:: NEWS COCKTAIL aka BlahBlahBlog ::
"Everything is being compressed into tiny tablets. You take a little pill of news every day - 23 minutes - and that's supposed to be enough." -Walter Cronkite, RE TV news. The Web has changed that for many, however, and here is an extra dose for your daily news cocktail. This prescription tends to include surveillance and now war-related links, along with the occasional pop culture junk and whatever else seizes my attention as I scan online news sites.:: 10.20.2004 ::
:: "Michael Moore Brings Bush-Bashing to Utah" ::
OREM, Utah (AP) - Filmmaker Michael Moore brought his Bush-bashing to conservative Utah Wednesday, saying he felt perfectly safe and was proud of student organizers who held firm against attempts to bar him from the Republican bastion.
"I feel bad for students who had to suffer through this simply because they believe in freedom of expression," Moore said before his sold-out speech to more than 7,000 at Utah Valley State College.
The stop was part of Moore's Slacker Uprising tour aimed at mobilizing youth voters. Asked if he feared for his safety in an area so opposed to his point of view, Moore scoffed.
"The whole country loves the Mormons. Why would I feel unsafe here? I haven't seen a lot of Utah gangs, Mormons with chains and knives and Uzis."
Moore's appearance stirred fierce debate in Utah County. Critics said the student government misused public money by spending much of its $50,000 budget to book the "Fahrenheit 9/11" director, whose documentary paints President Bush as an inept leader who rushed into war in Iraq.
Student government leaders organizing the speech, who face a recall petition, said the money was spent properly and that Moore's appearance reflected freedom of expression.
Because it received so many complaints, the school brought in conservative talk show host Sean Hannity to speak last week to balance Moore's perspective.
School spokesman Derek Hall said proceeds from the Hannity and Moore events would mean the school spent only $35,000 combined for both speakers.
"The way we look at it, we spent $17,500 each on two national speakers," Hall said.
Wednesday's crowd was overwhelmingly pro-Moore, but protesters occasionally broke through the din. Some jeered Moore by calling him a liar and criticizing his weight.
"I love that sound," Moore said of the interruptions. "It's the sound of a dying dinosaur. ... It's embarrassing for them."
At least three people were thrown out, including one seated near the front whom Moore singled out because he said the man was pointing an unidentified object at him.
posted by me
:: 10:32:00 PM [+] ::
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