Marvel Comics: Captain America Says Tea Parties Are Dangerous and Racist

Publius Forum ^ | 2-9-10 | Warner Todd Huston

[TitansAFC]

Marvel Comic’s Captain America is the mightiest soldier with the super powerful secret soldier formula that makes him a super man. Sadly, this muscle bound hero that took on the whole Nazi army during WWII seems to be afraid of those American people who’ve joined the Tea Party movement. Not only is Cappy quaking in his little red booties, but he’s sure that the Tea Party folks are dangerous racists, too.

Isn’t it wonderful that a decades old American comic book hero is now being used to turn readers against our very political system, being used to slander folks that are standing up for real American principles in real life — and one called “Captain America” at that?

In issue number 602 of Captain America, a new story line has begun called “Two Americas.” In it the current Captain (there have been a few of them, apparently) is on the trail of a faux Captain America that is mentally deranged and getting chummy with some white supremacist, anti-government, survivalists types going by the name of “the Watchdogs.” While investigating this subversive group, Captain America and his partner The Falcon — a black super hero — have decided to try and infiltrate the secretive organization.

In preparation for the infiltration, Marvel Comics depicts the two super heroes out of costume and observing from a rooftop a street filled with what can only be described as a Tea Party protest. The scene shows crowds of people in city streets carrying signs that say, “stop the socialists,” “tea bag libs before they tea bag you,” and “no to new taxes.” Naturally, the people in these crowds are depicted as being filled with nothing but white folks.

The black character asks the out of costume Captain, “What the hell is this?” And follows that with, “looks like some kind of anti-tax protest.” The Falcon character then snidely tells his partner the Captain, “So I guess this whole ‘hate the government’ vibe around here isn’t limited to the Watchdogs.”

The two then discuss their plan to infiltrate the subversive group that Marvel comics seems to be linking to the Tea Party movement. This discussion culminates in The Falcon wondering how a black man would do such a thing. “I don’t exactly see a black man from Harlem fitting in with a bunch of angry white folks,” he tells the incognito Captain America.

The Captain tells him, “no it’s perfect… this all fits right into my plan.” After this we find that the Captain’s plan is to send the black man into a redneck bar to pretend to be a black man working for the IRS and to get everyone all mad… because… well, you know that every white person is a racist that hates black civil servants, right?

So, there you have it, America. Tea Party protesters just “hate the government,” they are racists, they are all white folks, they are angry, and they associate with secretive white supremacist groups that want to over throw the U.S. government.

Bet you didn’t know that when you were indulging your right as a citizen to protest your government that you were a dangerous white supremacist that wants to destroy the country, did you? Bet you didn’t realize that your reverence for the U.S. Constitution was a subversive thing to do, did you? And I’ll also bet that you never imagined that you’d scare the little blue panties off of Captain America!

Nice going Marvel Comics. Thanks for making patriotic Americans into your newest super villains.

[SgtBob]

“Remember that the next time you think about dropping 5K to take the family to Disney World.”

How ‘bout droppin’ 5K in Vegas...

[The Wizard]

marvel better watch what is says or it be be in the wrong line

[Blind Eye Jones]

This is the USSR version of Captain America.

[ko_kyi]

According to DC, Hitler had a supernatural artifact called “The Spear of Destiny” that repelled superhumans

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Lance#Vienna_Lance_.28Hofburg_spear.29

Not just a comic book thing (though I don't know how well it works on supers)

[a fool in paradise]

Can’t be Stan. They did that to the Superman reboot.

[a fool in paradise]

Walt ran the company but licensed the comic book rights out to other companies around the world. It just so happened that “the good duck artist (and writer)” Carl Barks briefly worked at Disney in animation. Disney didn’t publish comics until the 1990s.

[tanknetter]

I think that I read somewhere that it was Stan Lee that insisted .. in the filming of Spiderman that .. “Truth, Justice and the American way” be changed to .. “Truth, Justice and .. All That Stuff”.

As others have stated, that was in the last Superman movie. I don't agree with the criticism, because the "all that stuff" line was said by Perry White ... which is definitely IN character for him.

[tanknetter]

Ol’ Supe came here to Earth in 1938. He should have made mincemeat out of the Germans and the Japs, no atomic bomb needed. Wha’ hoppened, huh?

I have a DVD of the first Superman cartoons, the ones that were made and ran right around the time the US came into the war. They have a very nice one called the "Japateurs" where Lois and Clark are in Tokyo on a story and Superman keeps taking out chunks of the Japanese war industry.

Ok, sure, Superman COULD take out the Axis in a busy afternoon. But then what would happen with all the associated story lines? Like Wonder Woman for instance?

And from a sales perspective, if Superman takes out the Axis in late December 1941 what does DC do for storylines compelling enough to get kids to part with their hard earned allowance money for the next four years?

[RatsDawg]

I wish they would have just let Capt. America die, didn’t they kill him off a few years ago?

[the long march]

For a guy who saw what totalitarianism can do, who used to write and produce some mighty fine pro-US material, it is disappointing. Either old age or stupidity ( maybe both) seem to have over taken him.

[be-baw]

Here are comments by Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief, Joe Quesada, on the controversy:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=24784

[Jack Hydrazine]

What’s needed is to have Capt. America show up at Tea Party rallies. Any one have the costume that can attend or even make one for a future attendee?

Oh yeah! We need Capt. America to show up at Palin rallies! Would that be cool or what? Make sure he gets great face time standing next to the Palinator shaking her hand! Go Cappy!