Angel and Tiggs

A few days ago I was zapping channels and managed to find the very first Dirty Harry in its last minutes on AMC. This was the very first one, from distant 1971. D. Harry is still my favourite Clint Eastwood movie and character by far. I’ll go on the reasons why later.

As Harry walked towards the “punk” character, this latter also bearing a gun and using a kid as a human shield and trapped between Harry’s big 357 and a lake, I immediately thought about what would David Suzuki (the Canadian PhD environmentalist) do in a situation like that? Talk the punk over and convince him to hand the kid? Maybe speak up the punk’s rights and try to be diplomatic? For a moment, I thought they were night and day different, but I was wrong.

I admire both characters, Dirty Harry and David Suzuki, but I’ve always been a big Harry fan. It’s not an “apples to apples” comparison, as Harry has only been a movie character, as opposed to a very real human being such as David Suzuki. However, Harry’s personality and particular ways of dealing with things are everything I’ve always wanted to be (with some extreme exceptions). Both roles represent two different and important ways of leading life. Both are packaged differently but completely match in concept in the end.

Harry is a ruthless, straightforward cop that doesn’t hesitate or ponder for a single second. Everything is black or white (hence my matching personality with him), there’s only one way out and in, and he doesn’t overcomplicate or compromise. Behind Harry’s tough psyche though, there’s the truest desire to serve a bigger cause. He doesn’t see any personal gain but to do his job to the script. Suzuki is all about the education, the understanding behind an idea and how sustainable it should be. Turning people into more educated, self-conscious citizens about the environment around them should be the best way to make them embrace the cause. Suzuki couldn’t care less about his own personal interest or even foundation affairs. He realizes there’s a bigger player behind the movement. Similarities don’t stop there. David Suzuki is in his 70s, and so is Dirty Harry. Each has a set of own special convincing weapons, but all are equally hard to say no to once you’ve seen them in action. Their personalities and accomplishments are respected and hated among friends, peers and colleagues around.

Can you imagine if we could unite Dirty Harry and David Suzuki for a good cause at least once in a lifetime? More and more I convince myself human beings must adapt every day. Charles Darwin concluded that more than 150 years ago, but society’s still debating it. One can’t be a Dirty Harry or a David Suzuki all the time. There has to be a balance between power and touch.

Next time I watch Dirty Harry or David Suzuki on TV, there will be no hesitation in saying that both men are alike. For the sake of mankind, we need more Harry’s and Suzuki’s working together to make this world a better place. Suzuki’s already doing his part. I might volunteer to be a real-life Dirty Harry.