Heros

I am pissed. I was going to write this last night but I bit my tongue. That's hard to do. My tongue sticks out pretty freaking far. Not as far as my ears stick out, but close. (That's classic Rodney Dangerfield and if you don't laugh at that, you probably don't laugh at Who's on First.)

Yesterday, News10 in Sacramento ran this story: http://www.news10.net/video/default.aspx?bctid=1972605695001 They call him a Super Hero. They also call him a vigilante.

Lets start with this: being a vigilante is not a good thing. People shouldn't want to be called vigilantes. Do you know the most famous vigilante? Lets try it. Word association, style. I say vigilante, you say: Bernie Goetz. Dude shot a couple of kids. In New York. On the Subway. Google it if you don't know what I am talking about. So now we are writing news stories about vigilantes who are walking the streets. Nice.

But this is worse. They called dude a hero. He is not a hero. He is some moron dressed up in a costume pretending he is 8 and thinking he can be Super Man. I know a few cops. I am pretty sure they all agree: if you see crime happening, call them. They are trained professionals. Do not think you are a Super Hero. You are not. Super Hero's are fake. You know what is real though: pretend Super Heros who get the crap beat out of them by actual criminals.

Look, I am not the biggest guy in the world. I have been in a few fights in my life. But, I can handle my own. I am going to call 911 if I see a crime in progress. Now I see some dude hurting a kid or a woman? Yes, I will jump in and help. But I am not walking around the streets in a Halloween costume pretending I am freaking Super Man. Thats just idiotic.

I keep losing my place. They call dude a hero. Do you know what a hero is? This is not a hero. My dad was my hero. He was the big strong guy who always took care of his family. A hero is the guy who has to work two jobs to support his family. A hero is a guy who does something nice for someone, not because he has to, but because he wants to. A hero is a guy who steps up and helps his community. A hero is someone who does the right thing.

Lets just be clear: this guy is playing Super Hero. That is so far from being a hero. The news is doing a disservice to our kids by calling this guy a hero. Heck, they are doing a disservice by even airing a story about this guy. Lets see stories about real heroes doing real things helping real people.