Spidey and W

Do the liberals know what a danger the Spiderman movies are to their message, how much it counters the vileness of Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9-11. Do even the producers of Spiderman, who given the realities of Hollywood have to be mostly strident Democrats, understand that it is essentially neo-conservative, neo-imperialistic propaganda. I mean, we keep hearing the ghostly words echoed by Cliff Robertson “with great power, brings great responsibility”, what a lame re-tread of the philosophy of the “white man’s burden (see Kipling, you know, the Jungle Book guy, if you don’t get the reference).

Anyhow, consider Peter Parker and his alter ego, Spidey. He is naïve, sometimes a little tongue-tied, idealistic, but not guiltless (his recklessness killed his Uncle Ben and regularly put his Aunt May and girl, Mary Jane, at risk). He is, or he should be “conflicted”, for both he and Spidey are not praised for their actions but criticized for their failures to accomplish what they promise. But still that relentless bravado even when he doesn’t know if he will stick to the next building or fall into the dumpster of a dirty alley. If not for that bright red costume, couldn’t you just see Spiderman, instead of having stringy webs, with a lasso, swinging with a yippie-yi-yeah through the city?

So, in short, doesn’t Spiderman remind you of George W. and the policies he “foisted” upon us? Peter Parker considers himself a “do-gooder” and as Spiderman, in fact, he can’t seem to stop himself from doing so. Yet the newspapers and the powers-that-be do not accept him, they rather consider him one of the villains. After all, wherever there is trouble, he shows up. Therefore, in their minds, he is a troublemaker and if he can’t make the bad guys disappear in a day, then the responsibility for any evil they bring falls upon him. It’s like he’s in school and the report card says “strives to achieve, but does not work well with others!” The only thing they could have added would be a journalist asking, “So, Spidey, what has been your greatest failure these past couple years? Can you apologize to the people of New York?”

Let me ask you point blank, should W say he’s sorry for the mess we’re in, for mess it may well be?? We can see the burden he’s under, just like our “conflicted” Peter Parker, it may make both him and us “feel better”. Yet, if in making himself vulnerable, he weakens our resolve and opens all Americans to more risk that is a price he seems to be unwilling to pay, thank God. Lest you think Spiderman does not touch on this, let me take you near the end of Spiderman 2. Spiderman’s mask is off, his suit is in shreds, the human Peter Parker is revealed, after he’s given all he had to save a group of New Yorkers (though he put them in harm’s way by standing up to the villain) but they say to him, in turn, “ Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me… and me… and me!” Then in a powerful touch of reality in this post-911 world, each man, woman, and child as passengers in a commuter train must stand up to the terrorizing super-villain. He goes on to reveal himself, finally, to his girl and even to the villains, but strangely, not to the press and public at large.

So go ahead, let’s keep calling W a cowboy, with dumbo ears (see editorial cartoons), a neo-imperialist. After all, we have to keep the secret. Some of us have seen into his heart, we know who the real W is, and what’s more, what he represents. We are grateful and love and honor him, but often quietly and secretly (like in the ballot box this November). Thanks, W, your secret’s safe with us!