American Sniper – What We Criticize
I quickly grew tired of reading passionate reviews about American Sniper that contained a sentence midpoint which read, “I haven’t seen the movie.” And so it was that I decided to go see the movie myself. I’ll start by saying that the most common complaint I’ve heard – that “it glorifies war” – falls flat. The theater was full, and as several hundred people sat through the credits in silence, and got up in silence, and walked out of the theater in silence, I’m pretty sure they weren’t all fired up to get out there and go to war. My…
Mudflix: Rhymes for Young Ghouls
“This is what brings my people together… the art of forgetfulness” It’s been a month now since I first was able to watch Rhymes for Young Ghouls, and I still think about it. It’s the sort of film that gives you chills on a regular basis long after viewing. It’s a horror film, but not the kind with traditional ghouls and goblins (even though there are a few). The monsters in this film are not apparitions, they are very real and based on very true stories. We follow a young Red Crow girl surviving on the Red Crow Mi’g Maq reservation in 1976….
Pay 2 Play – Democracy’s High Stakes
The Utne Reader calls it “a stirring plea to level the playing field in our political system by ending “pay to play”—the quid pro quo of trading political favors for campaign donations. Picking up on the themes of Occupy Wall Street, the film rails against corporate personhood, dark money, and calls for the repeal of Citizens United. Daily Kos says: “I believe that this is a must watch film because it puts everything together in a way that anyone can understand this complex issue and it even puts a strategy on the table to get America to a functioning democracy.” But…
The Muslims Are Coming – Road Trip Comic Enlightenment
“Oh the Muslims… you know they are a coming… they’re gentle and they’re friendly so open up your arms and give’m a hug…” -Opening Song from The Muslims Are Coming The Muslims Are Coming – just released this month on video on demand sites like iTunes and Amazon.com is more than just your standard comedy tour film. Every once and a while a group of comedians with some vague thing in common (usually they have the same agent) get together and go on a tour – they hire a videographer to film the behind the scenes shenanigans that go on –…
Open Thread – Anarchy in the UK
At this point the only thing that we haven’t seen is Colin Powell and Hillary Clinton announcing that weapons of mass destruction have been found at the Ecuador embassy. Only then will the farce be truly complete. —Tyler Durden WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has made his first public appearance in two months, from his asylum within the Ecuadorian embassy in London:
Mudflix – Conservative David Frum Annihilates Fox “News”
Conservative commentator David Frum (former speechwriter for George W. Bush) says that Fox and conservative talk radio have built “a whole alternative knowledge system with its own facts, its own history, its own economics…” This is a fascinating interview and well worth the 8:18. In fact, I wish it had gone longer.
Mudflix – Two Lesbians Raised a Baby and This is What They Got
Zach Wahls, a 19-year-old University of Iowa student spoke about the strength of his family during a public forum on House Joint Resolution 6 in the Iowa House of Representatives. Wahls has two mothers, and came to oppose House Joint Resolution 6 which would end civil unions in Iowa. The fight to to keep marriage equality in Iowa continues, help us support Iowans like Zach. http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/12424
Mudflix – 4 Reasons
Why occupy Wall Street? This one is a four minute, thirty second must-see that gives your four reasons. There is some interesting history from Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alan Grayson and others that illustrates what’s gone so terribly wrong, and how we need to right the course. Extremely well done.
MUDFLIX – The GOP War on Water
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy In this clip, Rachel Maddow interviews Melissa Harris-Perry, professor of politics at Tulane University about the role of the federal government in assuring safety in the commons – clean air clean water, national security, etc. The Republicans in the House just voted to strip the EPA of its right to overrule states decisions about water quality. The Republican-controlled House passed a bill Wednesday that would sharply curtail the federal government’s role in protecting waters from pollution by barring the Environmental Protection Agency from overruling state decisions on water…
Mudflix – Whose Books Would Chicagoans Ban? (You’ll Never Guess)
OK, just to be clear, we here at The Mudflats totally heart the first amendment. It’s actually one of our favorite ones. We would never want to sound like we wanted to limit speech, or squelch the marketplace of ideas, no matter how mind-numbing, head-banging, or downright painfully idiotic those “ideas” may be. That said – Your average Chicagoan on the street was asked which books they would like to see banned at the Printer’s Row Literature Festival in their city. Guess who won. Here are the results: Sarah Palin 36% Glenn Beck 23% Ann Coulter 22% Adolf Hitler 0.5%…