# John McCain is Batman **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 16, 2008, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909 "2008-09-16T22:52:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2008, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/1 "2008-09-16T22:52:46Z")
So then…what does that make Bush? Jim Gordon? [D.C. Batman](http://shep.ca/pages/maverick.html) ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2008, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/2 "2008-09-16T23:54:25Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > So then…what does that make Bush? Jim Gordon? > > [D.C. Batman](http://shep.ca/pages/maverick.html) This is a thing of pure beauty. ---
**Author:** ![DJ\_Motorbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DJ\_Motorbike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DJ_Motorbike)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/3 "2008-09-17T00:09:41Z")
These are lines from Frank _Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns_ wherein Batman defeats Superman. What is the angle here? I don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/4 "2008-09-17T00:14:34Z")
> [@DJ\_Motorbike](#): > > These are lines from Frank _Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns_ wherein Batman defeats Superman. What is the angle here? I don’t get it. It’s a joke. Miller’s Batman is old (well, old for a superhero, anywhistle) and broken down. He’s faced with a much younger opponent, the leader of the Mutant Gang. Saying that the girl is perfect, better than Dick, is a way of saying Sarah Palin is a better running mate for McCain than Dick Cheney. Et cetera. ---
**Author:** ![DJ\_Motorbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DJ\_Motorbike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DJ_Motorbike)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/5 "2008-09-17T00:25:49Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > It’s a joke. > > Miller’s Batman is old (well, old for a superhero, anywhistle) and broken down. He’s faced with a much younger opponent, the leader of the Mutant Gang. Saying that the girl is perfect, better than Dick, is a way of saying Sarah Palin is a better running mate for McCain than Dick Cheney. > > Et cetera. I understand the parallel, but I don’t get the angle. It seems more or less pro-McCain, but I’m not sure that’s what the author intended. Maybe it’s non-partisan and only exists because someone thought it was a cool comparison. ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/6 "2008-09-17T01:24:26Z")
> [@DJ\_Motorbike](#): > > These are lines from Frank _Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns_ wherein Batman defeats Superman. What is the angle here? I don’t get it. Nitpick: It’s from when the Mutant Gang Leader beats the shit out of Batman. Also, Batman doesn’t defeat Superman. ---
**Author:** ![DJ\_Motorbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DJ\_Motorbike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DJ_Motorbike)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/7 "2008-09-17T01:51:43Z")
> [@shy\_guy](#): > > Nitpick: It’s from when the Mutant Gang Leader beats the shit out of Batman. Also, Batman doesn’t defeat Superman. Well, defeat is too strong a term, perhaps. [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:_The_Dark_Knight_Returns) agrees with me. > [@](#): > > Batman and Superman engage in a powerful battle, but Batman emerges the winner. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/8 "2008-09-17T12:58:47Z")
> [@DJ\_Motorbike](#): > > I understand the parallel, but I don’t get the angle. It seems more or less pro-McCain, but I’m not sure that’s what the author intended. Maybe it’s non-partisan and only exists because someone thought it was a cool comparison. It’s a joke, son. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/9 "2008-09-17T13:18:05Z")
> [@](#): > > John McCain is Batman [No](http://www.glasswings.com.au/comics/ozyandmillie/d/19980509.html) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/10 "2008-09-17T14:51:57Z")
[The REAL “John McCain is Batman” image](http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/4387/mccainpowmd6.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/11 "2008-09-17T15:38:47Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > [The REAL “John McCain is Batman” image](http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/4387/mccainpowmd6.jpg) I used to think that “LOL” was one of those annoying teen chatspeak acronyms that didn’t relate to anything in reality. …and then I LOL’d all over the damned place. Ick. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/12 "2008-09-17T15:43:18Z")
The real question is can he defeat Super Obama ([http://cgi.ebay.com/Alex-Ross-Barack-Obama-Superman-Giclee-Print-Sgnd-500\_W0QQitemZ180289930266QQihZ008QQcategoryZ360QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem](http://cgi.ebay.com/Alex-Ross-Barack-Obama-Superman-Giclee-Print-Sgnd-500_W0QQitemZ180289930266QQihZ008QQcategoryZ360QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem))even if he’s prepared. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/13 "2008-09-17T15:50:12Z")
That was fricken awesome. The quotes are from all over the book. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/14 "2008-09-17T18:18:53Z")
> [@DJ\_Motorbike](#): > > Well, defeat is too strong a term, perhaps. [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:_The_Dark_Knight_Returns) agrees with me. In that case Wikipedia is full of shit. There’s only one orphan left standing after that battle, and it’s the Kid from Kryptonopolis, not the jerk from Jersey. ---
**Author:** ![De\_La\_Rue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@De\_La\_Rue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/De_La_Rue)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/15 "2008-09-17T19:59:22Z")
No no no. \*\*Bush \*\*is Batman, McCain is Alfred, the Joker is Osama bin Laden and Obama is Harvey Dent. (That was the analysis from a college newspaper editorial I read recently, reviewing _The Dark Knight_. Ladies and gentlemen: cramming current pop politics onto whatever the year’s summer blockbuster is makes for mediocre humor.) ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/16 "2008-09-17T20:03:06Z")
> [@De\_La\_Rue](#): > > No no no. \*\*Bush \*\*is Batman, McCain is Alfred, the Joker is Osama bin Laden and Obama is Harvey Dent. > > (That was the analysis from a college newspaper editorial I read recently, reviewing _The Dark Knight_. Ladies and gentlemen: cramming current pop politics onto whatever the year’s summer blockbuster is makes for mediocre humor.) All jokes aside, I’d say that’s correct in mood if not in particulars–that is, The Dark Knight’s subtext is clearly the war on terror. It wasn’t an allegory, though, as an apology for the president’s extralegal tactics. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/17 "2008-09-17T20:10:42Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > All jokes aside, I’d say that’s correct in mood if not in particulars–that is, The Dark Knight’s subtext is clearly the war on terror. It wasn’t an allegory, though, as an apology for the president’s extralegal tactics. What? It was published in 1986. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/18 "2008-09-17T20:12:28Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > What? It was published in 1986. I refer to the movie, not the graphic novel. Currently I don’t even concede that the graphic novel exists, as in my edited version of history, Frank Miller died in a tragic yodeling accent after finishing his Daredevil run and never touched Batman. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/19 "2008-09-17T20:23:22Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I refer to the movie, not the graphic novel. Currently I don’t even concede that the graphic novel exists, as in my edited version of history, Frank Miller died in a tragic yodeling accent after finishing his Daredevil run and never touched Batman. Odd, I thought he died right after he wrote the _Dark Knight Returns_, and never was able to crank out that sequel he mentioned in his journals. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2008, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909/20 "2008-09-17T20:25:35Z")
The photo of McCain with the captions “I smell their fear. And it is sweet.” looks _evil_. As in Dr. Evil would be pooping his pants if McCain looked at him like that. As if Lex Luthor would jump at the opportunity to ally with McCain just to avoid getting on his bad side. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-mccain-is-batman/463909.md?page=2)