I just realized my favorite streaming shows seem to be of a kind: stories about people operating on the margin between respectable society and the underworld. People committing crime who probably didn’t have to.

Right now I’m in the middle of Ozark, Season 4. That show is making me a nervous wreck, but I can’t look away.

Some of the others I’ve enjoyed were Breaking Bad (of course), Better Call Saul, Peaky Blinders, Ozark, Sneaky Pete, Barry.

They’re all about that stain that comes with making large sums of money illegitimately. Can you have the money without the stain? Once you’ve sold your soul, can you go legit? They all want to go legit, don’t they?

I think the appeal comes down to the economic situation Americans find ourselves in. The middle class hasn’t been doing all that great. Able to buy a house has become able to pay rent. We live in dread of the medical issue that will cast us into poverty.

Maybe we’re making it right now, but wouldn’t it be great to have your own safety net?

In the light of all that, it’s understandable that average everyday Americans would be interested in middle age crime. Would it be possible to just dip my toe into crime and get away with it?

It’s an understandable fantasy.

Wealth means security. Everybody knows that.

Shows like this are forced to take moral stand. What can you get away with and still be a good person? Can you be forgiven?

These shows for the most part are about antiheroes. In most cases I the showrunners and directors are at least trying to be morally responsible and not glorify crime.

Mostly they’re about the awful life you’ll be forced to have when you mess around with dirty money. In most cases the moral seems to be that the payoff won’t be worth what you’ll have to live down even if you do “get away with it.”

As Frank Herbert has said, “The difference between a hero and an anti-hero is where you stop the story.”

It’s a hard concept to grasp. You identify with a character and in your mind he’s you. It’s a problem I seen with a lot of these streaming shows where characters go bad. You justify their sins as the story unfolds just like they do – just like we all do in real life.

I think these shows are good for us in one way: They illustrate the non-duality of sin. Maybe make us more forgiving and less judgmental. There but for the grace of God go I.

These shows also make a good case that we’re all capable of being corrupted.

Like a wise man once told me, “Every man has his price and it’s not always money. Most men are just lucky enough to never find out what their price is.”