Two Movies Everyone Should See...

Walker... It details the story of William Walker, who in the 1850s led a group of Americans into Nicaragua in order to "bring democracy and civilization" to Nicaraguans... they were financed by Vanderbuilt who wanted the trade routes through Nicaragua to be stabilized at all costs. The things that occur so closely resemble things that have continued to occur in the course of American history. The movie was made shortly after the Iran-Contra business in the mid-1980s, but the same exact rhetoric that was used in the 1850s and 1980s is being used today by President Bush and his cronies in support of the war in Iran. The movie is delightfully blatent in it's connection between the past and the present... look out for automobiles, automatic assault rifles and Newsweek magazines... Seriously, everyone should see this movie... and keep it in mind when writing your elected officials and voting.

Iron Jawed Angels... I don't think any other movie in the history of cinema can make people appreciate the right to vote more than this one... or indeed all other rights and protections that we enjoy every day. Iron Jawed Angels is the story of the courageous women who stood up to President Wilson and demanded all women be given the right to vote. They were imprisioned under false pretenses for it because WWI made protests against the government extremely unpopular. They were denied their constitutional rights and gravely mistreated in the prison. These events are portrayed very well in this movie, which was produced by HBO. If you find any of the actual photographs of the protests (such as the one to the left), you can see just how close to life the film comes. It's impressive.