Super Heroes

This image of Spider-Man is on the side of a building that houses Excalibur, a long time comic book store in Southeast Portland.

I've been thinking about superheroes today and the fine line we draw between violence and heroism. In some circles, heroes are the ones with the biggest or the most guns, not the ones with the wisdom and ability to negotiate a peaceful resolution, which is my idea of a hero.

I can't begin to understand what drives a person to gun down dozens of people in a movie theater, but I do know the culture of guns in this country (US) is so skewed as to be completely insane. The mania surrounding gun ownership is beyond the pale - those who covet their weapons do not make the connection between our cultural attitude about guns and gun violence. The movie and video game industries are culpable for making guns seem sexy and a viable and easy solution to problems.

It's fun to think of a superhero swooping in to save the day, but we have to figure this out ourselves. What will it take to convince the gun toters and lobbyists that semi- and automatic weapons have only one purpose, and it's not a good one. No one should be able to possess such a lethal weapon that can cause so much harm in so short a time. When the second amendment was written, no one could possibly foresee such a weapon existing.

My heart breaks for the victims of this senseless tragedy, those who thought they were out for a fun evening of a superhero movie with their pals and whose lives were irrevocably changed - or lost.

Edit: Not surprisingly, at almost the same time Kendall was posting about the very same issue.
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Photo was posterized.