Why Don’t We Have Heroes?

Is it crazy to want to do something about crime? I watched Kick-Ass and have thought the same thing he did. Why don’t we have any superheros? Is it insane? Would someone be labeled insane if they put on some spandex and ran around kicking people in the face? Probably. Yet being labeled insane hasn’t stopped a lot of crazies out there. So why don’t more people do it? On my campus at school there has been a streak of crimes. It’s rumored that this is because of gang initiations. People have to commit violent acts of crime in order to be accepted. If this is true, then the petty initiation crimes are a matter that needs to be stopped. If the criminals succeed, then they are accepted into a gang, and with the gang comes fear and violence. You read a comic book or watch a movie and you ask yourself “Why can’t I be a superhero?” in reality it is a lot harder then it looks.

For starters, no one in the world seems to have that Mutant X gene in them. People just don’t have any supernatural powers. Many of us are strong, fast, intelligent, and can fight, but none of us seem to be shooting lasers from our eyes, or bending water. People just don’t have powers, but this hasn’t stopped a lot of comic book heroes. Those heroes in comics without powers have something that reality doesn’t. Most superheros in comics or movies have technology that doesn’t exist. Iron Man’s entire suit has tech that no one in the world has. Sure we could create something like it, but it would be greatly flawed and easily countered. Next, superheros tend to bend the laws of nature, even the ones without powers. Batman started out with about 10 “Bat-erangs” these were boomerangs with toys on them. Most of them if created in real life would not work due to the sheer fact that the physics behind their flight doesn’t make any logical sense.

Superheros also don’t seem to have a strict of security as reality. There are cameras almost anywhere you walk. One camera can show you where someone came from and where they are headed. This information can show you where to look to follow someone. A superhero would only have a secret identity for a short time. If someone wanted to find out where someone one was going or who they were, it would not be hard. They could do a number of things to find out who they are. The police officers in comics are also not realistic. For the most part, police officers in comics are pictured as doughnut eating, chubby, mustached fools. In reality, a police officer is able to handle himself very well against most situations. A police officer on the street is a lot different then one in a doughnut shop.

It seems impossible, illogical, and insane to be a superhero, but this hasn’t stopped people before. I think we need superheros. We don’t have the real life Kingpin (or so I believe), but we do have crime. A superhero would give people a way to be safe, something they can hope for, and something they could aspire to. We’ve all thought about it. Putting on a mask, walking through the streets, and drop kicking a purse snatcher in the face. We’ve all dreamed about it, so what’s stopping us? People saying “That’s crazy!”? Half of people in this world are crazy. The other half wishes they were crazy enough to do something. We’ve got people out there parading as villains, so why not a hero? I’m not sending out a call to all heroes out there to rise up and put on a mask. Is it crazy to maybe form safer cities through diplomatic means, or to just walk with a group of friends and notifying police or stopping criminal activity? Look at Citizen Prime. He is a real man, who bought full body armor and patrols streets at night. Prime calls into police with suspicious activity going around. He doesn’t normally go into a fight, which is why some don’t respect him, but I disagree. I think if he needs to engage then he should, but if he can get aid of police and the legal system, then he should. There are also both underground and more well known super hero alliances in real life. The Real Life Superheroes (RLS) are a group that do both crime fighting and charities. They are more of a passive aggression force in crime fighting. There is even another group in LA that is more secretive and fights crime every night. Being a superhero is possible. Being a secret superhero is a lot harder but still possible.

As I said before, to find out who a superhero is, is easy, but this is only true if that hero wants to be found. Knowing the landscape, knowing security, leaving no trace (blood, fingerprints, DNA), and knowing your abilities are all key. You need to be able to handle yourself in any situation. If you can’t defend yourself, how are you going to defend anyone? If you are able to stay one step ahead of everything you have a chance. Is it impossible? No. Is it easy? No. Do we need a hero? I think so.

A world with violence, criminals, and minimal heroes  gets a Chez.