Two weeks after the release of the first great superhero movie in some time, comes the release of a second that is getting good reviews and the death of iconic professional wrestler Hulk Hogan.  Wrestling and superheroes are different mediums, but the same story – good guys v bad guys.  They are simple and straightforward, or at least they used to be.  Part of what make Superman (I have not seen the FF movie yet) so good is the lack of grey area, the bad guy is really bad and Superman is really good – after a long spate of troubled heroes that barely figured out what the “right” thing to do was.  Wrestling in recent years is not so watchable as performers switch from “face” (good guy) to “heel” (bad guy) at the drop of a hat and even the face cheats from time-to-time.

I am just returned from visiting friends in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  I spent part of a day exploring the areas where “The Troubles” occurred.  Murals everywhere, but they no longer are about the republican, Catholic Irish and the protestant, British loyalists – they were this week just past, mostly about Israel and Gaza with the republicans, predictably, choosing sides with the Gazans. What really seems to define the whole thing is that disagreement on political matters devolved into sheer hatred.  There was a civil rights issue (Catholics had less rights than protestants in Northern Ireland long, long ago) at base, but long after that was resolved the battles continued because the hatred had taken root.  And now after the violence is done, the hatred remains, grafting itself to every conflict in the world, seeing it through the same lens.

We long for the world in simplistic terms – good and bad.  We force our current news into that mold and when our entertainment slips too far from it, we note it is far less entertaining. And once we have turned the story simple, disagreement turns to hatred, and reality no longer matters as we are blinded by that hatred.  And so, professional wrestlers draw huge fanbases even when they are working heel.  And so people still go to superhero movies when the good guys just are not that good.  Once a “side” is chosen, morality – good and bad –  no longer matters.  There is only victory for my side.

I see this happening in the current politics in the United States, and I fear.  Could we end up like Northern Ireland was, violence on a near daily basis because the losing side decided, based on its bitterness, to be the bad side?  Or, will we be the nation we are supposed to be?  One that examines each issue and reasons together towards the solution best for the most?  We can only pray.

Headlines Collected While Abroad

If you look at our fantasies in the same light as J.R.R. Tolkien, you see God come shining in.  Perhaps the problems with our current fantasies, like superheroes and wrestling, is that they try to block God out.

California, the train wreck that never quite seems to end.

Christianity is under fire from many areas and in many ways.

If you are old enough, you remember the “cold fusion” mania of the late 1980’s.  If you do not remember it, read up on it, bad science, good publicity.  And then think about it – hard – as you read this story.  Ask yourself, chasing science or chasing headlines which can lead to capitalization?

Speaking of “bad science, good publicity” this movie seems most interesting.  Limited release, so may have to wait for streaming.

Come on!  Everyone knows if you get bitten by a spider you get superpowers.  This must be fake news. 😉