Captain America was a defender of the best American ideals: freedom, liberty, and justice. His only weapon was a shield, a weapon of defense and not aggression. He was created as a propaganda tool to help American GIs feel like they had the moral high ground in World War II (which they did, of course!), but grew to be more than a simple Nazi fighter. Over the course of his "life", he has been promoted to Colonel, served as President of the United States, and stands as a leader of the "opposition" in the debate over the Superhuman Registration Act currently taking place in Marvel's "Civil War" series. Wherever the Captain went and whatever he did, he was an example of courage and forthrightness; an example that will be sorely missed.

In truth, his example is probably the reason he was killed. We live in times where truth, freedom, and equality are no longer virtues upheld by the masses and the media. Our icons are Britney Spears, Miss America, Paris Hilton, Terrell Owens, Rosie O'Donnell, former President Bill Clinton, Nicole Ritchie; the list of miscreants goes on and on. We invade these celebrities' lives and feed on their indiscretions; as Caesar himself described it, they are our "bread and circuses". Who in these days wants to read about a paragon of virtue and defender of truth when we can instead be entertained by T.O.'s latest offense and Britney's new hairdo (or lack thereof)? Why should we be made to feel guilty by failing to live up to high standards when we can instead feel better about ourselves for not being in rehab, for not being an alcoholic or drug addict, for not publicly swapping saliva with (admittedly appealing) members of our own gender?
Today's culture is rotten on the inside. We value style over substance and we expect everything to be here NOW, not in five minutes. We are the children of the Fast Food generation; we are the email/cell phone/Internet generation. Being patient, earning things, delayed gratification are all obsolescent concepts, too difficult for the "Have it your way" kids. Putting yourself in harms' way for others and risking yourself and your possessions are no longer seen as the path to greatness, but a foolish waste of energy that could be better spent paying an illegal alien to do it for you. Thus Captain America, the living symbol of America's will to go where Death and Depravity wait in order to keep them from our door, has outlived his usefulness. We no longer want Death and Depravity away from our front door; we invite them in daily! So, Cap, you had to go.
And I will likely be in the grave next to you, for if America has no need of you, how much longer will she need her Marines?

Learn more about this author, Hess Sherrod.
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