WSJ Editorial: Batman Is President Bush

Via TNR, the Wall Street Journal publishes an editorial by Andrew Klavan declaring "The Dark Knight" really depicts our fearless leader:

A cry for help goes out from a city beleaguered by violence and fear: A beam of light flashed into the night sky, the dark symbol of a bat projected onto the surface of the racing clouds . . .

Oh, wait a minute. That's not a bat, actually. In fact, when you trace the outline with your finger, it looks kind of like . . . a "W."

There seems to me no question that the Batman film "The Dark Knight," currently breaking every box office record in history, is at some level a paean of praise to the fortitude and moral courage that has been shown by George W. Bush in this time of terror and war. Like W, Batman is vilified and despised for confronting terrorists in the only terms they understand. Like W, Batman sometimes has to push the boundaries of civil rights to deal with an emergency, certain that he will re-establish those boundaries when the emergency is past.

And like W, Batman understands that there is no moral equivalence between a free society -- in which people sometimes make the wrong choices -- and a criminal sect bent on destruction. The former must be cherished even in its moments of folly; the latter must be hounded to the gates of Hell.

No word yet on what Patrick Leahy thinks.

Comments

[Rockwell]

Republicans make me laugh when they try so hard to be cool. This WSJ editorial is laughable. Actually, its more like Karl Rove at a slumber party - bizarre and creepy.

[midknightryder13]

OK, where to begin.
First off, The Batman is psychologically damaged goods. By his OWN admission, btw. He KNOWS he's obsessed after the death of his parents. Or as he puts it in an episode of Justice League Unlimited, "I'm a rich kid with issues. LOTS of issues."
The Batman also takes full responsibility for EVERYTHING HE DOES! Every failure, every success -- ALL OF IT! No matter how small.
Can you imagine him staying to read to children after finding out Gotham Towers had just had airplanes flown into them by, say The Penguin? Or ceasing his pursuit of that Bird of Prey to go after The Riddler -- who was basically minding his own business but had some assets he wanted to add to Wayne Enterprises -- say a lucrative line of puzzles and toys? (Oh, let's call them Wacko Playthings.)
He also uses his wealth to help the less fortunate, not make it even MORE difficult for them to just get by. (A line from "The Forgotten" when BW donates to a local charity, "As my father always told me, those who HAVE the most, must GIVE the most.")

GWB like The Batman? He doesn't even compare favorable to Bat-Mite. Or even Batfink. Bat-CLOWN maybe, but Bat-Clown never took himself as seriously as GWB does. (btw -- those are all genuine characters. I only wish GWB were fictional in this dimensional plane, too.)

[Swrv]

Well Stated

[dartagnan]

""I'm a rich kid with issues. LOTS of issues."

Describes Smirky McChimp to a "T" -- so as far as that goes, Klavan's comparison was spot on.

[axt113]

Batman doesn't kill, all of his actions are to sitop death, Bush has acted in ways that have left probably over a million dead

[96Bravo]

Rendition, torture and unwarranted surveillance are factors in THE DARK KNIGHT, but here's why Batman is NOT Bush:

Rendition: In THE DARK KNIGHT, Batman kidnaps a suspect in Hong Kong and takes him back to Gotham. This seems to favor the Clinton style of rendition, which stresses bringing suspects back to the U.S. for prosecution. Bush's rendition involves bringing suspects to other countries for "questioning".

Torture: In the movie, Batman beats Joker for information. In THIS case, Joker DOES provide information to Batman...but it's false information. Information he WANTED to give Batman all along, making it clear Batman's strong arm tactics failed!

Unwarranted surveillance: Batman uses a sonar system to listen in on all cell phones in the city to find Joker. And it works, But Lucius Fox, the creator of Batman's sonar technology, takes a stand against Batman's wiretapping and ultimately destroys it...with Batman's permission. The film sides with Fox.

Batman ultimately bends and sometimes breakes rules so government and law enforcement don't have to. Alfred, the other voice of reason, tells Bruce he must continue on as Batman and do what no one else can, even if it makes him the outcast.

Because when someone virtuous like District Attorney Harvey Dent goes too far...a man sworn to uphold the laws of the land starts breaking those laws...the Joker wins and society edges closer to chaos.

[axt113]

Except Batman doesn't kill, even during the torture, Bush has allowed killing, Batman does everything he does to save lives, even the lives of the bad guys

Batman is the one who builds the self destruct into his system, Bush would never give up his spying powers

Batman is the one who sacrifices himself to cover up the crimes of Harvey Dent, Bush would never do that.

Batman prevents the further fall of society, and he willingly suffers for his crimes

[gulopartisan]

Klavan's explanation for the appeal of the film is neocon hogwash. We "all know love is better than hate" because what we mean by "love" is "the good stuff." The problem is that we consider wiping out Iraqi villages "an act of love" and shooting American occupying forces "an act of hate." And other people think the opposite. Klavan's moral absolutism is glib and self-serving. We "all" agree that the Holocaust was evil... except those who don't. We all agree about Hagee, McC*n, Obama, Hitler, Vlad Tepes, John Gacy. Except those who don't. While Klavan appeals to "moral absolutes," what he is really talking about is opinion polls, and he's flailing in waters our greatest minds -- Spinoza, Plato, Gandhi, Jesus -- could only navigate with courage and humility.

Dark Knight may be a comic book hymn to George Bush. That would be consistent with the essentially conservative ambiant of comic books generally, which occupy that peculiar moral zone where outcasts imitate and even admire the powerful who oppress them. The notion of a "superhero" is inherently cryptofascist, and the appeal of most "superheroes" is that they are above the laws the rest of us must depend on to have safe and orderly lives. The myth of the "supervillain" is likewise a dumbing down -- hard as it is to imagine -- of paranoid Manicheanism. There is no Superman, Virginia, but Blofeld and Penguin don't exist either, so grow up.

[Buddly]

perhaps George just wears the rubber under garments to prevent leaks. With the Seal of his stolen office so he can remember who he is

[NickNas]

I was going to see that Movie this weekend. With this image in my head I can no longer go. The Makers of this movie can count 2 less tickets. Thank the WSJ

[Ramirez]

It's a good movie though. You would have liked it.

Enjoy your BDS instead.

[Jezdukowski]

Finally, Ramirez - something we can agree upon.

[Catharsis]

Oh, but Maggie Gyllenhaal is a hottie in the film, so seeing the film is still OK.

[crooked]

This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard.
Barack Obama = Batman.

[Catharsis]

CRETINS ABOUND!
CRETINS ABOUND!
CRETINS ABOUND!

[neocon666]

Apparently, Murdoc's Fox News Koolaid in the water coolers is having its desired effect on the WSJ editorial staff.

[expatstudent]

Having just seen this film, I couldn't help but ponder this exact point, and there is one gaping flaw in this argument. Apparently, it needs to be stated:

Batman doesn't kill people. The Joker does.

[swift goat pet for truth]

Haven't been into comics recently.

Is there a villain called "The Ch'imp"?

[ROBOT8]

WELL! NOW WE KNOW WHY RUPERT BOUGHT THE MAGAZINE!!!!!!! I GUESS I'LL HAVE TO FIND SOMETHING NEW TO READ

[razorblade]

Does that make Dickie C. the Boy Wonder?

[oncesung]

So...let me get this straight. Bush is the Joker and Poppy cut a permanent grin in his face so he can't help it when he smirks and giggles about the horrors unleashed by his criminal war?

[faust2001]

Then why does W seem more like the Joker?

[MadJeffersonian]

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!

Trying to "save" the reputation and legacy of an idiot president by trying to link him to a popular, fictional comic book character and movie.

Nice try. Not buying into it.

How about Dumb and Dumberer: When George Met Dick (2000)?