“Find your inner superhero!”

This Saturday I thought it might be good to have a change of pace.

Of course we’ll start out talking about current events, but then lets check our selves out.  Let’s ask ourselves, “Am I a hero or a superhero.”  There’s really a big difference. (You will probably overcome any temptation to get yourself fitted with a skintight suit, cape and mask.)

OK, what’s a superhero?  (I grew up in the age of  Superman.)  A super hero is somebody or thing who comes equipped with such special powers that he has no reason to fear anybody or anything but failure in his personnel life.  Actually, a superhero isn’t a real hero at all, because he has no limits.  His special powers enable him to do anything.  The only time he gets into trouble is when he has to interact with mortals or various and sundry supervillians.  Have you ever noticed that superheros and supervillains are strangely incapable of annihilating each other.

On the other hand a hero, is by my definition a normal, mortal human being, who, when by circumstance or fate is presented with an opportunity (or demand) that makes him forget his human limitations (perhaps by transferring control to his mid-brain) and performs brilliantly some feat far outside his recognized capabilities.  Often the hero will seem to disregard his own safety and sometimes it will cost him his life, while accomplishing his mission.  This phenomenon is not limited to a physical performance, it may entail mental accomplishment in a time in the face of danger or extreme need or lack of confidence. If you ever meet a hero, and  ask him to tell his story, he will usually tell it matter of factly and modestly, and may simply explain that he did what was necessary and is glad he was able to do it.

So, if you buy my definition; a superhero is not a hero at all.  He is merely performing what the writer decided he could do.  He is incapable of doing exceptional things, because for him nothing is exceptional.  We mere mortals see him in relation to our personal limits and visualize him as “great”.

And, a hero is a product of opportunity and momentarily unquestioned confidence and ability to perform that is turned into action that saves people or important things, that if we witness, we witness will want in some way to memorialize.  (or for some, mythologize)

I’m not sure what you would call it when a parent in the middle of something can automatically reach out and catch their child just before he hits the floor.  That is probably in our genes.

Many of the good things we have are here because we all did what we could most of the time and every now and then we were able to do something exceptional that all in all have helped make things better for ourselves and others.

Let’s talk about it on Saturday. 

Here’s a selection of resources which I encourage you to check out.  Especially the Charlie Rose interview of Malcom Gladwell , the author of Outliers, then the first Bill Moyer’s interview of Karen Armstrong talking about compassion.

Superhero
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superhero

Masters of Evil
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masters_of_Evil

Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American mythologist, writer and lecturer, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work is vast, covering many aspects of the human experience. His philosophy is often summarized by his phrase: "Follow your bliss."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Campbell

(Charlie Rose) A conversation (30 minutes) with Malcolm Gladwell, author of “Outliers.”   Outliers, defined by Gladwell as people who do not fit into our normal understanding of achievement,[3] Outliers deals with exceptional people, especially those who are smart, rich, and successful, and those who operate at the extreme outer edge of what is statistically possible.[2, In statistics, an outlier is an observation that is numerically distant from the rest of the data. (Intro gleaned from Wikipedia.org)
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/9855

(Karen Armstrong)"... if you want to make God laugh, tell Him, or Her, your plans. A self-proclaimed "freelance monotheist," Karen Armstrong is now on a mission to bring compassion, the heart of religion, as she sees it, back into modern life. "Do not do to others what you would not like them to do to you."
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/03132009/watch.html

Bill Moyers Interviews Karen Armstrong
http://www.pbs.org/now/transcript/transcript_armstrong.html

RELATED INFORMATION

Obama: The First 100 Days 
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/white_house/obama100/

Public Service Announcement:

LWV series on Local Government Issues
The series is being held on Thursday afternoons 1-3 in Room 121 of the University Center from March 26th through April 30th (except for April 16th ).  Room 121, The University Center.
The series is sponsored by the League of Women Voters to inform voters about those county government entities with publicly elected boards of directors.  Board of directors’ elections for contested positions on the MUDs and the Community College District take place in May, 2009. If you’ve ever wondered what the taxing entities on your tax bill do, here is your opportunity to ask the experts.Helen Bostock, League of Women Voters – Montgomery County, is the coordinator for the series.
http://www.montgomery.lonestar.edu/all. To join ALL, enroll in classes, or ask questions about the ALL program, contact ALL at 936-273-7446. The ALL office is located on Lone Star College – Montgomery campus in Building C-Room 228 for in-person registration.
While this is an ALL program, a limited number of guest passes are available by contacting Donna S. Burns at 936.273.7259 or email at Donna.S.Burns@lonestar.edu

Current Events: (It’s late.)

Wow, this is the year of heros.  We cheered when three Navy SEAL snipers were able to accomplish the impossible feat of taking out three pirates in a bouncing covered lifeboat of Somalia.  (Makes me proud, since I was a SEAL)

Not to forget Chesley Sullenberg’s feat of landing a airliner in the Hudson river without power.

However North Korea’s TaeDong 2 quite apparently fizzled but we still fussed.

Marcus Luttrell’s (The Lone Survivor) 4 year old dog Dasy was killed in a random shooting by a couple of lowlifes in Huntsville.  Marcus was a Navy SEAL who was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroic action in Afghanistan.  He had been given Dazy to help in his recovery from wounds. The shooters were caught because Marcus followed them and called 911.