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While it doesn’t surprise me that Jodie Foster’s new thriller, The Brave One, did exceptionally well at the box office this past weekend, what does surprise me is the popularity of this genre.  The popularity of "revenge" movies seems to contradict the very ideals of the liberal/democratic side.  Why is it that these movies that seem to go against the very tenants of the "liberal faith" are popular?  Why aren’t there more protests against these types of movies?

Personally, I think deep down, we really want to be these heroes.  I think author John Eldredge said it best: "The movies a man loves reveal what his heart longs for, what is set inside him from the day of his birth."

Let’s take a look at some of the most popular movies in the last year.

Spider-Man

Starring the hunky Toby Maguire as the main hero and protagonist, he becomes a vigilante fighting crime.  Most of the liberals will forget the fact that he uses weapons and violence to catch these enemies.

Had this been a true democratic movie, Spider Man should not have attacked these villains.  Instead, he should have called the police and had them deal with the evil-doers.  Oh, wait.  We should say alleged evil doers.  Because remember, we have to remember the Goblin’s civil rights.  He should be considered innocent until proven guilty.  Spider-man should not be tripping thieves or taunting them, because it makes them feel bad.  Instead, he should be politically correct and try to rehabilitate them back into productive members of society.

Harry Potter series

Ah, the classic battle of good verses evil.  Every year, Harry Potter seems to have a knack of getting himself almost killed, along with anyone else.  He uses magic to defeat the minions of Lord Voldermont.

Had this been a true democratic movie, Harry Potter should have taken all the money that his parents left him and created a scholarship for disadvantaged students.  He still would have played Quidditch, but with an average broomstick, instead of his flashy one.  Furthermore, anytime he was hassled by He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, he should have reported him to the Ministry of Magic.  And instead of fighting him with magic, he should have written him a strongly worded letter encouraging him to seek diplomatic channels to air his grievances.  If that didn’t work, a second strongly worded letter should be sent.  This would continue until all the paper in the world was used up…and only then would should Potter take up his wand.  And because all people are inherently good and there are no truly evil people, this "war" against dark magic is pointless.  The Ministry of Magic should pull their troops out of the magic world and put them to better use: providing universal health care for those that can’t afford it.

 Live Free or Die Hard

YES!  Another Bruce Willis flick, back as bad dude John McClain.  He’s the kind of guy that shoots first and asks questions later.  No one can deny that he gets the job done!

But, had this been a true democratic movie, John McClain would have been arrested for destroying public property.  Instead of trying to fight an under-appreciated government contractor, he should be performing community service at the local soup kitchen.  And let’s not forget his gun!  He’s in the middle of DC!  Guns are killing people.  So instead, anti-war leaflets are his side-arm.  While doing his community service, he finds out that most of the homeless in DC are poor because of the war in Iraq, which leads McClain on a thrilling adventure to nag President Bush to bringing the troops home.  Ignoring the fact that there is a "fire sale", he pleads with congress to create a constitutional amendment to limit the president’s ability to have an army and bring treason charges against him for not preventing the financial collapse taking place.

But see, if a movie like any of these were released, by guess is that they would do poorly.  To my knowledge no movie that has been politically accurate has been as popular as any of these movies.

Does anyone else see the same trend?

When news was released that a student was tased at a Sen. John Kerry forum, there was immediate reaction, primarily from students who were outraged that the police overstepped their bounds and infringed — no strike that — impeded his first amendment rights.

The biggest argument that I’ve seen is that the police tased Andrew Meyer for asking a question.

Now, if this was in fact the case, then I would agree.  However, a HUGE fact is being ignored with these arguments: Meyer was asked to leave.

Yes, read that again.  Meyer was asked to leave.

It is highly misunderstood that you have the right to be wherever you want to go.  For example, you cannot go into a secured government building, even though it’s public property.  Well, I guess you could try, but you might end up with a severe case of deadness.  You can enter a library but you can be asked to leave, despite the fact that it is, again, public property.  Finally, you could even go to the Capital building in DC, do the tour, and even watch a debate or two.  But if you look suspicious, you’ll be asked to leave.  And by suspicious I mean, your shoelaces are untied.

Whether this is right or not is beside the point.  The police can ask you to do whatever they want for one reason and one reason only: they have guns.

Let’s take the police out of this and look at this from a different perspective. 

I have a gun.  It’s not drawn, but you clearly see it in my holster.  I come up to you and politely ask you to leave my property.  In fact, I don’t even want to see you.  You have two choices: comply or not comply.  If you choose not to comply, I draw my weapon and ask again.  You, again, are faced with the same two choices: comply or not comply.  You remain defiant and say to me that you have the right to be near my property, but not on it.  I give you a final, yet polite, warning.  Again, two choices: comply or not comply.

What would you do?

Yes, we could discuss the legality and the appropriateness of me pulling a gun on you.  And yes, I may be doing something illegal.  But unless you are determined to get shot, then you will comply.

Now, let’s discuss the reaction.  I think The Colbert Report summarized it best

I find it sad that instead of the students doing something helpful at the rally, they instead video tape it and show their solidarity from the comfort of their computer.  Since the dawn of the blogging age, anonymity has been the best friend of students.  It gives a sense of security (however false) that they can say whatever they want without ramifications or consequences.  I particularly like what Colbert says near the end of his piece.  "This kid is saying, ‘I wish they would stop tasering this guy so that I can watch this guy getting tasered on YouTube."

And that’s what we’ve come to as a nation.  Instead of asking the police why they are arresting Meyer, instead of protesting at the forum, instead of doing something to even question the police, everyone is staring, video taping, probably even blogging, what is going on.

When it comes down to the wire of protecting civil liberties, you can count on the fact that these students are going to get as involved as they are in voting.

Note: I’ve added a new section!  A "politics" section will contain all my political editorials.  Please refer to the disclaimer.

About a month or so ago, Michael Vick, Atlanta Falcons Quarterback and Virginia Tech alum, pleaded guilty to federal felony charges related to his dog-fighting ring.  I’m not a pro-football guy.  Heck, I only watch my Terps play, and even then, I don’t even know the players!  When Vick was brought in for arraignment, there was a huge group of protesters outside the U.S. District Court, condemning him!  Here are some pictures, in case you don’t remember:

It’s great to see that PETA unconditionally trusts the police department as well as the government.  I’m actually encouraged that they believe that the police has done such a great job with the investigation that no public review is necessary.

In fact, I think we should get behind this.  I propose that we completely get rid of the judicial system here in America.  Yes, that’s right.  Think of how much time and money we’ll save by simply allowing public opinion dictate the punishment of everyone and anyone that is charged!  Seriously, it’s worked for several teachers that have been accused of raping their students.

In fact, in New York, there was a custodian accused of raping an 8 year old girl.  He was ostracized by the public.  The District Attorney’s eventually dropped the charges.  Why?  The DA said, "Oh, we simply got the wrong guy."  But had we gotten rid of the judicial system, we could have gotten rid of this sick pedophile.

Call your senators, your congressmen, your delegates, all your elected officials.  Tell them that you want them to pass a constitutional amendment abolishing the fair trail process in place of a trail by public opinion.

Please note: The preceding editorial is meant to be satirical.  It should not be taken seriously.  Images © 2007 by AP.  Used under fair-use policy of US Copyright Laws.