Michael Moore is Being Sued by a Man with No Arms, PART II

Let me preface this article (so I don’t take any unnecessary heat) with some extremely prudent information:

I don’t know if you (whoever’s reading this) know anything about the case which this article is about; it involves documentary filmmaker Michael Moore being sued by a soldier who appeared in his movie Fahrenheit 9/11; does this ring a bell? I want to make it crystal clear that I have nothing against the soldier involved in this matter (from a personal standpoint). For this reason, I have decided not to include his name. This article (while about the recent suit against Michael Moore to a certain degree) is mostly about my feelings on frivolous lawsuits. Some of my thoughts may seem harsh (and admittedly they are), but I just really hate frivolous lawsuits; and when I heard about this case I just kind of went off. So I apologize in advance (though I shouldn’t, fore this is satire).

If you don’t want to read an article where it may seem like I am making fun of a double amputee, former soldier, than, please, don’t read this piece.

In this second installment of my Michael Moore lawsuit piece, I’d like to talk about the choices that we make and little thing called accountability.

Warning: life during wartime

Nobody ever twists your arm to do anything. Obligations don’t exist. I believe in these sentiments; I believe because I think I have to. War is shitty; I think even soldiers would agree with this. But ever since the United States did away with the draft and went with an all volunteer force (AVF), the choice of war has been made a 1,000 times over (and frankly, I find this shocking).

I don’t believe the issue with this case has anything to do with Michael Moore or his movie Fahrenheit 9/11; I think it has everything to so with the fact that both of this guy’s arms got blown off in Iraq.

And before I start to really come off as an unpatriotic, miserable asshole (at the very least); I want to reiterate how badly I feel for this man. He has a wife and kid to support and I’m sure our government has done very little to help him (financially speaking). It must be incredibly hard to wake up in the morning and try to make a living with no arms; I can’t even begin to imagine it. But when that man looks in the mirror; I’ll be damned if he doesn’t think about the day he enrolled into the armed services.

I believe (to a certain extent) in the so-called “back door draft”; a theory that, in impoverished areas, young men (and women) are forced into service as a way out of a presumed desolate future. This is true to some degree, but there are always other choices. Especially now, this country needs to realize that these wars are wars of attrition; and thus, there is no reason to serve.

I can see a future scenario where a legitimate war arises and, in that scenario, I would be the first to defend this country. But this war is illegal, and to sign up and fight it is wrong; we all live with the choices we make.

Nothing ever changes everything

So with that said; I’m not sure what exactly he thinks this lawsuit will fix. He won’t win it (see the first part of this article to know why). What does this poor man have to gain from all this national attention? Why do I have to see this man on CNN?

Am I supposed to feel bad for him; is that what he wants?

Life sucks (mostly); it definitely sucks more for some than it does for others. These are the cold hard facts. You don’t have any arms, Michael Moore is fat, I don’t have a job, I lost my foot in a lawnmower accident; these things happen. If you can go through you’re entire life without experiencing any serious pain, than I am envious (even though, that’s not really living).

What exactly does this guy want to change; what does he want to happen? Sure, millions of dollars would help take care of his family; life would be easier. But Michael Moore could never cut a that would pay for new arms. They’re never coming back.

Maybe this whole thing is really about misplaced anger; because in the end, Michael Moore the documentary filmmaker is really just�

Michael Moore the Entertainer

Don’t get me wrong; I think Michael Moore makes semi educational films that serve a purpose, one purpose especially: to hold our attention for two hours and make lots and lots of money. Michael Moore tapped into a genre that had never before been a commercial outlet. Documentaries were seen as entertainment for a small few and, at best, education for the selected masses.

Michael Moore changed that with a movie called Bowling for Columbine (and a few of his lesser known, earlier films). By personalizing the genre, by putting himself on camera; Michael Moore created a monster. The documentary was no longer a boring footage film with an unseen narrator; it became a character story with a man struggling to understand the same things that bother you and me.

Michael Moore turned the documentary into entertainment and he himself became an entertainer. It’s a slippery slope for sure. On one hand, Moore has a responsibility to the facts and on the other he has become a slave to the bottom line.

Some production companies have declined to work with Moore because they are nervous that his topics are too controversial; but, by the same token, I guarantee you that the ones who do decide to work with him don’t give a shit about the issues. How much is this going to cost and how much can we rake in? That’s all they want to know.

In the end, it’s hard (terribly so). You can feel bad for a soldier who lost his arms, but you have to stay true to the principals that have made this country great. Frivolous lawsuits have to go; and this one is as frivolous as they come. Accountability, we all need to learn what that word really means (I’m still trying). If we can’t, I fear for this nation’s future.