Hello everyone and welcome back to Deeper Waters where we are diving into the ocean of truth. We’ve been going through the doctrine of God and we’re going to continue that later, but this weekend I did get to see Iron Man 2 and since there were two people who I wanted to see it with and since I couldn’t go with both of them at the same time, I went and saw it twice. Be warned that I will be having some spoilers in here. If you plan to see this one and want to wait, feel free, but do remember to come back.
Now I loved the first Iron Man. I consider it my favorite superhero movie. This one was good, but I don’t think it was as good. I do believe there could have been more done with the villain in this one and the problem was there was no sign of where everything was going until you suddenly realize “Oh wait. This is the final battle.” Even then, the battle was way too short.
There are a number of themes I want to speak on that show up in Iron Man 2 however. First, a line shows up early from Howard Stark, Tony Stark’s Dad, that everything is possible with technology. Now I’m not opposed to technology. Technology is a wonderful thing. However, not everything is possible through technology.
One reality Howard Stark believes can come about through technology is world peace. This could be possible if we lived in a world of machines. Unfortunately, any look at our world around us should show that this is not so. Iron Man may be able to stop a lot of violence with his suit, but even if he could stop every incident, the suit could not remove the evil that is in the heart of man.
Our modern era has an idea that science will solve everything and mankind will progress more. Now I’m not against developing strong weaponry as a nation and I’m not saying we should dissemble our nukes and beat our swords into plowshares. As long as there are other nations out there that want us in America dead, I am for keeping our defenses strong.
However, salvation is not found in science. It’s found in Christ. The further away we move from Christ, the more chaotic our world will become. If we believe that more technology will develop virtue, we will find the opposite happens. Technology is a tool. It will be used for good or for evil depending on who’s wielding it. It is not capable of bringing virtue to people. It can be used to enforce the law and reward the good, but it can’t change the heart.
Another point I wish to comment on is that of people in the movie like Justin Hammer and the Senate who say that what Tony Stark is doing with Iron Man isn’t fair. If he has the technology to make a suit like that, then he is obligated to share it with everyone else.
Well, no.
All people are equal in that they are all equally human, but if you have something, you are not obligated to share it with someone else. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be a good thing for Tony to share the information and help out his country further in doing so. However, I am against the idea that it’s not fair for him to do so.
Years ago, I worked at a job where the store I worked at had a computer on sale and the price was increased. I don’t know who increased it or why but a lady called and said “You had it at X price and then you increased it and that’s not fair.” I was wanting to say “How come? Isn’t it our computer? If we want to sell it at a higher price because we believe people will pay more for it, that’s our right.”
The reality is our parents were right. Life isn’t fair. Someone will be smarter than you. Someone will be more athletic. Someone will be more artistic. Someone will be more beautiful. Someone will have more money. We are not told that we will all be equal beyond our human nature nor should we expect to be. It is better for us to play the cards we are dealt with rather than complain that we didn’t get another person’s cards. It wouldn’t work to do that in a card game and it doesn’t work in real life.
So my conclusion is that the politics and idea behind this Iron Man is hardly the best. Now I did enjoy the movie and if you’re a fan of the series, by all means go and see it. On the way home, if you take kids, have a chance to talk to them about technology and life being fair and see what they think. Make it a teaching moment.
We shall continue discussing the Summa tomorrow.
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