So, there's nothing left to do but crank up the old film machine. Here's what I’ve been watching, sort of inspired by what's been going on:
Live Free or Die Hard: Evil genius has a plan to clean out everybody’s bank account. (Who knew it would be stupid idiots instead?) (Unrealistic part: making it from DC to West Virginia before sundown on a weekday.)
Cloverfield: Evil monster that nobody understands wipes out NY real estate values.
I Am Legend. Emma Thompson finds another way to destroy NY real estate values.
Ironman. Reckless and selfish businessman destroys shareholder value and Santa Monica. (Did I miss something?)
What we need is a more hopeful set of movies.
How about It’s a Wonderful Life? Ok, so it starts with a run on George’s bank. But remember the end? Everybody piles cash on George to get him and his bank out of trouble: shoe boxes, coffee pots, mixing bowls, bank drafts. Even the bank examiner makes a donation! Now that’s a bailout.
And the film also has a metaphor lurking in the sequence where George, thinking of suicide, is led to imagine what the world would have been without him. Some of the stuff George did was provide money, like other bankers (though of course the film doesn't exactly emphasize that). Maybe we can appreciate this now that we see what real illiquidity is like. True, they messed up. But anybody have a better plan?
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