Michael and Us

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A little-known amateur documentary about the 2004 Democratic Party primaries becomes an excuse for us to meditate on the Howard Dean phenomenon. We watched Heath Eiden's LESSONS FROM AN AMERICAN PRIMARY (also known as DEAN AND ME: ROADSHOW OF AN AMERICAN PRIMARY).

See the film here: https://vimeo.com/145356474

Folks, it's time for some Canadian content. Reeling from the disastrous Ontario election, Luke and Will confront their new premier -- Doug "brother of Rob" Ford -- head-on. That's right, folks: it's time to revisit the Ford Brothers' notorious 2014 YouTube show. Please direct all questions and comments to [email protected].

Our quest to excavate every piece of cultural detritus from the Bush era continues with a look back at Oliver Stone's weirdly apolitical biopic W. (2008), released less than a month before Obama's election. Luke and Will discuss whether or not George W. Bush is, in fact, a guy they'd like to grab a beer with. PLUS: fiery hot takes about the Ontario provincial election.

What happens when a wealthy entertainer keeps getting dragged on Twitter for his transphobic jokes? In his new Netflix special, Ricky Gervais seeks revenge against the online masses. Luke and Will explore the politics (or lack thereof) of his comedy, and grapple with the difficult experience of watching a beloved artist go bad.

"What in God’s Name Happened to Ricky Gervais?" by Brendan James - https://thebaffler.com/latest/what-happened-to-ricky-gervais-james

Ben Stein (of "Bueller...? Bueller...?" fame) goes on a crusade against Darwinism in the godawful 2008 polemic EXPELLED: NO INTELLIGENCE ALLOWED. The boys discuss consider how the film's particular brand of dated Late Bush Era™ conservatism shows traces of today's right-wing Campus Free Speech™ talking-points. This is a bad one, folks!

"Conservatism Against Democracy" by Luke Savage - https://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/monitor/conservatism-against-democracy

"Justin Trudeau is waging a phony war against inequality" by Luke Savage - https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/03/justin-trudeau-phony-war-against-inequality

"Revisiting Monty Python" by Will Sloan - https://willsloanesq.wordpress.com/2018/04/16/revisiting-monty-python/

We continue our analysis of libertarian funnymen Trey Parker and Matt Stone by delving into "ManBearPig," "Trapped in the Closet," "I'm a Little Bit Country," and "Something Wall-Mart This Way Comes." PLUS: a report on Toronto's prestigious Real Estate & Bit Coin Wealth Expo featuring Pitbull and Sylvester Stallone!

We begin our multi-part investigation into libertarian bad-boys Trey Parker and Matt Stone with a look back at their 1999 film SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER & UNCUT. Plus: Luke shares his thoughts on David Frum's new book (spoiler: he didn't like it).

"Frumocracy" by Luke Savage - https://jacobinmag.com/2018/03/trumpocracy-david-frum-review-trump-republicans

In 1992, strategists James Carville and George Stephanopoulos changed the way campaigns are waged... or did they??? We revisit THE WAR ROOM (1993), D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus's acclaimed documentary about the Clinton/Bush election, and remember just how dispiriting the '90s were.

"The Rise and Fall of Clintonism" by Ryan Cooper - https://www.thenation.com/article/the-rise-and-fall-of-clintonism/

"Is Trump the New Clinton" by Musa al-Gharbi - https://thebaffler.com/latest/is-trump-the-new-clinton-al-gharbi

Luke and Will welcome back conspiracy expert Alex Ross to discuss the Citizen Kane of 9/11 Truther documentaries, and why it's bad.