And, meanwhile, the world somehow limps on

Two weeks in a row Hollywood has given us beautiful women in skimpy bikinis, both named Jessica. But, strangely enough, the reaction has been different.

In “Stealth,” Jessica Biel , playing an ace jet pilot, wears a blue one while on R&R in Thailand. Jessica Simpson , playing Daisy Duke in the remake of the television show “The Dukes of Hazzard,” wears a reddish one in an attempt to get what she wants – information only – from an impressionable deputy sheriff.

Here’s what I mean by different reactions. In its two weeks of release, “Stealth” has earned just more than $24 million . “The Dukes of Hazzard,” meanwhile, opened on Friday and already has earned nearly $31 million.

Now, you can’t blame Biel for her film’s problems any more than you can credit Simpson for her film’s success. But since neither film has a plot of note, and both feature things being driven fast – Stealth “Talon” fighters in one, a 1969 Dodge Charger named General Lee in the other – the only real difference between the two are the beauties in bikinis.

You can bet your 401K Simpson’s agent is making that argument even as I take the trouble to type this into the system.