Top quotes by Michael Moore

When the women's liberation movement began, when people began protesting against the Vietnam War, civil rights movement, at the beginning of those movements, the majority of the country was not with them, did not believe in the basic principles of any of those philosophies. Votes: 25

If the Founding Fathers could have looked into a crystal ball and seen AK-47s and Glock semi-automatic pistols, I think they would say, you know, 'That's not really what we mean when we say bear arms.' Votes: 24

I was one of the first 18-year-olds in the United States elected to public office right after 18-year-olds got the right to vote back in the early '70s. I ran for the Board of Education. Votes: 21

If you believe in equality, if you believe in standing up for the rights of all, especially for people most affected by bigotry and discrimination, then you have no choice but to be present and accounted for when it comes to standing up for gays and lesbians in our society. Votes: 20

I still believe the lessons I learned when I was raised in a Roman Catholic household. Like, it's harder for a rich man to get into Heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Votes: 20

If I were a capitalist I would not give my employees health insurance with no deductible, which I do, including dental, and paid pregnancy leave. That's not called capitalism, that's called being a Christian and someone who believes in democracy, so that everyone should get a fair slice of the pie. Votes: 20

Since 9/11, the Bush administration has used that tragic event as a justification to rip up our constitution and our civil liberties. And I honestly believe that one or two 9/11s, and martial law will be declared in our country and we're inching towards a police state. Votes: 19

There's only one movie theater in the entire city of Detroit. The entire city has one open movie theater, and it is in the - it is in the General Motors headquarters complex. Votes: 18

There's over a billion people on this planet that don't have access to clean drinking water. Votes: 17

The motivation for war is simple. The U.S. government started the war with Iraq in order to make it easy for U.S. corporations to do business in other countries. They intend to use cheap labor in those countries, which will make Americans rich. Votes: 13

We have to see that we're a part of each other, and we have to take care of each other. The reason why they have universal health care in Canada and Britain, these other places? Because they believe if one suffers, everybody suffers. Votes: 13

I come from the state of Michigan. We were the first English-speaking government in the world to outlaw the death penalty, back in the 1840s. We have never had, as a state, the death penalty in Michigan. I was raised with that, and even Republicans in Michigan, nobody would even think of putting a measure on the ballot to have the death penalty. Votes: 13

Nobody had a credit card when I was a kid. No one had credit card debt. But these big companies and banks wanted to know how to get more money out of people - get them charging things. Votes: 13

Occupy has to continue as a bold, in-your-face movement - occupying banks, corporate headquarters, board meetings, campuses and Wall Street itself. We need weekly - if not daily - nonviolent assaults right on Wall Street. Votes: 12

It really is disgusting when a guy in a ball cap with a high school education is the one asking the tough questions. Votes: 11

People of my age who went to college, go into college, you know what it cost back then? Nothing or next to nothing. At the most, you had to work at Dairy Queen during the summer and that would pay for your college education. Votes: 11

Contrary to what those in power would like you to believe so that you'll give up your pension, cut your wages, and settle for the life your great-grandparents had, America is not broke. Not by a long shot. The country is awash in wealth and cash. Votes: 10

I have enormous respect for anyone who would offer to sacrifice their life to defend my right to live. Is there any greater gift one can give another? Votes: 8

Everybody gets sick; everybody has had a problem with insurance or the prescription drugs they're supposed to be taking or an elderly parent who needs care. Votes: 7

If your bank took bailout money, take your money out of that bank and put it in a credit union. Credit unions are owned by the people who have their money in the credit union. Votes: 7

I'm not a big believer in our copyright laws; I find them way too restrictive. Votes: 7

WikiLeaks, God bless them, will save lives as a result of their actions. Votes: 6

Clearly I am a person who suffers from a lack of ego. Votes: 6

The media love to cover black people on the front page. After all, when you live in a society that will lock up about 30 percent of all black men at some time in their lives and send more of them to prison than to college, chances are a fair number of those black faces will end up in the newspaper. Votes: 5

I'm a highly flawed individual, as we all are, and because I was raised by Jesuits, I'm constantly, 'What is it about me and what I can do to be better?' Votes: 5

I don't like to sit around whining about the corporate media, how they control everything, own everything. We already know that. Votes: 5

Healthcare should be between the doctor and the patient. And if the doctor says something needs to be done, the government should guarantee it gets paid for. Votes: 4

The American media wants to pump you full of fear. Votes: 4

You need to have a relationship with what you put inside you. I don't want to get all spiritual about this, but I believe our bodies are a gift, and to deface it is disrespectful. Votes: 2

I don't even like DVDs. Honest to God, in my lifetime, I might have rented a dozen DVDs, literally gone into a video store and rented a dozen DVDs in my lifetime, because I don't like to see movies that way. I like to see them on the big screen. Votes: 1

I ask all Americans with a conscience to shun anything and everything to do with the murderous state of Georgia. Votes: 0

If you're in a diabetic or prediabetic state, it's good to have medication to go on for a period of time. But simply by making the changes - get your sleep, 35 grams of fiber and a half-hour walk - your cholesterol will come down, your sugar will come down, and your blood pressure will come down. Only the minority of people can't control it. Votes: 0

The left, liberals, believe that if we just have more gun control laws, all the problems are going to go away. Well, I don't think so. I don't think so. I think - yes, it will, it will be reduced. There's no question about that. Votes: 0

My films don't have instant impact because they're dense with ideas that people have not thought about. It takes a while for the American public to wrap its head around some of the things I'm saying. Votes: 0

I was kind of a strange child. My parents knew early on that something must have been wrong with me. I crawled backwards until I was two, but had Kennedy's inaugural address memorized by the time I was six. Votes: 0

The health insurance industry does not like to pay out claims, because they don't make money. The only way they can make a profit is if they don't pay for your operation. If they pay for your operation and your doctor's appointment and your pharmaceuticals, they don't make any money. Votes: 0

I've read stories of slave owners who were very generous. They didn't keep them in shackles, they didn't whip the slaves, they built schools and churches for them, free housing, free food, free everything. It's wrong. No matter how nice you make it look, it's wrong. Votes: 0

Television has its own award. It's called the Emmy. It's a good award. I like it. I have one. But you don't see movies like 'The King's Speech' win Oscars and then go to TV and qualify for Emmys. In documentaries, some networks have been able to game the system. Votes: 0

I went without health insurance until 'Roger & Me,' basically - from about age 20 till about age 35. With 'Roger & Me,' I joined the Directors Guild and the Writers Guild, and since then I've had excellent health care managed by the union. Votes: 0

I don't believe that the Bush Administration had something to do with September 11th. I do believe that there were a lot of warning signals, but I don't think they were ignored on purpose - Bush just wanted to go to the ranch for a month. Votes: 0

A newspaper is a public trust, and we will suffer as a society without them. It is not the Internet that has killed them. It is their own greed, it is their own stupidity, and it is capitalism that has taken our daily newspapers from us. Votes: 0

I'm interested to see what happens with Fox News and phone hacking. I really can't believe it just happens in Great Britain. Because really, who cares about just hacking phones over there? Votes: 0

The purpose of art actually is, in many cases, to make you feel quite uncomfortable. Or at least to go to that place that's already of discomfort inside of you and tap into that. Votes: 0

Oprah's got good politics, she's got a good heart, and she'll have us all up Jazzercising at six in the morning. This cannot be a bad thing, and reading a book while we're Jazzercising. So America would be better off if Oprah were president. Votes: 0

Our laws demand that a corporation have a fiduciary responsibility with shareholders to maximize profits. They are legally required to make as much money as possible, any way possible within 'the law.' Votes: 0

When you come from the working class and you do well enough whereby you can provide a little bit better for your family, get a decent roof over their head and send them to a good school, that's considered a good thing. Votes: 0

I think that there's something in the American psyche, it's almost this kind of right or privilege, this sense of entitlement, to resolve our conflicts with violence. There's an arrogance to that concept if you think about it. To actually have to sit down and talk, to listen, to compromise, that's hard work. Votes: 0

What really went wrong is that General Motors has had this philosophy from the beginning that what's good for General Motors is good for the country. So, their attitude was, 'We'll build it and you buy it. We'll tell you what to buy. You just buy it.' Votes: 0

Should such an ignorant people lead the world? How did it come to this in the first place? 82 percent of us don't even have a passport! Just a handful can speak a language other than English. Votes: 0

Nobody has been arrested on Wall Street for the crash of 2008. They're not paying their fair share of the taxes. And now with the Citizens United case of the Supreme Court, they get to buy politicians up out in the open. Votes: 0

I have a rule: I want the pilot flying me up in the air at 30,000 feet to make more than a guy working at Taco Bell. Votes: 0

One thing I've learned about death threats is that they're great, actually. You should actually be grateful for death threats because those who are taking the time to threaten you that way are getting it out of their system. That's really what they rant to do, yell at you, and they want to threaten you. Votes: 0

I'm caught up probably just as much in the consumer culture as the next person. Votes: 0

All art is about appealing to emotion. Votes: 0

Every parent wants to do what's best for their child. Whatever I can afford, I'm going to get my kid the best education I can get. Votes: 0

If anything, I don't have to convince the American public that we have a broken health-care system. I think the majority of Americans since they have to go through that health-care system, already know it. Votes: 0

We should all spend some time of our life doing service to our country. To me, I would give up a couple of years. Votes: 0

Any time you got the Pope and the Dixie Chicks against you, your time is up. Votes: 0

I do believe that we are to love our enemies and do good to those who persecute you. I believe that there is power and strength in that. Votes: 0

Capitalism would have never let me be a filmmaker, living in Flint, Michigan with a high school education. I was going to have to make that happen myself. Votes: 0

If you're white, and you really want to help change things, why not start with yourself? Votes: 0

All of our political parties are bought and paid for by corporate America, Wall Street, and the wealthy interests. The Republican Party more so, but the Democrats take their share of the loot, too. Votes: 0

No decisions should ever be made without asking the question, is this for the common good? Votes: 0

I was a good little boy and a good student. I've never been arrested. Votes: 0

The movie theater is never going away. If that was a case why are there still restaurants? People still have kitchens in their home! Votes: 0

As far as what I do love, I love birds; I love lavender. Votes: 0

The No. 1 cause of bankruptcies is medical bills. Votes: 0

Listen friends, you have to face the truth: You are never going to be rich... The system is rigged in favor of the few, and your name is not among them, not now and not ever. Votes: 0

There's a gullible side to the American people. They can be easily misled. Religion is the best device used to mislead them. Votes: 0

I respect the fact that people have worked hard all week and want to go to the movies on the weekend and be entertained. Votes: 0

We live in a time when fictitious election results elect a fictitious president. We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Votes: 0

We live in the time where we have fictitious election results that elects a fictitious president. We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Votes: 0

I'm going to guess Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, all want clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. I'm sure most people think women should be paid the same as men if they're doing the same job. I think we all want good schools for our kids. If we made that list, we actually are in agreement on more things. Votes: 0

Many criminals believe what they say is true; they could pass a lie detector test. Votes: 0

You do not have the right to take another human's life, unless it's in strict self-defense. Votes: 0

One of the basic tenets of the working class is you want to get out of the working class. Votes: 0

I believe that when you provide information to people, they become less fearful and they will engage more in their democracy if they are empowered with information. Votes: 0

I'm used to my films having little effect on making the world a better place. Votes: 0

I don't 'support the troops' or any of those other hollow and hypocritical platitudes uttered by Republicans and frightened Democrats. Here's what I do support: I support them coming home. I support them being treated well. Votes: 0

How do you deliver democracy to a country? You don't do it down the barrel of a gun. That's not how you deliver it. Votes: 0

I personally hold Blair more responsible for this war than I do George Bush. The reason is, Blair knows better, Blair is not an idiot. What is he doing hanging around this guy? Votes: 0

I'd feel bad if I had you come into a theater and you leave feeling ripped off. Votes: 0

I take much of the attacks and the criticism toward me as being very class-based, but as Americans we don't like to acknowledge that reality. Votes: 0

It should be a crime to make a profit off somebody being sick. Votes: 0

Somehow, I don't think Jesus came to Earth to ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange. Votes: 0

I've always been sort of confused by the trajectory my life has taken. I was supposed to be on an assembly line building Buicks. Votes: 0

Building up the arms did not cause the fall of Eastern Europe. Votes: 0

I remember the first time I received a cassette tape of a band called The Clash. I became an instant fan of the Clash and then bought their albums after that and went to their concerts and gave them my money... but I first got it for free. Votes: 0

What I'm asking for is a new economic order. I don't know how to construct that; I'm not an economist. Votes: 0

Clinton was a pretty good president for a Republican. Votes: 0

There should be no private health insurance companies operating for profit. Votes: 0

Because I have an opinion, I have become public enemy number one to the Fox News Channel and the right wing. Votes: 0

I'll tell you who doesn't have any personal responsibility. Companies like General Electric and others who pay absolutely no income tax. Votes: 0

My employees, there's no deductible in your health care. No deductible, absolutely not. You get paid sick days, as many as you need, personal days. Votes: 0

The American public believes that health care is a right and not a commodity. Votes: 0

You know, an opinion can be right or wrong. Votes: 0

I made 'Bowling for Columbine' in the hope the school shootings would stop and that we would address the issue of how easy it is to get a gun in the United States, and tragically, those school shootings continue. Votes: 0

Capitalism is an organized system to guarantee that greed becomes the primary force of our economic system and allows the few at the top to get very wealthy and has the rest of us riding around thinking we can be that way, too - if we just work hard enough, sell enough Tupperware and Amway products, we can get a pink Cadillac. Votes: 0

I think there are few things more patriotic than taking the time to make your country a better place. Votes: 0

A common denominator among big guys like me who are trying to take care of our health is that we're not getting enough sleep. Votes: 0

No 22-year-old should have to enter the real world already in a virtual debtors' prison. Votes: 0

Yeah, I think of what I do as a work of journalism. It's more like the op-ed page, though. These are my opinions. My point of view. The opinions are mine and I let you make up your own mind. Votes: 0

Librarians in America do something like a couple of billion dollars worth of book business every year. Votes: 0

This life is a gift, and to reject that gift or abuse that gift is not human and not worthy of us. Votes: 0

I think the NRA, they got it half-right when they say, 'Guns don't kill people, people kill people.' I change it to, 'Guns don't kill people, Americans kill people.' Votes: 0

The money to fund great things and innovations and programs is gone in our lifetime; it's all gone to debt. So we won't be able to solve global warming or have the transportation that we needed for the 21st century. We should be supporting people with great ideas, but it's gone, and now it's gotta be paid back with interest to banks in China. Votes: 0

If you reduce the guns and the ammo, you'll reduce the murders. Votes: 0

My dad was an assembly line worker at AC Spark Plug, which was a division of General Motors, and his job was to build and then inspect the little spark plugs as they came off the line. Votes: 0

Librarians see themselves as the guardians of the First Amendment. You got a thousand Mother Joneses at the barricades! I love the librarians, and I am grateful for them! Votes: 0

As a quiet salute to Beavis and Butthead, I held up my index finger and thumb in an "L"-the international sign for loser. Votes: 0

Army Specialist Bradley Manning deserves a medal, not prison. Votes: 0

Here's what I don't think works: An economic system that was founded in the 16th century and another that was founded in the 19th century. I'm tired of this discussion of capitalism and socialism; we live in the 21st century; we need an economic system that has democracy as its underpinnings and an ethical code. Votes: 0

A lot of people on Capitol Hill don't want to talk to me. Votes: 0

You can't regulate child labor. You can't regulate slavery. Some things are just wrong. Votes: 0

The products built in the factories of G.M., Ford and Chrysler are some of the greatest weapons of mass destruction responsible for global warming and the melting of our polar icecaps. Votes: 0

I don't want to do anything that violates my own personal code of ethics and morals. Votes: 0

These bastards who run our country are a bunch of conniving, thieving, smug pricks who need to be brought down and removed and replaced with a whole new system that we control. Votes: 0

White people scare the crap out of me. Votes: 0

This is the crux of the problem: because the Republicans and the right wing have been successful in almost eliminating unions, everyone else has suffered as a result. Votes: 0

Capitalism is against the things that we say we believe in - democracy, freedom of choice, fairness. It's not about any of those things now. It's about protecting the wealthy and legalizing greed. Votes: 0

I want us all to face our fears and stop behaving like our goal in life is to merely survive. "Surviving" is for wimps and game show contestants stranded in the jungle or on a desert island. You are not stranded. You own the store....You deserve better. Votes: 0

The majority of Americans, the ones who never elected George W. Bush, are not fooled by his weapons of mass distraction. Votes: 0

I did a filmstrip on pollution in the Davison area as my Eagle Scout project and showed it around town. Businesses who were the polluters were mad at me. Votes: 0

The highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity. Choosing right over wrong, ethic over convenience, and truth over popularity ... these are choices that measure your life. Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for there is never a wrong time to do the right thing. Votes: 0

I'm a millionaire, I'm a multi-millionaire. I'm filthy rich. You know why I'm a multi-millionaire? 'Cause multi-millions like what I do. Votes: 0

The 'fiscal cliff' is a ruse, an invention by the right and the rich, to try and keep their huge tax breaks. Votes: 0

The real problem with the IRS is that they let General Electric not pay any taxes -- and 50 other corporations -- that's the real scandal Votes: 0

The Justice Department needs to investigate how Goldman Sachs was able to steer things in such a manner through their former employees in the Bush administration, so that in the end Goldman's competitors have disappeared and Goldman is left standing. Votes: 0

How about that McDonald's two blocks from Ground Zero? That's killed more people than the 19 hijackers. Votes: 0

If the guy out in the woods with the Michigan Militia is a real estate negotiator, instead of some crackpot, and has a normal life, that's unnerving. You don't want to think it's as normal as the guy next door, hedging his lawn. It's easier to demonize or separate them off from 'us.' Votes: 0

How could a guy sitting in a cave in Afghanistan, have... plotted so perfectly the hijacking of four planes and then guaranteed that three of them would end up precisely on their targets? Votes: 0

I did not like 'The Hurt Locker.' It's a lazy way to make a movie, frankly. I could put you on the edge of your seat quite easily, and have you feel the tension for 2 hours, if every other scene practically is, 'Should we cut the red wire or the green wire?' Votes: 0

Instead of the Government spending $400,000 on immunisation, we may get far better health outcomes if we spend $100,000 in some other way, on nutrition for example...When you have an expenditure on getting your community healthier, then the resistance to many childhood diseases is stronger. Votes: 0

One of the most ironic things about capitalism is that the capitalist will sell you the rope to hang himself with. Actually they will give you the money to make a movie that makes them look bad, if they believe they can make money off it. Votes: 0

The Iraqis who have risen up against the occupation are not 'insurgents' or 'terrorists' or 'The Enemy.' They are the revolution, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow - and they will win. Votes: 0

Four hundred obscenely wealthy individuals, 400 little Mubaraks - most of whom benefited in some way from the multi-trillion-dollar taxpayer bailout of 2008 - now have more cash, stock and property than the assets of 155 million Americans combined. Votes: 0

I've never supported this concept of going after Napster. I think the rock bands who fought this were wrong. Votes: 0

I want Americans to realize that we are the owners of this country, and that one person can make a difference. Votes: 0

Back in the late '90s, I put together a humorous newsmagazine program called 'The Awful Truth' for Bravo. We helped one guy get an organ transplant whose insurance company had refused to pay. I thought, if we could save a guy's life in a 10-minute segment on cable, what could we do if we devoted a whole movie to a whole bunch of people? Votes: 0

I don't want people leaving the theater depressed after my movies. I want them angry. Votes: 0

Every night I watch the nightly news. It's funded by the pharmaceutical companies. Virtually every ad is a drug ad. They get their say every night on the nightly news through advertising. Votes: 0

I would like to apologize for referring to George W. Bush as a 'deserter.' What I meant to say is that George W. Bush is a deserter, an election thief, a drunk driver, a WMD liar, and a functional illiterate. And he poops his pants Votes: 0

Post-war filmmakers gave us the documentary, Rob Reiner gave us the mockumentary and Moore initiated a third genre, the crockumentary. Votes: 0

I may be preaching to the choir, but the choir needs a good song. Votes: 0

My film about Bush didn't prevent his reelection. Votes: 0

Bush's presidency is revisionism-proof. We're going to be recovering from it for the rest of our lives. Votes: 0

Transporting Americans is and should be one of the most important functions our government must address. Votes: 0

I don't talk in sound bites. Votes: 0

Capitalism means that a few people will do very well, and the rest will serve the few. Votes: 0

The worst thing to tell a free people in a country that's still mostly free is that they are not allowed to read something. Votes: 0

If we didn't have Social Security, our seniors would live mostly in poverty. You'd have another 18 million people in poverty. Votes: 0

Diets are a scam. Votes: 0

You can't debate satire. Either you get it or you don't. Votes: 0

So is there a difference between Democrats and Republicans? Sure. The Democrats say one thing ("Save the planet!") and then do another--quietly holding hands behind the scenes with the bastards who make this world a dirtier, meaner place. The Republicans just come right out and give the bastards a corner office in the West Wing. That's the difference. Votes: 0

Comedy is a great slayer of rogues in power. Votes: 0

15 of the 19 [September 11th] hijackers were from Saudi Arabia. Votes: 0

The days of using my name as a pejorative are now over. The right wing turned me into an accidental spokesperson for the liberal, majority agenda. Votes: 0

Capitalism is an evil, and you cannot regulate evil. You have to eliminate it and replace it with something that is good for all people and that something is democracy. Votes: 0

There is no terrorist threat. Yes, there have been horrific acts of terrorism and, yes, there will be acts of terrorism again. But that doesn't mean that there's some kind of massive terrorist threat. Votes: 0

I don't support the troops, America, and neither do you. Votes: 0

What the media are telling you to be afraid of are the wrong things... Fear is a necessary ingredient of our survival instincts. Votes: 0

And realising that humour is the most powerful way to make a political statement and say the things that you want to say. And it's not used enough, at least not in the U.S. Votes: 0

I don't want to be pigeonholed into the guy who's against everything. Votes: 0

Nothing seems crueler--or more ironic--than these upper crusters who never pay a dime for their high-priced shrinks or reflexology sessions to call those who just want that tumor removed from their uterus a bunch of commies. Well, the revolution is at hand and let's hope all those uninsured commies give the rich such a headache that a whole bottle of Advil won't be enough to take the pain way. Votes: 0

Under Reagan came the idea of putting your pension plan in the stock market, which wasn't a guaranteed pension. Votes: 0

You think history is going to remember the United States as a great democracy? No, they're going to think of us as a nation that became addicted to war. They'll call us warlords. Votes: 0

For my very first movie, 'Roger and Me,' I made it as part of my deal with Warner Brothers that the four people that were evicted in that film, that Warner Brothers would house - would pay their mortgage or their rent for the next two years to give them a chance to get on their feet. Votes: 0

Maybe we should be directing our anger elsewhere - like toward Wall Street. Why is it we never think of Big Business when we think of welfare recipients? Companies take more of our tax dollars, and in much more questionable ways, than do those who are trying to heat their apartments with a kerosene stove. Votes: 0

Democracy is not a spectator sport, it's a participatory event. If we don't participate in it, it ceases to be a democracy. Votes: 0

One thing I learned as a journalist is that there is at least one disgruntled person in every workplace in America -- and at least double that number with a conscience. Hard as they try, they simply can't turn their heads away from an injustice when they see one taking place. Votes: 0

My uncle killed by sniper in WW2. We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot you in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. And invaders are worse. Votes: 0

A majority of this country opposes this war, a majority of this country never voted for this administration. Votes: 0

First of all, the American people are inundated with advertisement after advertisement of you buy, buy, buy. You've got to have the latest thing. The iPad 1 isn't any good anymore, you've got to have the iPad 2. The iPhone 4, now you've got to have iPhone 4S. Now you've got to have the 5b, now you've got to have the 6c. Votes: 0

I'm not a pundit. I'm not an analyst. I don't want to participate in the existing debate that's going on about whether or not you should be able to have as many guns as you want to have or that guns are even the problem. Votes: 0

I like BuzzFeed, and I understand the pressure that online reporters are under. But I think everyone agrees that, despite all the awesome kitten gifs, they're still obligated to be skeptical of government officials and ask the right questions. Votes: 0

Wall Street, the banks, and corporate America, has been able to call the shots here. They control our members of Congress and they get what they want. Votes: 0

A sane person would think that Wal-Mart would never carry 'Capitalism: A Love Story' because it's simply not in their best interests to inform their customers of their shady past. Votes: 0

We as Americans believe it's OK to kill people. We believe it's OK to invade a country that had nothing to do with 9/11. We think it's OK to invade a country where we think Osama Bin Laden is and he's in the other country. So we just go in and we just kill. And we have the death penalty; we sanction it. Votes: 0

The entire business world has figured out how to make huge buckets of money without hiring us to work for them. Votes: 0

Any time you've got both the Pope and the Dixie Chicks against you, you're not long for the White House. Votes: 0

I drive an American car. It's a Chrysler. That's not an endorsement. It's more like a cry for pity. Votes: 0

Openness, transparency - these are among the few weapons the citizenry has to protect itself from the powerful and the corrupt... and that is the best thing that WikiLeaks has done. Votes: 0

My dad was an autoworker, my mom was a clerk. Until I was thirty-five, I never made more than fifteen thousand dollars a year. Votes: 0

Ask anyone on Social Security if their check comes on time every month. Like clockwork. And it comes through the so-called dilapidated U.S. mail. My dad's check literally will come on the same day every month. The government has been quite good and efficient at creating a number of systems. Votes: 0

North Korea has taught a great lesson to all the countries in the world, especially the rogue countries of dictatorships or whatever: if you don't want to be invaded by America, get some nuclear weapons. Votes: 0

The vast majority of the guns in the U.S. are sold to white people who live in the suburbs or the country. When we fantasize about being mugged or home invaded, what's the image of the perpetrator in our heads? Is it the freckled-face kid from down the street - or is it someone who is, if not black, at least poor? Votes: 0

Most liberals I know were for invading Afghanistan right after 9/11. Votes: 0

We should be licensing everybody with a gun. I have to have a license for my dog. I have to have a license for my car. If you're going to do my hair later you have to have a license... We don't require a license to own a firearm? Votes: 0

I've been encouraging documentary filmmakers to use more and more humor, and they're loath to do that because they think if it's a documentary it has to be deadly serious - it has to be like medicine that you're supposed to take. And I think it's what keeps the mass audience from going to documentaries. Votes: 0

I'm from the Midwest, and guys like me don't go on diets. We don't do well on spinning classes. Votes: 0

There's a gullible side to the American people. They can be easily misled. Votes: 0

We reward people for making money off money, and moving money around and dividing up mortgages a thousand times over, selling it to China... and it becomes this shell game. Votes: 0

There's not democracy in the workplace. I mean, through most of our daily lives, the idea of democracy is fairly nonexistent. And I think things work better when the people who have to work with whatever it is we're working with have a say in how it's working. Votes: 0

In America, we don't, in daily discourse, use the words 'capitalism' or 'socialism.' They've been kind of nonexistent words, I would say, amongst the general public. Votes: 0

People like me who grew up in a working-class town, who don't have a college education, you don't usually hear from us. Votes: 0

We're never gonna get rid of crazy people. They've been around for thousands of years - they'll continue to be around; they'll continue to do horrible things. Votes: 0

Greed has been with human beings forever. We have a number of things in our species that you would call 'the dark side,' and greed is one of them. If you don't put certain structures in place or restrictions on those parts of our being that come from that dark place, then it gets out of control. Votes: 0

I've always felt so grateful that I dropped out of school, that I never had to do a thesis. I wouldn't know how to organise and structure myself to film so that B follows A and C follows B. Votes: 0

There's nothing inherently or patently wrong with anybody who does well, works hard, earns a living, betters themselves. I'm not against any of these things. It's about how you make that money, and then what you do with it. Votes: 0

I'm tired of this discussion of capitalism and socialism; we live in the 21st century, we need an economic system that has democracy as its underpinnings and an ethical code. Votes: 0

Republicans are relentless and they're smart, too - they're not all dumb - and on Election Day, they'll be up at five in the morning. Votes: 0

The wealthy have never liked to pay for the labor that enriches them. Ever since slavery was eliminated, they have been trying to keep it as close to slavery as they can without violating the slave laws. Votes: 0

Every fact in my films is true. And yet how often do I have to read over and over again about supposed falsehoods? Votes: 0

Back in the '80s and '90s, when GM was consistently posting giant profits, they were simultaneously firing tens of thousands of workers in my hometown of Flint and across Michigan. Votes: 0

I had a newspaper in Flint, Michigan called the 'Flint Voice,' and so it was a, you know, underground, alternative newspaper that I edited and put out for about ten years. Votes: 0

As you have fewer and fewer voices in a democracy, in a free society, it's not good to limit the number of voices. Votes: 0

You know we are flawed people, so if someone is going to make a movie about me, they don't have to make it up. My real flaws are much funnier. Votes: 0

It's not surprising to me that in a country born of racial genocide, the issue of race is still an open wound on the American soul. We haven't dealt with it. Votes: 0

I think if people who are attacking me or against me, if they would just watch one of my films, they would - they may not agree with me politically on all the things I'm saying. But they will know at the end of the film that I love this country and that I have a heart. And they'll have a good laugh throughout the film. Votes: 0

I think as a filmmaker my first contribution would just be to make a good movie that people would love to see and leave the theatre charged, with a sense of excitement. Votes: 0

There is nowhere in the four Gospels where Jesus uses the word 'homosexual.' Votes: 0

Capitalism and democracy are the opposite of each other. Capitalism is a system that guarantees that a few are going to do very well, and everybody else is going to serve the few. Democracy means everybody has a seat at the table. Everybody. Votes: 0

Now that I exist in the mainstream majority, I'm not really so controversial any more, am I? Not really news. Votes: 0

I say stupid white men are always the problem. That's never going to change. Votes: 0

This book, 'Stupid White Men,' has sold now over four million copies worldwide. Probably about half of that may be in the U.S. and Canada, and the rest, overseas. Votes: 0

Middle class jobs prevent crime and violence. Votes: 0

I think I'm in the majority of Americans. I believe that I am in the mainstream of middle America. Votes: 0

It turns out Cuba has this incredible healthcare system for a very poor country. Votes: 0

I have never owned a share of stock in my life, and the only time I've double dipped into anything is at the snack tray. Votes: 0

The idea that cinema can be dangerous is a great idea. Votes: 0

If one job doesn't pay all the bills, don't worry. You can get another one and another one and another one. Votes: 0

[Librarians] are subversive. You think they're just sitting there at the desk, all quiet and everything. They're like plotting the revolution, man. I wouldn't mess with them. Votes: 0

A government run by billionaires for billionaires is an affront to freedom, morality, and humanity. Votes: 0

A lot of political people, especially people on the left, have forgotten the importance of humor as an incredible weapon, and a vehicle through which to affect change. Votes: 0

All I ask is that you not be naive about how the government works when it decides to go after its prey. Votes: 0

All religions teach the same basic thing, that you have to stand up for those that are considered the worst. Votes: 0

Americans are possibly the dumbest people on the planet. ...We Americans suffer from an enforced ignorance. We don't know about anything that's happening outside our country. Our stupidity is embarrassing. Votes: 0

And it's not a matter of whether the war is not real or if it is. Victory is not possible. The war is not meant to be won, it is meant to be continuous. Hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance. This new version is the past and no different past can ever have existed. In principle the war effort is always planned to keep society on the brink of starvation. The war is waged by the ruling group against its own subjects and its object is not the victory over either Eurasia or East Asia but to keep the very structure of society intact. Votes: 0

As the country continues to dissect the recent natural disaster, we might want to start considering what about the disaster wasn't actually 'natural' at all. ... Human activity, the burning of fossil fuels, is causing global warming. Global warming is causing the oceans to warm. Warm oceans are steroids for storms. Votes: 0

Before there were unions, there was no middle class. Votes: 0

But I'm not a member of the Democratic Party. If you know anything about me, anybody who's followed me, I'm the anti-Democrat. I have railed against the Democrats for a long time. Votes: 0

By the end of the millenium five men controlled the world's media. And the people rejoiced, because their TVs told them to. Votes: 0

Capitalism is an evil, and you cannot regulate evil. Votes: 0

'Champagne' and 'breathmint' are the first two words all Oscar winners hear. Votes: 0

Fahrenheit 9/11: The temperature where freedom burns! Votes: 0

Filmmakers and artists always thrive during more liberal times. Votes: 0

For a documentary filmmaker, I do very well. Votes: 0

Guns don't kill people, people kill people. Votes: 0

Halliburton is not a 'company' doing business in Iraq. It is a war profiteer, bilking millions from the pockets of average Americans. In past wars, they would have been arrested - or worse. Votes: 0

Hey, here's a way to stop suicide bombings give the Palestinians a bunch of missile-firing Apache helicopters and let them and the Israelis go at each other head to head. Four billion dollars a year to Israel four billion dollars a year to the Palestinians they can just blow each other up and leave the rest of us the hell alone. Votes: 0

Hope for the best is what we do, right from the moment we're born. Votes: 0

Horace's best ode would not please a young woman as much as the mediocre verses of the young man she is in love with. Votes: 0

How can there be inaccuracy in comedy? Votes: 0

I - honestly, I don't know of a worse lie one could tell other than a lie to take a country to war. To make up things to take people to war. That's just got to be the most obscene, immoral thing to do. Votes: 0

I and you and everyone else has to be a political activist. Votes: 0

I assume everything I'm saying in an email or saying on the telephone is being looked at. Votes: 0

I certainly believe that I have no right to tell another couple whether they can or cannot be married. Votes: 0

I don't agree with the copyright laws and I don't have a problem with people downloading the movie and sharing it with people... as long as they're not doing it to make a profit off my labor - You share things with people and I think information, and art, and ideas should be shared. Votes: 0

I don't compromise my values and I don't compromise my work. That's why I've been kicked from one network to the next: I won't give in. Votes: 0

I don't want to involve myself in the various arguments about why Israel was created . . . . . I want to deal with the situation at hand which is the ongoing killing on both sides. . . . . . . It's true that there's also much oppression of Palestinians in Arab countries, where Palestinians aren't allowed to vote or own property and are treated as second class citizens and pawns in the fight against Israel. But I'm not going to spend my time on this since there is isn't a whole lot I can do about it. Votes: 0

I get called 'controversial' all the time. Votes: 0

I had an unusually large-sized head, though this was not uncommon for a baby in the Midwest. The craniums in our part of the country were designed to leave a little extra room for the brain to grow in case one day we found ourselves exposed to something we didn't understand, like a foreign language, or a salad. Votes: 0

I hate to say it, but killing is our way. We began America with genocide, then built it with slaves. The shootings will continue. It's who we are. Votes: 0

I have been aspiring to write some sort of literature for a long time. Votes: 0

I just decided to make a movie. I had no training, no film school, but I had been to a lot of movies. Votes: 0

I like America to some extent. Votes: 0

I mean if politics was my main motivation I would be doing politics. But I'm a filmmaker. Votes: 0

I never know why these people talk to me. I would not talk to me. Votes: 0

I rallied against Clinton when he was in office. I didn't vote for him in '96. I didn't vote for Gore in 2000. Votes: 0

I realized that this was the big secret of democracy -- that change can occur by starting off with just a few people doing something. Votes: 0

I really didn't realize the librarians were, you know, such a dangerous group. They are subversive. You think they're just sitting there at the desk, all quiet and everything. They're like plotting the revolution, man. I wouldn't mess with them. You know, they've had their budgets cut. They're paid nothing. Books are falling apart. The libraries are just like the ass end of everything, right? Votes: 0

I say one evil empire down...one to go. Votes: 0

I say stupid white men are always the problem. That's never going to change Votes: 0

I think people should start to practice the words 'President Romney.' Votes: 0

I think that capitalism in general is responsible, not for the worldwide recession, but for a lot of suffering, both in the United States and around the world. Votes: 0

I voted for the black guy, and what we got was the white guy Votes: 0

I want us all to face our fears and stop behaving like our goal in life is to merely survive. Votes: 0

I was taught from a very early age that it was probably the most American thing you can do is to question what's going on and to try to fix things that you see that aren't right. I believed that as a young person, and I believe that today. Votes: 0

If someone did this Fahrenheit 9/11 to get back at Bush, then they did so by killing thousands of people who DID NOT VOTE for him! Boston, New York, D.C., and the planes' destination of California - these were places that voted AGAINST Bush! Votes: 0

If there ever is a struggle, making a good movie will always supersede the need to be noble. Votes: 0

If we don't participate in it, it ceases to be a democracy. So Obama will rise or fall based not so much on what he does but on what we do to support him. Votes: 0

If we say, 'The government sucks,' we're kind of saying that we suck. Votes: 0

I'm a citizen in a democracy. To call me an activist would be redundant. It's not a spectator sport. If we all become non-participants, it no longer works. Votes: 0

I'm a religious fanatic? Yes, I am, actually. Votes: 0

I'm actually a fairly conservative person. I live a very conservative lifestyle. Votes: 0

I'm not a proselytizer. I was raised Catholic. I am a Catholic. Votes: 0

I'm not a pundit. I'm not an analyst. Votes: 0

I'm the kind of person that believes there's a part of your voting that has to be purely on principle, and there's a part that has to be on strategy. Votes: 0

I'm very blessed and fortunate that people want to go see my movies. Votes: 0

In some states, you can vote a straight party ticket, but you can't vote for individual candidates. Votes: 0

In spite of Bush's win, the majority of Americans still think the country is headed in the wrong direction (56%), think the war wasn't worth fighting (51%), and don't approve of the job George W. Bush is doing (52%). Votes: 0

It is the responsibility of every human to know their actions and the consequences of their actions and to ask questions and to question things when they are wrong. Votes: 0

It's a lot of hard work to do a weekly TV show. It's certainly not fun. Votes: 0

It's all part of the same ball of wax, right? The oil companies, Israel, Halliburton. Votes: 0

I've made a lot of enemies in all the right places, and there aren't enough hours in the day to respond to either the well-financed corporate hacks or the lowly stalkers who seek to libel me or make a buck off the fact that I'm a well-known person. Votes: 0

L.A. - talk about a cruel city: Patients are forcibly removed from hospitals. Votes: 0

Maybe it's a sick fantasy of mine, but I am really looking forward to a debate between a general and a deserter. Plus, I really want to hear President Bush have to say, 'Yes, General, No, General.' Votes: 0

Most Americans, in their heart, are liberal and progressive. It's just a small minority of people who hate, they hate, they exist in the politics of hate, they don't believe two consenting adults should have the right to be in love and share their lives together and be legally protected by the state, Votes: 0

Most people don't see themselves as Democrats or Republicans. They see themselves as Americans. Votes: 0

My mum taught me how to read before I went to kindergarden, I always thought that being able to read provided lightness, help to dispel darkness, ignorance and stupidity. Votes: 0

New York City has become a place where it's not easy for the working class to even live. Votes: 0

No one is entertained by economics. Votes: 0

Nobody was talking about healthcare until 'Sicko' came out. Votes: 0

One day there'll be no need for me. I'm actually hoping to put myself out of business. Votes: 0

Part of my job is to read the paper, watch C-Span and show things that haven't been shown or were buried. Votes: 0

Politicians never keep all their promises. Votes: 0

Sometimes it's important to vote - you know, to make a statement, to make a point; certainly, many of us who were involved in the Nader campaign in 2000 felt that way. Votes: 0

The difference between ignorant and educated people is that the latter know more facts. But that has nothing to do with whether they are stupid or intelligent. The difference between stupid and intelligent people-and this is true whether or not they are well-educated-is that intelligent people can handle subtlety. They are not baffled by ambiguous or even contradictory situations-in fact, they expect them and are apt to become suspicious when things seem overly straightforward. Votes: 0

The economic system that the United States has is an evil empire. It's an economic system that's not fair, not just, and it's not democratic. And it will fall just like communism fell. The richest 1 percent now own 50 percent of the wealth. It didn't use to be that way. The average CEO 20 years ago made 20 times as much as the average employee. Now they make 212 times as much. Votes: 0

The media, the corporations, the politicians"¦have all done such a good job of scaring the American public, it's come to the point where they don't need to give any reason at all. Votes: 0

The NRA hates freedom. They don't want you to have the freedom to send your children to school & expect them to come home alive. Votes: 0

The upper 1 percent, the people down on Wall Street, the corporate executives, they're the people that control this economy. Votes: 0

The worst way to defend our freedom is to let our leaders start taking away our freedoms! It is exactly during times like these [a national crisis] that we need more freedom of speech, a strong and critical press, and a citizenry that is not afraid to stand up and say that the emperor has no clothes. Votes: 0

There Is No Terrorist Threat In This Country. This Is A Lie. This Is The Biggest Lie We've Been Told. Votes: 0

There's been almost a dozen films that have been made against me. There's actually more films made attacking me than films I've made. Votes: 0

There's no such thing as 'enough'! Votes: 0

There's no violence coming from the Occupy protesters. Votes: 0

There's nothing pure about capitalism. Votes: 0

There's politics in all aspects of our daily lives. Votes: 0

They may rail at this life - from the hour I began it, I've found it a life full of kindness and bliss; And until they can show me some happier planet. More social and bright, I'll content me with this. Votes: 0

Three of the top six documentaries of all time, grossing, are made by me. Votes: 0

Today just 400 Americans have more wealth than half of all Americans combined. Votes: 0

Today, whether it is a student who holds a sit-in to get the army recruiters off his campus, or the mother of a dead soldier who refuses to leave the front gate of the president's ranch, we continue to be saved by brave people who risk ridicule and rejection but end up turning huge tides of public opinion in the direction of righteousness. We owe them enormous debts of gratitude. It is not easy to stand up for what is right, especially when everyone else is afraid to leave the comfortable path of conformity. Votes: 0

We are the richest country in the world. We spend more on health care than any other country. Yet we have the worst health care in the Western world. Come on. We can do better than this. Votes: 0

We like nonfiction, and we live in fictitious times, Votes: 0

We live in the time where we have fictitious election results that elects a fictitious president. We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Whether it's the fictition of duct tape or fictition of orange alerts we are against this war, Mr. Bush. hame on you. Mr. Bush, shame on you. And any time you got the Pope and the Dixie Chicks against you, your time is up. Votes: 0

Well, "The Washington post" three weeks ago had this investigation and they said that President Obama has now raised more money from Wall Street and the banks for this election cycle than all - than all eight Republicans combined. I don't want to say that, because if that's the truth, that Wall Street already has their man and his name is Barack Obama, then we've got a much bigger problem. Votes: 0

White people scare the crap out of me. … I have never been attacked by a black person, never been evicted by a black person, never had my security deposit ripped off by a black landlord, never had a black landlord … never been pulled over by a black cop, never been sold a lemon by a black car salesman, never seen a black car salesman, never had a black person deny me a bank loan, never had a black person bury my movie, and I've never heard a black person say, 'We're going to eliminate ten thousand jobs here - have a nice day!' Votes: 0

Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning, whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair. In a nation that was founded on genocide and then built on the backs of slaves, it was an unexpected moment, shocking in its simplicity: Barack Obama, a good man, a black man, said he would bring change to Washington, and the majority of the country liked that idea. Votes: 0

You know he's [George W. Bush] there illegally. You know he was not elected either by the popular vote or by the vote in Florida. Votes: 0

You share things with people and I think information, and art, and ideas should be shared. Votes: 0

You survive by having your fear compass calibrated correctly. Our compass is off now because we're being told to be afraid of everything. The things that we're frightened of, or told to be frightened of, are not necessarily the things that we need to fear. Votes: 0

'Zero Dark Thirty' is a disturbing, fantastically-made movie. It will make you hate torture. Votes: 0

We all need to be huge supporters of the theatrical documentary. Votes: 0

When I make a film, I'm not doing it purely for political reasons. If I just wanted to do that, I'd run for office. Votes: 0

Jesus told us that we would be judged by how we treat the least among us. Votes: 0

We are not documentarians, we are filmmakers. Votes: 0