesser extent. In fact, I’d broaden that to all people with power (hardly revolutionary, I know). And that’s where my Clouseau-like mind starts wondering about Moore himself.

The 7 minute goat stuff is, to me, balderdash. But Halliburton etc. - yes, who wouldn’t be given pause by that stuff?

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**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/102 "2004-08-18T10:03:53Z")

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> [@roger thornhill](#):
>
> My wife, who has seen BFC, says it’s better than F9/11. Would you agree?

No, actually, I wouldn’t. In F9/11 he did a better job of staying out of the way and letting his subjects be the story. He’s all over Bowling for Columbine, and he was much more restrained this time out. He didn’t need to make an over-arching point that lost people, and he made great use of the people around him. And the September 11th part was really great, I didn’t think he had that kind of filmmaking and touch in him.

> [@](#):
>
> But, at the time, my reaction was that ALL politicians are involved in this kind of chicanery to a greater or lesser extent.

Well, yes, but the great extent is part of the issue.

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**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/103 "2004-08-18T11:22:50Z")

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> [@roger thornhill](#):
>
> Perhaps his rage is being diluted by his fame.

:rolleyes: Nope. Here’s an interesting speech, one of many, that he gave in Boston during the Democratic National Convention. It’s great to read, but there’s also a video at [Democracy Now](http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/07/28/1335239) which is a barnburner and you can hear and see his passion.

For those who will actually consider reading it, the speech is long, but it’s a quick read. It might seem longer than it really is simply because of the way it’s formatted. Sorry. There are probably some typos. I took Democracy Now’s original and fixed some of the typos they had, but I’ve probably missed a few. I’m so glad I didn’t have to transcribe it. I hate transcribing speeches.

Part 1:

> [@](#):
>
> MICHAEL MOORE: I don’t know what it is with right-wingers  
> and Republicans. They seem to have hijacked over the years the  
> word “patriotism”, the American flag, these things. And it’s an  
> odd thing. I have been thinking about this lately. Because the  
> true patriots are those who believe the important thing is to ask  
> questions, you know. To dissent when necessary. And I know a lot  
> of people have seen my film and the obvious–[cheers]–the bad  
> guy in the movie is George W. Bush. But there’s the unstated  
> villain in the film. And that’s our national media. You’ve seen  
> the film. Right? (applause). A lot of them are mad at me right  
> now because–[laughter]–I can’t go on a show without them, you  
> know. But I would be mad if I were them too, because the film  
> outs them. It outs them as shills for the Bush administration. It  
> outs them as people who were cheerleaders for this war. It outs  
> them as, to be kind to those who are actually good journalists,  
> journalists who fell asleep on the job. Journalists who didn’t  
> ask the hard questions. The one thing I hear when people come out  
> of the theater over and over again is, I never saw that on the  
> news. Right? Isn’t that-- [cheers]–I never–[cheers] why didn’t  
> I see that? I never saw those Black congressmen being shut down  
> one after another. Did anyone see that? [cheers]
> 
> I didn’t know there was a riot at the inauguration parade. I  
> never saw the eggs hit the limo. I never saw that! I don’t hear  
> from the amputees who sit in our hospitals, 5,000 or 6,000 of  
> them. How come I don’t hear from them on the nightly news?  
> (applause) I don’t hear from the mothers. I don’t see them on the  
> evening news, the mothers of children who have been killed in  
> Iraq and who state their opposition to this war. I haven’t seen  
> them on the news. Why haven’t I seen this? I live in a free and  
> open country that has a free and open press where you can show us  
> anything. That’s the great thing about America. You can show us  
> anything! You can ask any question you want to ask. And this is  
> my humble plea to those of you from the press here. And don’t any  
> of you take this personally. I don’t mean it this way, but I–we,  
> the people, we need you. (applause) We need you to do your job!  
> We need you! We need you to ask the questions, demand the  
> evidence! Demand the evidence! Don’t ever send us to war without  
> asking the questions! (applause) You do us no service by hopping  
> on a band wagon, by becoming cheerleaders, by looking the other  
> way, because you know that’s the safest way to play it if you  
> want to keep your job. Or, or, you are just afraid of being  
> accused of being un-American if you were to ask a hard question  
> to the President or his administration. That’s not un-American.  
> That’s pro-American! To ask the questions. That’s–that’s  
> patriotic! (applause) But I know it was rough. I know in those  
> first days of the war, I know. I stood on an Oscar stage five  
> days into the war. I know what the mood was like. It was not easy  
> to say we are being led to war for fictitious reasons. Right?
> 
> And–(applause)–and those of you who felt the same way at the  
> beginning of this war, you know–remember what it was like at  
> work or at school? You had to be kind of careful. Right? And if  
> you expressed any opposition to the war, you had to immediately  
> say, but I support the troops! Right? Right? But, but, but, but,  
> but I support the troops. You didn’t need to say that! Of course  
> you support the troops! You’ve always supported the troops! Who  
> are the troops? The troops are those who come from the other side  
> of the tracks. The troops are the people who come from families  
> who have been abused by the Bush administration. You’ve always  
> supported them. You’ve always been on their side! This–  
> (applause)–no one should question that! The way, the way that  
> you don’t support the troops is to send them into harm’s way when  
> it isn’t necessary. The way that you hate the troops is when you  
> send them off, some of them, to their deaths, so that your rich  
> benefactors can line their pockets even more. The Halliburtons,  
> the oil companies. That is anti-American. That is unpatriotic.  
> You do not support the troops when you do that. (applause) The  
> thing here is, and again, and I am not picking on the press who  
> are here. [laughter] [beep] but it–it, that is true.
> 
> We are talking about our mainstream national media. A media, for  
> instance, NBC, owned by General Electric. You know, I understand,  
> I understand General Electric now has over $600 million worth of  
> contracts in Iraq. They are war-profiteers. It doesn’t surprise  
> me that their news arm has failed to do the job that it needs to  
> do to tell the truth to the American people about this war.  
> There’s nothing surprising about that. I understand that.  
> (applause) I understand the Matt Lauers and the Lisa Myers and  
> the people that have to work for this entity. You have cameras  
> and microphones and you have the ability to get into places of  
> power that the people in this room can’t get in. To ask these  
> questions. And the great thing about this country is you can ask  
> any question you want. You can ask any question you want and not  
> be arrested. Right? (applause) You will not be sent to prison if  
> you ask a question. So what has prevented you from asking the  
> questions? But you’ve got the little lapel flag pin on there.  
> Right? And you’ve got the TV screen filled up with American flags  
> flying. See, we’re patriotic. We’re patriotic. But you’ve thrown  
> down with the wrong people. You haven’t just been embedded.  
> You’ve been in bed with the wrong people. You’ve listened to  
> those in power and just report their lies as truths. (applause)
> 
> The Bush administration and the people who support him, they  
> represent a minority in this country. They’re a minority. The  
> right wing… that’s not where America is at. The majority of our  
> fellow Americans are liberal and progressive when it comes to the  
> issues. That’s not just me saying this or wishing it to be true.  
> Every poll shows that the majority of Americans believe in  
> women’s rights. The majority of Americans want stronger  
> environmental laws. The majority of Americans want gun control  
> laws. The majority of Americans are pro-labor. Put down the whole  
> list of issues, Americans, whether they use the label or not, and  
> most Americans don’t like labels, but most Americans in their  
> hearts are liberal and progressive. It’s just a small minority of  
> people who hate. They hate. They exist in the politics of hate.  
> They don’t believe two consenting adults should have the right to  
> be in love and share their lives together and be legally  
> protected by the state for doing so. What would motivate that?  
> What would motivate–(applause)–what business is it, anyway, of  
> these people? They’re not patriots. They are HATE-triots and they  
> believe in the politics of HATE- riotism. That’s where they stand  
> and patriotism is where real Americans stand. And that’s the  
> truth. And that needs to be reported.
> 
> They keep saying that this is a 50/50 country. This is not a  
> 50/50 country. In their wildest dreams, it’s a 50/50 country.  
> Look at all the polls I just, and I’ve got all the statistics in  
> my book and I cite them all. And these aren’t left wing polls.  
> These are Gallup polls, Harris polls and even ABC and CNN polls  
> and they go right down the line and you see where Americans are  
> at. When they, when you hear about this close election, about the  
> 50/50 country, don’t forget the key words they always use. In a  
> poll of likely voters. Likely voters. This is how far behind the  
> media is with the times in which we live. They are using an old  
> paradigm. They only poll people who have consistently voted in  
> previous elections. But the other 50% of the country doesn’t  
> vote. If they wanted to be honest, they could say it’s a 50/50/50  
> country because they never ask the other 50% how they feel. And I  
> got to tell you, this is what they are in for a big surprise come  
> November 2. The other 50%–(applause)–the other 50, you can’t  
> compare this election to any election before September 11, 2001.  
> That day and since that day has made average Americans more aware  
> of what’s going on in the world. They want to know more about  
> what’s going on in the world. They talk politics now. We all know  
> this. Right? At work, you go in the bar, people are talking about  
> politics. Anywhere you go, people talk politics. It’s cool now to  
> talk about politics. Right? It’s uncool–it’s uncool if you don’t  
> know what’s going on in the world. It’s uncool to be apathetic.  
> Now that has not been the case for most of our lives. Right? If  
> you talked too much politics you were seen as kind of strange and  
> wonkey. Right? But that’s not the case. That’s why Jon Stewart is  
> so popular, because people want to talk about politics.  
> (applause). They want to hear about it (applause) and that’s the  
> big story that the media has missed. That there’s been this shift  
> in the country. And who are these 50% who don’t vote? Who are  
> they? Are they the wealthy and the privileged?
> 
> No! They are the people who have been most hurt by the Bush  
> administration. They are people of color. They are single moms.  
> They are poor. They are working class. They are young people.  
> These are the people most affected by the policies of the Bush  
> administration and they are now talking politics. And they are  
> not apathetic. And I think we are going to see a significant  
> number of them leave the house on November 2 and come out to  
> vote. (applause) I believe we’ll have the largest percentage of  
> people voting in our lifetime come November 2 (applause)! I  
> really, really believe…you don’t hear that, though. You won’t  
> see that story reported because they are just focusing on likely  
> voters from 1992, 1996 and 2000. [laughter] And it’s a 50/50  
> country. Like if they just keep repeating it enough, it will be  
> true. It’s a 50/50 country. Put your heels together now. It’s a  
> 50/50 country. I got to tell you, I have traveled across this  
> country quite a bit in the last year. It ain’t a 50/50 country.  
> People are angry. They want Bush out of the White House. They  
> want to be able to send their kids to college. (applause) they  
> want to be able to go to the doctor. This isn’t a 50/50 country.  
> (applause). Speak the truth. Come on. Take a real poll. Take a  
> real poll! (applause)
> 
> A few weeks ago I was flipping around on the dial and I came  
> across a NASCAR Race on FOX and there was NASCAR champion Dale  
> Earnhardt Jr. telling Fox… They said what did you do, what did  
> you do the night before while you were getting prepared for the  
> big race? He said, “Well, I took my crew to go see Fahrenheit  
> 9/11.” [cheers] [laughter] And then he said, and “I think all of  
> America should see this movie.” I fell off the couch! (applause)  
> I said a little prayer for George W. Bush. I’m thinking oh, my  
> God, I hope he’s not watching this race now and eating pretzels!  
> [cheers] Whoa. I thought, man, if the movie has gone that far  
> into middle America, and this is where the country’s at, how come  
> we don’t know this? How come this isn’t being reported? What’s  
> wrong here?
> 
> Well, we have our conventional wisdom and our conventional wisdom  
> tells us that the paradigm that we have been following over the  
> last 20 years is the one we must follow and that’s the one we are  
> worried about. Thank you. [laughter] Oh, it doesn’t hurt to  
> report the truth. It’s ok. You know. I was on one of those  
> morning talk shows and after we went to commercial, the person  
> who was interviewing me said you know, you know, you are right, I  
> mean when the war started, it was very difficult here to book the  
> people we wanted to book, ask the questions we wanted to ask. In  
> fact, I got a memo about my tone of voice. And apparently the  
> brass had received a call from the Dick Cheney’s office and  
> said that he didn’t like my tone of voice. And I got a memo  
> on it to watch my tone of voice. Well you’ve got to tell that  
> story! You’ve got to tell that story. I can’t. Well why? They  
> can’t fire you. You are like one of the most well-known people in  
> America. And, you know, you’ve got to tell this story. If you  
> don’t tell it, I’m going to wait like maybe another week.  
> [laughter] What’s today? Within the week, I will put this on my  
> web site. I’ll tell the whole story and I’ll name who said it.  
> (applause) so this person is unnoticed now and I am doing it in a  
> friendly way. Because this is a good person. You know? Just that  
> I think the people deserve the truth and they need to know how  
> the decisions get made behind the curtain. Who is pulling the  
> strings here? Who’s calling the shots? It’s like, you know,  
> coming from where I come from politically, you know, we always  
> are in this place of yeah, you know, the man this and the man  
> that and this corporation and this and that and there’s probably  
> a part of us that says oh, you know, it’s really, there’s, maybe  
> it’s not that bad. You want to believe it isn’t that bad. You  
> know?

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**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/104 "2004-08-18T11:24:01Z")

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Michael Moore speech, Part 2

> [@](#):
>
> And then, it’s like they have made the mistake of giving me a  
> peek behind this curtain and I’ve seen this happen and it’s  
> stunning to me, for instance this whole experience with Disney  
> not releasing the film and it’s like what–you know, the film has  
> gone on now to make more money than any Disney film this year.  
> And it’s like–(applause)–it shocked me at the time, because the  
> way I have been able to get my work out there over the years is  
> that usually with the media companies, greed always supercedes  
> politics or personal animosity toward me. Oh, I can’t stand the  
> guy. Oh, how many books did he sell last week? Well, ok. Print a  
> few more. You know this incredible flaw of capitalism that has  
> always worked in my favor. [laughter] You know the old saying  
> that the rich man will sell you the hope to hang yourself with if  
> he can make a dollar off it? That will eventually be their  
> undoing. But this time it didn’t happen. This time a film made  
> for a very small amount of money that will now make, you know, at  
> least a quarter billion dollars around the world by the time it’s  
> done, [cheers] the greed didn’t motivate them to release this  
> film. I couldn’t figure it out for the longest time and it took a  
> Canadian journalist to finally do the story and thank god for the  
> Canadians, you know? (applause) they are just like us. Only  
> better. [laughter] They are sort of like the Red Sox. You know?  
> Their time will come. They like us. The Canadians really do like  
> us. They just wish we would read a little more and–but it took a  
> Canadian journalist to write that…perhaps one of the problems  
> that Mr. Moore had with Disney is the fact that the Saudi Royal  
> family owns almost 17% of Euro-Disney. And that in 1994, Prince  
> Walid, one of the richest men in the world, and a member of the  
> Saudi Royal Family, wrote Michael Eisner and Disney a check for  
> over $300 million to bail out Euro-Disney. And the people that  
> helped put the thing together to bring the two together was a  
> company called the Carlyle group. Now my film was already done,  
> you know, but I was like can it get any worse? Are they  
> everywhere? But no journalist will ask Mr. Eisner or Disney the  
> question, if that had anything to do with the decision because  
> their good friends maybe don’t look that good in this movie. But  
> this is what, just a small example of what we have come to  
> expect. But the good news is that things are going to change very  
> soon. And-- (applause)–the other side, the unelected side, who  
> occupy our white house, they are not going to go peacefully.
> 
> They like being in charge with no mandate. All right? They  
> actually believe they could take us to war based on no mandate  
> from the people. And they knew that they had to lie to the people  
> to get them to believe that Saddam Hussein had something to do  
> with September 11 and that there were weapons of mass destruction  
> and this, this, and that. So they aren’t going to go without a  
> fight. And believe me, they are better fighters than we are. They  
> have proven themselves; you have to give them their props for  
> that. I mean, they are up at 6:00 in the morning trying to figure  
> out which minority group they are going to screw today. The hate  
> that they eat for breakfast. I mean, our side, we never see 6:00  
> in the morning unless–[laughter]–unless we have been up all  
> night. You know? Well, the sun’s coming up. I better go to bed.  
> [laughter] so they are going to fight and they are going to smear  
> and they are going to lie and they are going to hate. And we have  
> to get out there and counter that with the truth. We have to get  
> out there and we have to get up and we have to get moving. And we  
> must not stop between now and November 2. No stopping! No  
> stopping! I’m telling you, if we don’t do it,–(applause)–  
> reporters have been asking me while I have been here at the  
> convention, so how do you square the fact, this John Kerry, that  
> he voted for the war? And my answer to them is similar to the  
> answer actually I gave a soldier who stopped me on street a short  
> time back. And he said to me, you know, I was on a ship off Iraq  
> the night of the Oscars and we watched you give your speech. And  
> we booed along with the audience. I was very angry at you for  
> what you said that night but now that I have been there and  
> served my tour in Iraq, what you said was the truth. They sent us  
> there under false pretenses. And he said to me I want to  
> apologize to you for booing at you on that ship. And I said to  
> him, you owe me no apology. It is we, the American people, who  
> need to apologize to you for sending you into harm’s way–  
> (applause)–based on a lie. I apologize to you. And–(applause)–  
> and I said to him your only crime is that you believed your  
> President. Why would you apologize for believing your Commander  
> in Chief? You are supposed to be able to believe your commander  
> in chief. You are supposed to be able to believe the President.  
> Because if we don’t have that, that basic thing of being able to  
> believe what comes out of the mouth of the President of the  
> United States, my friend, what are we left with?
> 
> What are we left with if you can’t believe anything that’s being  
> said from the man who sits in the White House? (applause) John  
> Kerry did what 70-80% of our fellow Americans did. He believed.  
> He believed. And he believed that he was going to do something in  
> a different way, but he believed in the majority of our fellow  
> Americans believe. Do we point our finger at them now? Do you  
> point your finger at your neighbors and your friends who  
> supported the war at the beginning but no longer support it  
> because now 54% of this country believes the war is wrong and  
> never should have been fought? Do you? Does one in this room sit  
> on your high horse and look down at them? Oh, you supported the  
> war! I didn’t! [laughter] Does anyone in this room have that  
> attitude to your friends and neighbors and family members? Of  
> course not. Of course not. People come to the wrong conclusions  
> at their own speed. And you know what, friends? We are getting  
> better at this. Because during Vietnam it took years before we  
> figured it out. This time, it only took months. It only took a  
> few months before the majority of Americans figured out how wrong  
> this President was. (applause).
> 
> And that applause is for our fellow Americans, because they will  
> always respond in the right way when given the truth. They will  
> always come from a righteous place when they have the facts and  
> information available to them. As soon as it was made available,  
> as soon as that happened, they create, the shift took place,  
> didn’t it? And it’s a long way from the 16 months but not that  
> far, really, from those first days of the war. We now are the  
> American majority. Would are with them and they are with us. And  
> this is the American majority that’s going to show up on November  
> 2 and remove George W. Bush from the White House. I so believe  
> that. But–(applause)–it’s only going to happen with our hard  
> work and us coming from a good and gentle place with those that  
> we speak to in the coming months. To hold out our hand and say,  
> come on. It’s ok. I mean, you should see some of the mail I am  
> getting from Republicans. I love these letters. You know? Because  
> there are good Republicans. There are good Republicans. And I  
> predict-- (applause)–we are going to see Republicans for Kerry  
> movements across the country. Because a lot of people who call  
> themselves Republicans are that way because they, you know, they  
> just don’t like the government sticking their hand in the pocket.  
> Right? That’s really their big issue. You know. You’ve got one in  
> your family. Come on. Everyone in here. Right? They just don’t  
> like paying their taxes. Do they? Hum? [laughter] ok. But they  
> are good on everything else, aren’t they. They believe women  
> should be paid the same as men. Right? They don’t believe  
> companies should be dumping crud into the river. Right? They  
> don’t believe assault weapons should be made available easily on  
> the streets.
> 
> They are good on all the other things. They just don’t want their  
> hard-earned money taken out of their pocket. Well all we got to  
> do is show them how George W. Bush has taken this money from them  
> and from their children and grandchildren. These are the people  
> that are going have to pay off this incredible debt that this war  
> has created. (applause) George W. Bush has gone from being the  
> compassionate conservative to the anti-conservative. He doesn’t  
> really believe in conservative values. And we need to do that.  
> But here’s my plea to the Democrats and to Mr. Kerry. You will  
> not win this election by being weak kneed and wimpy and wishy-  
> washy and lacking the courage of your convictions. The only way  
> this is going to happen is if you stand up forthrightly and say  
> what you believe and push for the liberal progressive agenda that  
> the majority of America already agrees with. If you–(applause)–  
> if you move to the right, thinking that’s how you are going to  
> pick up a few extra votes from that very small sliver of likely  
> voters who haven’t made up their mind yet, if you give up the  
> very principles and things that the people in this room and those  
> delegates believe in, to get those few votes over there, you will  
> encourage millions to stay home. The people who are already  
> feeling disenfranchised who are full of despair and have sunk  
> into their own cynicism believing what’s the use? What’s the use?  
> You know, if the Democrats move that way, they will not only  
> energize the base, the base will stay home. I went to one of  
> these meeting of ACT, I forget what it stands for. America coming  
> together, one, two, and they put up on the screen a map of  
> Cleveland, Ohio and they showed a precinct in Cleveland that was  
> 96% African American. 96%. Total vote are turnout in 2000, 13%.  
> You can’t get more base of the Democratic Party than African  
> Americans and if you don’t have a message that will inspire them  
> to come out on Election Day and tells them with no B.S. and shows  
> them how their life will be better, we will not win this  
> election. That will not happen. (applause) I say this not to rain  
> on the party. We are all in this together. And as they said last  
> night, we have a big tent. And all of us, from conservative  
> Democrats to Greens who are voting democrat, are all in this tent  
> right now for one common goal. That’s to get our white house back  
> in our hands, the majority’s.
> 
> And–(applause)–a word about Ralph Nader. Yes, the Republicans  
> do love Ralph. I just came from Michigan where Ralph turned into  
> 50,000 signatures. 43,000 of which were gathered by the Michigan  
> Republican party. [booing] This is a painful thing to witness,  
> because of the great Americans, Ralph Nader is one of them. His  
> legacy, what’s done for this country–(applause)–has been  
> incredible. And what I and others try to explain to Ralph before  
> he decided to run is that you already did your job. The  
> Democratic Party of 2004 is not the Democratic Party of 2000.  
> (applause) the threat, the threat that you posed in 2000, they  
> got the message. And it was carried on by Howard Dean and Dennis  
> Kucinich and others in this year. And they helped push the  
> Democrats toward where the majority of Americans that liberal  
> progressive majority, is at. You did a great thing and now, they  
> are in a better place. You have to admit that. Even Al Gore of  
> 2004 isn’t the Al Gore of 2000. He’s moved! And all you have to  
> do, if you think the Democrats this year are the same as the  
> Democrats four years ago, ask yourself this question. Do you  
> think John Kerry will ask Bill Clinton not to campaign in  
> Arkansas for him? Hum? I don’t think so. So my appeal to the  
> Nader voters, to the Greens out there, is that we have a  
> different job to do this year. And this is so misguided and so  
> wrong and so uncool. So uncool to be doing this. (applause) I  
> think that when it comes to that day people will know what to do.  
> But I would not have the Democrats spending any time attacking  
> Ralph Nader. All right? That is the wrong way to go. (applause)  
> what the Democrats should be doing, and I have heard Kerry say  
> this, is we need to give, we need to give those who are thinking  
> of voting for Nader, a reason to vote for John Kerry. That is the  
> right answer. That is the right answer. (applause)
> 
> When I was in Cannes with the movie, I showed it to the American  
> students whose were working there. There was about 200 of them.  
> At the end of the movie, I asked them, let me just ask you a  
> question, how many of you are college-aged student, how many of  
> you are thinking for Ralph Nader? Nearly half of them raised  
> their hand. I invited Kerry’s daughter, Alexandra to come and sit  
> in the back. They didn’t know she was there. And she witnessed  
> this. And we went out to lunch afterwards and she was shocked.  
> How could they, after watching this movie, for two hours, with  
> the message of the movie seems to be that Bush must go, that  
> nearly half of them would say they are still considering voting  
> for Nader. I think I saw one poll recently that said 12% of 18-  
> 25-year-olds are planning on voting for Ralph Nader. And I said  
> to her, I said you have to tell your dad that, you know, because  
> they, some of the kids that gave their reasons and they spoke  
> with all that great honesty that comes out of an 18 or a 19-year-  
> old. Right? Because there’s [beep] right? When you are 18 and 19.  
> And they call you on it really quickly. I said you need to tell  
> your dad that the way to deal with this is to take the strong  
> stand that needs to be taken. The majority of Americans are  
> already with you. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid. Speak out on  
> these issues. Speak out about health care in the right way. Don’t  
> put ads on TV that say we will provide health care for nearly all  
> Americans. Don’t do that. Stand up for something. Don’t be  
> afraid. Don’t try to be the hamburger version of the Republican  
> Party. And I think he got that message. And I think that, you  
> know, from what I’ve heard in recent weeks, I got to say this and  
> I’ve said this to everybody here who’s been asking me about the  
> war. One thing I do know about Kerry, he will not invade a  
> country like George W. Bush did. (applause)
> 
> I believe in my heart of hearts–that this man because you know  
> when you have been shot three times and you have been in that  
> situation and you know this, if you have family members whose  
> have been to war, if you have parents who were in World war II,  
> my dad always says to me, he was in the Marines in the south  
> pacific and he said, you know, if you have been there, you never  
> want to see anybody else go there. And you want it to be the last  
> resort. The absolute last resort. (applause) and–(applause)–so  
> in my heart, I trust that when he says that. In closing, I just  
> want to thank you for everything that everyone here has done. We  
> are all in the same boat together. And it’s very important. I am  
> glad these rallies are taking place, because, you know, I don’t  
> know how the press will write about these gatherings of these  
> rallys you have been having here and your speakers. This is not a  
> niche of the Democratic Party. The things that the people in this  
> room believe in is where the American public is at. Especially  
> where I believe a large chunk of that 50%, that non-voting  
> public, is at. And it’s going to be our job to get them out on  
> November 2 and that’s what we are all going to do. Thank you very  
> much for being here. Thank you.

I love the new word he’s come up with: “hate-riot” It’s a perfect word to describe those right-wingers who have misused the word patriot.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/105 "2004-08-18T12:16:04Z")

</div>

Oy. He made some valid points. But standing before the crowd like Mussolini on a balcony while shilling for his movie was classic Michael Moore. As was presenting himself as a victim while he berated the news media. He even mentioned NBC and Matt Lauer by name, which was all the more remarkable since he was [interviewed by Lauer on NBC](http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5239322/), where he was allowed to speak his peace. While there, he resoundingly condemned Democrats — specifically disassociating himself from them. But here he is bashing the Republicans. He obviously is not a Libertarian since he has no problem with government wealth redistribution schemes. Therefore, he must be an Authoritarian. All hail Caesar Michael, I reckon.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Avumede](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/avumede/32/7235_2.png) [@Avumede](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avumede)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/106 "2004-08-18T14:29:58Z")

</div>

> [@Mockingbird](#):
>
> I’ve never read a psychological substantiation for bigotry.

I believe Pavlovian conditioning can explain it quite adequately.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2004, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-michael-moore-have-the-straight-dope-on-bigots/260079/107 "2004-08-18T17:11:21Z")

</div>

> [@Liberal](#):
>
> He obviously is not a Libertarian since he has no problem with government wealth redistribution schemes. Therefore, he must be an Authoritarian. All hail Caesar Michael, I reckon.

Or he could be a left-wing Democrat and you can’t tell the difference. Whichever.

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