I had a thought about Julian Assange this morning that I think must’ve been motivated by the fact that the guy just isn’t as entertaining anymore as he once was. The interesting leaks have all but stopped, and in their place, we have to continually hear about what a bad lover he is and how he intentionally breaks condoms before having sex with casual female acquaintances. So I’m not feeling as charitable as I once was, leading me to the following thought:
It’s a mistake for the US to try to charge Assange under criminal law. After all, he’s not a US citizen, and what he did might therefore be rather difficult to try. However, one could easily make the case that he’s a non-state actor, and that his actions were an Act of War. In which case, he could be detained indefinitely—or at least until he makes personal reparations to the United States—as an Enemy Combatant. Now, that would be an interesting case because Assange is an Australian, and no doubt, the Australian government would object to his detention on those grounds. Obviously, they’d want to repatriate him—but without condoning his actions. Thus, it’s possible that the Australians could charge him for treason against its allies, a charge that I think they might make stick. I think that’d solve the US’s problems nicely.
Of course, the thick heads in Washington always want to come across all scary and intimidating, so they’ll no doubt ignore the savvy solution—again—but that doesn’t change the fact that it exists.
For example, I’ve never understood why they need to try all these 9/11 guys who’re in Guantanamo when the obvious solution is to declare them mentally insane and lock them up—for their own protection, obviously—in a secure Upstate mental facility, thereby discrediting their ideology in front of the world’s lunatic fringe. *sigh* Sadly, that sort of thing is a lost art anymore.
But seriously, if you’re gonna violate a guy’s civil rights—and I’m not saying that you should or you shouldn’t—you should at least do it in a way that furthers your cause.
***
I read two books this week, and they’re a study in contrasts. The first was George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones. Great book, but long. I mean, it’s 800-pages of densely packed medieval fantasy goodness. A lot happens. A LOT. Without getting into it too much, I think it’s probably the best fantasy book I’ve ever read in terms of its take on the politics of a feudal empire. At 800-pages, Martin gives himself the space to really explore all the angles, and that, more than anything, is what makes the book work. I really enjoyed it, but it was also a slog that made my eyes tired.
On the side was the new hardcover (HC) Grant Morrison/Frank Quietly Batman & Robin: Batman Reborn. To recap briefly, DC ran an event recently where Bruce Wayne, aka the Batman, gave his life to save the world. So Batman Reborn follows Dick Grayson, the original Robin, as he sheds his Nightwing persona in order to take up the mantle of Batman. And as with A Game of Thrones, a LOT happens.
I tend to like Morrison’s work, especially when he works with Quietly, and I think the two of them are right on their game here. The book is interesting, the villains are disturbing, and there’s a nice tension between Grayson and the new Robin, Damian Wayne, who’s Bruce’s illegitimate son by Talia Al Ghul (for those who don’t read the comics: she’s the daughter of the villain from the movie Batman Begins). But here’s my issue: the whole thing is rushed. I mean, not the execution of this particular story, but in general, the whole idea of Bruce Wayne being killed, Nightwing taking the Batman mantle to keep his mentor’s legacy alive in Gotham, and the development of Damian Wayne… it’s all good stuff. But it’s rushed. We get maybe 6 or so issues of Nightwing-as-Batman, and then suddenly Bruce Wayne is reincarnated (ugh), and now, once again, here’s Big Brother, watching over everyone’s shoulder and making sure that everything is going to be alright. Suspense? No. Watching as the odd-couple-in-training becomes a true partnership? Forget it. I mean, they could’ve gotten YEARS of play out of these ideas, and back in the 80s they would have, but these days it’s all hurry, hurry, hurry! We’ve got to have the next mega-event, multi-title story arc. No time for all that character crap now. When’s Blackest Night? When’s Brightest Day? How soon can we start Batman, Inc.?
And these guys wonder why no one is buying comics anymore. Why should they? Any story decision is just gonna be overwritten by the next writer. There’re no lasting consequences for the characters, and in the long run, that kills the story. Why worry if Batman dies? You know he’ll be back, probably before the Christmas buying season. After all, we wouldn’t want to miss out on the sales peak.
But what do I know about it? I’m only a reader anymore. Hell, I wouldn’t even be that if it weren’t for my kids and their nascent interest in the Batman.
***
Saw the new Tron: Legacy. I thought it was cool, but the 3D hurt my eyes after about a half-hour, and I still can’t quite rap my head around the idea of a computer system having weather and ground-effect from thrusters. Still, I liked the way they stuck with the iconic images from the original movie. Tron might be a goofy idea, but it was at least a goofy idea that was well-rendered.
I’m hoping to get out to see Tangled his weekend with the girls. Maybe the 24th. I guess we’ll see. Christmas gets so crazy; hopefully it won’t be like that this year.
If I’ve not said it already, have a merry Christmas, and a happy New Year.
No comments:
Post a Comment