Random thoughts about "The Dark Knight":

I saw the movie with my daughter and son-in-law Saturday. The huge parking lot was packed. The megaplex had 24 showings in multiple plexes.

How did movies about comic book superheroes (Batman Begins, Hellboy, Spider-man, Ironman, X-Men ...) and their equivalents (Darth Vader, Indiana Jones ...) come to dominate the silver screen in America?

Does this have anything to do with the war in Iraq?

The first comic book movie, to my knowlege, was "Superman" back in 1978. But at the box office, Batman and Spider-man make Superman look like he's lugging green kryptonite. Perfection is soooo boring. Spider-man and Batman have issues – they'd employ a dozen psychiatrists between them.

Why do characters like The Joker (pictured, with Batman), The Green Goblin and Lex Luther always seem to be having so much fun, while the good guys are always so serious? (Ironman is the exception to this rule.)

Also, why is the Devil always grinning, and why do evil geniuses always cackle maniacally? Are they in on some joke the rest of us don't get?

And – this is ranging far afield – why, if we read Dante at all, do we always read Dante's "Inferno" and never his "Paradiso." Is Hell really that exciting and Paradise really that dull?

Is that the joke the Joker's in on?

It's the stuff of candidates' nightmares.

On Sunday, the big front-page headline of the largest newspapers in the state – the combined Seattle Times and P-I – blared: "How state spending rose $8B under Gregoire."

Below the headline was a decidedly uncomplimentary photo of our governor and bar graphs showing how the state budget ballooned more on her watch than under any governor since Booth Gardner.

Bar graphs inside didn't help matters much. They show that Gregoire presided over big increases in the number of state workers and the size of her office budget. Meanwhile, the state government is looking at a $2 billion-plus deficit by the time the Legislature convenes in January.

The projected deficit bears out predictions that lawmakers have been spending far more than state revenues can sustain. That's a Democratic tendency. (OK – in D.C., it's also a Republican tendency.) At times like this, though, the governor - even a Democratic governor - is supposed to save the Legislature from itself.

Gregoire didn't do enough of that to ward off that killer headline. She's going to be running on some tough numbers this fall.

There are lots of conflicts on timing, but all parties – Bush, al-Maliki, Obama, McCain – are seeing a withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq. Fabulous – but Afghanistan has been heating up.

UW President Mark Emmert’s plan for expanding access to higher education emphasizes branch campus enrollment and could help UWT make its case for better state funding.

About our editorials:
If you have comments or questions about these topics, please email them to patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com. Editorials represent the consensus view of The News Tribune's editorial board.
Want to sit in on a daily ed board meeting? Email cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com to make an appointment.

Today's story about the Northeast Tacoma couple who were attacked by two pit bulls as they walked their dog Friday evening is disturbing for a couple of reasons.

The sad fact that dog owners can't go for a stroll without risking harm from vicious marauding dogs is the biggest outrage. But right up there is this line from the story: "A Tacoma police spokesman did not return a page seeking comment Sunday."

We've had our own problems getting a response from TPD in the past week. Last Monday, we paged the on-duty public information officer to ask about fireworks enforcement. No response. We left a message for Assistant Chief Bob Sheehan as well. No return call.

Sheehan did call back the next day – and complained that our editorial didn't give the department due credit for its 2007 fireworks enforcement staffing levels.

Police officials can be their own worst enemy when they don't respond to requests seeking information. Worse yet, their unresponsiveness can become a matter of public safety. It shouldn't fall to victims to alert the community.

The push is on to pass a federal shield law by a veto-proof margin before Congress adjourns for the August recess.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has promised to take up the bill before lawmakers leave on their break. The legislation enjoys widespread support among House members (who passed it on a 398-21 vote), 42 state attorneys general and both presidential candidates.

Meanwhile, the Bush administration continues its fearmongering, somehow claiming that letting journalists do their jobs is a threat to national security. (Keep in mind that the bill makes exceptions for acts of terrorism and other harm to national security, as well as information needed to prevent death or bodily harm.)

As we said earlier this year, the public benefits most from shield laws. Compelling journalists to break confidences undermines their ability to protect vulnerable sources from retribution and to uncover information the public needs to know.