Michael Moore book a success

Despite almost not being released, political activist Michael Moore’s latest book is riding on top of the New York Times Best Seller List.

“Stupid White Men and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation” almost didn’t see the light of day when publishers at HarperCollins worried that Moore’s straightforward criticisms of the Bush administration would not be popular after Sept. 11.

Moore recently spoke to a packed house at Northwestern Michigan College, which whole-heartedly applauded his book and the speech he gave.

During the lecture, he touched on the 2000 presidential election, which Moore referred to as “a very American coup,” in the book.

“People say, `Get over it.’ Well, I’ll never get over it,” he said. “There’s nothing more basic in a democracy than the right to vote, and if you don’t stand up for that – if someone tries to rig it or steal it and we sit silent, what message do we send?”

He also spoke out about the Enron scandal.

“If they could waste our time for four years with a special prosecutor looking at a stain on a blue dress, they could certainly dig out the criminals involved in this mess,” he said.

Moore also showed a sneak preview of his newest film, “Bowling for Columbine,” which makes fun of the gun culture. In the film, he interviews members of the Michigan Militia.

– News gathered by Bethany Kohoutek from the Associated Press