From a reader:

Jonah,
Ezra Klein- has been reading DC’s wonder woman story-line from last year (when she killed a person controlling superman’s mind and using him as a weapon) or just has not read comic in a while if he think Bauer is a sign of a shift in the culture to heroes being willing to do anything to protect the weak. Perhaps he should pick up some Marvel or independent’s today or Batman or just about anything other than Superman (who remains the virginal never kill anyone person (except he did try to kill Doomsday)- lots of modern comic book heroes kill- the Punisher and Wolverine- immediately spring to mine, Batman won’t kill you but certainly will beat the crap out of you til you give up and isn’t above beating information out of people- in fact vengeance is his reason for being. The more popular comics or more realistic show heroes sometimes as idealistic but mostly as either put upon people protecting themselves and their own kind (x-men) or vigilantes (unsanctioned- batman/spiderman/daredevil/punisher, or sanctioned- avengers/justice league). Most readers today get tired of the same old villains living to kill again another day- how many fictional murder victims would have been saved (including one of his sidekicks) had Batman just killed the Joker- who as the stories go is one of the more prolific murderers in comics, same for Superman offing Lex Luthor, lots of supposed heroes let their villains be imprisoned in places the hero knows full well will not hold them permanently and they will get out to kill again and again and again (think Gitmo if we listen to UN or our prison system), and the hero will rise valiantly to stop them again each time, but not until after some more innocent people have been raped, robbed or killed. It may not be good for the comic book business to end the Joker et al, but its much more realistic for real world heroes to put a bullet in the head of the terrorist, mass murderer, serial rapist, etc., then proclaim they are virtuous for not killing someone so clearly a continuing threat to others life. Ezra should wake up and learn that killing is regrettable but it is not always unjust in fact sometimes refusing to kill someone makes you nearly as bad as the villain themselves (and perhaps partially responsible for the deaths of their future victims (think Saving Private Ryan (punk soldier lets nazi go who returns to the battle latter and kills more US soldiers and innocents)), perhaps worse since the hero probably realizes this whereas the villain is often portrayed as insane or delusional.