Did you watch? I did for a bit. Long enough for my husband to hear, in his own words, that all you really need to know about Zinn's ideas and his books (he appears to have engaged in a bit of Capitalism himself spinning off from his ONE book into other related projects, graphic novels, posters for classrooms) ... was originally in The Communist Manifesto.
But don't believe me. Let's see what the L.A. Times has to say ...
Class division is a drumbeat throughout "The People Speak," which is a primer of liberal ideology with a decided bent toward socialism; no one's reading a few rousing passages of Ayn Rand's, for instance. The letters and journals and speeches selected cover the American timeline, from the abolitionists through AIDS activists, but the theme of personal and political enfranchisement, tolerance, peace and American humility is the consistent theme. Equal rights, protection of workers, protection of children, even rent control are celebrated while concepts such as patriotism -- the last refuge of scoundrels, according to pacifist and anarchist Emma Goldman -- and national security are portrayed as the whip and cattle prod used by the power elite. Even World War II is cast as a false model for American military domination.
But, the review laid a turd with this one:
Without exception, the performances are thrilling, but it is the authors, not the actors, who are the stars here.
The "readings" I watching were uninspired. Don't actors memorize their lines anymore? I was shocked that they read their bits.
And, Bob Dylan's performance was painful.
Pain. Ful.
Man he sucked.
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