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He's baack, with another film to boot
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| MisterOpus1 |
The least he could do is shave, dammit. Couldn't he try to present himself with a little more professionalism? Is that really too much to ask?:
| quote: | Michael Moore Faces U.S. Treasury Probe
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May 10, 6:26 AM (ET)
By DAVID GERMAIN
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore is under investigation by the U.S. Treasury Department for taking ailing Sept. 11 rescue workers to Cuba for a segment in his upcoming health-care documentary "Sicko," The Associated Press has learned.
The investigation provides another contentious lead-in for a provocative film by Moore, a fierce critic of President Bush. In the past, Moore's adversaries have fanned publicity that helped the filmmaker create a new brand of opinionated blockbuster documentary.
"Sicko" promises to take the health-care industry to task the way Moore confronted America's passion for guns in "Bowling for Columbine" and skewered Bush over his handling of Sept. 11 in "Fahrenheit 9/11."
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control notified Moore in a letter dated May 2 that it was conducting a civil investigation for possible violations of the U.S. trade embargo restricting travel to Cuba. A copy of the letter was obtained Tuesday by the AP.
"This office has no record that a specific license was issued authorizing you to engage in travel-related transactions involving Cuba," Dale Thompson, OFAC chief of general investigations and field operations, wrote in the letter to Moore.
In February, Moore took about 10 ailing workers from the Ground Zero rescue effort in Manhattan for treatment in Cuba, said a person working with the filmmaker on the release of "Sicko." The person requested anonymity because Moore's attorneys had not yet determined how to respond.
Moore, who scolded Bush over the Iraq war during the 2003 Oscar telecast, received the letter Monday, the person said. "Sicko" premieres May 19 at the Cannes Film Festival and debuts in U.S. theaters June 29.
Moore declined to comment, said spokeswoman Lisa Cohen.
After receiving the letter, Moore arranged to place a copy of the film in a "safe house" outside the country to protect it from government interference, said the person working on the release of the film.
Treasury officials declined to answer questions about the letter. "We don't comment on enforcement actions," said department spokeswoman Molly Millerwise.
The letter noted that Moore applied Oct. 12, 2006, for permission to go to Cuba "but no determination had been made by OFAC." Moore sought permission to travel there under a provision for full-time journalists, the letter said.
According to the letter, Moore was given 20 business days to provide OFAC with such information as the date of travel and point of departure; the reason for the Cuba trip and his itinerary there; and the names and addresses of those who accompanied him, along with their reasons for going.
Potential penalties for violating the embargo were not indicated. In 2003, the New York Yankees paid the government $75,000 to settle a dispute that it conducted business in Cuba in violation of the embargo. No specifics were released about that case.
"Sicko" is Moore's followup to 2004's "Fahrenheit 9/11," a $100 million hit criticizing the Bush administration over Sept. 11. Moore's "Bowling for Columbine" won the 2002 Oscar for best documentary.
A dissection of the U.S. health-care system, "Sicko" was inspired by a segment on Moore's TV show "The Awful Truth," in which he staged a mock funeral outside a health-maintenance organization that had declined a pancreas transplant for a diabetic man. The HMO later relented.
At last September's Toronto International Film Festival, Moore previewed footage shot for "Sicko," presenting stories of personal health-care nightmares. One scene showed a woman who was denied payment for an ambulance ride after a head-on collision because it was not preapproved.
Moore's opponents have accused him of distorting the facts, and his Cuba trip provoked criticism from conservatives including former Republican Sen. Fred Thompson, who assailed the filmmaker in a blog at National Review Online.
"I have no expectation that Moore is going to tell the truth about Cuba or health care," wrote Thompson, the subject of speculation about a possible presidential run. "I defend his right to do what he does, but Moore's talent for clever falsehoods has been too well documented."
The timing of the investigation is reminiscent of the firestorm that preceded the Cannes debut of "Fahrenheit 9/11," which won the festival's top prize in 2004. The Walt Disney Co. refused to let subsidiary Miramax release the film because of its political content, prompting Miramax bosses Harvey and Bob Weinstein to release "Fahrenheit 9/11" on their own.
The Weinsteins later left Miramax to form the Weinstein Co., which is releasing "Sicko." They declined to comment on the Treasury investigation, said company spokeswoman Sarah Levinson Rothman.
http://apnews.myway.com//article/20.../D8P1F7AO0.html |
Cue the wingers with the baseball bats. C'mon conservatives, time to come outa the dugout and beat the crap out of the guy you know and love so much :D.
In all honesty, I think this is a much needed discussion, one that I think suits Moore a bit better than 9/11. 46 million without healthcare in our country is flat-out unacceptable to me. Of course I'm sure he'll have some spin on it all (he always does), but most agree that our current system is a far cry to what it could become.
I also don't quite understand the support for our current anti-capitalist Medicare bill either. How can any true Conservative support such a bill that does not allow true competition with prices? |
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| Marc Summers |
Health care coverage is picky as hell, I get confused about which doctors I can and can't go to, which medications/treatments are and aren't covered. Ugh.. I'll stick to reading people's replies.
I do think we are in need of a socialized, or universal health care, just more efficient. One of my relatives in Italy died because he was on a 5 year waiting list for cancer treatment, we can't have that here. |
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| Fir3start3r |
There's no discussion here at all.
Everyone knows he manipulates his films to get the results he wants.
His early works are ok but from Bowling for Columbine on, he's turned into a huge douche. |
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| LatinLover |
i love michael moore films. but his current films have gone to fare like Fahrenheit. I hope that Mr. Moore dosent promote universal healthcare :rolleyes: i mean lets face it this current health system is ed up. we still have one of the best health systems in the world but it shouldnt be as it is. all i ask our fellow congressman is to provide affordable healthcare to all americans. help small businesses to provide them to their employees. I mean i dont expect the govt to provide it to me or to all americans for free. because a universal healthcare would be catastrophic. lets face it anything that govt manages is ed up. so lets keep it privatized with provisions that dont let these companies abuse americans with their elevated prices and medical restrictions.
so i think mr. moore is having perfect timing to come in and aid his fellow socialist i meand dems :) for their upcoming election. atleast his starting a topic to talk about among americans :) |
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| Q5echo |
| quote: | Originally posted by MisterOpus1
I also don't quite understand the support for our current anti-capitalist Medicare bill either. How can any true Conservative support such a bill that does not allow true competition with prices? |
true conservatives don't i believe, however very smart people on both sides believe something needed to be done to prepare for the future.
the need for it now combined with a very powerful lobby and the option to revoke if needed later Conservatives no doubt wouldn't have liked the Democrats version of the bill thats for damn sure. |
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| Capitalizt |
The modern repugs are on the same socialist train as the dems. They just prefer going 55mph instead of 70.
If we want healthcare to be more affordable, maybe the government should start taking less money from people's pockets...and stop taxing/regulating the out of companies that provide health insurance. |
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| NeoPhono |
| We're heading towards a two-tier system and unless something drastic happens in the near future that's what we're going to live with. |
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| Clovis |
| Whether you like his films or not, (I was a fan up untill bowling) he gets people talking about the issues, alot more so than Spiderman 3 or Jackass do. At least someone is doing it... |
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| Marc Summers |
| quote: | Originally posted by Capitalizt
The modern repugs are on the same socialist train as the dems. They just prefer going 55mph instead of 70.
If we want healthcare to be more affordable, maybe the government should start taking less money from people's pockets...and stop taxing/regulating the out of companies that provide health insurance. |
There is still the problem of different health insurance companies. If the company you work for gives you Solaris Health Insurance, and the only neurologist for 50 miles doesn't accept it, you are out of luck, now aren't you? |
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| Clovis |
| quote: | Originally posted by Marc Summers
There is still the problem of different health insurance companies. If the company you work for gives you Solaris Health Insurance, and the only neurologist for 50 miles doesn't accept it, you are out of luck, now aren't you? |
Get a better job at a better company you ing loser.
^^thats the republican way. |
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| Q5echo |
| quote: | Originally posted by Capitalizt
The modern repugs are on the same socialist train as the dems. They just prefer going 55mph instead of 70. |
how is medicare, medicaid, ss, not a form of socialism to begin with? |
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| Fir3start3r |
| quote: | Originally posted by NeoPhono
We're heading towards a two-tier system and unless something drastic happens in the near future that's what we're going to live with. |
It's going towards two-tier here in Canada, the opposite end of the spectrum if you guys want some perspective.
One can argue it's a case of the haves and have nots, with personal capital driving the wedge and I'd agree.
It's not uncommon for the affluent here in Canada to skip across the border to get the medical care they need in the States rather than subject themselves to long waiting lists and risk demise while in queue.
And why should they?
If they have the money, then why not use it to save their loved ones?
[edit] or themselves!
That's not to say that Mr.Corporate Exec's life is worth any more than Mr.Ditch-Digger however, not everyone drives a Ferrari or owns a Beverly Hills Estate either.
There's no doubt that it's expensive to maintain for a smaller country like Canada, but for larger populations, I'm not so sure it would be feasible unless the plan was rock solid. Knowing how most government plans go, that'll happen like, never... |
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