James Hirsen on Hardball RE: F911

[MirrorAshes]

Never seen this guy before, but he just went off on a tirade about how Moore has no credibility and likened F911 to a "mockumentary" like Spinal Tap. Of course, he hasn't seen the film. :puke:

He also ran off a list of "innacuracies" from BfC including a claim that the whole "Sign up for a bank account and recieve a gun" scene was staged. I've never heard anything even suggesting this was staged, has anyone else? He named a number of other things I'd never heard a word on either. Ugh!

They should have let Cuomo go on AFTER this guy so he could refute some of the ridiculous claims. I mean, Cuomo has actually seen the damn movie.

[kerryin2004]

1. All publicity is good publicity...

Who cares, just makes more people interested in it..

[mark0rama]

2. Moore has a page debunking the lies about BFC.

MirrorAshes, you wrote, "I've never heard anything even suggesting this was staged, has anyone else?"

Moore certainly has - here's a handy page, complete with tons of links, responding to lies that have been told about BFC:

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/wackoattacko/

Regarding the bank, from that same page:

The Truth: In the spring of 2001, I saw a real ad in a real newspaper in Michigan announcing a real promotion that this real bank had where they would give you a gun (as your up-front interest) for opening up a Certificate of Deposit account. They promoted this in publications all over the country – "More Bang for Your Buck!"

There was news coverage of this bank giving away guns, long before I even shot the scene there. The Chicago Sun Times wrote about how the bank would "hand you a gun" with the purchase of a CD. Those are the precise words used by a bank employee in the film.

When you see me going in to the bank and walking out with my new gun in "Bowling for Columbine" – that is exactly as it happened. Nothing was done out of the ordinary other than to phone ahead and ask permission to let me bring a camera in to film me opening up my account. I walked into that bank in northern Michigan for the first time ever on that day in June 2001, and, with cameras rolling, gave the bank teller $1,000 – and opened up a 20-year CD account. After you see me filling out the required federal forms ("How do you spell Caucasian?") – which I am filling out here for the first time – the bank manager faxed it to the bank's main office for them to do the background check. The bank is a licensed federal arms dealer and thus can have guns on the premises and do the instant background checks (the ATF's Federal Firearms database—which includes all federally approved gun dealers—lists North Country Bank with Federal Firearms License #4-38-153-01-5C-39922).

[MirrorAshes]

3. Thanks!! We should email this link to Hardball

If this is true then Hirsen was simply lieing through his teeth, which I suspected anyway.

Chris was off tonight, I wonder if he would have called bullshit if he'd been there.

[Bill Wade]

4. I can't believe you haven't heard about the "inaccuracies" from BFC.

Which there may or may not have been. I could really care less, it was a wonderful movie, which raised a serious topic. Even if it did use nifty editing techniques and the such.

Instead of trying to look at some of the problems that BFC showcased, most anti-Moore types were trying there best to prove that the movie was all staged, and that Moore was some sort of Al-Qaeda agent. :)

In any case, I look forward very much to seeing F9/11.

[MirrorAshes]

6. I've heard some of the claims

But these were new to me. He rattled off a few that didn't even make sense.

I'd heard that people claimed he edited the Heston interview together, and a couple other small things, but it seemed like alot of Hirsen's accusations were out of left field.

[Jim Sagle]

5. Hirsen is just another Newsmax jagoff.

http://www.newsmax.com/pundits/bios/Hirsen-bio.shtml

[eaprez]

7. This surprises you?

Every time a book has been released with 'facts' contrary to the administrations version - the character assasination begins. Why would a movie be any different. They tried keeping it from being distributed, that failed - let the character assasination begin. I find it funny that these same truth seekers aren't out there making the rounds talking about the stuff passed off as fact on Fox News all day every day.

[MirrorAshes]

8. Oh, trust me, I know.

I was just a little taken aback by the audacity of these claims. It was really absurd. Usually these people are at least a little more subtle with their lies.

[eaprez]

10. Oh how soon you forget...

....this administration blatantly lies...right out there in the open with no shame!!!!

[burythehatchet]

9. Don't worry folks, I saw the segment on HardBalls

and I have already executed a Writ of Dooshbaggery.

[eaprez]

11. Was Hysterical...

...how he was trying to argue the point that this wasn't really a "documentary" --- how dare they try to call this a documentary. Get a life!

[burythehatchet]

12. If they had a frickin life the'd be liberal Democrats n/t

[Lugnut]

13. I listened to him

Until he said he hadn't seen the film. That's when I switched over to the Weather Channel.