The last time was Rocky IV

After being unable to get a ticket for the Friday night opening of Fahrenheit 9/11, Mrs Shu and I conspired to get tickets early for the 7PM show on Tuesday night. I left work and went right to the Carousel and snagged two tickies on the way home. Good thing...it was another sold out show.

(Caution...I'm gonna date myself here) When I was a teenager, I went with some friends to the historic Bay Theatre in Green Bay, Wisconsin to see Rocky IV. The Bay theatre was one of those old, nostalgic theatres which also was used for stage productions. (Of course the miracle of modernization and movie multiplexes have rendered this theatre obsolete and it was demolished years ago) My friends and I hit the upper balcony, which, in those days, was pretty much reserved for those "troublesome teens". The show started. We watched Apollo get beat up and die at the hands of the "Red Menace". We watched as Rocky struggled thru his inner and outer conflicts. And we watched as people stood up and cheered in their seats when Rocky, the hero, the representative of all that was good and forthright about America, starting whooping Commie butt.

That was the last time I saw people stand up and applaud, much less cheer, for anything at a movie theater.

Until last night.

Yes the movie made President Bush look like a fool. We knew that going in. But some of the information presented there was also definitely damning.

Take, for example, the way Moore presents the continued use of fear as way to drive support for the war in Iraq. The constant terror warnings with no specific information. He presents a pretty good case. Americans respond pretty well to fear. Anyone remember those drills in elementary school where they made you get under your desk before the nuclear bombs hit? (Like some cheap sheet metal and pressboard could really protect us from radiation.) Is the constant reminder of the threat of terrorism really any different than the constant fear of a nuclear war that was used against us in the 80s? Hmmm...both were brought to a head under Republican presidents. Both Reagan and little Bush have foundering economies. Both saw and are seeing massive increases in defense spending. Both have run up huge national debts.

People used to say that Clinton's bombing of Afghanistan during his inquisition was a "wag the dog" reaction to shift attention away from the real problems. I can't help but wonder if we aren't seeing the same thing on a much grander scale. And to make things all the more troublesome, throw in the financial benefits.

Like Donald Sutherland's character said to Kevin Costner in JFK. (paraphrasing) Who stands to benefit?

Follow the money folks.