{"id":91,"date":"2010-11-04T13:21:18","date_gmt":"2010-11-04T17:21:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gadflyonline.com\/wpblog\/?p=91"},"modified":"2012-07-15T19:57:51","modified_gmt":"2012-07-15T23:57:51","slug":"i-want-your-money-an-interview-with-ray-griggs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/i-want-your-money-an-interview-with-ray-griggs\/","title":{"rendered":"“I Want Your Money”: An Interview with Ray Griggs"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. From time to time we’ve been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else? All of us together, in and out of government, must bear the burden.\u201d<\/em> \u2013 Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address, January 20, 1981<\/p>\n

\u201cThe question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works.”<\/em> \u2013 Barack Obama, First Inaugural Address, January 20, 2009<\/p>\n

Now are contentious times. With a recent election returning disappointing results to Conservatives and Liberals alike, with marches and rallies inundating the National Mall with Tea Partiers, anti-Tea Partiers, and the so-called \u201cfear-mongerers\u201d (the likes of Stephen Colbert and his followers); and with everyday Americans becoming increasingly frustrated with federal and state government officials, now seems to be the time to lift one\u2019s voice and demand change.<\/p>\n

Not one to miss out on changing tides, Ray Griggs added his voice to the mix the only way he knew how: through film. Originally a science-fiction\/fantasy director, writer, and producer, Griggs is based in Hollywood California. He owns RG Entertainment, Ltd. Growing up the son of military parents in Germany, Griggs eventually moved to Missouri where he created his video production company, RG Entertainment. In 2005, after moderate success in commercials and corporate training video production, Griggs moved to California. In 2007, his short film \u201cLucifer,\u201d which tells of the Biblical war in heaven, received a bevy of awards for superior short and animation, including the Beverley Hills Film Festival\u2019s award for Best Animation, the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival\u2019s Audience Choice Award for Short, the Accolade, and a Silver Telly Award. Subsequently, Griggs set to work on Supercapers, a 2009 family comedy about an ordinary person\u2019s adventures after joining forces with superheroes.<\/p>\n

Griggs\u2019s film, \u201cI Want Your Money\u201d is his first foray into the documentary film genre. The film pits two versions of the American dream against each other: Reagan\u2019s view that he who earns his money knows best how to spend his money, and Obama\u2019s view that the federal government knows best. Following these ideas through the years, Griggs highlights the sources of the seemingly insurmountable $13.7 trillion debt and offers simple but commonsensical solutions, featuring media hotshots the likes of\u00a0 Mike Huckabee, Star Parker, Edwin Meese III, Newt Gingrich, Steve Forbes, and John Stossel along the way.<\/p>\n

The film, which draws its entertainment value from the insights of experts, archived footage, and MAD magazine-inspired political cartoons and animation sequences, opened in 500 theaters nationwide, generating just south of $300,000 opening weekend. Despite the smaller numbers, it has generated a lot of alternative media attention, with its trailer on Youtube reaching over 3 million hits and its director and narrator, Ray Griggs, being featured on various television talk shows.<\/p>\n

Griggs took a few minutes to speak with Gadfly Online (Carrie Filipetti, Editorial Intern of Gadfly Online, and John W. Whitehead) about the film, his politics, and his solutions to America\u2019s toughest economic questions.<\/p>\n

GADFLY: What is the message of your film? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG: Its central message is Obamanomics vs. Reaganomics. We use the unsustainable amount of debt to demonstrate why Reagan\u2019s ideas are still better than the ideas of the current administration.<\/p>\n

GADFLY: But you ran into some trouble with the FCC. What was that all about?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG: It wasn\u2019t necessarily that I had any problems with them, it\u2019s just that in the past, films have been blocked by the FCC, so I took it upon myself to go to them beforehand to show that film is not geared toward endorsing any particular candidate or party; it\u2019s just about the debt.<\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

GADFLY: And what was their response? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 Well that was the irony of it. We are still dealing with them.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t have a response for us.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 Do you think that shows a problem with censorship? Why is it dragging like this?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 I don\u2019t know if they have a particular agenda or not, but the reality is we needed a response two months ago and we never got one.\u00a0 They said they were putting it on hold, but the movie already ran. As weird as it sounds, I think they want to see what comes about from the film.\u00a0 But it ran.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 In addition to the FCC, you\u2019ve also mentioned opposition in terms of production and marketing. What are some of the issues that you faced in making the film?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 You have three steps that make it really hard for a conservative filmmaker to make a film, especially in Hollywood.\u00a0 First, it is really hard to find investors, particularly in Hollywood, because they tend to be liberal.\u00a0 So I had to find conservatives, who weren\u2019t as familiar with the process of funding films, and try to induce them into the industry. Second, when I set out to do this documentary, I called up regular people with whom I have worked in the past, and either they didn\u2019t want to get on board a conservative documentary or they said they\u2019d come on board as long as their name was not associated with the project. I found myself having to hire new people and asking them right off the bat what their views on politics were, which way they leaned politically, etc. I had to find like-minded people. Finally, in Hollywood, believe it or not, there is this taboo that if you are a conservative\/Republican and you are vocal about it, you will be blacklisted. So people are just afraid to come out.<\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 How has the necessity of finding conservative participants and financiers affected the tone of the film? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 It made it easier to make. Everyone was more excited because they were all on the same page. It made it better because everybody was like-minded, working collaboratively to achieve the same goal.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 You have a sizeable amount of experts, including Newt Gingrich, Steve Forbes, Mike Huckabee, etc. Obviously all these individuals already agree with you.\u00a0 So what was the effort in terms of trying to reach out to liberals and other moderates to provide a counter perspective for the film?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 They wouldn\u2019t respond.\u00a0 We sent emails and they refused to come on.\u00a0 They wouldn\u2019t return our calls.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t from lack of trying.\u00a0 We reached out to several, like Henry Waxman (D-CA), and they absolutely didn\u2019t want anything to do with us.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t from lack of trying. We wanted that side, but they didn\u2019t want to come on, so I grabbed some footage to try to balance the film with their perspective.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 One of your arguments in the film is basically that capitalism is better than socialism. But do you see a distinction between capitalism and free enterprise? The word capitalism is used a lot in the film, but when you see government bodies today, corporations are often close behind. Even behind Obama. It\u2019s both liberals and conservatives. <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 I absolutely agree with you. In the film I am not actually promoting Republicans either, because they have had their mess of problems. I blame Bush in the film. Republicans aren\u2019t the answer because they are not coming up with anything either; however, it is about trying to get back to conservative values. In answer to your question, I absolutely agree. The capitalism that I am fighting for out there — the true capitalist, which I believe makes up 80% of America \u2013 is the donut shop down the corner that has three employees or other small businesses out there like myself. These are the capitalists.\u00a0\u00a0 You have corporate greed like Enron and all these others, and they definitely give capitalism a bad image. Something needs to be done about some of these companies, and I don\u2019t mean bailouts. My opinion is that these corporations like GM should have gone bankrupt.\u00a0 We should not have bailed them out. <\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 So what do you think should be done? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 Basically, we need to get away from the socialism and big government.\u00a0 That is not the answer.\u00a0 Everything the government touches ends up going bankrupt.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t work.\u00a0 Social security is probably one of the biggest ponzi schemes.\u00a0 It is not going to be around for the next generation.\u00a0\u00a0 It is unsustainable as it is.\u00a0 The government isn\u2019t the answer.\u00a0 It is the independent free-enterprise businesses that make up this country, and to get it right, we have to get back on that track.\u00a0 Lowering taxes and being very pro-small business and small government is a first step.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 Your film accurately portrays the way the country is going.\u00a0 It is out of control spending. But a large cross section of the budget is on the military, which as we know now is losing in Afghanistan. You didn\u2019t really address that in your film. Do you see military spending as a problem? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 The things that really address some of the problems we are going to be facing in the future I agree with you, as bad as we would like to be the #1 world power, we have to realistically look at cutting our military budget first, because it is a massive expense; at the same time, however, the one thing government should<\/em> be there for is safety.\u00a0 We need to not ever worry about going outside our houses and being blown up like on 9-11.\u00a0 We need that security.\u00a0 We need that safety.\u00a0 That is the #1 thing the government should be there for: to protect our borders.\u00a0 But the reality is that it is a tremendous expense.\u00a0 But what people really ought to be looking into, second, are entitlements.\u00a0 They can\u2019t continue.\u00a0 No politicians, right or left, are going up and being honest, saying \u201chey you know what, we need to start cutting entitlements.\u201d\u00a0 Nobody wants to come out and say that.\u00a0 But we have to address these issues.<\/p>\n

The third is term limits. How can career politicians 30 years in the office actually know where we are coming from?\u00a0 It is just too much power. They live in a fantasy world.\u00a0 Then finally fourth, and this is the most important thing, which I do address in the film, the most expensive thing that is going to be coming down our pipe pretty soon is not the military, not Medicare, not health care \u2013 it is actually just interest on all this debt.\u00a0 It is simply unsustainable.\u00a0 People don\u2019t even realize it.\u00a0 We are about to hit 14 trillion dollars in debt.<\/p>\n

GADFLY: With all that in mind, what if the Republicans come in \u2013 which you are advocating for \u2013 and nothing actually changes? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 I said this yesterday at another rally.\u00a0 If the Republicans get into office and they don\u2019t change their ways and they continue like they did when Bush was in office, then that\u2019s it.\u00a0 They are absolutely done as far as politics are concerned.\u00a0 Nobody will vote for them again. What I try telling people first and foremost is that I want them to know that I am not a politician, I am not an economist; I am a science fiction film-maker. I am not even a documentary film-maker.\u00a0 It\u2019s just that I was moved as an average guy who has kids to say \u201chey look, I don\u2019t know what I can do\u2014whether going to a tea party or getting out there and volunteering or just talking to friends around the water cooler \u2013\u00a0 but I feel that everybody needs to do something<\/em> because this government is getting uncontrollable, and it is your<\/em> government.\u00a0 So the only talent I had was I know how to make movies, so that was kind of my approach on it.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 Do you think the documentary made a difference in the upcoming mid-term elections?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 At first I had hoped that it would, but the reality is because of Hollywood and some of the problems I ran into, a lot of people didn\u2019t know about the film and didn\u2019t see it. It might make a bigger difference on DVD for the 2012 election with Obama \u2013 at this point it is just about getting it to the masses.\u00a0 As an independent guy I just didn\u2019t have the resources and funding to do so.\u00a0 But anyone who watches the film is really moved by it. I have four emails from people who were in the middle politically, who were thinking about voting for the Democrats. But after watching my film, they actually wrote to me and said that they were going to vote Conservative.\u00a0 So there is a reward in that I did change a couple of minds out there. That was really uplifting.<\/p>\n

GADFLY: What\u2019s the role of the younger generation here? We saw them come out in unprecedented numbers in 2008. What\u2019s the hope for them in 2010?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG: Part of the reason I chose to make a documentary was to take advantage of a technique that appeals to the younger generation. I see kids today as having an entitlement ideology; they just want success handed to them.\u00a0 My parents were in the military and I grew up in Germany, so I looked at America from the outside in. The beautiful thing about America is \u2013 and kids don\u2019t realize this \u2013 that you can\u2019t do in any other countries what you can do in this country.\u00a0 You are the only one that can stop you. I was 18 when I started my company in my apartment, doing commercials and corporate videos, and I just built that up. Only in America could you do that. I don\u2019t know what the deal is, whether it is that they are afraid to go out to work or they want the 6-figure income when they get out of college, but whatever it is, they want these entitlements. They don\u2019t see the reality: that with some of these entitlements, like for example Welfare, once you get hooked it is like slavery \u2013 you are actually trapped.\u00a0 You can\u2019t get out.\u00a0 Because they have these rules and regulations that they force you to stay in. We address that issue in the film as well.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 It seems like you are talking about a cycle of big government begetting entitlement ideology begetting more big government.\u00a0 What do you see as the beginning of that cycle?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG: Well I think honestly, and I address it in the film, I think it actually started when [Franklin Delano] Roosevelt was in office. His administration created the New Deal and set in motion the Democratic search for that perfect Utopia; but there is no such thing.\u00a0 It is not realistic to think that way. Look at all the European countries.\u00a0 They are actually trying to get out of Socialism.\u00a0 China is definitely getting out of Socialism.\u00a0 They have taken on a lot of Reagan philosophies by lowering taxes and adopting pro-small business practices.\u00a0 There are all these different areas in which you can see these countries having problems.\u00a0 Our national debt per capita was like $44,000, but when we looked at other countries, like England, we saw that theirs was something like $100,000 per person.\u00a0 It is really astronomical.\u00a0 These countries are also unsustainable.\u00a0 The thing about America is it is globally connected to all these countries so if we fail, it is going to have an effect on the world.<\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 One of the experts in your film mentions that the biggest lie is that the New Deal worked. And it\u2019s true that, in American collective memory, Roosevelt has iconic status. If he started this cycle, why is he remembered so fondly?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 It\u2019s timing. The World War was what honestly saved this country, and the New Deal rode its coat tails.\u00a0 That, I think, is what makes people think of the New Deal as a success when it actually wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

GADFLY: Your film features a lot of things that are unique for a documentary, and if there is any comparison to be made that is one between you and Michael Moore. Do you think it is a fair one to call you a Conservative Michael Moore, or the poor man\u2019s Michael Moore?<\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 The poor man\u2019s Michael Moore is better.\u00a0 Honestly– and I know this sounds crazy to a degree\u2014 I find it both honoring and flattering that they would compare me that way because Michael Moore is a genius.\u00a0 I have to give him credit for that.\u00a0 He was able to pull millions into the box office.\u00a0 Now, although I don\u2019t agree with his philosophy or his method, he has an ability to pull people into the box office.\u00a0 He has made millions off it.\u00a0 So you can\u2019t discredit him from being a good documentary film-maker.\u00a0 I just don\u2019t agree with his messages. Again, being a science fiction film-maker, I took a different approach. Instead of having a camera behind a bush waiting to accost people like Henry Waxman who refused to participate in the film, I took the approach of using animation to tell the story. I created clips and everything else, which is why it is a little different from a typical documentary.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0 Was that approach to appeal to a younger audience? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0\u00a0 Sure, because like you said, I know a lot of younger people who don\u2019t really know what Socialism is\u2013 they think it is one group of people hanging out with their buddies. To them, Capitalism is corporate greed, with companies like Ferrari screwing everybody out of their jobs. So they have a warped idea of economics, policies, and politics, so I wanted to appeal to them and give them another voice. The other part of it is they don\u2019t really know Reagan.\u00a0 Those who watched this film realize how great Reagan was, and those who did know Reagan have their memory of \u201cwow, I just forgot how great this man was\u201d reawakened. Even though there was not a lot of people that saw this film, of those who did see it, no one commented on it being bad. People loved this film. The only ones you will see tearing apart this film and trashing it are the ones that are on the far far left. You can even find some critics online that criticized the film without actually having seen it, which is obvious by their comments.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0\u00a0 As we sum up here, let me ask you: If you woke up tomorrow and you were President of the United States, what would be your five point plan to make things more free in America, better job-wise, better economically, and more like the Founding Fathers wanted this country to be? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 Well, first off, I would shrink the size of government.\u00a0 That is the first and foremost goal. Then, I would really promote the American spirit.\u00a0 That involves a whole list of things including increasing the number of small businesses, lowering taxes, and creating jobs. That would be number two: creating jobs through small businesses to find that American spirit.\u00a0 Number three is that I would take a broom and I would clean house of politics.\u00a0 Let\u2019s just leave it at that.\u00a0 I would take a broom and clean house of the politicians that are currently running in office. Four is I would actually create something against lobbyists.\u00a0 I think there is something that could be said for that.\u00a0\u00a0 Just the amount of power they have as politicians and everything else like that.\u00a0 Something needs to be done there.\u00a0 And then the fifth one is I would really educate America about the Founding Fathers and fix the educational school system.\u00a0 I would educate the younger generation and make sure that their education is balanced.\u00a0 We have politicians going in and taking classes on the constitution.\u00a0 That should not be.\u00a0 This stuff should be imbedded in us. There is something to say about our society when a football player is paid $20,000,000 to play a game of football for a season and yet teachers are only making $35,000 a year.\u00a0 There has to be something there, whether it is taking the entire school system and just making it private to create better schools by competition or something else.\u00a0 That might be a way of doing it, but getting out of the socialized system that it is currently in place is key, because it is just not working and the kids are just not getting a good education.<\/p>\n

GADFLY:\u00a0\u00a0 Last question \u2013 as you look at today, are you more of an optimist or a pessimist and why? <\/strong><\/p>\n

RG:\u00a0 Honestly, I am an optimist because this country has done amazing things and I really believe it is going to get to a point where the American people will turn around and say enough is enough. I am hoping that this Tuesday will be a deciding factor, because I think we have reached that limit now. The tea party movement, for example — that has never really happened before. Just the way the Republicans and Conservatives have gathered together to say \u201cI am worried about my future\u201d is a new and inspiring thing.\u00a0 I really am optimistic that this country can change, because I still believe\u2014and I will tell anybody in the world when I travel\u2014that America still is the greatest country in the entire world and I would rather live no other place.\u00a0 This is the place to be.\u00a0 We just need to stick to the values and continue to make it great by fighting for the freedoms and liberties that our forefathers fought for.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ray Griggs, director of “I Want Your Money,” on the film, politics, and America’s toughest economic questions. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":101,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,213],"tags":[33,231,32,34],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3072,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91\/revisions\/3072"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gadflyonline.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}