In 2000 I chose Al Gore. I didn't know as much about him as I do now, and I didn't agree with everything he supposedly stood for, but I wanted him instead of George W. Bush. Even though Gore lost, I was very glad that I had chosen him. Two years later, I was still glad I had. I didn't think that Bush was a very good Commander in Chief—he didn't seem qualified to represent or lead America. Four years later, I was even more happy that my first choice in a presidential election had been for Al Gore. I don't like George W. Bush for lots of reasons, and not simply because the "liberal media" emphasizes his stupidity in their portraits of our president.
As I watched An Inconvenient Truth, I was reminded that Al Gore is skilled, smart, and very capable. Why couldn't this guy have won the presidency as he did the popular vote? Some conservatives would say that God did it. Maybe you're right, maybe all of the things Bush and his horrible administration have done was meant to be in order to serve a broader plan. Maybe a political savior is to bounce on the scene in January 2009 and fix the world. All right, that's fine. However, let's look at what we know for certain: Bush has made many bad decisions. Dick Cheney is a bad vice president. The administration under Bush is not a good administration. I think they and the rest of the administration have their hands in lots of other things and are dedicated to and influenced heavily by many other interests. An Inconvenient Truth glances at this. I know lots of you don't believe in Heaven, but if we all make it there, it will be great when all of the things presently undiscovered or questioned are made known. It takes a lot for me to cry during a movie—it has to be something truly profound and touching. When a segment about the 2000 election was shown, I teared up. I did so because I thought about the terrible mistake the voters made in November and the even worse Supreme Court decision on December 12, 2000. What would the country be like today if Gore had been president? Would we have all of these problems and bad feelings? The interests that distract offices of our government from doing the right things and instead lead them to concentrate on money ('the global warming "theory" isn't important enough for us to disrupt our economy with attempts to fix our environment') causes me to believe the answer to be negative. I hope we don't hear our children and grandchildren giving an emphatic "No!" while they look back from the future, trying to fix our damaged planet, wishing the people who preceded them had done something. "I mean, the signs were right there!"
In October 2005, Gore was asked how the United States would've been different if he had been elected president. He responded, "We would not have invaded a country that didn't attack us. We would not have taken money from the working families and given it to the most wealthy families. We would not be trying to control and intimidate the news media. We would not be routinely torturing people."
If only that had happened.
It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.
This quote from Upton Sinclair is used in the movie. It can be applied to more things than salary, and that's why I included it here. Apathy is a very bad and very avoidable plague that is widespread among people.
Please see this movie.
It is great and has its facts straight, I think, according to what I've read. If they are correct, then this is a very scary film. It points out the shortcomings of the politicians of our generation to see this problem even as the evidence is clearly displayed in front of them. This appears to be no "theory," but a legitimate happening. Something needs to be done, apparently. Why does it seem like no one cares? Why are we not connecting the dots now, instead of when it's too late. Gore uses this metaphor in relation to tobacco. We received the warning in 1964 that tobacco is bad, very bad. Not much was done until millions were already doomed with cancer. We shouldn't make that mistake this time—it will affect everyone. The information we have is a clear indication that something is happening, something should be done, and that we have the ability to do that something. Let's connect the dots now instead of later. Let's kill the Manbearpig.
I've heard and read great criticism of this movie, one of the most pronounced being an attack on Gore's personal narrative being patched into it. There are two reasons why I don't have a problem with this. The first is that the glimpses of Al's life we see are relevant to the film. The part about his son explains Gore's devotion to his cause and serves as an example to the rest of us as to why we should care about the problem. Global warming will affect us all because our children will have to deal with it—it could literally be the death of them. When Gore speaks about his family growing tobacco and his sister dying from lung cancer, he uses it to demonstrate the metaphor of "connecting the dots" in time to defeat a problem before it beats you. His sister died of cancer as did millions of others because cigarettes and other tobacco products continued to be produced and sold to a public that had been warned of their awful affects.
The second reason I don't mind Gore talking about himself is that he's a politician. Stick with me here. This movie can act as a persuasive documentary—it can help get Al Gore votes. Wait for it. My hope is that he is doing this because he wants to win election so that he can work on this problem and others and confront the issues he cares about. I hope that he truly believes in these causes, and that's why he wants to be elected, and that's why he campaigned a little through the movie. If this is the case, then I don't mind the campaigning. Let's all hope that this man is as smart and sincere as he seems, and that he wins the next election if he contends. Heck, let's hope for more moderate officials in all branches and seats of government who do what's right and fair. The preceding was the deluded portion of the post where I get all dreamy-eyed and hope that goodness will someday overcome corruption and greed. I have a lot of faith sometimes.
When asked if he would see the movie, Bush replied, "Doubt it."
Good Lord.
This is a huge problem on which I always harp about—we have to always look at both all sides. Go see the movie. Even if you dislike Al Gore, go see it for yourself to decide how you feel about the issue and whether it's real, and if you feel like doing anything about it.
