A Quiet Invasion

Where To Invade Next
(documentary)

Director/Narrator/Writer: Michael Moore

Interviews Including The Following: Krista Kiuru (Minister of Education Finland) and Tim Walker (American teacher in Finland)
Eleven Foot Pole Productions/Dog Eat Dog Films
Running Length: 119 Minutes
Rating: PG 13

Director Michael Moore takes on a new subject: that of invasion. No, not privacy, but countries. Yes, Moore is global. His premise is that other countries have ideas that are better than what the U.S. has, so why not visit them, check this out and see if something could be brought back to the U.S. A step away from a travelogue, “Where To Invade Next” covers Portugal, Finland, Germany and other countries.

Moore goes on camera like a refugee. A tall man, he dresses in black, wears a cap and appears harmless, which is why people talk to him. If the U.S. has problems with prison riots, let’s do something about it. Students in debt for educational loans, let’s see what others do. Away we go.

Many countries have free schooling.. Imagine that, though no mention is made of a tax base. In the Balkans, there is free college tuition.  Moore meets students there from the U.S. who traveled and live there in order to get a college education.  Still paying off their U.S. student loans, though.

 How about prison reform? In Finland, inmates---even murderers---have their own rooms (more like suites), open door policy and no stone walls. In fact, they could walk away if they want to, but no one does. It may be, that it is nicer inside than outside. Knives are available in the kitchen, but they are used to make dinner. Each person has their own TV set. The guards insist that the real punishment is being away from their families.

No guns in Portugal and three police officers wanted to speak on camera to President Obama about a no-gun policy in the U.S. No one mentions the NRA.  As far as working benefits, Italy is the place to go.  There are so many weeks of paid vacation--including maternity leave for both father and mother---that you begin to wonder who is actually minding the store?  Try that here.

All in all, Moore does make a point.  That a peaceful approach to life is better than forceful, and perhaps there is so much available in the U.S. that we are becoming an apathetic nation instead of a world power. Something to think about as the Great American Dream just may be the Great Dream somewhere else.

Copyright 2016 Marie Asner