[Cerek the Barbaric]

Originally posted by Grojlach: Perhaps, but Michael Moore gets quite riled up himself over the use of the term "un-American", especially in regard to The Patriot Act and disagreeing with the government. You'd expect him to be conscious enough about its use to handle it carefully. Of course we don't know the manner in which he used the term (sarcasm often gets lost in fine print), but I personally feel this particular case is too lightweight to justify an angry "un-American" and meaning it, too; my money is on "using the enemy's favourite label and backfiring it on them" (which is substantially different from, say, offensive French jokes), especially regarding the hilarious remark that he's willing to sing "God Bless America" on stage with Linda Ronstadt and provide the casino with a free viewing of F9/11. If he did say it and actually meant it however, I'll agree with you and Cerek that its use is inappropriate and that Moore loses face over this remark.

I do think he meant it, Grojlach. That is based on the overall tone of his comments from the rest of the article. However, I will agree that he probably also enjoyed using it as an opportunity to "throw it back in the face" of those who had used it against him.

As a striking contrast to this episode, I was searching through Snopes today looking for an un-related 9/11 urban legend and came across an account of Charlie Daniels pulling out of a performance on a CMT (Country Music Telivision) Benefit Show to raise funds for survivors of 9/11 because the organizers of the show told him they did not want him to perform his new, post-9/11 song - "This Ain't a Rag, It's a Flag". In his explanation, Daniels says that the organizers DID ask him to not perform the song. He said that he chose to not perform at all because (a) he disagreed with the stance of the organizers, and (b) the show had enough country stars lined up that his absence would not affect the overall success of the show.

The BIG difference is that Charlie Daniels also said that the organizers had every right to request he not sing the song. Even though he disagreed with their stance, he agreed they had a right to that stance and he bowed out quietly instead of raising a big stink over the issue. He DID post an explanation of why he pulled out of the event on his website, but that was because he felt he owed the explanation to the fans that had expected to see him perform.

It's nice to see a celebrity actually acknowledging that - while they have a right to voice their opinions - organizers and managers of venues have an equal right to say "We don't want you voicing that opinion on our show or in our concert hall."