On Rick Perry and Superman
by Jay Smooth, September 6, 2011
from TRMS blog: The inimitable Jay Smooth‘s latest Ill Doctrine post contains his thoughts on something Texas Governor Rick Perry said during a campaign event in New Hampshire last Saturday:
Perhaps the best question came from a 9-year-old boy who asked Perry, “If you could be any superhero, who would you be and why?”
Grinning, Perry said he doesn’t know the newer superheroes.
“But there was one back in my day who was Superman,” he said. “And Superman came to save the United States.”
Critics may call his reasons for picking Superman (not for powers such as flight or heat vision, but because he “came to save the United States”) self-aggrandizing, but they’d be missing the most salient (and perhaps nerdiest) part of this episode.
Jay reminds us of the roots of the Superman legend — the secular elements of which correlate strongly to undocumented immigration. The Kryptonian known as Kal-El arrived on Earth not to “save the United States” (whose citizenship he recently renounced). He came only because his parents had to send him somewhere he’d continue to survive and thrive (which was not their home planet, which was about to explode). He helped Americans (and other Earthlings, by the way) only because he was here — and had the opportunity, will and means to do so. All while doing his best to fit in as an ordinary guy.
Draw parallels where you will.
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