Conservatives are Right (So are the Liberals)

Taking a break from subjects that deal with Comic books, this is going to be a political rant. That means people will not agree with a lot that is about to me said here.

There two major ideologies in the American Political spectrum; those being Conservative and Liberal with the difference in ideology being in how the Federal Government should be used to help America. Conservatives, in general, are more about state rights and less government interference in people’s lives. The Liberals are about taking care of the American people and protecting American rights. Those are just broad views on the basic ideology of these two groups. They both have good ideas about how to help America. They also have extremist for their causes that tend to tarnish there public image.

Conservatives are correct when they say that Big Government is not what Americans want to have in their lives. The Federal Government should not be involved in our daily lives like it is now. They should have a very light touch on the grand scheme of things. The belief that communities can take care of their people is true and doesn’t need a big brother watching over them. A state can better decide what is best for those that live there compare to the Federal Government.

Conservatives also believe that the less money is taken from the rich is the best. That is partly true. It is true that top 10% of earners pay more in taxes and thus have more monies taxed by the Feds. The main problem with cutting taxes on that top 10% of earners is that they don’t spend money like the average American. A business teacher once said this in a class,” Rich people are rich for one reason. They don’t spend money. They save money.” Cutting taxes on that 10% will lessen money being put back into programs and services that are needed.

Conservatives are right about the entitlement mentality that some Americans display. The reason for this is because those programs and services offered by the Federal Government are not run properly. There is thinking, in some, that the average American needs help to achieve their dreams. That is partly true, but it is also true that if one doesn’t work hard to achieve their dream it isn’t appreciated. There has to be better guidelines and help for those on Welfare and other service, so they can be totally independent from those programs. There also has to be a limit to how many times Americans can use those services.

Liberals are right they we need to help those that can’t help themselves. They execute these ideas wrong. They create larger Government services which don’t really help Americans to achieve independence from these services. The best way is to give a helping hand to stand up and show these people the right way. Teach them how to fish, so they can feed themselves.

Liberals are correct that Green technology is the future. It must be an American industry that stays in America. I mean those jobs stay here and not shipped overseas. Green tech can create a new industrial revolution in this country if some would just stop fighting it. It also has to have an affordable price from the get go. Give tax breaks to those that use it and those that make it. If they are serious about this, they need to do something to make it appealing to everyone.

Liberal are correct to say there is corporate greed in America. They are wrong thinking it is everywhere. It goes back to the saying about one bad apple spoiling the bunch. Those that get too greedy are found and dealt with by companies that make these deals. The Federal Government needs to stay out of it completely. No bail outs or loans for these companies that keep people that have display these traits. Let them fall to the wayside and let another company take their place. That is the American way.

Liberal are correct in saying that the Health Care system is broken. They are wrong about the execution of fixing this problem. There does not need to be a new entitlement that will cause greater burden on the American people. They could create guidelines that could fix the majority of the problems in the Health Care field. Create tax breaks for companies that offer quality health care for people with meager means of support. Offer monies to those companies that create a wellness program that helps prevent major health problems. These all could be done without any major spending of taxpayer’s dollars.

Both camps have good ideas, but they fail on execution. The middle class America spend more disposable income that the 10% and that should be address by both camps. Tax breaks should never be just for one group, but it should be done in the way that all Americans feel it. If we take a real hard look at what the Federal Government has done since 1991, it isn’t much besides a bunch of bickering. The extremist are more concerned about placing blame than fixing the problems permanently. That is another trait that both camps share. They don’t look at long term effects of their execution of their ideas. It has been mostly quick fixes. It needs to stop and make long term changes for the good of all.

Mary Jane Watson the Most Writer Abused Character

Excellent title isn’t it? It is excellent because it happens to be true. Writers have been smacking around Mary Jane Watson for so long that it comes as surprised that she is not drawn with black eyes. The main problem is the writers are afraid or don’t understand the character at all. The lack of research into this character is just mind boggling because this happens to be one of those characters with a rich history where there could numerous dramatic stories that can be told.

Mary Jane Watson could be seen as the one of the greatest creation by Stan and Steve. She was, on the surface, the polar opposite of Peter Parker. She was popular and looking to have fun all the time. That is how she was first presented when she was introduced in the world of Peter Parker. Peter by comparison was the outsider and looked on the dark side of life think there was nothing he could do right. Mary Jane Watson brought some light heartiness to the book that was needed because those early issue were pretty dark if you take in the context of how Peter felt about himself. Mary Jane brought some needed relief of the constant teenage angst that was going on the time when Pete was in High School.

As Peter’s character evolved, Mary Jane’s character also evolved beyond that of “Party Girl”. We learned that Mary Jane came from a home that had an abusive father. She put on a brave face in front of her friend with the whole “let's have fun” attitude because it was an escape for her home life. She ran from the dark aspect of life. Anytime one of her friends was going through a personal crisis, she would just go party and have fun. That was her stander operating procedure until Gwen’s death. That was first time she stops and faces a dark crisis because of what Peter meant to her. That was a major shift for the character. She went from the Party Girl to Peter’s best friend that was there for him because she knows his secret.

Mary Jane disappeared for a time, but she return to let Peter know that she knows he is Spider-man. Once again, another major shift in the character. Peter found someone that he could talk to about Spider-man openly and not feel like he was alone in the world. Peter was dating Felicia Hardy, Black Cat, at the time which made the relationship with Mary Jane complex. Mary Jane was the friend that had feelings for Peter beyond that typical “just friends”. He would come to her with problems about Felicia and about being Spider-man. They grew closer to the point where during the many breaks with Peter’s relationship with Felicia that they kiss during a fight about Felicia causing a thought bubble from Mary Jane,” That was like we were boyfriend and girlfriend.”

Peter asked Mary Jane once to marry him, and she turned him down. She didn’t want to deal with the whole Spider-man aspect of his life. When she did say yes to his marriage proposal, things got worse for the character because she was portray wrong by the writer. She became a supermodel. That turned some of the fans off because they thought it did not fit in Peter’s world. Then she became an actress, which also did not fit in Peter’s world. Then she was killed, that fit in Peter’s world. Yet, it did not work because many readers could not see Peter with someone else now because Mary Jane was the girl. She came back and they separated because, once again, Mary Jane didn’t want deal with Peter being Spider-man. Sensing a theme here? Mary Jane, after seeing Peter selfless actions as Spider-man, that it was something Peter needed to do and has to do in order for her to love him. That led to some the best stories with the marriage in years.

Now, that the history lesson is over we can look at the mistakes with the character. The biggest mistake that the writers make with Mary Jane; with Peter too, is trying to keep them stuck in the past. There has to be growth or the characters will become stale. Sure, you can say that they have to stay the exactly the same as they were first written, but you will kill the book fast because it will become boring. There were many stories that could have done within Spider-man that would have change how the readers look at Mary Jane. Some examples:

-Mary Jane could have decided to choose to help Peter by joining the Police force.
-Mary Jane could have become an activist for Hero’s Right during Civil War.
-Mary Jane could have gotten a degree in Criminal Psychology and tried to help Peter.
-Mary Jane could have become an Investigating reporter and covered why Spider-man is seen as a menace.

: There were many stories that could have made the character stronger beyond turning into a model or actress.

There is whole, “I can’t be with you because you’re Spider-man,” theme that writers love to use to the point where the readers want to puke. That was fine for the first couple of years of the marriage, but it should have stopped after that because they were not going to get a divorce. It is worn out theme that is used by writers that have no imagination and hate the character of Mary Jane. They rather slap her around so the reader won’t like her, and they can start to write Peter fucking everyone that will spread her legs in the Marvel Universe. This is where the writers come off like prepubescent fanboys. They can’t wrap their minds around the fact that the readership have changed and so have the character. They want their old Peter back damn it and nothing is going to stop that from happening. It is magic and the readers need to shut up about already is their thinking. The problem they have is that Mary Jane is popular character that people want to read about over and over again because that is what they want. Do they need reminding who pays for those checks they cash from Marvel? The readership’s money is where that money comes from in order that check to be any good.

Mary Jane could be seen as the abusive wife for the writers to smack around as they please because the readership allows it to happen. Yes, the writers have screwed Mary Jane so many times that she is the perfect metaphor for a ten cent hooker. The readership allowed this to happen because we did not say anything when it happens except when they get rid of the marriage. It is time to fight for Mary Jane too. The marriage coming back is important, but we must watch how Mary Jane is being used as a character because that causes some problems too. One main goal should be that a woman writes for Spider-man and not bunch of men that are going through a mid-life crisis.