Necessary Evil

No, I haven’t gone out to see Fahrenheit 9/11 yet. Not through any lack of desire to do so, but because of a combination of a hectic schedule and difficulty in finding reliable babysitting. Of course, now that a friend has informed me that I may actually be in the movie (after being on hand during some of the shooting), I suppose I really should get out. Of course, the picture seems to be doing just fine without my box-office dollars so far...

Naturally, critics the world over are making a big deal about the overtly political slant (and even I’ll admit that’s an understatement) of the picture. But you know what? I don’t give a damn. Is Michael Moore blameless in his deliberate selection of particular facts to make a point? Hell, no — though at least he’s perfectly up-front about it. I still don’t give a damn. It’s all well and good to make an argument rationally, presenting both sides of the issue, giving equal (or at least reasonable) time to the opposing point of view, but you know what? That’s the absolute last thing we need right now.

News flash: We no longer live in a civil, rational, respectable society. And when the G.O.P. is more than willing to distort facts, feed the flames of hatred, and spew vitriol 24/7, you’re never going to be able to counter that with reasoned argument. You don’t fight artillery shells with slingshots. It took years for the Democrats to realize that the Republicans had declared outright war on them — and now we’re finally realizing that we need to fight fire with fire. The intellectuals who sit in their ivory towers and politely debate the arguments no longer exist, except in some G.O.P. flack’s warped little mind. All that matters now is winning this battle; all other considerations are secondary.

Kudos to the Michael Moores of the world. Keep up the fight, and never surrender. I’ll be heading out to the movies this week.