In the chapter on Villains who are
not Villains, human perception was put on blast. Klosterman brought up a hijacker
named DB Cooper. He hijacked a plane with the threat of blowing up the entire
plane along with the passengers if the airline would not meet his demands. The
fact that we see him has some sort of urban legend or hero speaks volumes on
human perception. We perceived this man as being cool and calm while he
threatened the lives of civilians and airline workers. We perceive confidence
as an ultra-shield which blocks a negative image. If Cooper was an everyday
criminal then this story wouldn’t be told. Without the confidence and suaveness
we would judge him based off his actions and not just his persona.
Another thing that I think
attributed to the praising of DB Cooper was because he got away scot-free. He disappeared
without a trace completing his objective while boosting himself to the status
of folk lore. People are attracted to mystery. The thought of a cool
gentlemanlike mysterious man fulfilling the perfect hijacking is seen as a good
thing. Even though the reality of the situation was much direr. People’s lives
were in danger and Cooper threatened an entire plane to get money. Even though
this is the case, we all perceive his actions as awe inspiring because of his
disposition and the fact that he disappeared without a trace like a ghost.
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