If we remove the phrase "the terrorists" and add in its place "the Democrats" to the Bush-Cheney rhetoric, everything suddenly makes sense. For example, the line that Iraq is the central front in the war on terror is just plain silly; but to say instead, "Iraq is the central front in our war on Democrats" -- well, now we're getting somewhere. And in THAT war, the "United States" (read: the Republican Party) has been very successful indeed in responding to the will of "the people" (read: the corporate/Christofascist base).

Fine and timely work, Salon -- but I'm not ready to forgive Joe for the shabby way he and his ilk treated President Clinton. They moved heaven and earth to try to destroy a popular and successful president over a trivial private matter. They then forced an upper class twit on us (despite the fact that Al Gore got more votes), and for the next five years labeled as a traitor anyone who dared question Their Way. The result has been their phony "war on terror", and their failed war in Iraq. Sorry, Joe, but with half of the American public still so deliberately misinformed as to think that Saddam Hussein was behind 9/11 and that WMD were found in Iraq, and with the so-called republicans already busy gearing up for their next war, We the People (or at least, We the Audience) desperately need to see and hear something more pertinent than the frantic squealing of another right-wing rat jumping ship.

In any event, "Bush Is an Idiot?" would be better with the question mark removed.

As "Chris", "Brad", and "Bill" have ably pointed out, no one is alleging that Bush-Cheney operatives are working around the clock in dark smoke-filled rooms, lit only by the output of whirring film projectors, cutting and splicing footage, and deciding what the public may and may not see. Rather, the point, as I understand it, is that the current ratings system is tantamount to censorship as a practical matter. This is why, to cite one recent example, all moviegoers in the U.S., regardless of age, were denied the freedom to choose to see the same theatrical release of 'Eyes Wide Shut' that was shown in Europe.

In any event, thanks to "Chris" especially for reminding me why I feel so little sympathy regarding the general decline in popularity of local newspapers and movie theaters. They are free to refuse to advertise or exhibit any film with which they are uncomfortable; and I, along with an ever-growing segment of the population, am free (for now) to watch DVD's.

With veteran generals like Ken Mehlman and Ed Gillespie directing the fight against America's enemies, the good people of New Orleans and Baghdad (not to mention Bali, Madrid, and London) can all breathe a huge sigh of relief, that come November red-state America will once again thwart Max Cleland and John Kerry's defeatist plan to sell African uranium to Hitler. But only if Iran is bombed -- because any nation that harbors terrorists who favor an estate tax or a minimum wage is truly the enemy of peace in our time. With God's favor (and the electoral college), we happy few, we band of brothers, will continue to smite the Saddamites -- who will no doubt still want to cut and run in 2008, despite the fact that the U.S. was attacked at Pearl Harbor and therefore did not start this war (which is going swimmingly, by the way, now that so many of "the terrorists" are on leave from the front lines in Iraq in order to run as Democrats for Congress this fall).

Does that about sum up where we are?

Having just finished the most recent episode of the latest serial drama from Korea ("My Lovely Samsoon") on AZN Channel, and after turning down the volume on my prized homemade VHS of Korean music videos, featuring Cherry Filter, The Jadu, and Big Mama (all still unavailable on iTunes, frustratingly) let me observe that Korean culture -- Korean pop culture, at least -- appears to be in the midst of a flowering period of creativity, the energy of which is not matched by its neighbors. (Though it looks like Thailand will soon be the place to be.) A young man (or woman) looking for a place to spend a few years teaching English while he figures out what to do in life, could do a lot worse than Seoul.

LeCastor -- very nice post-- your best ever, insofar as I've seen. And to Tideswimmer and Lanscot, let me add that 'Whale Rider' is one of the best, most inspirational films I've ever seen. That a PG-13 rating would prevent any girl (or boy) from seeing it is depressingly indicative of all that is wrong with the current system. Just like the fact that adults in the U.S., in the lonely days before DVD, were totally prohibited from seeing Kubrick's true version of 'Eyes Wide Shut' first made me realize that the U.S. is very far from being the most free country in the world today. (And that was before the right-wing coup of 2000.)