A Day Without Superheroes

Here is one lesson from Friday's Colorado theater massacre: superheroes are fantasy but supervillains are not.

Less flippantly: we live in a era where it is infinitely easier to commit transcendent evil than to perform remarkable good. This is only the latest in a series of episodes that demonstrate the malign power unique to our times. The 9/11 attack. The Columbine killings. The Fort Hood shootings. Choose-the-bombing with the terrible details of blameless dead and wounded from too many cities anywhere in the world.

If news reports are right, this particular nutjob took his inspiration from the 2008 Batman movie The Dark Night. Most of what made that a great film was the late Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker, a decades-old nemesis of Batman in the comics.

And a lot of what made the Joker such an effective villain, in the comics and the movie, is how ordinary he is. There's nothing "super" about the character. No special powers, only limited technology that goes much into the impossible. Over the many years and artists who have developed the character, the Joker has sometimes wandered into the realm of goofy camp. But the most effective versions — notably the ones in Frank Miller's Dark Night graphic novels and that 2008 film — were human-sized figures of creative evil with no obvious motive.

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http://www.missiontoisrael.org Ted R. Weiland

It could have been a day of superheros if every adult male in the front two rows had stormed the shooter. Regrettably, our young men are no longer being taught this Biblical requisite implicit in Deuteronomy 22:1-3, 23-27 that requires them to take a bullet if necessary to protect others.
- Chris P
  
  You are kidding. As it is three guys died putting themselves in front of their girlfriends. The right wing religious are gun ADVOCATES. They enabled the easy purchase of the AR15 and the thousands of rounds of ammunition. They CONDONE easy access to such stuff.
  - petroskhan
    
    Yes, I and many others DO condone easy access to guns. Easy access, as in NOT banning people from carrying them into the theaters and restaurants where nutjobs KNOW people are disarmed and easy prey. When was the last time someone tried to rob gun store, or shoot up a police station? You don't hear about it because the loonies who want to shoot a bunch of people know that the folks in there have GUNS. It's kinda hard to shoot a bunch of people who are armed. Face it, wolves prey on sheep, not other wolves. Put yourself in the mindset of a criminal for 10 seconds. You want to try robbing people, or breaking into homes…you going to do that in a city or state which believes in the 2nd Amendment, and allows law-abiding citizens to own and carry, or would you prefer a place with lots of laws against the ownership and carrying of firearms? It comes down to a simple choice, really. You want your victims armed, or conveniently disarmed by the local laws? And don't prattle on about how more laws will get guns out of the hands of criminals. They're CRIMINALS. That means they don't obey the law. Which means, if they want guns, they'll get guns. The only choice we have is whether or not we want to protect ourselves from them or not.
    - http://www.answersingenesis.org/ keyboardshark
      
      Very well said, petroskhan. Chris P needs to wake up to what the real problem is.
      - petroskhan
        
        We can only hope…
      - Jeff Dixon
        
        Chris, consider Norway. It has very strict guns laws.
        A licence is required to own a gun, and the owner must provide a written statement saying why he or she wants one. Many categories of guns, including automatics and some powerful handguns, are banned from sale altogether.
        Hunting and outdoor sports are popular in Norway. But the laws are strict in these areas, too. Shotguns and rifles must be stored in a secure place, typically a specially designed gun safe, as must ammunition. Police have the right to inspect an owner's home to ensure the law is being followed.
        Transporting a weapon to a public place is also covered by legislation. The owner must have a good reason for carrying a weapon, must ensure it is unloaded and concealed from view, but not worn on the body, and must keep the weapon under constant supervision.
        Under the Firearm Weapons Act, only "sober and responsible" persons over the age of 18 may obtain a gun licence. For handguns, the age requirement is 21. In 2009, additional legislation was introduced, further tightening Norway's gun laws.
        However, Norway's regulations did not stop Anders Behring Breivik carrying out his attack. A determined criminal will find ways to get around laws.
      - http://www.answersingenesis.org/ keyboardshark
        
        Your last two sentences say it all. Hope Chris got that.
    - UF Gator
      
      Petros, you have a wonderful gift for words, thank you for expressing, in my opinion, your perfect stance.
      - petroskhan
        
        Thanks. Always good to know that others share the insight.
- http://www.facebook.com/people/Linda-C-Dines/1547798249 Linda C. Dines
  
  It is against the law in that area to carry firearms, that is why nobody had one to use in self defense, if anyone had had one the outcome would have been different, perhaps we would not have to listen to the ongoing saga of the "perpetrator" and only about the mop up of the incident. Now it will be years of wasted time and money, his name should not be mentioned, I agree with Huccaby (sp).
  - sadnana
    
    This theater chain has a strict no-gun policy, even in states with open carry laws.
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_5AMIUYOFOOEDWY2XH47E2LHQJ4 Wolf-Spider
    
    Even IF there were others there that were armed, I think the death toll might have INCREASED (I'm pro-gun by the way). The scenario I see is this; those with pistols will have taken more hits than the others fleeing. They would have been ineffective, because he was decked in FULL armor, and he had thrown gas canisters. Their aim would have been impaired, while he still indescriminately shot around. The others might hit some of the fleeing as they try to get a bead on the shooter. The only way to take him out would have been a face shot, and in that chaos, it would have been impossible. They don't sell "cop killers" anymore.
    Wolf-Spider
sadnana

"…we live in a era where it is infinitely easier to commit transcendent evil than to perform remarkable good. " Not so. Every day people of all colors and nationalities sacrifice their time, money, and other precious resources to help their fellow man. You'd have to be deaf and blind (or illiterate) not to see this. Sadly, evil gets the lion's share of attention, especially from the media.
- petroskhan
  
  Agreed. Bad news sells papers and airtime. Good news? Who cares? (In the media's view, not mine)