Michael Moore Slacks Off

In July 2004 John Kerry was pulling ahead of George W. Bush in the polls until the Bush campaign introduced a new word to our vocabulary, swiftboating. As Kerry fumbled in response to the howling pack of lies being unleashed about his war record, Michael Moore decided to hit the road, shambling onto stages across the country and playing the rock star. He aimed the heavy artillery of his political satire at the 50 percent of American adults who seldom if ever vote.

Slacker Uprising is Moore's documentary of that campaign to mobilize the young, the apathetic and the disenchanted. A few celebrities accompanied him, including Eddie Veder and Steve Earle, as well as some ordinary folks, but the spotlight is mostly on the star of the show. Moore is genuinely funny on the stump but also piping angry, especially at the mainstream news media that repeated the distortions of the Bush administration leading into Iraq.

The sad thing about Slacker Uprising is that despite the hooting and hollering from the stadium seats, and all the apparent fervor he helped generate, his mission against apathy failed.