W.

I'm really grumpy today and I couldn't figure out why. I thought maybe it was the annoying updates on facebook that have begun to affect me personally (what really happens when you join a "group" on there?? I'm dying to know), or maybe I was just having a severe case of the Mondays. After I spent a few hours in personal reflection, I realized it was just the after effect of seeing W. yesterday. I know it's cool now to not be a fan of George W. Bush even for those who actually voted for him in 2004, but for me this movie was like watching one of your worst days played over and over for 3 hours on a giant screen. The movie itself was great and I really enjoyed it, but the subject matter totally increased my cynical nature to near dangerous levels. I think it was the final straw in my information overload breakdown. Thank goodness that I'm going to Florida this weekend for a little R&R time...I'm starting to depress myself.

So W. the movie. I'm no professional film critic, in case you were suspicious, and I don't want to ruin anything for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. Although I will say this: at the end of the movie, we're still at war and he's still president. I got a bit excited during the pretzel choking scene, but then I remembered that Oliver Stone couldn't write his own ending and actually had to base this mostly on reality. Which is why it's so freaking frustrating. You know that feeling when you're at a store and you're getting terrible customer service? You're trying to pay for something that is on sale, but they charge you full price and you say "hey, this was supposed to be on sale" and the cashier goes "no one told me about a sale" and then starts asking around to the other cashiers and no one knows about the sale, can't find the ad for the sale, and basically won't acknowledge that there was a sale to begin with? You're left standing there wondering how such complete morons could ever get a job anywhere and no matter how many people in charge you talk to, you don't get a single straight answer. That's kinda how the movie portrays Bush's cabinet of advisers. Once it's discovered that there aren't WMD's, everyone puts their head down and starts doodling in their notebooks (literally, Karl Rove can really draw). No one accepts blame for the misinformation or offers up an apology. It's like a bunch of 5th graders on the playground pointing their finger at everyone else. Totally and completely frustrating to watch. Outside of this, the movie is mostly about W.'s overwhelming daddy issues. They would lead you to believe that it drives every single thing he ever does in his entire life. At one point he wants to be president to make his Poppy proud and in the next breath it's like a giant F You to the old man. Whatever it is, it makes you think that if only his dad would have been proud of him for being the simple, unmotivated guy he was, none of this would have ever happened. Instead we've all been dragged into this family squabble for the last 8 years.

I don't know about you all, but I'm checking out now. I'll go to the polls on November 4th and do my duty, but that's it. I'm not watching any news or reading CNN or god-willing letting a single political thought cross my mind. It's going to be hard to avoid the Sarah Palin costumes on Halloween, but I'll do my best.