Jimmy Stewart is my all-time favorite actor. Recently I saw the movie Shenandoah on sale for about $9 so I grabed it.

It is amazing to me how different I am seeing movies now. The world (and the U.S.) has gone through great periods of difficulty many times in the past, especially in the last 140 years.

Mr. Anderson (the charactor played by Jimmy Stewart) had a large family on a rural Virginia farm. They were nearly self-sufficient. They raised their own food, road horses and carried guns for defense. Mr. Anderson tried to shield his family from the social and political temptest around them (the Civil war). Eventually, of course, they were touched by tragedy and had to make a stand.

What was the key lesson I learned from the movie? In times of unrest, have a gun within reach and never turn your back on a stranger asking for water. Your wife and child may depend on your alert suspicion.

We could also talk about WWI, the Great deppression and WWII. That was an amazing 30 year period of great suffering and difficulty. (1914 to 1944). Since 1945, The U.S. has had a unprecedented 50 year period of prosperity and saftey. Why should we think that peace and prosperity are the norm rather than war, need and suffering?

I'll let you know if I find any other good y2k movies.

-- JoseMiami (caris@prodigy.net), December 20, 1999

Answers

Another good Jimmy Stewart movie is "It's a Wonderful Life". Of course the moral of THAT one was that Jimmy Stewart had the whole town to help him in his time of need because he dedicated his whole life helping the town.

-- Michelle (c@ntdo.it), December 20, 1999.

I especially liked Deep Impact. I related this to Y2k. First there is the government covering up the fact the asteroid is coming. We see this one guy hoarding cans of Ensure and food. Then they have a scene where the government is calling all their troops back home...(seems familiar) Then only a chosen few get to go into the bunkers...Then the asteroid is coming and people are panicking and running in the streets. The asteroid hits, people die. New York city is wiped out...Now that's a movie. Think I'll go rent it again.

-- Marsha (MSykes@court.co.macon.il.us), December 20, 1999.

I was also thinking about the Matrix. Somedays I feel like I am living in two realities: one that is everyday, mundane and normal and another that is sort of a nightmare scenario. Which one is real?

-- JoseMiami (caris@prodigy.net), December 20, 1999.

"I especially liked Deep Impact. I related this to Y2k."

Well, I don't need any more paranoia, stress or suspense. I used to watch Cops until I saw them for real in Seattle streets, and now it's no fun anymore. Deep Impact might be fun in isolation, but we're IN the movie now, and I have no interest in seeing it. My sister says I should watch Arlington Road because it's all about the gummint out to get me, or some such. Don't need it, thanks, I live there.

Maybe there's something wrong with me, but I just want to keep stuff going. I don't want to shoot anybody, don't want to refuse help (but might have to), don't want to spend the rest of my life grubbing for potatoes in a semi-feudal regime. I want my family to be ok, I want my neighbors to be ok, I want my community to be ok. We spent the last two-plus years working for that goal, and now all we can do is sit and watch and see what happens. This IS Deep Impact.

-- bw (home@puget.sound), December 20, 1999.