Jul 24, 2026
Perez Hilton vs. Miss California
Why Miss California’s unpopular gay marriage answer was an act of heroism.
Richard Clark
Richard Clark is the Founding Editor of Christ and Pop Culture. He is also the managing editor of Gamechurch and a freelance writer for Unwinnable, Paste, and other outlets. He lives with his wife in Louisville, KY and has a MA in Theology and the Arts from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Get Our Weekly Newsletter
Get our weekly recap email for the latest from CAPC, delivered straight to your inbox.
Become a CAPC Member
Support our work: Become a member and get exclusive membership perks.
Give a CAPC Membership
Introduce friends & colleagues to the CAPC world with a gift membership.
Be a Guest Writer
Learn more about writing for us.
Editor Picks
Recent Columns
Recent Podcasts

Jan 31, 2024
The Scandal of Reading 37 | Tiffany Kriner on Louise Erdrich’s LaRose

Jan 24, 2024
The Scandal of Reading 36 | Winn Collier on Wendell Berry’s Jayber Crow

Jan 10, 2024
The Scandal of Reading 35 | Lit Pulpit – The Moviegoer by Walker Percy

Dec 13, 2023
The Scandal of Reading 34 | Daniel Nayeri on Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Dec 6, 2023









1 Comment
See, what kills me about America is how easy it is to be a hero. No longer does one have to defeat Grendel and his mother. No longer does one need to pull a fabled sword from a stone. No longer does one need to stand against enemies mortal whilst protecting the meek and lowly. No longer does one need to accomplish deeds to be sung through the ages.
Nowadays all one needs to do is be a person who’s willing to state an opinion despite the fact that such a thing might bode one ill and pit such a person against a particular sub-culture’s popular opinion. Great. We’ve just made a hero of 86% of the blogging public. At the very least, we’ve made a hero of me.
And I’ll tell you this for free: I’m no hero.
I think the post’s author is confusing courage with heroism. Courage is a necessary component for heroism, but it’s not the whole ball of spaghetti. I’m not a hero even though I have the courage to leave the house every day. I’m not a hero though I have the courage to disagree with 37% of the stuff posted on this site. I’m not a hero even though I may say that our nation routinely perpetrates evil acts on an international canvas. I’m not a hero.
But Tank Man might be. Part of being a hero is the whole “against incredible odds” shtick. Miss California doesn’t rank. She’s no Beowulf, she’s no Davy Crockett, and she’s certainly no Tank Man.
The Danes last blog post..20090417.teaParty
Comments are now closed for this article.