Rating:  Summary: Excellent, this will be a bestseller for weeks to come Review: I believe to be quite an open person. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Michael Moore speaks load and clear. We need more voices like his. In response to the first couple reviews, the ignorance is present. You have judged a book by not even reading it's content. Your probably Racist also, since you have the ability of judging an object without knowing it first. Everyone should read this book. If you are Anti Michael Moore, well it only makes you stronger. If you are for Michael Moore, it makes us stronger. We need more great minds. Right now it seems the great minds are the ones that read. Referring to the past reviews. Knowledge is power. "We will prevail" as bush put it. Long live Michael Moore. Our day will come. No more Bush. P.S. Sorry for my lack of writing skills, I went to public school.
Rating:  Summary: Impeach George W. Bush Review: Michael Moore has shown the American people the true character of George W. Bush and his cabinet of billionaires. I never knew how close George W. Bush was to the Bin Laden family until I read this book and the various sources that are quoted within it. If you have not read this insightful documentary that rivals the Washington Post and the Watergate affair from the 1970's, then please do and pass it on to people who have the right to know the truth.
Rating:  Summary: 0 Yes ZERO Stars Review: Michael Moore writes and produces to promote the views of Michael Moore, nothing else. That he can do so is tribute to the political climate and arena that he so often criticizes. His efforts do nothing more than line his wallet for the sake of opportunity. His efforts on the "literary" venue are biased, and a personal agenda. That this puffy, fat man of simple mind can try to influence the masses in such a Large fashion is totally...American.
Rating:  Summary: Don't shoot the messenger... Review: Michael Moore is a fearless man in a country where people are afraid of everything. He is one of the few public figures I can admire without embarrassment. I don't agree with everything he says in "Dude, Where's My Country," but most of his arguments are well supported by independant sources, grounded in logic, and well intentioned. He is a true patriot, because he believes in the potential of this country, rather than those who believe in false propaganda. This book makes the case that the media has been alarmingly easy on GW Bush, and the Bush Administration has used 9/11 as an excuse to sell its conservative, paranoid agenda. With no solid evidence to link Sadaam Hussein to the September 11th terrorist attacks, Bush and his backers sent thousands of American troups into harm's way, and caused destruction to many innocent Iraqi lives. This is Moore's argument, and he has decent evidence to support it. And for presenting a well reasoned argument, he is attacked by people who aren't even willing to consider the evidence. Of one thing I am certain: history will be kind to Moore and expose the Bush dynasty for what it is. I'm sorry I won't be around to see this well deserved vindication.
Rating:  Summary: Dude, where's brain? Review: This book was as intelligent as the movie with the like name. You would have to smoke a bowl of pot to think either one has any redeeming value. Don't waste your money.
Rating:  Summary: well, his side lost: whatever, man Review: I consider myself a liberal person, and I do like this book, but micheal moore is sinking himself and us to the level of Ann Coulter and others like her. We need to show that we are better than the idiots in power, and books like this simply do not do that. I am not saying we should be perfectly polite, but yammering back and forth about these things in an idiot fashion like this book does will not help anyone. I do like some of the ideas and consider it worthwhile to check out, but in the end the book serves no real positive purpose. Sorry, Micheal
Rating:  Summary: From, http://kachinacrowe.journalspace.com/?entryid=401 Review: I think I'm going to write a book. Because "Dude, Where's My Country" has proven that one can write absolutely anything, and someone will print it. I thought this book was terribly written. Michael Moore's amusingly vicious style does not translate to straight prose. The first chapter of Dude, Where's My Country is precisely like the first twenty minutes of Fahrenheit 9/11. For my money, I'd recommend seeing the film because it's funnier and more coherent. Moore's style is based on going off onto excessive, un-funny tangents to prove a `point.' At page 93, Moore conducts his rant about the seven minute pause when President Bush sat listening to a kindergarten class after being told that the country was under attack.
"Or maybe you were just thinking `I did not want this job in the first place! This was supposed to be Jeb's job; he was the chosen one! Why Me? Why me, Daddy?' Hey, we understand. And we don't blame you. You looked like a lost puppy who just wanted to go home. Suddenly, this was not the party you thought it would be, and you were no longer the CEO/president, you were now expected to be the Warrior/President..."
Michael, you've gone too far. It's not funny, it's not clever and it's not enlightening, so what's the point of that paragraph - the entire page, in all honesty?
The above line is a first person dialogue between me and the intended reading audience. It is an affective tool when used carefully. Michael Moore can't stop using it. Perhaps it is only in college that the difference between a conversational tone and asinine rambling is clearly delineated because Moore just can't seem to tell the difference. The opening of chapter two ("Home of the Whopper") illustrates this perfectly:
"I like Whoppers. Flame-broiled, juicy, chock-full of onions and lettuce and loads of secret ingredients. They're big, too; bigger than a Big Mac. You don't even need to say `biggie size it, please' because it's already so damn BIG. But I know Whoppers are bad for me, so I've given them up."
I know that this sets up the premise for the chapter; Moore will introduce various lies told by the Bush administration as `combo meals' (e.g. "#4 Whopper heavy on the Pickles and Onions: "Saddam Hussein is the world's most evil man!"). but come on. I don't want to hear about how much Michael Moore enjoys Whoppers, or why. Just like I didn't want to hear him making some lame comparison involving how much people dislike going to the dentist. It's hideously boring, pointless and stupid. Speaking of hideously pointless, boring and stupid, Moore's take on the Coalition of the Willing -
"Back to the `Willing': Azerbaijan (we're coming to get their oil next so they had no friggin' choice), Bulgaria (any time you've got Bulgaria on your side, how can you lose? Plus I got to write `Bulgaria' twice in the same book!)..."
I was taught very young, not to use parentheses, (or to use them sparingly at the very least). That it's better to start a new sentence (for continuity's sake), make an appositive (where commas set off an additional phrase), a dependant clause or even use a double dash (my favorite!) to set off short unrelated notes and sidebars. The above paragraph has made my stomach roll over - twice. This is the type of literary nonsense that Moore uses throughout the book, relying on font size, italicization and underlining to make his points come across. He even makes use the punctuation I loathe the most - the exclamation point! This book is filled with shining examples of "WHY MICHAEL?! WHY?!" like chapter three, Oil's Well That Ends Well a dream sequence and Jesus W. Christ where the Christian Lord and Savior interrupts Moore's soliloquy with his two cents. 1) Non-fiction editorial type books do not have dream sequences for a reason. They waste monumental amounts of time and are remarkably dense. 2) If Jesus Christ actually writes or thinks in a phrasing anywhere similar to that which appears in Dude, Where's My Country I'm converting to Judaism now.
In spite of his best efforts, Moore still managed to make a few good points. Although stylistically enfeebled, chapter five "How to Stop Terrorism? Stop Being Terrorists!" managed to make all the points that I've been making for the last five years. I felt that chapter ten, "How to Talk to Your Conservative Brother-in-Law" made some excellent points - particularly number six `Admit that the left has made mistakes.' I personally don't acknowledge everything he's listed as a mistake, but the concept is good nonetheless. This is one place where Moore's folksy style is charming and not cumbersome. Chapter 11, "Bush Removal and Other Spring Cleaning Chores" on the other hand should have been severely edited or scrapped from the book. Never mind the fact that reading it now was rubbing lemon juice into an open wound, chapter eleven again returned to the asinine and I can tell you exactly where it happened: Page 206, the third line from the bottom where Michael Moore suggests that Oprah run for president. This, is idiotic. He doesn't just suggest it he goes on about it for three pages. The whole chapter just gets stupider and stupider, careening down the wrong side of the bell curve, overshadowing the good points made about how to volunteer in the electoral process (run for precinct delegate, etc).
In summation, I've seen better writing from the Bathrobe Blogging set. If Michael Moore weren't an Oscar winning filmmaker, this book would not have gotten published because it is absolute dreck. Even I'm biased. I should give this book a two, two point five maybe, but because it's Michael Moore, and I like his politics, I'll give him a gentleman's three. That extra point comes at a cost though Michael - You make the movies, I'll write the books and ne'er the twain shall meet?
Rating:  Summary: A truthful, yet sometimes exaggerated book Review: Michael's writing and film style, for me, works best when he tells the truth using facts without embellishment. In this book, when he wrote in the 1st person as Christ, I found it distracting to the rest of the book and somewhat childish. When he wrote of the amount of money the Saudis have invested in our country, my attention was locked in. Its kinda like when you look at him and see his oafish mannerism and physique--it makes me wonder why this guy can't get himself into better shape so he can initially be taken seriously.
Rating:  Summary: Moore is an intelligent opposition to the party in power Review: While he occasionally exaggerates to make his points more humorous, Moore generally stays fairly close to the truth. Which is more than can be said about those whose favorite sport is to revile him. Moore shows a great deal of knowledge about what has been happening in the United States over the past several years, far more than I expected. He makes two fundamental points regarding the nature of the country.
The first is that the United States is fundamentally a liberal country. An overwhelming majority of the country is in favor of legalized abortion, although there is a great deal of variation within the middle of the spectrum. Most people favor some form of gun control, particularly regarding assault rifles and handguns. An overwhelming majority of people is in favor of environmental action, especially when it has a direct action on their neighborhood. While there is not a majority willing to tolerate gay marriage, most people have no problem with gays and lesbians having their rights guaranteed by law.
The second point is that the Democrats have turned into spineless whiners. Moore believes that the Democrats have forgotten much of what they have stood for. Social security, strong support for worker rights and concern for the poor are traditional Democratic values. Moore believes that these and other values can be used to win elections, provided that the Democrats who support them are not allowed to be inaccurately defined by their opponents.
Moore is one of those ingredients necessary to have a functioning democracy. He is an intelligent opposition to the group in power. To understand how powerful a voice he is in opposition, pay attention to how much the Republican press trashed him during the election. There was so much invective against him; it is easy to forget that he is fundamentally a maker of films. If you want to know what Moore really believes, then read this book. Don't let your opinion of him be defined by the conservatives.
Rating:  Summary: A Patriot Up in Arms Review: It's amazing how many people in these reviews rage against Michael Moore's weight. I don't think they read the title. The title isn't "Dude, Where's My Hamburger?" Moore has more weighty topics to discuss here than food or his waistline (he's recently lost 50 pounds, by the way, for all those hatemongers who can't seem to think about or address the actual content in this book). He's virtually resurrecting a vision of America that puts the people in charge and jettisons the powerful, truly bloated and obese people out of their commodious seats of power and security. In their place should be all the working stiffs who currently prop up these corrupt greed machines with their labor, their votes, and their children's lives. In effect, he's trying to breathe life into the Democratic party, which always touted itself as the party of the people. And he's trying to educate a public that's being lied to every day by the big right-wing media machine now in place in the nation.
One of the best parts of this book was his reminder that fear has gripped the land, an overwhelming fear that is being used to fulfill an extreme right-wing agenda. FDR said we have nothing to fear but fear itself, and indeed, we should be greatly afraid of how fear is being disseminated from our industrial/military government and our cynical, ignorant president. That fear is driving us away from our rights and away from our senses. It's blinding us to the dirty politics that Bush practices, the lies he constantly tells, and the nasty money connections which trigger too many of his thoughts, words, and deeds. Bad boy, Bushie!
I thank Michael Moore for his love of America. He loves this place so much that he took the time and trouble to write this book and to remind us all about who should be in charge here.
Great stuff, Michael. Just watch your back because lots of people hate you. They hate you because you're telling the truth, something that's a big threat to their personal agendas.
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