The hero or the villain?

The Barefoot Bandit got caught in the Bahamas recently embarking on a chase with police that will be talked about for a long time. He has been arrested for committing over one hundred crimes over various states, mainly the pacific coastline, where he escaped from a mental facility. Now, I usually wouldn't talk about this probably until I had heard that he was being escorted to his holding location and people were caught yelling "You're a hero, Barefoot Bandit!"


A lot of people including my grandmother, who was watching the television with me when we both saw this, was very surprised and shocked that someone like the Barefoot Bandit would be called a "hero". Myself? I'm not surprised, in fact I expected as much for the two years he eluded the police and taunted them and frustrated them. The ENTIRE Bahamas was in search of this man. Why? People love criminals! There’s sooo much to think about when you see a criminal outside or in a book or in a movie

Why is he doing this? What is his motive? How is he able to elude law enforcement for two years? Isn't it incredible how he learned to fly a plane on his own?

This ALWAYS enters the public’s mind when they think of a criminal and it always will. As kids we play cops and robbers and in my experiences a lot more wanted to be a robber than a cop. Who wouldn't we all want to be that cold manipulator that makes the snowglobe wall we call society crack and shatter. He was caught in the most dramatic of ways a three hour boat chase. Plus the fact he crashed a plane to even get to the Bahamas. Oh and the fact he runs BAREFOOT and is only nineteen and was on the run for two years.

Mark my words he will become a legend, folk songs will be written, you name it. I can already hear the comparisons to Robin Hood, minus the give to the poor part. We always care more about a criminal than a hero. We know why heroes are heroes most of us are capable of being heroes. I'd expect more to disarm a man with a knife than being the man holding a knife stabbing a human being until their demise. That takes much more than just morals. We’re always taught to do the right thing if someone goes wrong and doesn’t do the right thing even after being told all there life to do the right thing

There always will be that fascination.

TangentX