In reaction to Judith Warner's good post:
The Shame Game - Judith Warner Blog - NYTimes.com
I absolutely support Michael Moore. But I see an addiction supported by people and media that forces statements into dichotomies. One should find a common ground because that is usually the first step to breaking apart a false dichotomy that is presented by ideologies, media, talk-show hosts and, yes, directors.
Overgeneralized dichotomies are useful for focusing on a topic or problem. But if you stop your understanding there, you are stopping at the level of chiche. Once you have a topic in focus, go in closer and see the real landscape, the real texture and anthro-poetic STUFF that you don't see from the conceptual distance. Use the dichotomy as a target that lets you destroy the myth.
People should be in school long enough to learn how to learn, and practiced enough at it to be addicted to it. Getting out after one only learns to cast or repeat cliches is a waste of time, and in my opinion, dangerous to the world culture.
Lastly: I believe that Michael Moore goes beyond his bravado--his films have matured greatly from his early work. I love his statement that communism isn't the opposite of capitalism, democracy is. The statement reframes an old argument and dares you to come inside for the argument. That is honest filmmaking.
