I like Michael Moore.
But not for the reasons that you might like him. To me, he is not merely a lovable, oddly-shaped fat man who strangely resembles a sarcastic, modern-day Kris Kringle. (I had a very bizarre view of Santa as a kid.) I don’t fawn over his brilliance simply because he reduced an NRA-loving — albeit Alzheimer’s disease-stricken — Charlton Heston to a blithering toad in his documentary. I don’t even like him because he’s against the war.
No, I like Moore for another reason: Because the guy has balls.
Maybe slightly misguided passions, but balls nonetheless. See, I don’t agree with many of the things he says. Though after digesting his Oscar-winning documentary, “Bowling for Columbine,” his best-selling book, “Stupid White Men” and most recently, his boo-inducing acceptance speech at the Academy Awards, I was impressed. Not because he likens President Bush to a dumber version of Satan, but because he speaks his mind.
But he has come under fire for turning his back on his country, for being anti-American during a time when the United States should display tireless solidarity to the rest of the world. This is supposed to be a time when Democrats and Republicans come together to frolic in a utopian display of unity, maybe even sing “Heal the World” while holding hands.
So he’s ticked off a whole lot of people.
“It’s completely wrong to use your power as a celebrity like that,” said Education sophomore Jennifer Richard. “We shouldn’t have to listen to Moore preaching from his soapbox while we watch the Oscars.”
Still, the blending of entertainment and politics at the Academy Awards is not unprecedented, said Prof. Lawrence Lichty, chairman of the radio-TV-film department. Back in the 1970s, actor Marlon Brando declined his Oscar in protest of the treatment of Native Americans, and director Bert Schneider was booed after his acceptance speech blasted the Vietnam War.
Moore justified his outburst by saying he supports the troops and hopes they return home safely. His beef, he said, is with the Bush administration.
Policy makers will argue that Moore’s rhetoric and political films are nothing but liberal propaganda based on, at best, selective research. But as we fight a dictator who violently shuns opposition across the world, displays such as Moore’s remind us of the necessity of free speech — one of those amazing freedoms that American soldiers have fought for centuries to protect.
Let’s face it: Moore’s tirade wasn’t very intelligent. He didn’t persuade anyone who didn’t already agree with his views. But the fact that he was able to speak out in the first place testifies to the greatness of our individual liberties — the same freedoms that Iraqi people live without.
As I switched off my TV after the Oscars, Moore’s outburst made me appreciate another celebrity’s surprisingly poignant comment. While I never considered her to be much more than an overrated diva past her prime, Barbra Streisand’s words struck a chord with me:
“I am glad that I live in a country that guarantees every citizen, including artists, the right to say and to sing what you believe.”
Right on, Babs.
