Agree or Disagree: Why Should You Watch "2016"?

My hope in writing this and sharing it is to point out that the movie is not a biased anti-Obama film. On the contrary, it is a very informative documentary that stands to open the eyes of people who align themselves with both the left & the right side of the political aisle.

This past weekend I watched "2016: Obama's America" for the third time. I admit overall, I enjoy the movie. I find the details, history and facts interesting. Much of what is presented I already knew, but there were many things I learned, especially regarding President Obama's life with his step-father, Lolo Soetoro. I found it fascinating to watch it both before this year's 9/11 and after - as there is a particular spot where he discusses President Obama's dealings with the Arab Spring in 2011.

There is information presented about the history of Hawaii, India, Indonesia and Kenya. Perhaps you already know about the information he presents regarding Hawaii's colonization and history of becoming a State. Maybe you don't. But, I would venture to guess you have limited knowledge of the history of India, Indonesia and Kenya. Now, these are not full blown historical accounts of the three countries, but it stands to benefit us as Americans to broaden our world view even if it is merely a surface introduction.

Dinesh sits down with President Obama's brother, George Obama. He interviews people who associated with Barack's father, Barack Sr., in Kenya and a lady in Hawaii who knew his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham. He presents President Obama in his own words, using the audio version of his book, "Dreams from My Father", which show his thoughts regarding his father and attempt to reconcile what he lost through not having him present in his life. Dinesh even shares the time he debated Jesse Jackson and discussed racism in America.

The last twenty minutes, he presents three critical events he believes will happen by "2016" if Obama is reelected. I don't want to spoil it for you, so I won't list them here or discuss them in depth. One of the proposed occurrences though I find interesting in light of all the rioting and terrorism that happened this year surrounding 9/11. Overlaying a map of all those hot spots with the map he presents, and it shows we are well on our way, if not already there to having one of his three predictions come true.

Now, the three predictions are not mind-blowing, so to some extent, you could say anyone with "eyes to see" could see them happening. I think in some respects it is in the way the whole movie is presented. The chronology and history of events, the past being prologue to the future. The documentary is put together very well. Personally, the first time I saw the movie, I walked away with this summary in one sentence:

You cannot understand

American Exceptionalism

if you have never lived the

American Experience.

If you can rent it, watch it on PPV, or even order a copy from Amazon ($9.99, which I did), then I say do it. I wanted a personal copy because I see it as a tool for sharing a teachable moment with my children even years from now when they are better able to grasp the history we have lived for the past four years.

Please feel free to share this post with as many people as you can and encourage them to watch the film.