Oh man, no kidding. When he pulls his shirt off in that morning scene after his first night out as Batman, I thought Michael Kane was going to jump on him. There was a definite sexual tension there. My unbidden thought was that I was seeing a superpower new to Batman.
Since we're talking about Batman, and things we'll never achieve, and what with it being the internet and all, this seems like a good time to quote Snow Crash:
"Until a man is twenty-five, he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world. If I moved to a martial-arts monastery in China and studied real hard for ten years. If my family was wiped out by Colombian drug dealers and I swore myself to revenge. If I got a fatal disease, had one year to live, and devoted it to wiping out street crime. If I just dropped out and devoted my life to being bad."
Surely there are possible worlds in which the Counterpart-Bale suffered a horrible disfiguring accident at some point in life. Perhaps a Two Face-style acid attack or some such thing. Never discount the wonders of possibility. Or did you mean that there's no possible world in which Counterpart FL is hotter than the actual Christian Bale?
ac: I have it on good authority (my girlfriend, who reads magazines about these things) that Christian Bale is not English, but Welsh. Sure enough, googling "Christian Bale Welsh" returns hits! It must be true.
And as we all know, the Welsh are very attractive people. In fact, of the famous Welsh people I can name, all/both are amazing physical specimens. So there's no shame in owning up to Christian Bale's superior and unattainable level of badassousity.
Matthew--that's what I was thinking about with the scope point. It may be that for my formulation to make sense we need to spell out the ellipses: "It is not possible for me to look as hot as Christian Bale looks." Then if the modal has wide scope, it's "There is no possible world w such that in w (Labs looks as hot as Christian Bale looks)." As you point out, that's false. If the modal has narrow scope, it's "There is no possible world w such that (in w Labs looks as hot as x) and x is how hot Christian Bale looks [actually]"--which is true.
I hate to interrupt the love-in, but man. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I have never thought Christian Bale was attractive. Of course, seeing Batman might change my mind. I haven't seen him in anything since Newsies, or maybe Swing Kids, when he was kind of cross-eyed and retarded looking. And fey.
It's not even like the Brad Pitt phenomenon, where I recognize objective hotness but am not into it. Something about Bale's face just really annoys me. At least, in Newsies. (Google Images seems to suggest that he's done some working out since then. I am open to revising my opinion.)
I never noticed Bale being hott in Batman. His face is, I think, a little bland. He does look better scruffy. Comparison. Of course, maybe I wasn't paying that close attention, because I also did not notice just how huge he was.
I've enjoyed his movies, and thought he made a good Batman, but recently he's gotten on my bad side. After American Psycho I thought that he spoke in a weirdly slow cadence because it suited the 80s blowhard he was playing. After seeing him in a couple more films, I began to think that was just the way he spoke. But now, having seen an interview in which he speaks in his native accent, I know that the slow-talk is just how he does an American accent. And, to my ears, it sounds kind of insulting. With us or against us, Bale.
He grew up in Dorset, so to say he's from England is not wrong. And the comparative is better--England's known for producing some seriously delicate flowers. Welsh boys tend to be more robust. Would have lost some emphasis there, calling him Welsh.
And Ben, I'm still recovering, but I think I've regained my balance. After extended analysis, I've come to the conclusion that CB's lips are perhaps similar in shape to TM's, but TM's are more pink. Which would suggest they are actually superior to CB's. (Did I really just say that?)
8: Caine, no kidding? I'm an excellent speller but seem to have a problem with names. Namelexic, dysnamic. At a pub quiz bout recently (I'm Secretary for my team) I spelled the answer "Jimmy Hendrix."
Weiner: Fair enough. Looking back over the actual wording of the question, however, it's put in the future tense, so we've been slightly miscontruing things. It's certainly possible that at some future time future-CB will be less hot than future-FL. But it's not possible that at any time future-FL will be hotter than present-CB.
Surely there are possible worlds in which the Counterpart-Bale suffered a horrible disfiguring accident at some point in life. Perhaps a Two Face-style acid attack or some such thing.
I have been haunted by this image for days, by the way.
Who's the Q-er? Can anyone play?
Posted by slolernr | Link to this comment | 06-22-05 10:22 PM
You tracked him down, didn't you?
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06-22-05 10:30 PM
Is it nomologically possible?
Posted by Cala | Link to this comment | 06-22-05 10:47 PM
It's possible for Christian Bale to look less hot than you, though. Viz. The Machinist.
Therefore, is not the reverse equally true?
Posted by Cryptic Ned | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:06 AM
Oh man, no kidding. When he pulls his shirt off in that morning scene after his first night out as Batman, I thought Michael Kane was going to jump on him. There was a definite sexual tension there. My unbidden thought was that I was seeing a superpower new to Batman.
Posted by Kriston | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 5:32 AM
2: Even the first picture doesn't look like a woman. Aren't the hairy arms a giveaway?
Posted by Todd | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 7:36 AM
Caine, for godsakes.
Posted by Joe Drymala | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 7:46 AM
Sorry, Kriston. I'm in a nasty mood this morning.
Posted by Joe Drymala | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 8:05 AM
Cryptic Ned: It depends on whether the modal has narrow or wide scope.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 8:41 AM
Since we're talking about Batman, and things we'll never achieve, and what with it being the internet and all, this seems like a good time to quote Snow Crash:
"Until a man is twenty-five, he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world. If I moved to a martial-arts monastery in China and studied real hard for ten years. If my family was wiped out by Colombian drug dealers and I swore myself to revenge. If I got a fatal disease, had one year to live, and devoted it to wiping out street crime. If I just dropped out and devoted my life to being bad."
Posted by tom | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 9:34 AM
How to be a badass.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 9:38 AM
But Christian Bale was a pretty boy, the most delicate flower England ever produced. If he can be a badass, so can you. That's the lesson here.
Posted by ac | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 9:50 AM
Surely there are possible worlds in which the Counterpart-Bale suffered a horrible disfiguring accident at some point in life. Perhaps a Two Face-style acid attack or some such thing. Never discount the wonders of possibility. Or did you mean that there's no possible world in which Counterpart FL is hotter than the actual Christian Bale?
Posted by Matthew Yglesias | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:01 AM
ac: I have it on good authority (my girlfriend, who reads magazines about these things) that Christian Bale is not English, but Welsh. Sure enough, googling "Christian Bale Welsh" returns hits! It must be true.
And as we all know, the Welsh are very attractive people. In fact, of the famous Welsh people I can name, all/both are amazing physical specimens. So there's no shame in owning up to Christian Bale's superior and unattainable level of badassousity.
Posted by tom | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:09 AM
Matthew--that's what I was thinking about with the scope point. It may be that for my formulation to make sense we need to spell out the ellipses: "It is not possible for me to look as hot as Christian Bale looks." Then if the modal has wide scope, it's "There is no possible world w such that in w (Labs looks as hot as Christian Bale looks)." As you point out, that's false. If the modal has narrow scope, it's "There is no possible world w such that (in w Labs looks as hot as x) and x is how hot Christian Bale looks [actually]"--which is true.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:12 AM
Does no one think that Bale is too perfect to be really good looking?
Posted by SomeCallMeTim | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:14 AM
I think he's got a creepy vampire smile.
Posted by Joe Drymala | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:16 AM
Any port in a storm, Tim.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:17 AM
This is a funny picture of Bale.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:25 AM
I hate to interrupt the love-in, but man. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I have never thought Christian Bale was attractive. Of course, seeing Batman might change my mind. I haven't seen him in anything since Newsies, or maybe Swing Kids, when he was kind of cross-eyed and retarded looking. And fey.
It's not even like the Brad Pitt phenomenon, where I recognize objective hotness but am not into it. Something about Bale's face just really annoys me. At least, in Newsies. (Google Images seems to suggest that he's done some working out since then. I am open to revising my opinion.)
Posted by susan | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:25 AM
He looks a lot better these days, I think. He used to look a bit callow, but age has been good to him.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:28 AM
I never noticed Bale being hott in Batman. His face is, I think, a little bland. He does look better scruffy. Comparison. Of course, maybe I wasn't paying that close attention, because I also did not notice just how huge he was.
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:34 AM
I think his lips are similar to those of Tobey Maguire (when neither is scruffy), a thesis which has cast ac into a sea of doubt.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:37 AM
Upon further reflection, I think I'm in agreement with Tim - the bladness, to the exten that it's there, is because of the too-perfectness. Voici.
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:44 AM
I've enjoyed his movies, and thought he made a good Batman, but recently he's gotten on my bad side. After American Psycho I thought that he spoke in a weirdly slow cadence because it suited the 80s blowhard he was playing. After seeing him in a couple more films, I began to think that was just the way he spoke. But now, having seen an interview in which he speaks in his native accent, I know that the slow-talk is just how he does an American accent. And, to my ears, it sounds kind of insulting. With us or against us, Bale.
Posted by tom | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 11:49 AM
He grew up in Dorset, so to say he's from England is not wrong. And the comparative is better--England's known for producing some seriously delicate flowers. Welsh boys tend to be more robust. Would have lost some emphasis there, calling him Welsh.
And Ben, I'm still recovering, but I think I've regained my balance. After extended analysis, I've come to the conclusion that CB's lips are perhaps similar in shape to TM's, but TM's are more pink. Which would suggest they are actually superior to CB's. (Did I really just say that?)
Posted by ac | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:00 PM
I think I'm in agreement with Tim
If I may do the honors: Michael is banned!
Posted by SomeCallMeTim | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:01 PM
d'oh!
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:33 PM
8: Caine, no kidding? I'm an excellent speller but seem to have a problem with names. Namelexic, dysnamic. At a pub quiz bout recently (I'm Secretary for my team) I spelled the answer "Jimmy Hendrix."
Posted by Kriston | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:36 PM
You can't write "d'oh" when you're banned, Michael.
Posted by Kriston | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:37 PM
[...]
Posted by fine, silence me | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:42 PM
Weiner: Fair enough. Looking back over the actual wording of the question, however, it's put in the future tense, so we've been slightly miscontruing things. It's certainly possible that at some future time future-CB will be less hot than future-FL. But it's not possible that at any time future-FL will be hotter than present-CB.
Posted by Matthew Yglesias | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:52 PM
Ooh, good point. There's a tense operator that also needs to have narrow scope.
I was actually just glad that someone picked up the philoso-geek gauntlet I threw down in 9. (I kid because I love, you know. This too, Matthew.)
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06-23-05 12:57 PM
Surely there are possible worlds in which the Counterpart-Bale suffered a horrible disfiguring accident at some point in life. Perhaps a Two Face-style acid attack or some such thing.
I have been haunted by this image for days, by the way.
Posted by ac | Link to this comment | 06-25-05 2:02 PM