The World According To Dick Cheney

I just watched the first broadcast of this new documentary - it ended 20 minutes ago - and I wanted to put down my thoughts and impressions.  I was interested in this because I wanted to hear what Dick Cheney had to say in his own words.

My initial thoughts:

• I'm going to need to watch this again, maybe more than once.  I realized about an hour and a half into it that I was listening to Mr. Cheney's words but I was not really watching his face.  The face often tells a tale the words refuse to.
• No matter what you've heard or read about Dick Cheney, seeing him explain things from his point of view is truly frightening.  More so the longer you watch.  Our democracy is a fragile thing, and it only takes a few people to completely subvert it. 
• Cheney was a two-time college drop out who finally got his act together when his girlfriend (later wife) forced him to.  I wonder how much of the guilt for his later actions she feels she bears.  He'd be a lineman for the county in Wyoming if not for her.
• Lying for some people comes so easily it's second nature.  I'm not entirely certain that Cheney understands the difference between a lie and the truth, for him the truth seems to be whatever position he's voicing when you ask him.  Lying is not really second nature to him, it's his go-to option every time.
• Whenever I see someone like this, clearly capable and smart enough to get the job done with ruthless efficiency yet not quite smart enough for meaningful introspection, I wonder 'what if?'...  what if he had made one small change in his personal philosophy?... what if he'd tried to understand instead of tried to force compliance?... what if he'd been more of a pragmatist rather than a zealot?... what if he'd tried to do the right thing instead of the wrong thing?  It's like when you discover how clever and dedicated drug addicts can be to getting their next high, this documentary leaves me wondering what Cheney could have accomplished if he'd turned his switch from Evil to Good.
• What lie is Cheney living?  There is some deep, dark secret he's going to take to his grave, you can see it in his eyes, they sparkle with glee when he thinks he's getting one over on the director.  It's got to be a big secret, because he had five heart attacks before they took his old heart out and gave him a new one.

If you have Showtime, I'd recommend watching 'The World According to Dick Cheney.'  DVR it if you can, so you can watch it at your leisure.