The Syndrome Syndrome



One of the greatest movies of all time is The Incredibles.  It is funny, witty, and includes some very conservative themes.  Plus, I love Craig T. Nelson.  One of the most conservative lines in the movie is from the villain Syndrome when he menacingly states, "When everyone is super, no one will be."  I wonder if many leftists and progressives caught the dig at their collectivist approach to society?  

Syndrome's transformation from Buddy, the young, naïve super fan of Mr. Incredible, to the malicious and evil Syndrome is also very informative to the human condition.  In fact, we see it replicated throughout history over and over.  When Mr. Incredible rejects the younger Buddy's attempt to be a sidekick, Buddy internalizes the rejection and believes he has been unjustly victimized and marginalized.  This event triggers a need to exact justice, not just with Mr. Incredible, but society at large.

Much of history is filled with people who have been hurt, victimized, embarrassed, shamed, or rejected and seek to exact retributive justice, not just on those who were responsible, but to the world at large.  Few are able to channel this emotion into a positive direction, while most others tend to bring harm.  Much of Lenin's 1917 revolution was inspired by the anger and hatred he had for the Czar's killing of Lenin's brother.  Hitler's push into politics was largely a result of the shame and anger he felt about Germany's loss in WWI and the resulting Treaty of Versailles.  Teddy Roosevelt's  need to fight in wars was in response to the humiliation that his father did not fight in the Civil War.  The Feminist movement was, and is most forcefully pushed by unattractive women, scorned and rejected by men who seek justice by seeking to punish men at large.

An often used adage is that hurt people, hurt people.  And that is usually true.  I don't know all the psychological research on the matter, but I don't really need to.  If you spend enough time paying attention to people, it becomes an easy observation.  We tend to overcompensate for our insecurities and perceived vulnerabilities, much of which are due to a specific event.  The overcompensation manifests itself in many ways, some benign and others more vicious.  Sometimes, they evolve into self-righteous crusades, where they have convinced themselves that their journey is appropriate and just. 

We would do well to pay attention the hurt carried by others, especially our leaders.  Many, unfortunately, are trying to overcome something from their past and believe that having power and influence will help them right the perceived wrong.  Once in power, they pursue retribution only to conceive ill advised policy and plans that do little more than make them feel good.  After Lenin seized power, he took it to the kulaks.  However, this nearly destroyed the Russian economy and he had to do an about face.  Similarly, Syndrome falls prey to his own device, but not before reeking havoc on society.

Bad things happen to us all.  But most people are able to compartmentalize it, make sense of it, and move on.  Others, well they become super villains...in real life.


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