Michael Moore On Tour; Slackers of the World, Unite!

[Guest guest]

a

Sat, 25 Sep 2004 20:44:24 -0400

Michael Moore On Tour; Slackers of the World, Unite!

 

 

 

 

Michael Moore On Tour; Slackers of the World, Unite!

 

9/25/04

Dear Friends,

 

Tomorrow I begin a little 20-state, 60-city tour to try and convince

the fed-up, the burned-out, and the Nader-impaired to leave the house

for just a half-hour on November 2nd and mark an " X " in a box (or

punch a chad or touch a screen) so that America and the world can be

saved.

 

(I don't mean " saved " as in all workers will henceforth control the

means of production. That's, um, going to take a few more years.)

 

What I'm asking is that our fellow Americans, as the collective

landlord of a public housing project at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., take

just a few minutes to evict the tenant who is currently wrecking the

place (not to mention what he's doing to the rest of the

neighborhood). After all, isn't this one of the coolest things about a

democracy, getting to give some payback to those in power? " YOU'RE

FIRED! " Oooh, that feels good -- especially if the recipient of the

pink slip is someone who wants to send your kid off to war.

 

So, having nothing better to do for the next month (and eager to visit

such swinging states as Iowa! Ohio! Arkansas!), I have decided to go

to every battleground state in the country and do whatever it takes to

get out the vote. I will do your laundry, I will clean your house, I

will give you a year's supply of beer nuts if you will commit to me to

go to the polls on Tuesday, November 2.

 

I'm calling it " The Slacker Uprising Tour, " a coast-to-coast effort to

bring the non-voting majority out of hibernation and kick some

political butt. My goal is to get as many of the 100 million

non-voters in America as I can to give voting a try -- just this once.

I want at least 56% of all eligible voters to vote and thus set a

modern-day turnout record.

 

I'm putting out the red alert call to slackers everywhere to help me

lead this revolt. I want everyone in their teens and twenties who

exist from one packet of Ramen noodles to the next bag of Tostitos to

take your fully-justified cynicism and toss it like a Molotov right

into the middle of this election. As " non-voters " you have been

written off. But if only a few thousand of you vote, it could make all

the difference.

You literally hold all the power in your hands. That's even cooler

than holding a TV remote.

 

I, the original slacker -- I, who have endured all sorts of attacks

for my slacker demeanor -- yes I am coming to an arena or stadium just

outside your dorm room (or that little space off the furnace room

where your parents still let you stay, rent-free). Why arenas and

stadiums?

 

Because there are so many of us -- AND they serve beer and chips. From

the Sun Dome to the Key Arena, from the Patriot Center to the Del Mar

Race Track, I will be there and I will bring prizes and presents and

clean underwear for all in need.

 

Before I arrive, I have arranged for free screenings of " Fahrenheit

9/11 " in each city. When I get there I will have with me dozens of voter

registrars who will register new (or recently transplanted) voters

(please check here for voter registration deadlines -- they are fast

approaching in most states in the next 10 days!). Absentee ballot

applications will also be available. And the good people of Move-On,

ACT and other groups will be present at each of my appearances to sign

up volunteers to get out the vote on election day.

 

Details of where I will be appearing will be available in your local

media. Many venues, due to advance word already out there, have " sold

out " (at most stops, students get in for free and community people pay

a nominal fee -- usually $5 -- to cover costs). Again, check your

local media to find out the times and dates and how to get advance

tickets.

 

A partial list of the cities I'm visiting includes: Seattle, Big Rapids

(MI), Mt. Pleasant (MI), Tucson, Dearborn, Phoenix, East Lansing,

Detroit, Ann Arbor, Albuquerque, Toledo, Columbus (OH), Ames (IA),

Cleveland, Fairmont (WV), Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Bethlehem (PA),

Fairfax (VA), Carlyle (PA), State College (PA), Minneapolis,

Gainesville, Nashville, Miami, Memphis, Orlando, Salem (OR),

Jacksonville, Tampa, Kansas City, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Madison, Green

Bay, Las Vegas, Reno, Denver, and, of course, Tallahassee, Florida.

 

Others will be posted later.

 

While on the road, I will try to keep my blog up-to-date and post some

pictures we take in each city. The three campuses on the tour which

register the most students to vote (or who have the most non-voters

committing to me to vote) will receive a special scholarship from us

at the end of the tour.

 

Thanks, in advance, to everyone out there who is working hard during

this election. I know it will make a difference.

Let's leave no non-voter behind.

Yours,

 

Michael Moore

mmflint

www.michaelmoore.com

www.michaelmoore.com/vote

 

P.S. Good news! This current weekend our distributor has added an

astounding 600 new theaters to the list of those still showing

" Fahrenheit 9/11. " This is highly unusual for a film entering it's

fourth month of release, but the demand has been strong to bring it

back in many areas and our wonderful distributors have responded. This

is a perfect time to either see it again on the big screen or take a

friend who hasn't seen it, as it won't be around in theaters for long.

The DVD and home video come out October 5!