When Michael Moore and Seth Rogen decided to hit social media with their flippant remarks about “American Sniper,” the outrage was quick and thick. Moore said snipers were cowards, and Rogen compared the film to Nazi propaganda. Of course, both decided to dial back their 140 character commentaries by claiming that they weren’t really directed at the movie (or weren’t really saying that the movie was bad). But these comments were made over the weekend, before the box office take for the movie’s premiere weekend had been tabulated, or all the people who intended to watch the film managed to get to a theater.
Yes, there is at least a little hypocrisy involved when public figures like Moore and Rogen make questionable comments about our military – the individuals that protect their right to make any statements they choose. And in the case of the “American Sniper” which both were quick to claim they weren’t talking about, there is a little professional jealousy involved too. Neither Moore nor Rogen have recently attained the level of cinematic success Clint Eastwood is currently enjoying. Moore in particular would like to see films of this kind become less popular. It’s delusional thinking, but understandable in light of his body of work.
If there ever was any question about Moore’s general opinion about our military, he certainly made it clear when he decided to mention the death of his grandfather during WWII. Comparing American snipers to enemy soldiers is telling. And this Facebook post that supposedly walked back his Twitter comments was even more revealing:
“Most of us were taught the story of Jesse James and that the scoundrel wasn’t James (who was a criminal who killed people) but rather the sniper who shot him in the back. I think most Americans don’t think snipers are heroes. Hopefully not on this weekend when we remember that man in Memphis, Tennessee, who was killed by a sniper’s bullet.”
Playing the MLK card? Pathetic. This shows that Moore consistently despises snipers, and it also indicates that his moral compass never found true north. Americans tend to romanticize criminals; witness the success of “Breaking Bad” and “The Sopranos.” Yet while people enjoy crime dramas, few aspire to be like the characters in them. They like the attitude, but don’t turn to lives of crime. More importantly, while they may find likable attributes in these characters, they still understand that they are truly evil. Moore doesn’t seem to grasp that distinction, and his comment about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination makes that abundantly clear. That comparison is worse than the one that started the whole outrage in the first place. It’s not a matter of sniping per se; it’s a question of who is on each end of the gun.
Moore takes to social media to grasp a few more moments in the spotlight, to give himself the illusion that he is still relevant. But he is not. His films are riddled with inaccuracies, or concern issues that are more complex than he apparently can understand. He is a washed up leftist agitator who played the shock card at least one too many times. Now he is limited to trying to get the same response from works that consist of 140 characters or less. His 15 minutes of fame have dwindled to 15 seconds.
Liz Harrison is a founding director of Vigilant Liberty Radio where she hosts “The Liz Harrison Radio Show” weekdays at noon eastern.
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