I just finished one of my all-time favorite Christmas movies, "It's A Wonderful Life." My wife had never seen the whole movie, so we made a point to do it right. Popcorn, cokes, and cuddling. This made for a great evening, but I found my strongly growing sentiments about debt, loans, and money creeping into my thoughts. Oh to be an adult! It appears that I've lost my innocence and ability to enjoy this movie for what it is supposed to be. Here are a couple of thoughts that kept running through my head, no matter how hard I tried to stop them:
All Rich People Aren't Evil
Mean ol' Mr. Potter sure was cruel. How could he steal $8,000 from the Bailey's, call the cops, suggest that George (Jimmy Stewart) had squandered away his B&L shareholders' money on gambling and women, and still get a good night's sleep? Now I know that greedy rich people exist in the real world, but if you've read my previous post about becoming wealthy, then you know I find it frustrating that our society is so quick to vilify the wealthy. The wealthy often have the most to give, and although I have no statistics to throw your way, I have little doubt they do so. Take Dave Ramsey's plan for example. His final "baby step" is to build wealth and give.
Don't Spend Money You Don't Have
Mr. Potter made the statement that people should wait and save their money before buying a home, to which George Bailey responded, "how long should they wait and what should they wait for?" George asked, (rather sarcastically) "if people should wait until their children grow old and leave home?" So unlike Mr. Potter's bank, George's Building and Loan provided money to people who probably shouldn't have been buying homes in the first place. Who knew that George Bailey/Jimmy Stewart was a subprime lender!? Of course, everything works out in the end for George Bailey. If only real life were like the movies.
It's impossible and probably sacrilegious to like Mr. Potter in this movie, but once again, I have to agree with him. After all, we can blame a significant portion of today's poor economy on those who took out loans for bigger homes than they could afford, with little or no money down. We can blame another significant portion of today's poor economy on the lenders who lent money to people who couldn't pay it back. If only people had listened to mean ol' Mr. Potter's advice and saved for a down payment on a home they could afford…
so many times I’ve wanted to reference Jimmy Stewart during these troubled times and I’ve never gotten around to it. Thank you for saving me the trouble. I am not a fan of the movie, but I watch it every year with my parents.
George should’ve taken Mr. Potter’s offer and taken the cushy job at his bank.
@ Trey – If my memory serves me correctly, Mr. Potter’s offer was 10 times George’s salary, or $20k. Adjusted for inflation at about 4%, that $20,000 salary would be the equivalent of just over $250,000 today. I’m 100% positive I would have accepted that offer.
@ The Weakonomist – I can understand why you may not like the movie. I’ve always enjoyed the movie, I was just surprised how differently I interpreted things this year!