Showing posts with label freedom. Show all posts
"Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now." -Commissioner Gordon (The Dark Knight)
Cords that resonate with viewers long
after the credits roll. The Dark Knight is a film that allows people
to escape only to show them a reflection of society, and it is not a
bright reflection at all.
A commenter on a blog said it
eloquently:
drvictordavishj: "The key is the way Gordon draws a contrast between (Harvey) Dent "the hero we need" versus the Dark Knight "the hero we deserve." Nolan is saying that we need a law-abiding idealist, but that we don’t deserve him."
But these are our heroes. These are our
leaders. President Obama, Speaker John Boehner, Rep. Nancy Pelosi,
Sen. Harry Reid. These are the men and women who are supposed to be
our White Knights. Yet, not one is anything more than a sock puppet
for special interest groups, banks and lobbyists.
"Because I'm tired of it. Year, after year, after year, after year, having to choose between the lesser of who cares. Of trying to get myself excited about a candidate who can speak in complete sentences. Of setting the bar so low I can hardly look at it." -Leo McGarry (The West Wing)
We continue to allow our rights to be
taken away. Sometimes piece by piece and sometimes in massive sweeps
disguised as protection against our enemies. The, so-called, Leader
of the Free World signed a bill on December 31st that makes it legal
to hold United States citizens in jail...forever. With no charges or
trial. All anyone has to do is claim they are a terrorist.
We assassinate our own citizens, apply
justice arbitrarily, allow our private lives to be searched without a
warrant, refuse the global community the right to try our leaders for
war crimes and, incredibly, denounce other states for doing the same
exact things.
Maybe America is the world's Dark
Knight. We take on the evils of the world and the only way to do so
is by getting our hands dirty. Just as the Joker brings Batman again
and again to that moral line he does not wish to cross, the
world is doing the same to America. Maybe we don't want to be the way we
are, but what other choice is there?
I turn again to an anonymous commenter:
drvictordavishj: Nolan is ultimately saying that strong societies don't tolerate Dark Knights. If we do, it's only because we lack confidence in the institutions and values that we've inherited. After all, with all his gifts, Bruce Wayne could have easily been Harvey Dent, but because he lacks confidence in legitimate institutions and his moral inheritance, he’s not the philanthropist and healer that his father was. He's the sign of a sick society."
Ask yourself, do you have confidence in
our institutions? Is the government of the people, by the people and for the people?
The sad truth is there are a great many
things wrong with this society. We need no more evidence than the
existence of all the Dark Knights we allow to exist. Whether they be
vigilantes fighting crime in New York City or the very
countries we live in.
These are the heroes we deserve. These are our silent guardians, our watchful protectors. The existence of Dark Knights is a
sign of a sick society. And our society is filled with them.
Today is the fourth of July. An important symbol of American independence from Great Britain and the trials she went through in becoming the country she is today. Unfortunately, it seems that a good chunk of Americans don't know anything about this date. 25% don't know the year we declared independence. 20% don't know from what country. And I'm guessing on this one- most don't know that the fourth of July is a pointless date in the grand scheme of things.
The United States declared her independence on July 2nd, 1776.
The Declaration of Independence was finally revised and approved on July 4th the same year.
The Declaration was made public on July 8th.
The majority (as in 50 out of 56) signers of the Declaration signed their names on August 2nd, 1776.
So the only important thing that actually happened on the 4th was that a bunch of old men said, "Ya, that'll do."
Let's get piss-drunk and blow shit up!
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| Oooo pretty...forget everything I'm about to say. Blowing things up is fun! |
The date became a symbol over time. It was first adopted state by state, then declared a national holiday (albeit, not until 1870), and is currently being celebrated all across this country. But it is important to remember that it is a symbol. Not a fact. Not doctrine. Not worth much of anything.
Symbols have power because we bestow them power. The Fourth of July is important because of what it represents. Freedom, liberty, independence. However, those are ideas. If you understand them then you never need a symbol to be your beacon of representation. When you understand what those concepts mean then the Fourth of July should be nothing but a date on a calender.
We care too much about the things that have too little importance. Fights will break out today, anger will be felt between people, someone will die today over a meaningless date. I can say that because statistically it is true. Too many people will do something stupid for someone not to die.
Six months from now the same thing will happen during Christmas. A time that should represent all good humanity has will be tainted by division, anger, and fear. Jesus wasn't born on December 25th. And yet some will get offended when told so. Or when someone says to them, "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas."
We put too much emotion into symbols and not enough intelligence. It is too complicated for some. They want simple boxes and explanations and classifications. What is the Fourth of July: "when the Declaration was signed and America declared her independence from Great Britain." All false.
The Fourth of July is an important symbol. But not because it is a symbol. Ideals of freedom, liberty, representation, independence, and unity have become beacons across the world. They are the cornerstone of numerous constitutions. They are the reason for hundreds of millions of deaths. They form the back bone of our society.
These things are too important to be simplified into a day of BBQ's and explosions. These are things that everyone should talk about every day. I honestly believe the United States is a country built on high ideas. Ideas that were unique and ground-breaking. Ideas that should be remembered and talked about and spread continuously throughout the world.
Ideas that are worth understanding.
Happy Independence Day.
For a little fun here is a good quiz. I got 9 out of 12. Let me know how you do in the comments.
For a little fun here is a good quiz. I got 9 out of 12. Let me know how you do in the comments.