On Superheroes Part 2

While writing part 1, I started ranting about Spiderman but stopped because I realized that this story captures a completely different aspect of American life. The story can be boiled down to a nerdy scrub getting bitten and overnight becomes ripped, no longer needs glasses and has some useful physiological additions including fingertips that grip walls, web shooting glands, and a spidey-sense [which most men have when an attractive female is around, only normal people can't use it for sensing danger]. But instead of being content with these upgrades, he still can't quite get it right. He spends a lot of time chasing around Mary Jane, asking for second chances, and deciding if this superhero thing is really the life he wants to live.


Of course we get all worked up in the story and the love, etc, but when we take a step back it is painfully obvious how whiny and dumb Peter Parker is being. You got a bug bite and instead of itching, it made you super human! What the hell do you have to complain about? You have become very well endowed to help people who need it. Spit, scratch your balls, and enjoy being a good guy.


-> "I don't feel like swinging from building to building. I just want to look good."


And now for the moral: by simply being Americans, we already have our bug bite. We are already more advanced and capable than a huge majority of the world. This is not an ego trip. Someone at our poverty line would be in the wealthiest 15% of the world. The mere act of going to college makes us crazy blessed and a dollar short of super human. Not that we are better than people that don't go to college, but [you knew it was coming] "...with great power comes great responsibility." By thinking we deserve to go to college, have a car, eat plenty of food, have extra money to go see superhero movies, we become petty and selfish. I didn't do anything to merit my birth in the suburbs. I doubt you did either. We don't deserve anything. With that point of view, and despite the fact that someone will always have more, contentment should ensue. We should be outward focused, constantly thinking about how we can use what we have to put back into people. We must take our extravagant wealth very seriously. Dostoevsky said it best.

The perks: when we are less focused on ourselves and our future and our money making opportunities, we become much more happy and fulfilled. Going to school to learn how to simply make money will lead to a sad, empty and exhausting life. It leads to a chase, not a purpose, solitude, not solidarity.