In my previous entry, I brought up the death penalty in regards to super folks. Basically, I stated that I support the death penalty for the super-powered people who are pretty much beyond reform - that is, if released, they'll do the same damn thing that got them incarcerated in the first place. As it is, many of them escape rather than serve out their sentence.
As is the case in my neck of the woods, my support of the death penalty for super folks wasn't taken very well here. However, rather than come away with an impression that I'm some sort of bloodthirsty type, let me explain a bit why I came to this conclusion. When normal humans wreak havoc, there's limits to what they can do. However, depending on the power, super people can wreak unimaginable harm and chaos. A telepath can fry the minds of those within range of his or her power, or alter their minds in such that they are no longer the same. A super strength person can literally tear people apart with less effort than it takes for you to lift a sheet of paper. Those with fire-based powers can cause incalculable loss of life and damage in a relatively short span of time.
I liken the gaining of powers to winning the lottery. Some people can handle suddenly having a lot of money; others can't. Some lottery winners will invest their money so that they won't have to work for the rest of their lives; others will blow it all away on stupid stuff and end up even more poor than when they started. Getting powers is a lot like that. Some people can handle having powers, others can't. Having been a longtime fan of comics, getting my powers was like a dream come true. For others, their powers become tools of oppression and/or destruction.
For others still, it's like being addicted to a drug. For instance, there's one guy who has rage-induced super strength. He goes from a 5 foot 5 skinny guy to a hulking 6 foot 5 monster who can get stronger than me if he's angry enough. When normal humans get extremely angry, they can do some seriously dangerous things that they normally wouldn't do. Now add to that if you gained super strength on top of that. Next add that this guy isn't exactly stable when he's not powered up, and you have a guy who's like the worst brat in history with the mother of all temper tantrums. Even worse, he's a drug addict, and his super strength rages are often drug-induced. I've seen the results of the damage he's done, and I'm tired of hauling his ass to the holding facility only for him to escape again.
And folks, that's just one super-powered guy!
Other super-powered problem people, of course, cause other kinds of trouble; this blog entry would be too long to mention them all. But in short, many of these people are repeat offenders who don't seem capable of rehabilitation, as I keep having to recapture them time and time again. They simply have little to no self control to begin with, and their having powers on top of that only makes the problem worse - pretty much like handing a belligerent drunk guy an AK-47.
Understand that I didn't go into this decision lightly - but I am tired of seeing the damage they do. I'm tired of seeing the great numbers of lives harmed or destroyed in the process of trying to stop one of these people when they lose control. I understand that some of them might not be responsible for their actions, but it still doesn't justify allowing them to walk so that they can do more harm. I don't go into this wanting them dead - I just want to stop them from killing others. If it means doing that permanently, then so be it.
I'm sure that I haven't changed some of your minds on that, but that's my take anyway.
11 comments:
I love the pull we have when we blog. What you stated is understandable. In light of a better word, you could class super powered/strength people under the influence of drugs as monsters. By definition they stopped being human and the death penalty would be justified.
Hmmmm....Andromeda. After reading your post, you got me thinking. What class of super heroine would be fall under?
Now, by class I've referring to power level.
I am still a huge DBZ fan, so I'll use that as an example.
Normal human beings are classed a weak (power level of 1)
Then there are medium, medium-high, high and ultra.
Now based on your build, powers, and generally bits and pieces, I have obtained from you, I would say that you are classed a "medium-high".
That's my opinion. But then again, you probably don't want to give out that information do you?
Hmmm. If I were in your position, I probably wouldn't.
Let's lighten the mood shall we. Talking about death is depressing.
You've written a hit musical! How will you avoid having fame go to your head?
I won't be able to! If I make a hit musical, that'd be awesome, because I can't write music!
***
Well, look no further, I find a hip hop group called ANDROMEDA. The group formed in 1993. Their latest album "The Need" was released in 2004.
*Tracks*
You stated super villains that are repeat offenders conducting terrible acts need to be stopped for good. Please explain how you would be that exactly? Remember Andromeda, some super villains are outside your power class.
There is a humane solution with dealing with violent super villains. One solution is to have their minds wiped by a telepath.
Another solution is to have “Distortion” take care of the job. Distortion is a female crime fighter. The woman is described as Caucasian, mid 20s, 5’11”; brownish blonde hair, short cut bangs, and wears a purple jump suit with a “D” insignia over her right bust.
Distortion has the power to bend and manipulate matter. All the gal has to do is extend an invisible field towards the repeat offender so he/she can’t move.
Next Distortion will use the field to either crush the offender or dismantle his atomic structure piece by piece. I’d love to hear your input on this strategy. Please comment.
If need be you'll probably have to create another blog entry for this comment.
Change of topic and possibly a new blog entry. As a super heronine, what Operating System would you depend on the most: Windows XP Professional, Windows Vista SP1, Linux (various versions), or MAC OS X Leopard (10.5.0)?
When duty calls, you can't afford for your computer systems to fail.
Imagine if the OS in the Tumbler failed in Batman Begins. That would suck.
In your latest post, you stated that gaining super powers is similar to the analogy of winning the lottery; some can handle having lots of money while other cannot. This makes sense. And I agree with you on that statement. But just as banks have financial advisors to assist you when planning for your retirement or saving for post secondary education (college & university), there should be mentor superheroes such as yourself to help them “focus” their powers. A perfect example is Professor Xavier from the Marvel universe.
As of now, there are different classifications of superheroes. Some the supers have energy based abilities, while others are have only enhanced body parts. Super villains will always be out of control; but there are some individuals who are misguided but have good intentions. I believe these individuals need to be helped.
Please comment on this.
It looks like this is going to be a busy weekend for you Andromeda. Are you going to write a post on Sunday, or was last week a rare occurance?
I know that you will not reply to each of my comments, but there is something I need to ask you.
The comic books you showcase, do you know if the issues you present have a "recap" at the beginning so you know what happened in the previous issues?
Evening. I've been thinking. I know that you do "Comics Talk" reviews on comic books from the mainstream publishers (DC & Marvel), but what about the independents? They count as well.
I remember going to my local comic book shoppe back in the late 90s, and their were a few independents that caught my eye. Bill Maus was one of those artists.
Don't count them out.
I thought of something. If you ever lost your powers, who would you turn to for support? The chief of operations at the secret government base you work for? Just curious.
After an epic battle with a super powered villain twice the size of Andromeda, the super powered freak lays a mean right hook into her stomach.
WHAM!!!
Andromeda, takes the force and is down for the count. There is silence for nearly a minute. Throughout the crowd there was weeping, but slowly and surely the mighty female crime fighter stands up again. And the I saw it; the look of determination in her eyes. I have seen this look before.
In rage, Andromeda flies at the super villain in full force. While in rage, the female Greek could feel something tingling inside her. And then something happened!!
ZOT!!!
Suddenly without warning Andromeda was able to phrase out and pass through the villain. Nobody expected this.
The villain was confused. "Cool. I discovered a new power. Phrasing. Too cool. But there's work to be done," the mighty Andromeda thought to herself.
The crime fighter materialized behind the villain and then flew into him. The villain didn't expect this. Andromeda then grabbed his shoulders so that he couldn't escape.
The super villain struggled to set himself free, but the busty superhero chick would not let go.
"THIS ENDS NOW!!! I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS ANYMORE!!"
Then the super villain saw it, a electrical transformer! The the super powered beings were heading towards it.
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" Andromeda screamed passionately.
Then there was a huge flash of light. Sparks flew everywhere.
ZZZT! ZAAAP!! ZZZZ!! BUZZZAP ZZT!!
KA-BOOOOOOM!!!!
The was a gigantic cloud of smoke and crowd was calling out Andromeda.
"Androemda are you alright? ANDROMEDA!!"
There was no answer. People feared the worse. Was she dead? Was the crime fighter unconscious? There was no way to tell. It was hard to see through the sparks and smoke.
Is this the end of The Busty Superhero Chick?
Tune in to the next blog entry to find out . . .
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