The Brady vs. Manning-ization of Punditry

I don't find it surprising that adults would seriously discuss this, since I've participated in plenty of extremely silly dialogues late into the night. But I must say, I am surprised that the capital's most prestigious publication is running mini-columns built around the following dilemma:

Who's the bigger hero: Maersk Alabama Capt. Richard Phillips or Chesley B. Sullenberger III, the pilot who landed US Air flight 1549 on the Hudson River in January?

It's tempting to say, no brainer: It's Sully. He saved 155 lives. Phillips only managed to not die while sitting in a lifeboat with four pirates for five days. Smelly, sure. Not heroic.

But consider this: Phillips put his life at risk to save the lives of his crewmen. After the pirates boarded his ship, he reportedly told crew members to lock themselves in a cabin. Then he surrendered to the pirates, offering his life for his crew's, just like heroic sea captains of yore.

This is the Comic Book Guy approach to the topic, which is not a compliment. The frequency with which the word "absurd" appears in the comments indicates that many of the Post readers agree with me.