Are Republicans more like Scrooge or Mr. Potter?

[Stargleamer]

not Harry Potter but "Mr. Potter" of "It's a Wonderful Life".

I'd have to go with Mr. Potter, because he tried to take over an entire town, unlike Scrooge. The Republican businessman that Republicans lionize, Sam Walton, had far greater ambitions: to take over a major part of cities and towns across the country. And Scrooge at least had a conscience which took the intervention of 3 ghosts to bring out.

In any case, both the pre-epiphany Scrooge and Mr. Potter would heartily endorse the latest Republican efforts to reduce Social Security benefits ("privatization"), but they might be behind the times in applying the Orwellian word, "reform" to it, as Republicans currently do.

[ThoughtCriminal]

1. Potter

I don't recall Scrooge actually stealing.

[Khephra]

2. Scrooge was capable of redemption

I've never seen more than a few minutes of "It's A Wonderful Life" so I don't know if Mr. Potter saw the light at the end or not.

Today's Republicans in power? I doubt that any force for good (Angels or good ghosts) would even bother to try with them.

[Wilber_Stool]

3. Don't forget

Scrooge was redeemed, Potter was not.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

4. Mr. Potter

Sam Walton was set on destroying local downtowns in small cities, and definately helped with their demise. The only good thing I recall him doing was making sure products were "Made in the USA" for his stores. The policy changed radically after his death.

[Laelth]

5. Can I offer an alternative?

The current batch of Republicans remind me of these guys ... the neocons who want to rule the world and the fundamentalist morans who enable them.



Problem is, Republican plans sometimes work. :(

-Laelth

[Khephra]

9. Nah, they're not like Pinky and the Brain

Because the Brain's plans hurt no one but Pinky and the Brain.

[Laelth]

11. You have a point. eom

-Laelth

[idiosyncratic]

6. Definitely Potter. n/t

[earthside]

7. Reclamation

The whole point of Dicken's 'Christman Carrol' is the reclamation of Ebenezer Scrooge. Dicken's was sending a message to the corporate thieves of his time: you have a chance to save yourselves if you reform and repent of your greed.

The Victorian England of the Industrial Revolution had brought crushing poverty to the growing cities. And the startling similar philosphies of the factory owners then and the radical Republicans now was that they owed the workers(consumers) as little as they could get away with.

Remember Newt Gingrich wanting to bring the orphanages back? Think of Bush's mania to deregulate corporations and destroy Social Security. While Scrooge is reclaimed in the end, Bush and the radical Republicans are unrepentent ... they reject the real meaning of 'Christian charity'.

Bush and his cronies names are on that grave stone and they will not be moved to ask the Spirit of Christmas Yet To Be if these things might be changed ... they like everything just the way it is and will, metaphysically speaking, die the lonely, pathetic death as was foretold by the Spirit for Scrooge.

[pretzel4gore]

8. question about potter....

strangely he reminds me of FDR (his reading glasses) and he was wheelchair bound. George Bailey did represent the good, but 'Bedford Falls' was also very stiffnecked and whitebread (though there were ethnic types 'marino' for ex)....when george runs through 'pottersville' during his fantasy time, the old town actually looked a lot more fun and interesting then before! Hollywood in the years 'It's a Wonderful life' was made operated under a whole bunch of secretive 'codes' such as -the bad guy ALWAYS got nailed in the end-no nudity- no bad language, etc
and while hitlerism was still so fresh at the time what passes as anti fascism today was maybe just necessity then...within a few years, the long haul towards bushevikism would resume (darn them nazis??)

[TahitiNut]

12. There was nothing 'secretive' about the Hays Code.

It was fully in effect from 1934 onwards. Strangely, it was "To Catch A Thief" that helped break through that repression in the 50's.

[pretzel4gore]

13. only secretive in that

the great majority weren't really aware that someone was watching out for how the populace was conditioned, it was popular mistake that things just happened naturally, the world was just naturally nice and 'law abiding' ...the same idea is at work today, but the open-ness of their contempt for the people nowadays is scary..... that movie could not be made today

[bush_is_wacko]

16. I have always had the same impression of the man.

As much as some would like to say FDR was a great man, I believe in time this country will come to realize FDR was just one in the long line of "American Aristocracy" that was in it for himself and his buddies, not for "We the People."

[Stargleamer]

17. The denizens of Potterville became irritable and grouchy though...

n/t

[TahitiNut]

10. Potter, of course. We'll all be living in Pottersville before long.

Many of us already are. The congruence of Bushbot behavior with that of the denizens of Pottersville is unmistakable, imho.

[Arkansas Gazette]

14. Of course, the Repugs would insist

Of course, the Repugs will insist that they are most like George's friends and neighbors who bailed him out. That's their self-image. They'll say that George was helped by "individual" donations, not a "gubbermint handout."

[hfojvt]

18. Plus how the movie opens

with the townspeople praying for George, and the big threat was the government auditor.
I read somewhere that "Mr. Smith goes to Washington" was a criticism of FDR and Democratic machine politics.
Still, with Potter's contempt of the working class "rabble" and that he thinks the world revolves around his money. Republicans are definitely the party of Potter, working to give him tax cuts and less regulation and to take away things that would benefit George's friends.
Scrooge was not the richest man in town, just a somewhat prosperous and hard-hearted businessman. With only one employe Bob Cratchit, he is small potatoes and would be chewed up by Potter or Wal-mart.

[pen dragon]

21. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

was a Democratic indictment of the corrupt Kansas City political machine that brought Truman to prominence

[bush_is_wacko]

15. It only takes one ghost to play that part for Bush

The ghost of Christmas past - Saddam Hussein.
The ghost of Christmas present - Saddam Hussein.
The ghost of Christmas future - Saddam Hussein.

I have no faith that * will suddenly see the light the way Scrooge did. * and Co. have created enough "potter's field's" in this country and others for me to easily see Potter is the appropriate comparison!

[hfojvt]

19. more ghosts

ghost of Christmas Past - Brent Scowcroft
ghost of Christmas Present - Michael Moore
ghost of Christmas Future - Pat Tilman (to represent all of the deaths in the "war on Tara")
or
Richard Nixon
Richard Clarke
Richard Dvorin (ex-husband of Sue Niederer who was arrested after asking Laura why her daughters were not going to Iraq.)
Special appearance by Richard Cheney as Bob Marley.

[Clark2008]

23. Note of historical reference

Potter's Field is the plots on which the very poor are buried in NYC.

The remains have been moved several times with each passing corporate blow.

[bush_is_wacko]

24. Yeah, that's why I used that term in my post instead of

Pottersville! I was wondering when someone was going to catch that!

[progressivebydesign]

20. POTTER!!

Absolutely. Scrooge was redeemable.. Potter was a twisted old fuck, and never, never changed.

[6000eliot]

22. A combination

but most of chimpy's cabinet sounds like Mr Potter when they talk.

[LostInAnomie]

25. Potter

Scrooge was only motivated by his lust for money. While this is by no way admirable as least his business practices were honest, cruel but honest.

Potter on the other hand was not only motivated by greed, but a drive to crush the good and honest people of the town. He is the prototypical repub. It wasn't enough for him to succeed, it was also necessary for others to fail.