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The Dark Knight (recently viewed on a bootleg Hajivision dvd) seemed to these eyes and ears to hit on some pretty big themes of our current times. Namely, the War on Terror, with Batman as the U.S. and the Gotham public standing in for the rest of the Western world, and even much of our own indifferent populace. Batman (the U.S.) takes the hard stands and makes the hard choices that many don't want to face, against a nihilistic evil (the Joker, standing in for Al Qaeda), who, as Alfred poignantly quips, "can't be reasoned or bargained with," but "only wants to watch the world burn." Also breached in the film are treatment of terrorist detainees, extraordinary rendition, the "ticking bomb" scenario of public safety vs. civil liberties, as well as public eavesdropping, aka the "wiretapping" issue, all in the name of security concerns.
I don't know if Chris Nolan set out to tackle such weighty issues with the latest Batflick, but he seemed to hit the nail on the head regardless. Batman does what he has to do, makes the ethically gray choices that no one else is willing to face, and is villified for it by an ungrateful public. (Sounds pretty familiar to these military ears).
Now while I wouldn't go so far as to compare President Bush himself to Batman, I do feel that it's Bush's actions and steadfastness as embodied through the country itself that are comparable to the film's moral dilemmas.
Do not take a single day for granted, especially when there are those who are willing to die to present it to you, both present and past. All of us have busy lives, which are usually stressed on Mondays, but as you enjoy the radio, casual lunch or friendly conversation with friends, know there are warriors out of sight slinging lead at enemies that want you and everything America stands for to die and he volunteered to do it. Hell of a group of volunteers, I would say.
Semper Fidelis warrior.
This letter was originally published by the Clayton News Daily (Jonesboro, GA) on July 4th, 2007.
To the editors:
Today is July 4th, our country's Independence Day, and 231 years ago, our forefathers won this for all to enjoy.
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Original content copyright © 2006 - 2008 by the respective authors
