The Omen and Reginald Denny

So I was watching The Omen the other day and had a thought during the scene at the zoo. For those of you who don't remember Gregory Peck's wife brings the child for a fun day at the zoo. While they're driving through the Baboon pen the Baboons go nuts and attack their car.

The woman stops. Which is surprising, because the Baboons want them, want to kill that evil little kid. It's a natural response, one that I think the majority of us would have. Only a few people would continue to drive through.

Take the instance of Reginald Denny. During the LA riots, caused in part by the Rodney King beating, Denny was driving his truck minding his own business. A group of guys stood in front of his truck and in a move that caused some of comedy's best question and answer periods, Denny stopped. The group proceeded to beat the crap out of him. Why did he stop? He was in danger, but he was in a truck. You might think that if you were in danger you'd plow through it with your car. Yet even today people stop. Like Frank Jude who was beaten by off duty cops in Wisconsin. Movies made even today re-inforce the idea of stopping when in danger, like the remake of War of the Worlds.

On the flip side of this of course is the Tiananmen Square incident. The Chinese military had tanks up against that little thin guy. No contest. Armies seem to learn faster than the public.

Somewhere in us is a part that refuses to hurt other people and things even at the cost of our own safety. Unless of course those things happen to be Seals. Fuck those cute, fuzzy, wide-eyed fish lovers. Who can't resist the need to clobber them with a Hakapick. It's only natural. Like fox hunting with a pack of dogs.