[Marxism] Re: Robert Jensen attack on Faranheit 911

[Billy Thekid <bill_linville2222@xxxxxxxxx>]

Walter Lippmann writes
<In my dreams, all of the current US left,
multiplied a hundred times, would be able
<to speak to the broad mass of people in
the United States with as much clarity and
<political acumen as Micheal Moore has done
in this movie. He's correct when he says he
<hopes it makes a difference in the election.
Nothing that the rest of the left, combined,
<has done can have the impact he has. Viva
Michael Moore!

<I admit, however, I'm waiting for a review
which will show us that Michael Moore's
<movie is actually a suspicious plot which
is designed to dragoon the workers in the
<US into supporting the imperialist Kerry
for president of the United States....

Actually, what is needed after a movie like his, and in the context of ABB 
running rampant, is political clarity that Michael Moore is not offering.  His 
website tells people to register voters.  The media is pitching it strictly as 
an anti-Bush film that was put out strategically for the election.  The film is 
much more than that   Its best stuff exposes the brutality of the occupation 
and slants toward a "Troops out now" argument.  But the media and the lib-lab 
left, want to gloss over that part of the movie and make it strictly an 
anti-Bush film, and  the Democrats are more than happy to go along.  Moore, of 
course, has been complicit in this process ( I hope Moore's comment to Time 
that it's more than Bush v Kerry indicates that he is now conscious of this 
distorton).

That's why left criticisms of his film are valuable.  The film provides an 
opening for the organized left to explain the complicity of the Democratic 
party in the whole process and win people over to a broader understanding of 
capitalism and imperialism (like Jensen said, it's way more than Bush).  And 
people do come out of the film open to more in-depth explanations.  In Madison, 
for example, on opening weekend, we sold 63 Socialist Worker newspapers in an 
hour (all we brought with us) with lots of great discussion outside of the 
theater!

Without this perspective, many people will unfortunately come out of the movie 
thinking they should spend all their energy getting Kerry into office.  Just as 
troops that have come back from Iraq angry about the occupation have said they 
want to join the Democrats or John Kerry's campaign because there is no other 
alternative posed to them.  So left critiques are appropriate and necessary.

Although I will say criticisms are different than all-out attacks and 
dismissals of the film offhand, which is what Jensen did.  I didn't disagree 
with his critiques, but the film is definitely not conservative!!  Nothing like 
he showed even comes close to seeing the light of day in the mainstream media.

I think we should be extremely happy that such a film has seen the light of 
day.  And of course we can't expect Moore to be a Marxist, but pointing out the 
deficiencies of the film are important if we are to start convincing people to 
break with the Democrats and join a grassroots movement to get us out of Iraq.

Bill Linville
Madison, WI

                
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