Michael Moore's "Sicko"

I belonged to the G.O.P. for many years. My parents are both Republicans, but neither vote straight down the party line. Although I don't know for sure, I believe that all my siblings and their spouses are Republican, or at least Republican-sympathetic. With the exception of her maternal grandfather, The Wife's family votes Republican.

After several years of disillusionment with elephants, I switched sides and joined with donkeys back in 1999. We were living in Indianapolis at the time (our first time living in Indiana, actually), and the mayoral race was gearing up. I didn't like what I saw of the Republican ticket, so I voted Democratic in the primary. Thus, I became a Democrat. The Wife did the same thing as well, but in 2004 she switched back with the Republicans while I did not. So, I remain a Democrat - not because of a conscious decision to do so, but out of pure laziness, really.

Okay, it's a little more than laziness. I'm in the mental health field, which has historically found more sympathy from Democratic party policies. I can't ignore that. I also opposed the Iraq War initially and continue to do so, and many more Democrats than Republicans agree with me on this. BUT - I'm not exactly joining with Jim Wallis and all the Sojourners (not you, Brad W.) in thinking that the government is the second coming of Christ.

I wrote all this to say: since I'm a Democrat and a thinking person, I can't really ignore Michael Moore. I think he's full of himself and I think he manipulates facts to present his own theories. However, he can't be just swept under some rug - it's like when Alex Forrest tells Dan Gallagher, "I'm not going to be ignored, Dan."

I'm anxious, though, to see his latest movie Sicko. The movie is supposed to focus on healthcare and its discontents. Moore gave an update on the movie in his most recent letter to his devotees (which I am not, BTW, but I do peruse his site once in a while).