Arguing Against the Green Lantern Theory of Geopolitics

I'm extremely late to this, but a friend linked me to this post by Matt Yglesias from all the way back in 2006 on what he called the "Green Lantern Theory of Geopolitics." Here is an excerpt:

As you may know, the Green Lantern Corps is a sort of interstellar peacekeeping force set up by the Guardians of Oa to maintain the peace and defend justice. It recruits members from all sorts of different species and equips them with the most powerful weapon in the universe, the power ring.

The ring is a bit goofy. Basically, it lets its bearer generate streams of green energy that can take on all kinds of shapes. The important point is that, when fully charged what the ring can do is limited only by the stipulation that it create green stuff and by the user's combination of will and imagination. Consequently, the main criterion for becoming a Green Lantern is that you need to be a person capable of "overcoming fear" which allows you to unleash the ring's full capacities. It used to be the case that the rings wouldn't function against yellow objects, but this is now understood to be a consequence of the "Parallax fear anomaly" which, along with all the ring's other limits, can be overcome with sufficient willpower.

Suffice it to say that I think all this makes an okay premise for a comic book. But a lot of people seem to think that American military might is like one of these power rings. They seem to think that, roughly speaking, we can accomplish absolutely anything in the world through the application of sufficient military force. The only thing limiting us is a lack of willpower.

I don't take issue the assertion that neoconservatives of the Bush era naively believed that the United States could solve the world's problems by exercising military power. Nor do I disagree that this isn't the best way of approaching international relations.

No, I'm merely surprised that Yglesias is using the Green Lantern as a point of comparison. According to him, the power ring is the American military. It can only be wielded properly by someone with sufficient abilities to overcome fear. Completing the analogy, this would mean that Hal Jordan (or whoever you favorite Green Lantern is) is really George W. Bush, commander of the American military. The Guardians of Oa, then, are basically the people who elected Bush & Co., believing he possessed the requisite skills to command an army.

Sure, the Guardians of Oa award power rings to only those members they consider having surpassed a certain threshold of bravery, fearlessness, and willpower. But having the "guts" to engage in international military conflict isn't exactly what the Guardians had in mind. In my view, the power rings are not awarded to individuals with enough fearlessness to use them, but with enough fearlessness not to.

No one would be afraid of using a power ring haphazardly. It's a power ring. It's awesome. Who wouldn't want the opportunity to shoot things with it and fly around in space? Any fool can put on a ring and blast away to his or her heart's desire. The idea is, however, that when faced with a crisis, the fearful people would be more willing to use the power ring in vastly excessive and inappropriate ways. This would more likely distrub the peace, rather than preserve it.

This is why the Guardians gave the ring to Hal, someone who they thought possessed the ability to use the ring only when absolutely necessary. In this context, "willpower" does not mean overcoming your fear of using power offensively. It means overcoming your fear of abusing the power. It means having restraint.

As evidence of this, consider what happens to Hal after the destruction of Coast City. He attempted to use the power ring solely for personal gain (i.e. to rebuild the city), an action the Guardians condemned. In response to this, he attacks Oa in a forceful, but ultimately futile attempt to gain control of the Central Battery, which eventually allowed him to be taken over by Parallax, a demonic and parasitic fear agent.



What we see here is that Hal's hubris, which was in fact brought on by fear (not courage), weakened him enough to be possessed and subsequently resulted in the death of several of his fellow Green Lantern corp. The lesson is that fear is associated with the abuse of power, whereas true courage and willpower is associated with caution, thoughtfulness and restraint.

To further amplify this, take a look at who the Guardians chose as Hal's replacement: Kyle Rayner. Recall that rather than being a fighter pilot like Jordan, Rayner was actually a struggling graphic artist living in Los Angeles. Not exactly the image one conjures when thinking of a traditionally brave, fearless person, right? Yet, the Guardians were shrewd this time. Though this was never apparent, my guess is they wanted to avoid a repeat of the Hal situation. So, they gave a power ring to someone with a gift for creativity; someone who they viewed would think critically about the most effective ways of using this new found power.

I'd be interested to hear what Yglesias (and of course you guys) thinks about all of this.

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Has Green Lantern Met His Match?

The Green Lantern has accomplished nearly impossible feats and has overcome the worthiest of adversaries, including Vandal Savage, Parallax, and Sinestro. However, his latest enemy might prove to be his match. Via The Beat, here is an article from Inside Film:

Green Lantern’s proposed Australian shoot is understood to be under threat after the rising Australian dollar has blown out production costs.

Warner Bros is understood to be negotiating with the NSW State Government to receive a higher level of concessions in an effort to claw back between $US15 and $US25 million in value eroded by the currency gains.

The value of the Australian dollar has climbed by more than 16 per cent since the State Labor government announced the deal to film at Fox Studios in mid-April. The big-budget Hollywood blockbuster was expected to create around 500 local jobs, including 100 performers and 200 crew.

Who would have guessed that after all he'd been through, the Green Lantern would suffer defeat at the hands of foreign exchange rates? Indeed, economics can be a painful and merciless sorceress.

Perhaps he could use his power ring to manipulate foreign currency markets. His greatest and more imaginative challenge awaits.

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Green Lantern for Mayor: Blackest Night

(This is the second in a series of two posts regarding the current superhero mayoral election in DC. This post expresses doubts over Green Lantern's candidacy).

According to a recent announcement, Green Lantern has officially announced his intentions to enter Washington D.C.'s mayoral race.

Now, I have many fond memories of Kyle Rayner. I like him as a person. I respect his more severe face-mask and his poofy hair. I like that his imagination as a graphic artist greatly helped his ability to conjure up energy constructs as Green Lantern. I liked the way he wasn't vulnerable to the color yellow. But I have seriously doubts about his abilities as a Mayor.

Kyle is prone to being overly ambitious and his grand attempts often fall short. At one point, he tried to re-start the Green Lantern Corps by himself but only succeeded in creating a galactic despot and killing one of his newest inductees. Kyle also tried to go back in time and get his contemporary Hal Jordan to change his destiny. This ended poorly with Hal Jordan, quite literally, hitting himself. In both instances Kyle Rayner's heart was in the right place, but his brain was definitively elsewhere.

I also have problems regarding the way in which Mr. Rayner is conducting his campaign. The campaign web-site makes few specific references to which Green Lantern is running for office. Because of this, Mr. Rayner is able to cash in on the legacy of other Green Lanterns and use them to bolster his public image. Name recognition is not the way to draw voters to your camp. I find such activities to be unethical. This is the very reason why I withdrew my support of Ron McCain.

There's also the fact that Kyle Rayner has previously been possessed by Parallax, an entity responsible for the death of the Green Lantern corps and nearly destroying the universe. Now, a lot of good people get possessed by evil forces. Happens all the time. But I'm not entirely comfortable with my city being run by a man who is prone to being controlled by dark, primordial beings who are the living manifestations of fear. Things like that cause me to take pause. If the possession ever occurs again, it could be disastrous. At worst, the whole universe would end. At the very least one could expect major disruptions in public transportation which, in a city like D.C., could be disastrous enough by itself.


But beyond my personal issues with Mr. Rayner, there are problems that any Green Lantern would face upon entering office. The very nature of a "green" lantern would put any lantern at odds with established corporate lobbies who would view the inherent environmental connotations of the candidate as threatening. This could make interacting with large corporations difficult for any lantern Mayor due to preconceptions about the Lantern's political leanings.

It's also likely that any Lantern Mayor will bring their powers into the workplace. And while I agree that Green Lantern energy has great potential for improving infrastructure and helping the community, I worry that having a Kyle Rayner as a Mayor will make D.C.'s community too dependent on his powers. After all placing a lot of emphasis on a person who controls their powers with will is somewhat risky. You run the risk of Seasonal Affective Disorder sapping your Mayor's willpower and causing the new city hall building to collapse because the Mayor was propping it up with Green Lantern energy.

Furthermore, a Green Lantern in office means the oversight of the Guardians of the Universe. After all, no Green Lantern is an autonomous unit. Each Lantern is overseen by the watchful eyes of the Guardians, making any elected Green Lantern essentially a puppet candidate. As a result, putting Rayner in office would really put the power into the hands of individuals who are never seen by the voting populace and have not been given democratic power over the city of Washington. Do you want your city controlled by blue oompa-loompas in romper suits? In secret? From a galaxy away? I think not.

By electing Green Lantern Kyle Rayner, the citizens of Washington D.C. run the risk of having their future chopped into pieces and stuffed in the proverbial refrigerator.

And that's not a pretty picture.

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Green Lantern For Mayor: Brightest Day

(This is the first in a series of two posts regarding the current superhero mayoral election in DC. This post supports Green Lantern for mayor. Mark will post one later that expresses doubts over Green Lantern's candidacy).



Yesterday, we discussed the Green Lantern's announcement to run for mayor of DC. Well, it looks like the election is heating up, as more candidates have entered the race. According to a Robot6 post today:

It appears Spider-Man is also in the race. As is Superman. And the Atom. Even Batwoman, who is apparently for bird equality in D.C.

As it turns out, the sites are part of the New Organizing Institute’s BootCamp, where attendees are tasked with running their own mayoral campaigns for fictional characters as part of their training. You can find a full list of the sites they’ve created here.

Before we move on to analyzing the Green Lantern's merits, I would first like to point out why he would be a better mayor than the other popular candidates. Specifically, I am going to talk about Spider-Man and Superman, as they seem to me the most likely to contend with the Green Lantern. Batwoman and Batgirl have not demonstrated any significant leadership abilities until the disappearance of Bruce Wayne, and even now they lurk in Dick Grayson's shadow. Wonder Woman is conditioned to pound opposition, not hold press conferences and appear at legislative hearings. The Atom is a renownded scientist, but as we learned from Woodrow Wilson, academics should not be politicians.

So there's Spider-Man. Yes, we all love Spidey. He's fun, he's witty, he's responsible, and he has a generally incorruptible sense of morality. He's young and in touch with youth voters. He even received glowing approbation from President Obama in issue #583 of The Amazing Spider-Man. However, this does not imply that Spider-Man would make a good, or even adequate political leader. First of all, Spider-Man is not a leader. He is a team player, but certainly is not capable of handling administrative duties and delegating tasks. Secondly, one of the persistent themes in his life is his utter inability to maintain both a personal and professional life. Peter Parker has sacrificed a tremendous amount, including schoolwork, careers, and even love, in order to maintain his role as New York City protector. He had trouble balancing a part-time job as a photographer at the Daily Bugle with his duties as Spider-Man. Imagine if he were to balance fighting crime with being the Mayor of a city. Besides, Spider-Man does not and has never even lived in DC--the city or the universe! What would he know about holding political office in it?

From: The Amazing Spider-Man #583 by Zeb Wells, Todd Nauck, and Frank D'Armata

What about Superman? It would seem that Superman would be perfectly qualified to hold political office. America is in love with the Man of Steel. He smiles, beats up the bad guys, makes for great photos, and most of all, stands for truth, justice and the American way. Without a doubt, Superman is a natural born leader. The whole of the DC superhero community looks for his guidance in nearly all matters regarding Earth's safety. Here's the problem: he's Superman. He has better things to do than to sit at a desk. He patrols Metropolis and he serves as leader of the Justice League, who defuse threats to Earth's continued survival week after week. He was one of the most integral players in the recent defeat of Darkseid during Final Crisis. I personally would not want Superman to neglect his duties in the Justice League and risk the world's safety, would you? I would rather have somebody else handle the position of Mayor of DC.

And that someone is the Green Lantern.

Let us discuss his credentials. Kyle Rayner was specifically selected to serve as a Green Lantern following the tragic events of Hal Jordan's tenure as protector of Earth. Remember that Mr. Jordan had been a test pilot and had been awarded his power ring due to his honesty, bravery and fearlessness. These are qualities that the Lanterns and the Guardians of the Universe believed crucial towards membership in their ranks. Although Hal Jordan served proudly for many years, tragedy followed when he became possessed by Parallax--an agent of pure fear--went insane and destroyed Coast City.

It was then that the Lanterns decided they needed a new protector to replace Jordan--one in which the same tragedies would not repeat. Thus they had decided to change the job requirements. Rather than selecting someone based on the archaic, silver-age qualifications of fearlessness and honesty, they went in a new, more modern direction. They selected Mr. Rayner, a graphic artist, who was known more for his creativity and imagination than for his bravery. Rather than hastily, but confidently jumping into battle at the first sight of opposition, Rayner harnessed his boundless artistic imagination towards new and efficient solutions to problems of the day. And perhaps this was why Kyle Rayner retained such a strong public image in the United States.

Yet, this certainly does not imply that Mr. Rayner is void of bravery. Actually, quite the opposite. It turns out that much of the reason for why he was chosen following Coast City's catastrophe was that the Guardians believed that he knew fear well enough to be able to withstand torment by the Parallax. In fact, he even counseled other Lanterns (including Hal Jordan) as to how best overcome their innermost fears. And during the Sinestro Corp. War, Rayner did become possessed, but was actually able to take the form of the god, Ion, and engage Parallax in battle! Although he was defeated, there is no denying that this was a magnificent feat which not only showcased his bravery but sheer force of will.

Not only does Kyle Rayner possess the character and determination for Mayor of DC, he supports a range issues which will engender a positive effect for society and the economy.

Regarding the economy, the District of Columbia had the 10th highest unemployment rate (10.7%) in the country as of May 2009. Mr. Rayner will work towards easing this burden on the labor force by creating new, greener, energy-efficient jobs. He has proposed investing in local training programs, particularly in impoverished areas, in order to provide the necessary training and qualifications to secure jobs on the market for lower-income high school graduates. He has proposed investing in making DC's physical infrastructure by weatherizing older buildings and improving the public transportation system.

This could certainly contribute significantly towards easing the burden of the recession and DC's massive unemployment. Here is a report published by the Political Economy Research Institute, suggesting that investment in public infrastructure and economic growth rise and fall together. In a modeled baseline scenario for the year 2007, they estimate that a $54 billion increase in public infrastructure spending would increase annual GDP by about $46 billion. They also state that infrastructure spending will create about 18,000 jobs for every $1 billion spent.

Speaking of energy, the Green Lantern has a power ring, from which he could actually use the energy to create anything subject to the bounds of his imagination and will. As we discussed, Mr. Rayner in particular is known for his imagination and will power. Therefore, the use of the power ring under his guidance would be the most effective in helping DC recover in troubling economic times. In several occasions, Lanterns (such as John Stewart) have actually used the ring in order to rebuild destroyed cities and planets. In addition, his power ring is unique amongst the Lanterns in that is does not require recharging every 24 hours, its power is not negated by the color yellow, and is not powered by the Central Battery.



Regarding education, Kyle Rayner has not only stated that he supports investing government funds towards strengthening the foundation of early education, but he also believes in providing incentives and rewards for teachers to perform better and improve student outcomes. Consider this NBER paper by David N. Figlio and Lawrence Kenny, which demonstrate a positive relationship between financial incentives and outcomes (though to be fair was unable to rule out the overall qualities of the schools in the sample as a potential factor).

For these reasons, I believe that the Green Lantern possesses the intelligence, determination, willpower, imagination, and creativity to make the best Mayor of DC. In addition, he seems to possess the most solid grasp of the issues and effective solutions as combating poverty and social inequality.

And just as a reminder, what was the "greatest fear" that Parallax had tormented Kyle Rayner with in the time he was possessed? It was the fear of letting down everybody he knew. The Green Lantern is the people's champion!

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The Green Lantern Announces His Candidacy for Mayor of DC!

On July 5th, 2009, Kyle Rayner, aka The Green Lantern, began his campaign for DC mayor. For those of you unaware of his merits, Mr. Rayner began his career as a graphic artist before being approached by the Guardian Ganthet. He was given a power ring to replace the former Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, following Jordan's possession by Parallax and his subsequent destruction of of Coast City. He has since used his powers with the ring to defend justice, has worked with the Justice League of America towards a safer world, developed close bonds with the former Lanterns, the Flash, and the Titans, and has even served as a God, Ion.

From his press release, the Green Lantern states:

I deeply understand the challenges facing the District. By combining my superhero willpower and my passion for local politics and justice, I am committed to illuminating our nation’s capitol.

Regarding issues, the Green Lantern supports the creation and promotion of greener jobs, including investment in training programs for the impoverished and weatherization of old buildings. In addition, he supports LGBT rights, maintains a firm stance on crime and is committed to public safety, as demonstrated by his work for the Justice League and beyond. Finally, he is an ardent supporter of education reform, including additional funds towards K-12 education and establishing rewards and incentive programs for teachers, not only to encourage better student outcomes, but to persuade talented educators to take up jobs in needy areas.

The Green Lantern has been endorsed by Justice League teammate, The Flash, who stated:

The Green Lantern and I fought against crime and for justice together so I have a first-hand understanding of his commitment to public service. My endorsement comes not as a friend, but as someone who cares about our community. I know that the Green Lantern will fight for our environment, our working class families, the LGBTQIA community, our children's education, the safety of our city, and the equal representation of all Americans.

In addition, he has garnered the support from notable political bloggers Matt Yglesias and Ezra Klein.

I, ShadowBanker, have declared my endorsement of The Green Lantern as well, however Mark has since expressed some reservations. As such, we have decided to compose a series of two posts--a point/counterpoint on The Green Lantern as mayor of DC. These posts will be up within the next few days and before the election on Friday, July 10th.

To be fair, there are still many issues that the Green Lantern has not openly expressed an opinion about. How will the Green Lantern promote health care reform to increase coverage and lower costs? Does he support Obama's plan to expand the role of government in providing health services? What are his views on a coverage mandate for insurance? What about the recruitment and retention of physicians? How does the Green Lantern plan on attracting providers to needy hospitals and clinics in DC, especially in the face of a more public system?

What about more specifics on the economy? Are there any more specifics about how to minimize unemployment? In what sectors does he plan on investing money for jobs?

For now, we would love to hear from the readers. Do you support the Green Lantern for mayor? Why or why not? Are there any policy recommendations you suggest for him?

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Point/Counterpoint: Establishing an Intergalactic Union and Monetary Fund

(This post will contain the arguments in favor of establishing an Intergalactic Union. Check back within the next few days for the counterpoint.)

We've spoken before about the detriments of barring trade and communication from other planets. Suppose, however, that the democratic systems in the DC universe suddenly decided to open themselves up to trade. The question now is: should the major, democratic planets in the DC universe establish an Intergalactic Union (IU)? I see several potential benefits for establishing a single marketplace and universal currency among member planets:

1) Minimizing War. Let's face it, even though planets in the DC Universe remain relatively independent of one another, there are lots of struggles going on. It seems that the only time planets communicate is when they're engaged in some sort of conflict for domination of another or if one is in the middle of a campaign for conquest of the universe. See the Rann-Thanagar War, Final Crisis, Secret Invasion, and countless other examples of intergalactic warfare.

We already know that some entity in the universe cares about the continued survival of the galaxy. In the DCU, the Green Lanterns are a police force composed of humans and aliens from various planets in the universe, whose jobs are to patrol each sector in space at the behest of the Guardians of the Universe. You would think that with all the conflicts going on (Darkseid nearly just unmade existence, after all), the Guardians might be interested in acting as more than just a safety net, but perhaps also try some preventative measures. Organizing major planets into an IU would certainly help there. Building more economic interdependence would foster an interest to prevent the destruction of other planets.

Consider the European Union. What do you think the probability is of a major armed conflict between France and Germany? Likewise, if Rann and Thanagar were trading partners and Rann was reliant on Thanagar for its imports of the Nth metal--a resource native to Thanagar that has the property of negating gravity--do you think that there would have been a war? Of course not. It would have been in Rann's best interest to keep importing gravity boots.

2) Building Stronger Currency and Improving Wealth. Establishing a single market and an Intergalactic Monetary Fund (IGMF) would allow member planets to enjoy freedom of movement of goods, capital, people and services. Humans would finally be able to hover through the sky, to walk on walls, and yes, float around in flying car. In exchange, Thanagarians would finally get their hands on Earth's iPhone and surf the web freely on their 3G networks. Investments and property purchases would easily be moved between planets. Joe Smith would be able to purchase that summer house on Daxam that he's always dreamed of (assuming he could live there -- Daxam is very xenophobic and had actually invaded Earth before. It also lives under a red sun called Valor) .

This would be made even simpler with a common unit of currency, the Galacto. The Galacto would help strengthen the single market by increasing transparency, minimizing exchange rate fluctuations, keeping interest rates low, and protecting against shocks in the global market. Looking at the EU, the European Commission estimates that since its creation in 1993, over 2.5 million jobs have been created. Furthermore, approximately 900 billion euros in wealth and productivity has been generated since its inception. The point: the IU would improve quality of life for all humans, aliens, New Gods, mythical entities incorporated into the system.

3) Inspiring Other Nations to Reform. If ever there became trade talks or a UN type organization, the IU would obviously have a substantial amount of power and influence. And this is not a bad thing since this includes the power to encourage reform in smaller or developing planets (LDPs). Previously hostile systems, dictatorships, etc. might be more swayed to embrace a liberal, democratic government and economy and contribute to the global marketplace.

These are just some of the many reasons why this union would work. Any readers care to submit any others?

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