# Another "Farenheit 911" misrepresentation by Moore



## Dreamer (Aug 9, 2004)

*Sorry, had to post this, more manipulation by Moore in "Farenheit 911" This is only a taste of many examples of what Moore did. Lie to people he interviewed and took their actions out of context.

Again, propaganda is a lie, even if it's true. Why did Moore have to misrepresent things when the negative aspects of the Iraq war are true and already speak for themselves?*

http://dailynews.att.net/cgi-bin/ne...ntertainment&st=entertainmentd8io76f01&src=ap

*Marine Recruiter in 'Fahrenheit' Mourned 
Updated 11:07 PM ET July 8, 2006

By SHARON COHEN*

*LAKE ORION, Mich. (AP) - He was a stern-faced sniper _ and a soft-hearted Marine who handed out candy to kids in Iraq. He was a warrior who wrote poetry about life and death.

He was featured in Michael Moore's antiwar documentary, "Fahrenheit 9/11," portrayed as an overzealous Marine recruiter who targeted poor kids.

But Staff Sgt. Raymond Plouhar was far more complicated than that.*

And it was that complicated man who died in Iraq in late June, as he served with some of the same men he had recruited years ago. It was that complex man who was buried Friday, by a family that honored his service but would never forget his humanity.

"He had a huge heart," says his widow, Leigha.

Plouhar was a Marine for 10 of his 30 years, but he had dreamed of joining the military ever since he was a little boy who liked to watch "M-A-S-H" on television and dress in fatigues and a camouflage shirt.

He entered the Corps straight out of high school, was trained as a sniper and traveled the world _ Bosnia, Sudan and Israel. He had a ramrod posture and a fierce pride in his appearance: He once ironed his uniform and polished its brass buttons for two hours before allowing his mom to photograph him.

"He told me lots of times that he learned what could be accomplished .. if you put your heart and soul in it _ and he put his heart and soul in the Marine Corps," says his father, also named Raymond. "He was gung-ho from the time he signed his name until the day he died."

His signature was a memorable one.

His birth certificate read Raymond James Byron Anthony Charles Plouhar _ he was named after all his grandfathers. He followed a long family tradition of military service that included a grandfather who earned a Purple Heart in World War II and an older sister, Toni, who was in the Army.

Plouhar carried a Bible from his grandfather, Raymond, to Iraq. He kept it in his left shirt pocket next to his heart. Tucked inside was a photo of his wife and their two sons, Raymond, 9, and Michael, 5.

As devoted as he was to the Marines, Plouhar had a full life outside the military. He liked to hunt and camp, take canoe trips and fish with his boys.

He was known as a charmer, a good talker, a champion of the underdog (always defending and befriending kids picked on in school) and though he was trained to fight and kill, he preferred the role of peacemaker.

"He didn't like turmoil," recalls his mother, Cynthia. "He wanted everybody to be happy, to get along. ... He'd say 'Life's too short to sweat the small stuff.'"

As family members gathered last week in their lakefront home 30 miles north of Detroit, they lined the walls and windows with photo collages that tell Raymond Plouhar's life in chapters.

There's the grinning kid with the protruding ears (a coach once joked he looked like a Volkswagen with the doors open) proudly holding up the bass he caught.

There's the sturdy athlete grappling with an opponent around a wrestling circle and posing in the green-and-white football uniform of the Lake Orion Dragons.

There's the young man in love, sitting with high school sweetheart, Leigha, on his dad's Harley on their way to the prom, then years later, together again, he in Marine blue, she in white, on their wedding day.

Then there's the tough-minded Marine in helmet and combat gear _ doling out candy from a plastic bag two months ago to schoolchildren in Iraq.

*"He admired the Iraqi people," his father says. "He said, 'Dad, even though I can't understand a word they're saying, if we were back home ... we'd be buddies.'"

Plouhar was killed on June 26 by a roadside bomb in Anbar province in his second tour of duty in Iraq, weeks before he was to return home. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force in Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Plouhar's family says he had no qualms about returning to Iraq and he believed conditions had improved since his first tour in 2005.*

"I never worried," Leigha says, "because ... in my head, he was indestructible and nothing could ever happen to him because he was so good at what he did."

His mother says her son preferred to be at the center of the action. In an undated entry in a blog on MySpace.com, Plouhar said "you can call me crazy" but he liked being in Iraq. "Someone has to do it plus I love what I do," he wrote.

Plouhar did step back from active duty for four years and worked as a recruiter in Flint so he could donate a kidney to his uncle.

*It was as a recruiter that Plouhar was seen in Moore's award-winning "Fahrenheit 9/11." The segment shows Plouhar and another Marine in a mall parking lot in a depressed suburb of Flint; it suggests the two men were cynically hunting for poor teens to sign up, rather than go to a wealthy suburb where they'd likely be rejected.

Plouhar's father says his son told him he had been misled and believed he was being filmed for a documentary that would appear on the Discovery Channel. (Moore's office didn't return calls or e-mail messages seeking comment.)

"He cried when he found out what it really was," his father says. "He never dreamed that it was going to be something to slam the country, which he dearly loved."

The movie, to be precise, is primarily a criticism of the Bush administration's actions after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

And yet, the elder Plouhar also says he doesn't see anything wrong with his son's actions. "If you really watched just the part with my son in it," he asks, "how could you not say that he was standing tall and proud?"

His parents say they've seen only the segment featuring their son. Leigha Plouhar says her husband asked her not to watch the film _ and she never has. Nor has Stephen Wandrie, his friend of 20 years, who says Plouhar was hurt by the film, but told him:

"'You know what? I know what I do is good for this country and every one of those people I'm recruiting _ those guys are my brothers.' "*

In the past month, the bloodshed that has become part of the daily life in Iraq seemed to edge closer and closer. He was shaken up in two explosions.

Two weeks before he died, his mother says, he called and she could hear the strain in his voice. But he tried to be reassuring. "He said, I'll be all right. I don't have much longer. ... I'm ready to come home. I'm ready."

And yet he seemed prepared for the possibility he wouldn't.

In a poem he sent to his family last year _ a poem now enlarged to floor-to-ceiling size, and covering a wall of the Plouhar home _ Plouhar said he knew he could die serving his country and was ready to make the sacrifice.

"I will leave my loved ones, my kids, my wife ...," he wrote. "Do not feel pity for me, for this is my choice. ... This is me. This is who I am. I am a Marine to the very end."

*Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.*


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## Pancthulhu (May 27, 2006)

Michael Moore is the embodiment of everything he claims to hate.


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## walkingdead (Jan 28, 2006)

michael moore(does not deserve capitalization) is a fat, ugly, money hungry bastard who couldn't get noticed by doing legitimate films so he had to resort to the crap he is most noted for. The pity is some people actually agree with his "storys".


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## dakotajo (Aug 10, 2004)

Dreamer,

Spare us the Micheal Moore smear campaign. You simply dont like him because he speaks the truth against your beloved Bush and the Republican party in which you strongly support. I swear, you love everything thats truly evil in this world. Go blow smoke up somebody elses' ass. You make me ill.

Joe


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## Epiphany (Apr 28, 2006)

Ouch Joe...

Harsh and uncalled for I would say. There are a number of ways to get your view across without attacking the person in such a vicious way.

Please spare us your Dreamer smear campaign!!!


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## dakotajo (Aug 10, 2004)

I know what I wrote was harsh. I dont care. Simply put, I dont like dreamer and anything she supports. Shes always on the side of wrong. For the most part, I think Moore is pretty honest and has good intentions. You talk about misrepresentation? What about the load of shit we are spoon fed daily by Bush to make us think what he is doing is ok? Things are getting so fucked up that its getting harder and harder for him and his cronies to keep up their illusion. Regardless of his tactics, I believe Moore does what he does to try to expose what is really truly wrong in this truly fucked up world. I give him only credit for it.


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## Guest (Jul 15, 2006)

===


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## walkingdead (Jan 28, 2006)

I love you Dreamer. You were one of the first and only posters that seemed to understand my condition.
This post shows how polarized our society has become. You either love us or hate us, no middle ground.
Well I say that both republicans AND democrats are full of shit. And when I see a film that is blatantly so one sided to either the war-mongers or the lefty sissies I am not afraid to speak out. But do not think that I am a right wing bible thumper or a left wing fairy when I do so. I think this polarity sucks big time. It is what is promoting hate and violence everywhere. Can't we all just get along?


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## Epiphany (Apr 28, 2006)

Wow Joe...great to see you worded your next post with a little more sensitivity. :shock: :shock: :shock:



> Simply put, I dont like dreamer and anything she supports. Shes always on the side of wrong.


Huh??? Are you for real??? You are obviously very selective as to which of Dreamer's posts and reponses you read. She is very supportive of others and shows a great deal of compassion just exactly when it is needed. She may post some things that she feels passionate and strongly about as do many people on this site but if you are so dissaproving of everything she stands for then here's an easy fix for you...DON'T READ HER POSTS!!!!

If you feel compelled to read them anyway at least attempt to refrain from spitting venom all over your computer screen. 
I'm not suggesting you should sugar-coat everything you write but do you have to be so blatently nasty? Especially to someone as lovely as Dreamer. I know I have posted things at times that are a little insensitive but seriously Joe...think of more intelligent ways to get your point across...obviously you are passionate about opposing things to Dreamer and you seemingly couldn't care less about your feelings or anyone elses, but not everyone is as lacking of feeling as yourself.

I know I've gone the long way around it but I just don't like seeing Dreamer attacked so viciously simply because you don't agree with what she has to say. 

Anyway...enough rant...I'm done now.


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## Homeskooled (Aug 10, 2004)

Dear Dreamer, 
Whether or not Michael Moore's agenda is a "good" one doesnt give him the right to skewer an honest soldier any more than a "good" Republican agenda gives them the right to lie. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. I watched Farenheit 911 and I watched Farenhype 911 because I really appreciate feedback from both sides. The two really must be watched back to back to have a fair understanding of the issue. Michael Moore has a gift for hyperbole. His documentaries should not be labeled as such, but rather as parody or social commentary. To classify his works (which have always been this way, even back in his TV series days) as documentaries, seemingly validates his part true/part fictional stories to the naive viewer who isnt aware enough to do fact checking, leading many people to beleive what they beleive for the wrong reasons. If one is truly interested in good and lasting change, obscuring ANY truth can never lead to it. This stands for politicians and fillmmakers alike.

Peace
Homeskooled


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