Let's start in a place of optimism. Michael Moore's new documentary, Where to Invade Next, arrives as a cheering, inspiring tonic in the midst of this dark and perilous election season. I think we all need a reminder that there's life outside America's borders: and not just life, but entire countries that take seriously the quest for human dignity, equality, and justice. Moore's picking the creme de la creme of social and educational programs from other nations provides a utopian smorgasbord for the tired and weary among us; lo and behold, progress looks a whole lot like common sense and remembering that whole thing about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. What elevates this film are the many interviews with all these durn foreigners who blather sincerely on about the essential need for decent vacation time, helping kids learn without standardized testing, treating workers fairly, and the like. I defy anyone to say that our present state of affairs is some sort of amazing crescendo of human and economic development: the working class dispossessed and getting poorer, the middle class grown more desperate as its ranks thin by the day, the upper classes not giving a shit as usual. Time to remember that free education and health care for all are basic rights, starting points to a better society. Time to remember that democracy doesn't end when you get to your job; I don't think any of us ever agreed to check our citizenship at the company door.