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Tavis Smiley

Tavis Smiley

Posted: March 15, 2010 07:12 PM

My Conversation With Michael Moore

What's Your Reaction:

Earlier today, I spoke with Oscar-winning filmmaker Michael Moore. During our conversation, I asked him for his reaction to the banking reform legislation proposed today by Senate Banking Committee Chair, Chris Dodd.

The full conversation airs tonight on PBS.

 
 
 
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
cybersense
01:04 PM on 03/17/2010
When you wanted a mortgage, your bank used to own that mortgage until it was paid. Now, getting a mortgage from a bank only means they initiate the loan - then it gets sold, from that sale - it gets chopped up in ownership. During this process, there isn''t a chance for due deligence to ensure that
the loan won't default. The risk of that loan defaulting is less of a care now, because the amount of loss to one organization is low - no full ownership. The bigger banks cover themselves from risk of these "financial products" by insuraning them at a regular rate (regardless of how risky they were in the first place) then AIG goes broke, get's a loan from the governament and the big banks, like Goldman - get full price from someone like AIG of that loan, even those loans were really "toxic" and should have been insured at a much lower price.

This is only part of what happened. It is a whole layering process, and keeping people confused is important. You all want to be a part of that again?
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
cybersense
12:57 PM on 03/17/2010
AFter reading some ot the comments below - this is what I have to say.

First, Moore is not unlike most of us, in that he is frustrated and doesn't want this country to
fail, or have this severe of crash happen again. The fact that he spends most of his talents in
ahowing what average americans feel, experience and do really puts him in a position to explain what some of us really do feel, or because we are just so tired of these wall street sharks taking advantange of America as a whole. This is not the Wall STreet that we had when we were younger.
There were always sharks, but there were plenty of serious business people that worked with an ingrained sense of morals and respect for American and her people.

Moore, has tried to represent that. The financial situation affects us all, and you do not need to be some finance expert to say it.
10:23 AM on 03/16/2010
Seems Moore delights skirting the issue in order to babble about changing his hat, or getting a haircut, maybe lose some fat. For example, he asks of himself, "what do we the public really want?" He then doesn't answer his own question, merely blabbing something about "we don't want another recession." Earth shattering declaration there. Perhaps changing the hat etc would be best for him, but butting into today's conversation about our country's direction needs someone with political/economical qualifications, which Moore does not have. I use as an example, Moore's declaration that Cuba's health care system is superior to our, as if patients there hanging around open windows to escape the heat inside their hospitals are more comfortable than the USA's. Whazzat? Cuba's health care is free? Sure it is, though at the cost of FREEDOM. Kinda looks like that's where this country is heading
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chiodo08
...come off your front foot for a "change"...
02:25 PM on 03/16/2010
he's done more for the people of this than you ever will...don't h@te on people that actually care about Americans. Save your spew for those that don't like Republicans....
06:00 PM on 03/16/2010
Case you did not notice my theme was Moore is not qualified to give advice on how to run a country. You're the only one writing about h8tred. 4q 2.
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
Dosadi
Political agnostic
08:16 PM on 03/16/2010
Have you ever been to Cuba? I ask because I read a lot of lies about the UK health care system. I have tried both the US and the UK systems and they have us beat hands down. I have never been to Cuba but realize our media is not going to give us the full truth about it. I was amazed at the lies I had been led to believe about the UK's health care system. I imagine Cuba's freedoms are a little greater than we imagine. Cuba us ranked as being better than the US in health care by every world rating agency. The conservatives rant a lot about ratings but seem to ignore these ratings. I often wonder why.
09:45 PM on 03/16/2010
Yes, I have been to Cuba. I have witnessed the conditions there, one particular hospital. But I have not any knowledge of medical practice there, only know of their medical desperation, probably caused by some of the embargo. I've lived long enough to have experienced being medically treated often in the USA and sometime in France and Belgium. It is unparalleled in all three places.

Perhaps the United States is rated lower than Cuba because of health care availability to all. Indeed, the USA needs to reform its system of providing care, but to me, not the current sham being forced upon us. To believe the system can be improved by cutting medicare 500 billion $ while adding 30 million people to it, not getting at tort reform because of ABA pressure, buying off (bribes) to hesitant senators, ignoring rampant fraud within the medical environment, plus scoring deals with the pharm industry, all add up to passing reform merely for Democrat legacy -- nothing other. Yes, I am aware the Republicans have had their chance and ignored the problem.

Independent.

(Your ball.)
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CelticMajic
The answer lies in each of us individually
08:56 AM on 03/16/2010
Mr. Smiley, some could care less what Mr. Moore has to say about finances. If you were to ask him something about which he is qualified that may be a different story.
07:15 AM on 03/16/2010
Face it, our government is too corrupt to get behind or save. Keep screaming Michael and band together with like minded others. You need help. What can we do? I'm writing my officials and they are not listening. We need bigger megaphones. Can't you rally some biggies for the cause? You have better connections than I do. Keep going Michael!!!!!!!!
researcher
researcher
05:43 AM on 03/16/2010
demos your party does not represent you.

follow the money then you will know who they really represent.

they must pretend to represent you for your votes.

corp fascism has come to america.

it had to it is the capitalist agenda.

to have 99% of the wealth.

they know what they are doing.

they have made capitalism a synonym with freedom and patroitism.

pure genius they have even made capitalism a synonym with christian religion.

they are ten times smarter than you that is why they now have 95% of the wealth.

their mode is fear and it works.

in my day it was fear of communism now fear of socialism.
it works.

when has michael moore been wrong????????

yet americans are taught to fear him and his ideas.

fear works even when a person is right 100% of the time.

that is the price of living in a dumbed downed nation.

have a nice day.
11:26 AM on 03/16/2010
Agreed.
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chiodo08
...come off your front foot for a "change"...
02:26 PM on 03/16/2010
this really is a pretty st00pid country...seriously, grow up America
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TedCollins
An Englishman living in France who loves America
05:23 AM on 03/16/2010
Michael Moore has got to be the most unfairly smeared person in the history of politics.

He has been right about absolutely everything.

And the corporations would pay him absolutely anything to just retire or go direct Jennifer Aniston movies.

But he keeps telling the truth.
07:48 AM on 03/16/2010
Oops, he said OJ was innocent. That would make him 99.99 percent right about everything. Well, nobody is perfect.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
LisaO8
You're gonna need a bigger boat.
08:55 AM on 03/16/2010
a lot of people said that...I'll give him a pass on that one - 99.99% right on everything else is okay in my book...
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
Dosadi
Political agnostic
08:25 PM on 03/16/2010
I think he said OJ was not guilty and so far he has not been found guilty of murder. Did he do it, probably. Is he guilty of that crime, not yet. Was he found not guilty of that crime, yes. No one is innocent but not all of us are guilty of what we have been accused of. If a stupid cop had not brought the blood samples out to the crime scene OJ would have been found guilty. If the blood evidence used by the police had not contained a preservative added after a blood sample is taken OJ would have been found guilty. Using OJ is a no win situation because of the gross mistakes made by the police in what should have been an open and shut case.



Psst! He did it.
03:42 AM on 03/16/2010
his=hits I suck at typing.
03:41 AM on 03/16/2010
I agree with much of what Moore advocates, but how come he only his the talk show circuits when his movies or dvds just come out? It just looks like he's hawking his own products which makes his sincerity less apparent compared to if he was out there helping get progressive moments off the ground (free of charge).
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
TheHandyman
Death...the last new experience you will ever have
04:00 AM on 03/16/2010
So you are implying that Moore only goes on these shows to hype his movies, right. Could it be that no one wants to hear anything he says until he makes a movie about it? I am not aware of any shows, other than FOX where someone can just show up and say, "hey, I'm going to be on your show!" And there is always the out of mind, out of sight thing too. You don't think of him until he pops up on somebody's show and ypu think he has a movie out so in your mind that is the only reason he is there. I see Michael on different shows but they are all Liberal shows like Bill Mahr, Jon Stewart, Stephan Colbert. Democracy Now, Bill Moyers, PBS, you know shows that those of us who actively seek out something other than the same old corporate talking heads. Maybe that is your problem, you only watch FOX or CNN.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
aaronr2000
Blogger, dad of autistic son,
07:27 AM on 03/16/2010
I totally agree. His movies are relevant to the discussions of the day. In fact Sicko was out before the health care debate 2.0 kicked off.
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06:56 AM on 03/16/2010
It's the way publicity agencies operate. Nothing new.
03:20 AM on 03/16/2010
How much more of this crap can we take ? How bad do things have to get before we the people wake up from our comas and say enough is enough ? 300 million people in this country and we can't find 535 honest men to represent us ?
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
Dosadi
Political agnostic
08:26 PM on 03/16/2010
535 honest men would know better than to try.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
FogBelter
Illegitimis non carborundum
03:08 AM on 03/16/2010
I can relate to Michael Moore here.

We need to remember a very, very basic rule. Just because an entity has money, power, influence, prestige ... it doesn't mean it has the answers to the problems that vex it. Wall Street wants to stubbornly move forward pretending that what has happened hasn't happened. Fools.

And Moore is absolutely right. We can't afford another crash in six to eighteen months. That will be it.
03:23 AM on 03/16/2010
At this point I'm almost at the point where I'm hoping for another crash just to get people's attention. Clearly not enough people care that our country is being looted by the people running it.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
FogBelter
Illegitimis non carborundum
03:39 AM on 03/16/2010
The next crash would be attended by lack of hope on the part of the American people. Trust would be gone. Not a good scenario.
08:41 AM on 03/17/2010
We are already completely demoralized and deliberately NOT paying attention because we feel hopeless. Your prescription is all wrong.

Instead, I recommend people pay attention to and support the new Coffee Party. Here is a recent review,

The Coffee Party’s Split Personality
http://seminal.firedoglake.com/diary/35405
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02:33 AM on 03/16/2010
I like Michael Moore. He's an important voice, and what he's saying is really true. This nation, as we know it today, cannot withstand another severe or even strong financial downturn. I don't think he's being in the least bit melodramatic about it. It's game time.
08:42 AM on 03/17/2010
I agree 100%.
01:32 AM on 03/16/2010
Michael, I know you had second thoughts about going on Tavis's show but I'm glad you did.

People are waking up and realizing that the entire system is rotten and corrupt.

Keep fighting for us...for we can't count on leaders in Washington to fight for us anymore.

It's sad, President Obama had high hopes coming in and could've used that enormous political capital he had for telling us the true nature of the crisis and the very necessary prescription of going back to the original regulations before the crisis; like Glass-Steagall.
08:42 AM on 03/17/2010
Maybe we need him in office, is there a Senate seat he could win?
01:18 AM on 03/16/2010
I am upset to... Have been for a few months. Prior, I was just a simple sheep watching TV and drinking beer.

Ou congress was bought and sold a long time ago (George Carlin).
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02:34 AM on 03/16/2010
There's worse things than TV and beer.
01:12 AM on 03/16/2010
MM was the first voice in the country against the government's bank bailout, and he was right (me too :)).