A series of "Why" questions

Since this blog is called “My Tangential Mind”, I thought it should start living up to that title.  So I have decided to start posting a series of “Why” questions.  These are questions that come into my mind in my everyday life.  No, this is not a rip-off of Seinfeld’s stand-up routine where he asks things like “Why is the place we drive called a parkway and the place we park called a driveway?”  These are just questions that pop into my head as I walk around and see things.

So, without further ado, here is the first question, and a little background:

Why are pirates billed so much as heroes today?  I have been asking myself this for a while, but it recently popped back in my head this morning because I saw Pirate Pig on Dora the Explorer, which happens to be a favorite of my three year old daughter.  Pirate Pig is a good guy, and so is all his crew of pirate pigs. 

I also ask this because I was recently watching Pirates of the Caribbean 3.  I have noticed that while the pirates are shown as dastardly characters in the movie, they are also romanticized and revered.  I realize that they are fighting against some corrupt officials in the British government, but it is still pretty blatant celebration of the pirates despite their evil nature.

I can understand their appeal.  I was fascinated with pirates for a time as a child.  I loved Treasure Island, and I read a lot about them in a book I had when I was a kid.  I was particularly drawn to Blackbeard when I read that he used to weave hemp into his beard and set it on fire.  They had adventures and misadventures, and they thumbed their noses at the authorities.  But all-in-all, I still knew they were murderers and thieves.  So why are they portrayed as good in so many kids shows?  How did that happen?

Mikey