Some may guffaw at the melodramatic moment, but Lynch swears the story is true. He's also decided that Spidey's credo so befits the challenges of his job that he recites it again and again. After using the phrase in a newspaper op-ed last year, he began sprinkling it into speeches and found that audiences, whether high school students or business leaders, cheered it. Now, Lynch has put the quote on a plaque, which he plans to hang outside his offices this month during a ceremony timed to coincide with the release of the film "Spider-Man 2." He's invited comic-book author Stan Lee and Tobey Maguire, the movie actor who plays Spider-Man, to Providence for the event. "I'll never tire of talking about Spider-Man," Lynch says. "It's genuine to me, and people hook into it."
Critics say Lynch, who's a youthful 39, undermines the gravitas of his office with all his superhero talk. (And in a tiny state such as Rhode Island, some Green Goblins might wonder whether he's exaggerating his power, too). Yet, a politician could do worse than to align himself with a cartoon character who's grossed more than $400 million at American box offices--a fact that Lynch seems keenly aware of. "If "Spider-Man 1" had been a flop," he says, "I don't think people would appreciate it as much."
