Regulation/restriction has one big flaw. It requires honest people to abide by it. Meaning that for the most part, Supervillians won't feel compelled to abide by the registration. So only the good guys have to toss their privacy in the dustbin?
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Isn't that like saying it's unfair for honest people to only own guns if they are licensed to, while many criminals possess them illegally? Of course the super-villains won't register, but guess what... they're criminals!
I know in my gut that this whole registration act will probably end up turning just as bad as you suggest, but putting my gut aside, it seems perfectly reasonable right now. In our society we do not allow people to possess dangerous power without putting some check on it. You need training and a license to drive a car because you could kill someone with a car. You need a license and registration for firearms for the same reason. Police officers obviously don't get to hide their identities either. The Registration Act seems rather accommodating for super heroes. They still get to go around practicing vigilante justice with identities kept secret from the public so long as the government knows who they are and is satisfied that they are competent in using their powers.
Posts: 1569 | Registered: Dec 2004
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quote: Isn't that like saying it's unfair for honest people to only own guns if they are licensed to, while many criminals possess them illegally? Of course the super-villains won't register, but guess what... they're criminals!
Yeah, it is exactly like that.
IRL, Firearms registration doesn't really have any benefit, and often leads to confiscation. Criminals won't register their weapons, just law abiding citizens. Why do we need to regulate and restrict the good folks? Isn't it the criminals we need to police? Registration just ensures that when a municipality or state ingnores the 2nd amendment, only the good folks get their means of defense confiscated. The socio-paths then have unarmed sheep ripe for the picking. Great idea, there.
If the issue of registration for supers is supposed to be accountability, then why are you unconcerned that the villians don't register? That makes it seem like registration only exist to hobble the good guys and punish them if they make mistakes. But villians get a pass.
Posts: 186 | Registered: Jul 1999
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quote: Isn't that like saying it's unfair for honest people to only own guns if they are licensed to, while many criminals possess them illegally? Of course the super-villains won't register, but guess what... they're criminals!
Yeah, it is exactly like that.
IRL, Firearms registration doesn't really have any benefit, and often leads to confiscation. Criminals won't register their weapons, just law abiding citizens. Why do we need to regulate and restrict the good folks? Isn't it the criminals we need to police? Registration just ensures that when a municipality or state ingnores the 2nd amendment, only the good folks get their means of defense confiscated. The socio-paths then have unarmed sheep ripe for the picking. Great idea, there.
If the issue of registration for supers is supposed to be accountability, then why are you unconcerned that the villians don't register? That makes it seem like registration only exist to hobble the good guys and punish them if they make mistakes. But villians get a pass.
I think you're missing my point though. How can you say that you shouldn't bother having a law just because criminals will break it? Villians don't get a pass. You see, they are wanted criminals! When they're brought to justice, not registering will probably add years to their sentence. If the Act is passed, any hero can refuse to take part and become a wanted criminal as well.
Are you seriously saying that anyone should be able to buy a gun without restriction and without anyone knowing about it just because criminals find a way to do it? Do you really see that as making the world safer, or more dangerous?
Posts: 1569 | Registered: Dec 2004
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quote:If the issue of registration for supers is supposed to be accountability, then why are you unconcerned that the villians don't register? That makes it seem like registration only exist to hobble the good guys and punish them if they make mistakes. But villians get a pass.
I think a large part of why the act is needed is that without it, you have no idea who the villians are.
Consider this, two superheroes with no previous experience with eachother meet up. What usually happens? They usually start fighting!
Now imagine if they meet after the registration act. Each hero checks the other hero's government issued ID, they see that the other is a registered hero, and they avoid thousands of dollars in damage, and they don't endanger countless lives.
Also, it would present the sort of accountability which is necessary in a world of super-heroes.
For instance, once Johnny Storm got in trouble with the authorities for going nova and destroying part of a school. Johnny hid in an abandoned office building.
Doctor Strange rounded up the Hulk, Spiderman, Wolverine, and Ghost Rider to go find Johnny, and bring him in.
Those four ended up encountering the Fantastic Four, and a huge fight took place. Thing got his face sliced off from Wolvie. Thing got punched through into a neighboring building, causing I'm sure hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage, and perhaps even killing office workers.
Now imagine the same scenario after the registration act. Johnny is a registered superhero, and his powers go a bit out of control and he blows up the school (though property damage only).
It would be much like a police officer's car going out of control and crashing into a business.
The cop would be suspended temporarily until an investigation is conducted, afterwards he is either pardoned, penalized, or fired.
Same would happen to Johnny.
If Johnny ran, like he did from the cops, the government would revoke his license to be a superhero, and if he continued to use his powers, he would then be brought in by a government sanctioned force. The rest of the FF wouldn't fight against the government force like they did against the Hulk and company, because if they did their own licenses would be revoked.
Posts: 5656 | Registered: Oct 1999
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posted
Instead of Guns, which we are sure the government is just waiting to impound from all the good people out there, compare it to driving.
Most drivers get licenses for cars. THe government controls how we drive, where we drive, even what we drive, yet they do it in a way that only increases the safety of those on the road.
They have yet to impound cars for political reasons, or void licences based on your voting record.
That doesn't mean there hasn't been corruption and abuse of the system.
It also doesn't mean that bad guys get licenses, and mostly good people occasionaly loose theres. Nor do all the bad guys give up driving.
On the other hand, I don't think many people want habitual drunk drivers to retain thier licenses.
Of course, the requirement for insurance would be interesting in a Super Hero universe.
Posts: 11895 | Registered: Apr 2002
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The latest issue of Spider-Man made me feel a lot better. In Civil War we see him following along with Iron Man, attacking Captain America, and unmasking. All of which being somewhat out of character.
In Amazing, we see he doesn't quite trust Tony Stark, he's still not sure unmasking was a good idea, and the thought of fighting on the opposite side from Captain America causes a great deal of anguish and self-searching. Plus the fight (and Peter's perception of it) was fantastic, a much better way of portraying the standard "hero fighting hero" cliche than I've seen.
More of this and I might let JMS's hideous Gwen Stacy storyline go by. Well, no, probably not, but I'll feel better about him.
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
You mean to tell me that Spiderman teamed up with Iron Man to fight Captain America? Seems a bit unfair of a fight TBH.
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Actually, Iron Man has his hands full fighting a bunch of other people at that point. Spider-Man encounters Captain America -- who's leading a kind of poorly thought-out "resistance" at this point -- and they both ask each other to reconsider what they're doing. They're both semi-committed to their courses, though, so they half-heartedly fight for a bit. The Captain manages to distract Spidey and escapes, leaving his shield behind; Spider-Man then prevents a group of kids from stealing the shield and leaves it stuck to a wall for Cap, knowing he'll want to come back for it.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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Am I the only one who isn't really digging the "Iron Spider" costume? Seems very out of character...and not needed when you consider Spidey has super-strength, speed, etc.
Posts: 3852 | Registered: Feb 2002
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I just assume it'll go away and they'll have the stock "I'm back!" splash bage. I also assume the new and poorly defined spider bits will also go away.
There's a hint that he's not entirely happy with his Iron Spidey costume in this issue, in fact...
Posts: 7790 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
Is there a super hero that would not benefit from being outfitted with an awesome custom made suit ala iron man mode?
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Is there a super hero that would not benefit from being outfitted with an awesome custom made suit ala iron man mode?
If the Hulk wear to wear a similar suit, it would smash into pieces the first time he punched one of his opponents (well, the first time he did so while angry).
Thor would probably be hindered far more than helped by such a suit as well.
Posts: 5656 | Registered: Oct 1999
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I can't see how it'd do The Human Torch a whole lot of good either.
While he's a villain, the Sandman from early in Spiderman's career wouldn't be helped by such a suit either.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
Pff we are in the superhero universe. Make the suit out of ademantium and it wont shatter and it could use hydralics to amplify the hulks strength.
I need to think about Mr Fantastic for awhile, I've always hated his power to be honest.
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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quote:Pff we are in the superhero universe. Make the suit out of ademantium and it wont shatter and it could use hydralics to amplify the hulks strength.
Actually, one thing that I would love to see Hulk with is an Adamantium battle axe. There's no question that this would make the Hulk a more effective fighting force.
As far as I know, all versions of Hulk could be cut (usually requiring some sort of Adamantium blades, but some versions did not).
Admittedly, a sort of chain-mail Adamantium vest or helmet could be quite useful for Hulk.
But, Adamantium manipulation is not something that Tony Stark can actual do.
It also isn't something which can be made into a high tech Iron-Man style suit.
The idea that hydraulics could enhance Hulk's strength is actually pretty silly (that is if the whole conversation isn't silly enough ). His strength far surpases anything that technology could produce, and it isn't even bound by the laws of physics. Hulk, when angry, could lift more on one finger than every hydraulic lift on earth combined could lift.
Posts: 5656 | Registered: Oct 1999
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posted
My dad loved to take advantage of my trusting nature when I was very young whenever we watched movies.
We would watch movies like Temple of Doom, Jaws, and ET and he would say, "You know this is based on a true story?"
Finally I just started doubting him whenever he said it and one day we watched "The Ghost and The Darkness" and even with the narrator saying that, "Even the most impossible events in this story actually took place." I had to go see the lions in the Field Museum in Chicago before I was convinced.
Incidentally I now love watching movies with people I don't know and saying, "You know this movie is based on a true story." Do it either with a movie like Blade Runner because then its just absurdly funny, or with a movie that probably could have really happened and try to keep people convinced as long as possible.
I feel sorry for you if you say Fargo and trusted the directors when they said it was based on a true story, it isnt.
Posts: 14316 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I was behind on my comic book stuff while I was off in Japan. I came back and all this Civil War stuff was waiting for me. Some of it I find really interesting; some of it I find sort of boring. Hopefully as it continues the interesting will outweigh the boring.
Posts: 1960 | Registered: May 2005
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posted
I don't like superhero registration because it makes it easier for the government to get super DNA and work on a super soldier which will inevitably go crazy and rebel, slaughtering thousands. Posts: 1001 | Registered: Mar 2006
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True Tom, but if the government gets the DNA of, say, Spidey, She-hulk and the Fantastic Four and starts splicing...you've got some super soldiers.
Posts: 3852 | Registered: Feb 2002
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). His strength far surpases anything that technology could produce, and it isn't even bound by the laws of physics. Hulk, when angry, could lift more on one finger than every hydraulic lift on earth combined could lift.
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