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07 Jul 07 - 02:34 PM (#2096462) Subject: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: robomatic We have a full sized movie theatre in Anchorage, it languished for many years but was bought up by one of the better examples of modern service business, a higher quality lower stress type of business which took an original full size movie theatre, and instead of breaking it into mini rooms each showing a flick, left the large space open, took out every other row of seats to install tables, purchased a liquor license, and now sells pizza and finger food and beer to go with the movie or performance experience. (Ebbie, of course I'm talking about the Beartooth if you come to Anchortown) Which is not the subject of this thread. Last week I saw The Lives Of Others. I thought it was a simple plot based on an incredible piece of history: The extreme measures the East German government took to pry into the lives of its citizens, establishing a vast institution of the bureacracy and incorporating an even vaster network of informants, to the point where anyone of any notoriety in the country could seriously wonder if they were bugged or if any of their friends were reporting on them to the government, or both. The movie didn't quite 'sanitize' the history, but it did present a situation configured to draw audience sympathy to certain of the characters. In retrospect, I don't find this objectionable, because otherwise I don't know if they'd have a marketable story. The story does bring out the state apparatus of spying on its citizens, and some of the after effects once the wall came down. It makes me curious as to whether all Eastern Block countries had systems like this, and if not why did the East German government go to such extremes? In Germany are the passions dying down? Has everything come to light? All in all, very good movie, well worth seeing. |
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07 Jul 07 - 04:28 PM (#2096525) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: Wolfgang A Polish, Czech, Hungarian etc. citizen had no Western part of her homeland just a few miles away to dream of and had no daily Western TV in her own language (except in and around Dresden, the "valley of the ignorants") to show a diferent way of living. That made it more difficult for the GDR oligarchy to keep control and therefore they even had to control whether the TV antennas were perhaps showing into the wrong direction. On the other hand, each bit of humanity like family reunions were paid for in hard cash and so the GDR was economically better off than the other countries behind the curtain. A GDR joke tells the difference: A Polish heading West and a GDR dog heading East meet on the bridge over the Oder (the border river). The GDR dog asks: "What are you coming for to the GDR?" The Polish dog: "I haven't had any meat since more than a year and I yearn for a piece of meat. But you have enough meat to eat, brother, so why do you want to come to Poland?" "Just for barking one time before I die." Wolfgang |
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07 Jul 07 - 04:50 PM (#2096538) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: robomatic Well put in a nutshell. Thanks! |
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07 Jul 07 - 05:20 PM (#2096556) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: Joe Offer In many former Warsaw Pact countries, the economic conditions are still pretty bleak. When I was in Poland last year, I heard that many people are unemployed, and yearn for the full employment and security of the Communist era. Conditions do seem much better in Hungary and in the Czech Republic. In some way, it seems like things are booming in the Eastern Bloc - but not everything is better than it once was. Many people have made a lot of money and earned a very nice lifestyle - but many have sung into unemployment and poverty since Communism fell. So, that's another side of the coin. I spent two years studying East Germany in 1973-73, when I was in the U.S. Army. Life in East Germany seemed to be very much like my Army life - a bit drab and regimented and certainly not wealthy - but not a bad life, and it was far more secure than the 9 months of unemployment I experienced after I got out of the service. -Joe- |
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07 Jul 07 - 06:29 PM (#2096604) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: Ebbie Robo, I'll have to check out the Beartooth. Sounds interesting. I've attended only the Center for Performing Arts. Great acoustics and great group: Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Before Headman was killed. I've only been in Anchorage (500 + air miles from Juneau; 800 + by road) three times: twice on the job and the last time I was there to drive the road system. (As it turned out, Talkneetna was my favorite town. I realize that the Old Seward highway is considered the most dangerous in Alaska- but it's shore purty. |
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07 Jul 07 - 06:34 PM (#2096608) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: robomatic A once famous American newspaper editor and author, William Cowper Brann said "No man is a patriot on an empty stomach." |
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07 Jul 07 - 10:22 PM (#2096722) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: robomatic Ebbie: I saw some website where fans of "Northern Exposure" were trying to decide if there was in fact an Alaska equivalent to Cicely, the town in the TV show that was supposed to represent some village in Alaska. I think the nearest they could come was Tok. For sure the producers of the show weren't going to do any filming in Tok! Bear Tooth apparently got its name because the folks who own it are the owners of Moose's Tooth, one of the better Pizza venues in town. (Moose's Tooth is also one of the fiercer peaks in the Alaska Range). And just yesterday the cops had to shoot a grizzly bear in downtown. The bear was due to be relocated, but too many sightseers in its vicinity made the authorities decide to put it down. When they opened him up they found he'd been eating an all natural diet, so he'd 've been a prime candidate for relocation. |
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07 Jul 07 - 10:59 PM (#2096743) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: Ebbie A young bear walked into my house a couple of weeks ago. I drove him out with my walking stick rattling against furniture as I advanced. I was probably yelling too although I don't remember making a sound! We have brown bear here too but I've never heard of one being downtown or in the forest around here. |
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08 Jul 07 - 08:26 PM (#2097330) Subject: RE: BS: Das Leben der Anderen From: Ron Davies The movie sounds great--I've read good things about it. A hell of a lot better than most of the tripe Hollywood puts out--though admittedly that's not difficult. It's a mystery how most of Hollywood's "product" ever gets the green light. |