LOOK, UP IN THE SKY…IT’S A BIRD…IT’S A PLANE…
IT’S ANOTHER BIRD
by Cash Michaels
On Friday, July 11th, the latest in a long series of Superman adventures will grace our movie theaters, reintroducing the most famous undocumented alien ever known (don’t forget, the dude was from another planet and never applied for American citizenship) to inspire and entertain a new generation.
You remember old Superman. Heroic homeboy was “…faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.”
And even though this 87-year-old ultimate outsider in the blue tights with red cape and shorts and a big red “S”on his chest, who apparently has successfully slipped past Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents all this time (he would be quite difficult to capture, beat up and ship off to another planet, quite frankly) symbolically stands for “truth, justice and the American way,” generations of comic book lovers, moviegoers and television watchers still embrace him as an all-around good guy we can love, trust, and be glad is on our side.
James Gunn, the director of the new Superman movie told The Times of London, "Superman is the story of America [that] follows an immigrant [who] came from other places and populated the country."
Gunn added that the new film was also a story that says "...basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost."
Hey, no MAGA kryptonite here, folks. I like the cut of your jib, Mr. Gunn.
One important thing we always forget about Superman, though, is he was sent here from his native planet to escape tyranny and destruction. And when he arrived, like most other immigrants to our country, he worked hard to belong, and make a contribution.
We've appreciated him, and have honored him ever since.
So why am I endlessly opining about the so-called "Man of Steel" now beyond the fact that he has this new film for you to spend your hard earned inflation-bitten dollar to see?
Because just like in the comics, on TV, and in the movies, we may need Superman now more than ever!
Given the earthquake of evil our country is going through, we desperately need someone, or something, we can believe in again.
In the old days the answer was simple - if we had a Republican in office who was clearly in way over his skis when it came to governing honestly, we had our pick of noble Democrats we could count on, who had the fire in his belly to make us believe that all we had to do was elect him, and everything could be alright.
And please pardon me for saying “he" and “him," without adding “she” and “her.”
Shamefully, when Democrats had the chance in my lifetime to elect a great, competent and capable woman to the highest office in the land, after much hot air and ballyhoo, we got a case of the pink panties and chickened out. That's our cross to bear.
Indeed, if we Dems had our act together, we would have buried that bone a long time ago and voted for Hillary or Kamala. Instead, I’m almost convinced that I’ll never see a female president of the United States, let alone a Democratic one, before I meet my maker.
As I said, sadly, it’s a damn shame that especially after last year, we just aren’t going to see a female elected to saddle-up to lead our nation anytime soon. So until that age of enlightenment not only dawns, but energizes the masses to dance the light electric, we have to stay on the lookout primarily for a super-man, unfortunately.
You know…someone with impeccable decency and character as portrayed by actor George Reeves (1950’s TV Superman); the undeniable, all-American charisma of actor Christopher Reeves (the 1978 movie Superman); the strength of character and bulging muscles of actor Henry Cavill (the 2021 movie “Justice League” Superman); and finally, the common, sensitive touch of the new 2025 movie Superman, actor David Corenswet.
Let’s face it, we NEED a modern day Superman with all of these attributes and qualities to give us the kind of choice America’s deserves, given the pure cow crap we now have in King TACO and his clown show administration of cowardly criminals.
And we need our Superman sooner than later, before people just throw their hands out and give up their hope for a truly greater America where the rule of law still means something.
Where a cowardly Congress no longer trips all over itself to serve a crooked president and passes a “big, beautiful” legislative monstrosity that sets fire to Medicaid coverage for 17 million citizens, or denies food stamps for millions of needy SNAP families and elderly, all to ensure that rich people get a big free tax ride on our dime.
Where billions in grants for vital biomedical research, years in the making from the National Institutes of Health, aren’t cancelled just because the recipients believe in diversity, equity and inclusion.
Where the civil and human rights of immigrants, naturalized citizens, and even Americans seeking a better life in this land aren’t violated by throwing them into cages in an atrocious “Alligator Alcatraz” swamp, or where they're not beaten and shipped out to foreign countries without ever seeing their entitled day in a U.S. court.
Where the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court stops doing everything it can to indemnify the criminal enterprise that is the Trump Administration by granting it heretofore unheard of executive powers, and protections from accountability.
Where the First Amendment rights of citizens and the press aren't threatened when the truth is told or reported.
Yes, we NEED a political Superman who can withstand all of the filth and lies that King TACO will throw at him in order to diminish who otherwise is a honest, devoted and law-abiding man, the kind of man we could all point to and say, “There goes someone who should be our next president of the United States.
Someone who doesn’t lie as easily as he breathes!
Someone who is NOT a convicted felon and sexual abuser!
Someone who is NOT a documented cheat and crook!
Someone who has a real love, respect and reverence for Almighty GOD!
Someone who is NOT a stone-cold racist!
And to be clear, when I list what’s awful about the current supervillain we have in high office, I’m not just talking about King TACO himself, but those certifiable henchmen and women who enthusiastically and dutifully jostle for top position on Trump’s totem pole of hate. I wish I could call them tyrants-in-training, but based on their nefarious actions in the name of their boss, I really don’t think there’s much else for them to learn.
But let’s remember why we as a society, as a culture, revere Superman in the first place.
This one-of-a-kind patriotic icon, and perhaps the most popular superhero of all time, was the creation of two young men - Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster - in 1938. At the time, they were similarly living in a world on fire. A world where a virtually bankrupt America was trying to climb out of a debilitating Great Depression at home, amid growing international tensions abroad with Germany and Japan that would eventually lead to World War II.
Keep in mind that during this period, folks who looked like me didn't exactly enjoy equal citizenship status, but that wasn't Superman's fault. He'd just gotten here!
In the midst of all of this, Americans needed someone, something, that gave them hope, that reinforced their common values of “truth, justice and the American way.”
Then along came this visitor from another planet whose extraordinary powers were so miraculous, we could care less that he never bothered to check-in at Ellis Island in New York to become a properly registered immigrant.
We just gave the guy a job as a reporter at the Daily Planet in Metropolis, pretended we couldn't recognize him with his glasses on, and hoped he would be at our beck and call when supervillains (including the Nazis and Japanese) began rattling their swords.
Apparently folks back then preferred comic books to their Bibles, but hey, who am I to judge?
So yes, it would be super-sweet indeed, to be able to have a political super-man on call to fight the forces and sources of today’s evil. Right now, it seems like the good guys can’t catch a break for trying, and what good guys (and gals) we do have in our federal court system are being checkmated at every turn by King TACO’s legal beagles, feckless GOP Congress and MAGA Supreme Court.
If ever there was a time for Superman, it would be right now, when we need him the most.
But you know what, let’s stop dreaming here! Just like back in the day in 1938 when Siegel and Shuster gave this country a sense of hope and pride in its bedrock values with their superhero - albeit wrapped up in the fantasy world of comic books - we’ve got more than enough to keep us inspired and engaged now if we choose.
And on top of all of that, we have each other! Americans who, despite their differences, know in their heart of hearts that their country could, and should, be better than it currently is, and are willing to do something about it.
We... ARE the supermen and superwomen we're looking for!
It’s going to take ALL of us, working together, and we can start with the 2026 midterm elections to do the seemingly impossible - start to take our power back!
But we can, and we MUST!
So forget this, “Look up in the sky…it’s a bird…it’s a plane…” nonsense. Look up all you want, folks, Superman ain’t comin’ in the next sentence, next paragraph, or even in the next year.
No, instead I prefer, “Look up in the sky…it’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s another bird, and another, and another….”
Eagles, if you will!
Why? Because as the old saying goes, tough, devoted “birds of a feather, flock together!”
That’s the only way we’re going to fly out of this mess we’re in, folks - together!
-30-
No comments:
Post a Comment