I recently conducted an essential and engrossing survey among my fellow college students and members of my community. The survey tracked the results of a debate that has been circulating the world for nearly a century, a debate so fundamental to society that I’ve decided it needs to be settled right here in The Eagle.
Batman versus Superman.
It was neck and neck, back and forth with the superior superhero, until it was discovered that a bit too many people like Superman.
When I asked people why they chose Superman as the higher-ranking superhero, I often heard that it was because Batman was powerless, as if that holds him back from the title of super hero.
Despite what many people think, Batman is just as super as Superman. To put it simply, imagine that Batman and Superman went on a scavenger hunt. Suppose Superman used his powers to help him complete the hunt in under 20 minutes.
But, it turns out that Batman completes the hunt at the exact same time as Superman, even though Batman doesn’t have any special abilities to lend him aid. What I’m trying to say is that if someone without powers can do just as much as someone with powers, then clearly, the one with no powers is the more superior of the two.
Sure, Superman can lift a building and push an asteroid away from the earth, but come on guys, his one and only weakness is a rock.
He is constantly being defeated by this tiny green stone, even though it is extremely rare since it is the remains of an alien planet on the other side of the universe. He doesn’t even need to hold the rock, but just be in its general area.
Come on, get it together, Clark.
As soon as I asked people who they believed is the superior superhero, they almost immediately replied, which goes to show how obsessed some of us are with the comic book realm.
Why do we spend so much of our time obsessing over fictional superheroes? Why do we debate Batman or Superman, Iron-man or Captain America, Peter Parker or Miles Morales?
We want to have hope and believe in something bigger than ourselves. If only the firefighters had more time to save the victims lost in that burning building. The Flash doesn’t have to worry about that.
If only we had politicians to stand firm with the beliefs our country was built upon when corruption and discrimination is all that remain. Captain America doesn’t change his beliefs.
When we find a flaw, we fill it with leotards, capes and catchy titles. But, we don’t have these brightly-colored superheroes in our daily lives. We do, however, have real heroes.
Women and men join the military everyday to protect and defend our country. Firefighters rush to our aid when our lives are in danger. Police officers watch over our families by enforcing the law on a 24-hour basis. Doctors and nurses save our lives when we cannot do it for ourselves. Educators ensure that everyone has the chance to grow up to purse a career they love.
You remember that time you saw a candy wrapper on the floor and you took the time to pick it up and throw it away? In that quick moment, you were a hero. You were a hero to the custodial staff.
It’s not always about defending the earth from an alien attack or laying your life on the line for someone else.
Being is a hero is about being kind. Being