Superhero Movie Quotes

Jonathan Kent, from Superman the Movie:

"You can do all these amazing things, and sometimes you think that you will burst wide open unless you can tell someone about it, don't you? There's one thing I know for sure, son. And that is, you are here for a reason. I don't know what it is, exactly, but I do know this much: it's not to score touchdowns."


Bruce Wayne, from Batman Begins:

"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me."


Aunt May, from Spider-Man 2:

"He knows a hero when he sees one. Too few characters out there, flying around like that, saving old girls like me. And Lord knows, kids like Henry need a hero. Courageous, self-sacrificing people. Setting examples for all of us. Everybody loves a hero. People line up for them, cheer them, scream their names. And years later, they'll tell how they stood in the rain for hours just to get a glimpse of the one who taught them how to hold on a second longer. I believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most. Even our dreams."

Something Left in the Tank

According to Wikipedia:

“The conservation ethic is an ethic of resource use, allocation, exploitation, and protection. Its primary focus is upon maintaining the health of the natural world: its forests, fisheries, habitats, and biological diversity. Secondary focus is on materials conservation and energy conservation, which are seen as important to protect the natural world.”

When I was young, I would hear grownups say, “Don’t exert yourself” to kids before they went out to play. I didn’t really want to listen to grownups, but since I got sick so often when I was a kid, I often wound up napping, resting, or basically confined to the indoors while other kids played outside. Because of this, grownups might have thought I was actually listening to them.

As I got older, even though I didn’t get sick as much, my napping habits stayed with me. I wound up being friends with others who also didn’t mind resting when they could, and none of us were into extreme sports. We weren’t into extreme anything. We didn’t take drugs or get drunk or indulge in anything except the occasional double bacon cheeseburger with a baked potato. Other groups probably considered us as very boring, but since we never really paid attention to other groups, we never knew.

We did love to play baseball, though. We loved it so much that we knew that if any of us got hurt, we couldn’t play it for a while. And so we hustled, dove for the ball, and did as much as we could without breaking any bones. We argued but never fought, and conceded the point when we knew it was pointless to continue. We did what we could to enjoy baseball as much as we could for as long as we could, and we did.

The closer I get to the age of those grownups who said, “Don’t exert yourself,” the more I understand what they mean. These are grownups who, at the age of seventy and eighty years old are still going strong. They are still coherent and full of laughter. They are surrounded by good people. I don’t think extreme sports existed when they were growing up, so it would be a moot point to ask them about it.

Just as it’s wise to have a savings account for your money, I’m sure these grownups knew about having a savings account for their energy. “Don’t exert yourself” meant saving some energy for later, maybe much much later, even decades. It is a farsighted phrase that will not be easily understood until it is most needed.

Thou Shalt Trust in Thy Ignorance

There’s news this week about the National Security Agency collecting records of millions of American phone calls.

Here’s the New York Times link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/12/washington/12nsa.html

Many people probably don’t even know about this stuff.

Many people probably are happy that they don’t know about this stuff.

Many people will vote in the next election not knowing anything about this stuff.

Ignorance is a good thing.

Ignorance allows a person to trust without trying too hard or knowing too much.

Ignorance allows a person to indulge in certain things without having to be accountable for it.

Ignorance allows a person to have an opinion without being 100% responsible for it.

Ignorance allows a person not to have to change his ways.

Ignorance allows a person to hate another person without reason.

Ignorance allows a person to be afraid without knowing why he is afraid.

Ignorance allows a person to be lazy.

Ignorance is good entertainment.

Ignorance is good, clean fun.

I am, and have been, guilty of all these things. I am, and have been, guilty of all these things.

Repeat: I am, and have been guilty of all these things.