Movie Morality & Why I'm Not Your Hero

You know those movies where some hero decides they're gonna "take one for the team" and save humanity? Think Bruce Willis in "Armageddon," volunteering for a one-way trip to save Earth. Man, I love those scenes. It's like, "Go, team human!" But then there's that other movie trope that gets under my skin: "Oh, we have to choose between Bob over here and, like, a million people? Sorry, Bob." Cue dramatic music and a scene straight out of "The Dark Knight" where Batman's got to pick who to save.

I mean, I get it. Mathematically, it seems like a no-brainer. But doesn't that feel like a cheat code to morality? I'm all for someone willingly jumping on the "Save the Planet Express," but forcing Bob onto that train? That's a whole different ballgame.

Look, maybe I'm the odd one out here, but I think there's more to being a decent human than just crunching numbers. In fact, if you live your life like it's some kind of morbid math problem, you might miss out on the stuff that makes us, well, human. And that, my friends, could be worse than getting squashed by a runaway asteroid or being zapped by Thanos.

Sure, none of us want Earth to go kaboom. That would seriously mess up everyone's weekend plans. But I'm just saying, deciding who gets to live or die based on a calculator is kinda messed up. Because let's face it, when it comes to making tough calls, there's no app for love or human decency.

So if you're looking for someone to pull the lever and doom Bob for the sake of saving a hypothetical million, you're barking up the wrong hero. Not that I've ever been the "chosen one" or anything. But if I were, you bet I'd try to make the call from a place of love, not from a place of "Sorry, Bob. You lost the life lottery."

Until then, I'll just keep navigating the maze of life with my awkward, childish, and lovable sense of right and wrong. And who knows? Maybe one day I'll find myself in a hero situation à la Neo in "The Matrix," and decide Bob's really gotta go. But until that moment, I'll keep using love as my compass.

I know. It sounds pretty cheesy? But maybe, the world we live in needs a little cheesy right now.

#ileadwithlove