Monday, August 30, 2004

Undecided voters are morons

How can someone still be an undecided voter? My theory is that these people have some kind of personality disorder. The only time they feel important is every 4 years now when the candidates are clamoring for their attention, & the media vultures are interviewing them.

Believe me, people. When you say that you are STILL undecided, those of us that use our brains are thinking to ourselves - you are a moron.

Saturday, August 28, 2004

It Takes Real Courage to Desert Your Post and Then Attack a Wounded Vet

Ok, I promise this is the last of my cutting & pasting for a while. It's just that this letter needs to be read by as many people as possible. I know it's slightly long, but it's a quick read.

Again, it is by Michael Moore:


August 26, 2004

It Takes Real Courage to Desert Your Post and Then Attack a Wounded Vet

Dear Mr. Bush,

I know you and I have had our differences in the past, and I realize I am the one who started this whole mess about "who did what" during Vietnam when I brought up that "deserter" nonsense back in January. But I have to hand it to you on what you have uncovered about John Kerry and his record in Vietnam. Kerry has tried to pass himself off as a war hero, but thanks to you and your friends, we now know the truth.

First of all, thank you for pointing out to all of us that Mr. Kerry was never struck by a BULLET. It was only SHRAPNEL that entered his body! I did not know that! Hell, what's the big deal about a bunch of large, sharp, metal shards ripping open your flesh? That happens to all of us! In my opinion, if you want a purple heart, you'd better be hit with a bullet -- with your name on it!

Secondly, thank you for sending Bob Dole out there and letting us know that Mr. Kerry, though wounded three times, actually "never spilled blood." When you are in the debates with Kerry, turn to him and say, "Dammit, Mr. Kerry, next time you want a purple heart, you better spill some American red blood! And I don't mean a few specks like those on O.J.'s socks -- we want to see a good pint or two of blood for each medal. In fact, I would have preferred that you had bled profusely, a big geyser of blood spewing out of your neck or something!" Then throw this one at him: "Senator Kerry, over 58,000 brave Americans gave their lives in Vietnam -- but YOU didn't. You only got WOUNDED! What do you have to say for yourself???" Lay that one on him and he won't know what to do.

And thanks, also, Mr. Bush, for exposing the fact that Mr. Kerry might have actually WOUNDED HIMSELF in order to get those shiny medals. Of course he did! How could the Viet Cong have hit him -- he was on a SWIFT boat! He was going too fast to be hit by enemy fire. He tried to blow himself up three different times just so he could go home and run for president someday. It's all so easy to see, now, what he was up to.

What would we do without you, Mr. Bush? Criticize you as we might, when it comes to pointing out other men's military records, there is no one who can touch your prowess. In 2000, you let out the rumor that your opponent John McCain might be "nuts" from the 5 years he spent in a POW camp. Then, in the 2002 elections, your team compared triple-amputee Sen. Max Cleland to Osama bin Laden, and that cost him the election. And now you are having the same impact on war hero John Kerry. Since you (oops, I mean "The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth!") started running those ads, Kerry's polls numbers have dropped (with veterans, he has lost 18 points in the last few weeks).

Some people have said "Who are you, Mr. Bush, to attack these brave men considering you yourself have never seen combat -- in fact, you actively sought to avoid it." What your critics fail to understand is that even though your dad got you into a unit that would never be sent to Vietnam -- and even though you didn't show up for Guard duty for at least a year -- at least you were still IN FAVOR of the Vietnam War! Cowards like Clinton felt it was more important to be consistent (he opposed the war, thus he refused to go) than to be patriotic and two-faced.

The reason that I think you know so much about other men's war wounds is because, during your time you in the Texas Air National Guard, you suffered so many of them yourself. Consider the paper cut you received on September 22, 1972, while stationed in Alabama, working on a Senate campaign for your dad's friend (when you were supposed to be on the Guard base). A campaign brochure appeared from nowhere, ambushing your right index finger, and blood trickled out onto your brand new argyle sweater.

Then there was the incident with the Crazy Glue when your fraternity brothers visited you one weekend at the base and glued your lips together while you were "passed out." Though initially considered "friendly fire," it was later ruled that you suffered severe post traumatic stress disorder from the assault and required certain medicinal attention -- which, it seems, was provided by those same fraternity brethren.

But nothing matched your heroism when, on July 2, 1969, you sustained a massive head injury when enemy combatants from another Guard unit dropped a keg of Coors on your head during a reconnaissance mission at a nearby all-girls college. Fortunately, the cool, smooth fluids that poured out of the keg were exactly what was needed to revive you.

That you never got a purple heart for any of these incidents is a shame. I can fully appreciate your anger at Senator Kerry for the three he received. I mean, Kerry was a man of privilege, he could have gotten out just like you. Instead, he thinks he's going to gain points with the American people bragging about how he was getting shot at every day in the Mekong Delta. Ha! Is that the best he can do? Hell, I hear gunfire every night outside my apartment window! If he thinks he is going to impress anyone with the fact that he volunteered to go when he could have spent the Vietnam years on the family yacht, he should think again. That only shows how stupid he was! True-blue Americans want a president who knows how to pull strings and work the system and get away with doing as little work as possible!

So, to make it up to you, I have written some new ads you can use on TV. People will soon tire of the swift boat veterans and you are going to need some fresh, punchier material. Feel free to use any of these:

ANNOUNCER: "When the bullets were flying all around him in Vietnam, what did John Kerry do? He said he leaned over the boat and 'pulled a man out of the river.' But, as we all know, men don't live in the river -- fish do. John Kerry knows how to tell a big fish tale. What he won't tell you is that when the enemy was shooting at him, he ducked. Do you want a president who will duck? Vote Bush."

ANNOUNCER: "Mr. Kerry's biggest supporter, Sen. Max Cleland, claims to have lost two legs and an arm in Vietnam. But he still has one arm! How did that happen? One word: Cowardice. When duty called, he was unwilling to give his last limb. Is that the type of selfishness you want hanging out in the White House? We think not. Vote for the man who would be willing to give America his right frontal lobe. Vote Bush."

Hope these help, Mr. Bush. And remember, when the American death toll in Iraq hits 1,000 during the Republican convention, be sure to question whether those who died really did indeed "die" -- or were they just trying to get their face on CNN's nightly tribute to fallen heroes? The sixteen who've died so far this week were probably working hand in hand with the Kerry campaign to ruin your good time in New York. Stay consistent, sir, and always, ALWAYS question the veracity of anyone who risks their life for this country. It's the least they deserve.

Yours,
Michael Moore

mmflint@aol.com
www.michaelmoore.com

PS. George, I know you said you don't read the newspaper, but USA Today has given me credentials to the Republican convention to write a guest column each day next week (Tues.-Fri.). If you don't want to read it, you and I will be in the same building so maybe I could come by and read it to you? Lemme know...

After careful consideration...

After careful consideration, I have decided that it would be in my best interest if I did not continue with the Family Differences series. It is way too risky. However, over the weekend, I will blog about some family stuff that shouldn't get me in too much trouble!

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the people that are reading my blog. It feels good to know that I am not writing in a vacuum. When I have a moment, I will link to your blogs from mine.

A special thank you to my best friend, M. You know who you are. You're the best!

Monday, August 23, 2004

Excerpt from Guardian newspaper story

I'm on Michael Moore's mailing list. In his latest email, he posts an article from The Guardian, one of the U.K.'s largest and most respected daily newspapers. It was written by the acclaimed author John Berger (winner of the Booker Prize.)

The article is entitled:
THE BEGINNING OF HISTORY
Fahrenheit 9/11 has touched millions of viewers across the world. But could it actually change the course of civilisation?


Here is an excerpt from it:

The film proposes that the White House and Pentagon were taken over in the first year of the millennium by a gang of thugs so that US power should henceforth serve the global interests of the corporations: a stark scenario which is closer to the truth than most nuanced editorials. Yet more important than the scenario is the way the movie speaks out. It demonstrates that - despite all the manipulative power of communications experts, lying presidential speeches and vapid press conferences - a single independent voice, pointing out certain home truths which countless Americans are already discovering for themselves, can break through the conspiracy of silence, the atmosphere of fear and the solitude of feeling politically impotent.

It's a movie that speaks of obstinate faraway desires in a period of disillusion. A movie that tells jokes while the band plays the apocalypse. A movie in which millions of Americans recognise themselves and the precise ways in which they are being cheated. A movie about surprises, mostly bad but some good, being discussed together. Fahrenheit 9/11 reminds the spectator that when courage is shared one can fight against the odds.

In more than a thousand cinemas across the country, Michael Moore becomes with this film a people's tribune. And what do we see? Bush is visibly a political cretin, as ignorant of the world as he is indifferent to it; while the tribune, informed by popular experience, acquires political credibility, not as a politician himself, but as the voice of the anger of a multitude and its will to resist.

There is something else which is astounding. The aim of Fahrenheit 9/11 is to stop Bush fixing the next election as he fixed the last. Its focus is on the totally unjustified war in Iraq. Yet its conclusion is larger than either of these issues. It declares that a political economy which creates colossally increasing wealth surrounded by disastrously increasing poverty, needs - in order to survive - a continual war with some invented foreign enemy to maintain its own internal order and security. It requires ceaseless war.

Thus, 15 years after the fall of communism, a decade after the declared end of history, one of the main theses of Marx's interpretation of history again becomes a debating point and a possible explanation of the catastrophes being lived.

It is always the poor who make the most sacrifices, Fahrenheit 9/11 announces quietly during its last minutes. For how much longer?

There is no future for any civilisation anywhere in the world today which ignores this question. And this is why the film was made and became what it became. It's a film that deeply wants America to survive.

Big risk

The Family Differences series I'm doing is a little nerve-wracking. If anyone on T's side reads it, it's not going to help matters. However, for my own mental health, I feel it is something I have to do. If I don't get these feelings out, I may implode.

The chances of his family (other than T) discovering this is minimal, so I'm not too worried... but, you never know.

I'll be posting part 2 with the next couple of days.

Sunday, August 22, 2004

Family Differences - 1st in a series

For some time now, a feeling of resentment has been brewing inside of me. No, it is not about politics, (this time) nor is it about anything else you might be thinking. It is about the differences in families. I don't know if it was because I was raised as a Jew, or it is because my family instilled the importance of family in me at a very early age, but what I've been observing on my fiance's side has been astounding.

In order to share this story, I'll have to start from the beginning, when things seemed different.

I met "T" in 1982. I went along with my friend, M, to his house for his 18th birthday. Everything was going fine until a skinhead friend of ours tried to make out with me in the backyard. When I said no, this "friend" started being mean to me. That is when T stepped in. He saw what happened & then hung with me for the rest of the night. Needless to say, we became a couple.

We stayed together through many ups & downs for the next 9 months or so. After I graduated high school, we started to go our seperate ways.

T and his parents had some knock-down drag-out fights when I was there, but it was never anything too serious. Other than making me & my friends uncomfortable by fighting in front of us, his parents seemed alright. They got dressed up & went out regularly, and their house was clean and presentable.

Cut to 19 years later...

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

Smart Kittens

My Uncle Richard emailed me this joke:

A Senate staffer is taking a stroll around Capitol Hill when he meets a little girl carrying a small basket with a blanket over it. Curious, he says to the girl, "What's in the basket?"

She replies, "New baby kittens" and opens the basket to show him.

"How nice," he said.

"What kind are they?" Little girl says, "Republicans."

He smiles and pats the little girl on the head and he continues on.

About three weeks later, he and another member of the Senate staff are again strolling on Capitol Hill when he sees the little girl again with the same basket. He says to his colleague; "Watch this, it's very cute" and they approach the little girl.

He asks the girl how the kittens are and she says fine. He then says, "What kind of kittens are they?" and she replies, "Democrats."

Somewhat abashed, he says, "Three weeks ago you said they were Republican!"

"I know," she says. "But now their eyes are open".

Sunday, August 15, 2004


This is the shirt I was wearing. They sell them at http://www.northernsun.com/. Posted by Hello

The Anti-Bush t-shirt

I went to IKEA today to look for new light fixtures. I didn't buy any, but I had a good experience none-the-less. I was wearing my anti-Bush t-shirt, and got a lot of positive reactions. I've been noticing more & more positive signs about the November election. Except for one Bush sign on my block, and a smattering of Bush bumper stickers here & there, for the most part all I see is major support for Kerry - yeah!!

However, there was one news item this week about Kerry that irked me. He was asked: knowing what we know now about Iraq, would he still go to war...he said yes. Yes?! I doubt that he thought that answer through. I think he was worried about the ignorant red-neck vote when he answered that question. I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt on that one.

Saturday, August 14, 2004

Good Tech Linkage

Previously, I posted a bunch of links to some of my favorite political websites. Now it's time for technology. Here are some great tech websites, & who knows? Maybe these lists will help my site ( http://ocd-gx-liberal.blogspot.com/) show up in Google's search results.

General Computer News & Views:
http://www.lockergnome.com/
http://www.jakeludington.com/
http://www.pcworld.com/
http://www.pcmag.com
http://www.anandtech.com/
http://www.sharkyextreme.com/
http://www.extremetech.com/


Hardware/Software Reviews:
http://www.tomshardware.com/ (Look for "Tom's Guides" on the left)
http://reviews.cnet.com/
http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/
http://www.epinions.com/

Sites for researching stores & Comparing prices:
http://www.resellerratings.com/
http://www.pricegrabber.com/
http://www.mysimon.com/
http://www.pricewatch.com/
http://www.bizrate.com/

NOW you're ready to shop! My favorite online stores:
http://newegg.com/
http://www.amazon.com/
http://www.buy.com
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Home.jsp
http://www.nanosys1.com/ (My local computer shop)

Happy reading & shopping!



Thursday, August 12, 2004

Silver jumpsuits & jetpacks

Shouldn't we have our silver jumpsuits and jetpacks by now? Look at any old science fiction movie. When they show the future (usually around 1975) everyone is wearing matching silver jumpsuits and flying around with their jetpack strapped to their back.

I told my fiance that we should get this thing started. We could go get some jumpsuits made and just start wearing them...everyday. Hey, someone has to get this thing started, right?

Saturday, August 07, 2004


Sorry, couldn't resist Posted by Hello

Evil puppies! Posted by Hello

Letterman, please stop the Kerry bashing.

I've been watching David Letterman since the very beginning. I've recently noticed that his opening monologue consists of a lot of Kerry bashing. Sure, he jokes about Bush, as well, but there seems to be something behind the Kerry jokes. Next time he has a political guest on his show, listen to his questions. Last night while interviewing Tommy Franks, his questions seemed to lean to the right. I always thought Letterman was an intelligent man...could I have been wrong?

Before Jay Leno took over the Tonight Show, I was a fan. Not anymore. As much as Letterman has been disappointing me lately, I won't change the channel. Leno's whole schtick consists of taking cheap shots. I don't call that comedy.

Talk to you tomorrow...