Chapter 683 The Bustling Pier

Compared to the chaotic United States, Australasia is now much more prosperous.

Of course, the prosperity here does not refer to the scale of the economy, but the people's life happiness index and economic mobility.

With the influence of infrastructure construction, Australasia is no longer short of jobs. Even more than 20% of jobs are unsaturated, and a large number of immigrants are needed to fill the vacancies.

This is undoubtedly a boost to the economy. In 1927, Australasia's entertainment industry developed rapidly under the prosperous economy, and the World Cinema City built by Arthur became a veritable world movie mecca.

Of course, it mainly took advantage of the economic crisis in other countries. During the economic crisis, the blow to the film was unparalleled.

Because people cannot use their own meal money to buy movie tickets, this also means that the cinema has almost no income, except for those rich people who choose to patronize.

Obviously, the rich will not go to the movies often, after all, they also have their own jobs and lives.

This slowed down the development of the film industry, and a large number of European and American film industries quickly moved to Australasia.

At present, there are more than 200 film companies registered in the World Cinema City, more than half of which are foreign film companies from Europe and the United States.

The influx of a large number of film companies has increased the annual output of Australasia's films from about 150 per year five years ago to 400 per year now.

Although the approval rate of films is only 5%, there were as many as 290 films released last year.

In addition to patriotic films produced by the national government, there are also a large number of sitcoms, horror films, cartoons, romance films, heroic films, etc.

The annual Sydney Film Festival has also attracted much attention. The winners can not only enhance their fame, but also get higher pay in the next year's work.

Although the awards of the Sydney Film Festival have not yet spread all over the world, the films participating in the selection are only released and filmed in Australasia.

But from the current influence, the Sydney Film Festival should be the most standardized film festival with the largest audience in the world.

Because Australasia's films have been sold well in Europe and America. If there is no impact of the economic crisis, the income of the film industry alone is enough to feed a large population.

It is worth mentioning that Disney, which was supposed to be born in the United States, also followed the trend and moved to Australasia.

There is no way. The economic environment in the United States can't support a film company, even an animation company like Disney.

American children can't even afford to go to school, let alone spend expensive movie tickets to watch an animated film.

This also allowed Mickey Mouse, who was supposed to be born in the United States, to be born in Australasia smoothly and became a popular cartoon character among Australasia children.

Arthur was still happy to see the birth of these children's cartoons. After all, education should start from the baby. It is more effective to cultivate the patriotic concept of Australasia children from an early age than to influence them after they grow up.

It is also because of this that many children's films in Australasia have begun to add some propaganda and education about patriotism.

This also makes the approval rate of movies continue to increase, at least it will not let the film company's one-year hard work go to waste.

Compared with the film industry, which is only booming in Australasia, newspapers and magazines are developing rapidly worldwide.

Because the biggest difference between newspapers and magazines and movies is that it costs very little to visit newsstands and magazine shelves. This is also a way for people to understand the outside world and relax themselves without being too depressed.

Compared with the high cost of movies, occasionally visiting newsstands or magazine bookstores is the normal life of most ordinary people in Europe and the United States.

This also allows another industry to develop rapidly, that is, the public library industry born in the United States.

According to a survey by the American Library Association, since the outbreak of the economic crisis, the number of new borrowers has continued to grow each year, and even exceeded 2 million in 1927.

This seems to be good news for the library industry, but the increasing demand for borrowing books is also a burden for those public libraries. After all, books are damaged, and accidents are inevitable during the borrowing process.

But looking at the unemployed American population who almost depend on reading books for their lives, does the Library Association have the courage to reduce the frequency of borrowing books by these Americans?

You know, there are unemployed people in the United States who openly claim that it is the library that prevents them from going crazy or committing suicide.

If reducing the frequency of borrowing books by these people causes them to go crazy or commit suicide, then the responsibility will sooner or later be thrown to the library association.

There is no way, the library association can only grit its teeth and persist, while waiting for support from the government and the outside world.

The situation in Europe is not much different from that in the United States. Because of the increasing number of unemployed people, high-consumption industries are facing continuous shrinkage.

However, low-consumption entertainment industries such as newspapers and magazines are constantly growing, and are also expanding the newspaper and magazine market worldwide.

In the bottom-fishing action during this economic crisis, Arthur also acquired several European and American newspaper media.

It is more important to control public opinion. Whether in Australasia or in Europe and the United States, controlling public opinion always allows Arthur to take the lead and have the initiative in something.

The current royal consortium owns multiple newspapers in major European countries and the United States. These newspapers are owned by different owners on the surface, which makes it easier for Arthur to conduct public opinion propaganda without causing suspicion.

In addition to the major media in Australasia, Arthur is also one of the world's largest public opinion controllers, and can easily spread his ideas to the world.

January 11, 1928, Los Angeles, California, USA.

"Ellie, we have to leave early today. If we go late, we won't be able to grab the fruit." The middle-aged man in the house said to his busy wife while tidying up his clothes.

"I know, Tom. Didn't you say that the government has issued some relief policy? Why do we still have to grab those rotten fruits?" The woman named Ellie looked puzzled, but her hands did not stop because of her words.

"Who knows? Maybe only God can ask this question. It may take some time for the policy to be conveyed. Dear, don't worry, we will be fine." Tom hurriedly comforted his wife, and then took his family to the nearby pier.

Although it was a relatively cold morning, the dock was very lively at this time. It's not that there are any attractive activities here, but every once in a while, the rich will throw their leftover food and rotten fruits and vegetables on the dock, and the ordinary people living in the city will rush forward to grab them, which looks quite spectacular.

The rich people laughed and said that these poor people were like vicious dogs hunting for food, and some people even threw rotten food at the poor like shooting targets, which would cause the poor to be happy and grateful.

Bringing Ellie and his daughter to the dock, Tom first found a place with fewer people, and then quietly waited for the rich to come.

During the long economic crisis, the poor and the rich in Los Angeles have reached a tacit understanding. Every few days, they will throw their unwanted food and rotten fruits and vegetables here, which is also a relief for the poor in the eyes of the rich.

As for why they are thrown on the dock? In fact, fresh food and fruits and vegetables are transported to the dock every once in a while, and then loaded on trucks and transported to the homes of those rich people.

When the rich counted the fresh food and fruits and vegetables, they just threw away the things they didn't want, which is why so many poor people gathered here.

Some poor people even chased the trucks frantically, but after being threatened with guns several times and even killing several people, they changed from chasing the trucks to following behind the trucks to pick up the leaves that might fall.

"Here it comes!"

Someone suddenly shouted, and Tom immediately stood on tiptoe and looked, and sure enough, he saw the transport ship that was about to dock at the dock.

The transport ship was about to arrive, which also meant that the trucks of the rich would also arrive. And the food transported on the trucks was what these poor people were thinking about, and what these poor people were waiting for.

"Ellie, let's act separately. I'll go to where there are many people, and you stay here to see if there is any chance." Tom said to his wife.

Hundreds of poor people who were scrambling for food gathered in the center of the dock, and it was obviously unwise to let his wife join the scrambling team.

After all, the scale of the dock was not too large, and the scrambling of hundreds of people could easily cause stampedes, which was a casualty that the poor could not afford at all.

There was no language between the poor and the rich. With the arrival of the rich man's car, a large number of rotten leaves, rotten fruits and moldy food were thrown directly on the ground of the dock.

Tom didn't care whether it was something he didn't even look at, and he stretched out his hand to grab it into his bowl.

The other poor people around him were not to be outdone, and they were more fierce than each other, like wild dogs protecting their food.

"Mom, look, these people are grabbing garbage!" A little girl suddenly shouted in surprise in the car, which reminded Tom of his daughter, who was also so naive, but her current status and life were completely different.

"Alice, what's so good about those wild dogs?" The lady in the car pulled up the curtains of the car window and said to her daughter with disdain.

"But aren't they also human beings?" The little girl asked curiously.

"Alice, you have to understand. Only those who can make contributions are human beings, and those who don't contribute are just animals." The lady patiently explained to her daughter, and quietly waited for her things.

Yes, the lady's arrival was not to receive those cheap fruits and vegetables. As a rare wealthy family in Los Angeles, the lady's purpose has always been high-end jewelry, perfume and red wine, and this trip was just a coincidence.

Thinking of his daughter made Tom dazed for a while, and he was at a disadvantage in the subsequent scramble.

When Tom reacted, most of the food on the dock had been snatched away by others, and the remaining food was indeed moldy and inedible.

Shaking his head helplessly, Tom quickly got up to find his wife. Now he can only hope that Ellie can get more food to ensure that their family will not be hungry in the next few days.

The dock was very busy, and no one noticed that in the house not far from the dock, a businessman who did not look like an American was looking at this side with a smile on his face.

After returning to their home, Tom and Ellie hurriedly packed up the food they had picked up today, processed the edible food simply, and divided it into many portions in detail to ensure that there was food for every meal, so that they could hold on until the next scramble several days later.

As they were dividing, Ellie became a little impatient. Looking at the food that she was not willing to eat at ordinary times, Ellie lost her spirit and said very frustratedly: "Tom, when can we eat normal food?"

Tom was silent after hearing this.

No matter how confident he was in the government, no matter how much he loved the government, he could not give Ellie any answer at this time.

The economic crisis has lasted for more than a year, but the current situation of these American civilians has not changed at all.

President Hoover's relief plan has begun to be implemented, and the Hoover Dam will be built soon.

This seems to completely improve the United States and make the United States what it was before the economic crisis. But only the real American people understand that the United States has not changed at all since President Hoover took office.

No matter what the reason is, it really makes Tom, who was once a soldier, very depressed, and his firm patriotism has begun to waver.

Knock, knock, knock!

As the knocks on the door sounded, Tom and Ellie looked at each other, with a flash of surprise and joy in their eyes.

Could it be that President Hoover's relief plan worked? Has someone come to help them?

When they opened the door, they found a strange face. Tom protected his wife behind him with a little precaution, and asked cautiously but with a little expectation: "Who are you?"

"Are you Mr. Tom?" The visitor did not answer Tom's question, but looked at Tom with a little interest.

Tom nodded, looked at the visitor cautiously, and the meaning of the inquiry was self-evident.

"Mr. Tom, introduce yourself. You can call me John or Hahn." The visitor smiled and said, "I'm here to tell you good news, maybe it can change your current life."

Hearing that the visitor was not here to help them, Tom and Ellie were a little disappointed. But when they heard that this guy named John said that he could change their current lives, a spark of hope flashed in their eyes.

"How can you help us?" Tom asked.

The guy named John didn't answer in a hurry, and said to himself: "If I remember correctly, you should be a soldier in World War I, right?"

Hearing the visitor talking about his experience of serving in World War I, Tom became more cautious.

The war ended not long after he went to the battlefield. Tom, who didn't make many achievements, naturally would not regard his military career as an honor, and naturally would not brag about it to the outside world.

In addition, they moved to Los Angeles a few years ago, far away from their previous rural hometown, and it was even more impossible for neighbors to know that Tom had been a soldier.

This also means that the person in front of him is either an American official or someone with ulterior motives.

But will the American official keep asking like this? I'm afraid not. This also means that the answer is likely to be the second one.

"Sir, who are you?" Tom asked calmly, while quietly bringing his wife to the wall where the shotgun was hung.

John naturally saw Tom's every move. In order to prevent unnecessary accidents, John smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, Mr. Tom. I have no ill intentions, and my purpose is simply to change your current living conditions.

Perhaps the previous self-introduction was not thorough enough. I am a Democrat, and my current job is to investigate and help some Americans improve their current situation.

Please rest assured that no matter what my purpose is, our interests are obviously the same, that is, to do everything possible to improve the current situation of American civilians, so that people like you, Mr. Tom, can afford to eat."

"Democratic Party?" Tom did not completely believe John's words, but his defensive movements stopped.

"Yes." John smiled and said, "To be honest, we are planning a parade on the early issuance of retirement benefits, and the people involved are veterans like you, Mr. Tom. This is why we know your identity, Mr. Tom.

We have summoned tens of thousands of veterans to participate, and I believe that the government will not remain indifferent to the parade of tens of thousands of people. Mr. Tom, what do you think?"

One update today.