Would you be a hero?

[Jolly Roger]

I'm sure this topic has come up before so please forgive me. I'm not sure what forum it belongs in, so if it doesn't belong in the cafe, please forgive me again, folks.

I had an ultra crappy day and I'm not above admitting that it was mostly my fault. I made one of those mistakes at work that you can only own up to and say "Yeah, I screwed up, and I know you (my boss) are gonna be angry at me for a long time even though it was a mistake and I'm sorry." . It was a rookie mistake, too, and the only thing that actually hurts is that I know I let my boss down because he's a good guy.

So I came home, dejected and sad and started watching the Heroes DVDs that my wife got for me. All I could think of is "Man, if I had Hiro's powers I could go back and fix my f-up.". Or if I had Claude or DL's powers I could have snuck in the night before and fixed the problem making it look it never happened. Heck, if I had any of the powers on the show I could probably find a way to make it better or make myself look good. Then I got depressed again....

After all, I don't want to be the kind of guy that would use super powers for purely selfish and most likely illegal activities. But if I could bend time or walk through walls or any of those other things I'd be afraid I'd turn into a real jerk. If I had Eden's powers I could tell my boss "I didn't screw this job up, you did and you'll put it in writing that none of this my fault." Or I could have Candice illusion powers and make it look like someone else made a mistake.

Its an awful thought. Just thinking about being such an asshole makes me feel sick. So I ask, would any of you be able to resist the temptation of using superpowers like that? We'd all like to think we'd be heroes but would we be villains instead?

[Revenant Threshold]

If I had a big power (like Hiro) I wouldn't use it for fear of actually fucking something up seriously. Killing Hitler never works. If it was a small but still useful power.. probably not, since i'd be worried that since I have powers others might too and I would be in danger.

So basically no because i'm a coward. :)

[Kamino Neko]

I'd probably be a Booster Gold type.

Using my powers to do good, but making sure I was seen doing it.

'Cuz doing good is a good thing in general.

Being seen doing good, using super-powers? That's awesome.

[Ephemera]

Nope. I'd help out friends and family or anyone that happened to pull on my heartstrings at that moment but, overall, I'd probably use my powers for self-centered purposes.

[Projammer]

I'd love to have Hiro's power.

I'd jump back and see which aliens actually built the pyramids.

Grab my camcorder for some footage of T-Rex. Just see if we're anywhere near correct about the coloring and behavior.

Just for chuckles I'd have to pop in and grab a couple of bullion bars from Fort Knox and leave them on the desk in the oval office.

Head off a few decades in the future and snag me a gamer PC with a terahertz processor and petabyte of whatever storage media it has. And a few games of course...

Hero? Maybe. But definately human.

[Der Trihs]

I'd be a hero or villain, depending on who you asked, and how much power I got. If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.

With lower level powers, I'd be much more self interested and make fewer waves. Without the protection of writer's fiat, most heros and villains would get killed by bad luck or people's xenophobia or the authorities mighty fast. I'd only do heroic stuff if my powers allowed me to not get caught or killed.

[Jolly Roger]

I'd be a hero or villain, depending on who you asked, and how much power I got. If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.

With lower level powers, I'd be much more self interested and make fewer waves. Without the protection of writer's fiat, most heros and villains would get killed by bad luck or people's xenophobia or the authorities mighty fast. I'd only do heroic stuff if my powers allowed me to not get caught or killed.


It'd make you a villain, but not for the reasons you'd think and please lets not turn this into a political debate. You can get that in the BBQ pit I'm sure. By the way, I AM one of those US forces. Didn't realize that being a media technician was a villain job. :rolleyes:

[Der Trihs]

It'd make you a villain, but not for the reasons you'd think and please lets not turn this into a political debate.It leads quite naturally into politics. You don't think that telepathy could influence politics ? How about an invisible man with a camera or recorder ? Or telekinetically arranging accidents for leaders you dislike.

[Drunky Smurf]

I would be a hero as long as I could maintain certain things, like a paying job and a place to live.

Depending on the power would determine if I would be public about it. Superman like I would be public and help put out forewst fires and such. If it was something like walking through walls or turning things into gold I would keep that secret.

If for some reason I lost my job or apartment and couldn't get back on my feet in time so I became homeless then I would definitely use my power for selfish reasons. I wouldn't use it to become a billionaire type of thing just enough so I wasn't homeless anymore.

If I could pick my power it would definitely be flying. Then I would go on world wide tours and do shows like Evil Knievel and make a nice living that way. I would also do the whole rescuing people from burning buildings and stuff for free of course.

[Jolly Roger]

Fine. I've seen past posts from you so I know how you feel about the US forces in Iraq. I think this statement would make you a villain. I'd be a hero or villain, depending on who you asked, and how much power I got. If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.

But we're going to use our inside voices and not talk about that here.

With lower level powers, I'd be much more self interested and make fewer waves. Without the protection of writer's fiat, most heros and villains would get killed by bad luck or people's xenophobia or the authorities mighty fast. I'd only do heroic stuff if my powers allowed me to not get caught or killed.

This is more on line with what I meant. If you could, say, have the powers of Claude you could get away with quite a lot....as long as you don't get greedy or stupid. If you're not wearing a cape and tights and running around in broad daylight I think most people wouldn't even believe you existed.

[Jolly Roger]

I would be a hero as long as I could maintain certain things, like a paying job and a place to live.

Depending on the power would determine if I would be public about it. Superman like I would be public and help put out forewst fires and such. If it was something like walking through walls or turning things into gold I would keep that secret.

If for some reason I lost my job or apartment and couldn't get back on my feet in time so I became homeless then I would definitely use my power for selfish reasons. I wouldn't use it to become a billionaire type of thing just enough so I wasn't homeless anymore.

If I could pick my power it would definitely be flying. Then I would go on world wide tours and do shows like Evil Knievel and make a nice living that way. I would also do the whole rescuing people from burning buildings and stuff for free of course.

Flying would be cool, but Der Trihs is right. The authorities would be all over you. I wouldn't want that power unless it came with some kind of ability to avoid detection. But I should have put in the OP no godlike superman powers. Supes is cool with me, but he's way too powerful to even be considered realistic. If I had Suuperman's powers I wouldn't have any other problems to overcome. I mean, who can stop Superman?

[Drunky Smurf]

Flying would be cool, but Der Trihs is right. The authorities would be all over you. I wouldn't want that power unless it came with some kind of ability to avoid detection. But I should have put in the OP no godlike superman powers. Supes is cool with me, but he's way too powerful to even be considered realistic. If I had Suuperman's powers I wouldn't have any other problems to overcome. I mean, who can stop Superman?
Yeah you two are right about that. And not only the authorities I can see other groups, the mob, terrorists, or some greedy government (including the US) who might want to take you and experiment on you to try and make super-soldiers who can fly.

Still I'd prefer flying. After thinking on it a bit I think I would move out into the middle of nowhere Nebraska so I could still fly around a bit with only the cows to see me.

[D_Odds]

I would not be a hero, not in the classical sense.

Saving kittens in trees? Yeah, right. They got up there, they can get back down the same way.

That said, if the level of my powers enabled me to put a crimp on areas of great concern to me (such as the African genocides, child pornographers, or human trafficking), I'd be on it. Unlike Batman or Superman or Spiderman, I'm not going to throw you into a revolving door prison. You can surrender, confess, and accept punsihment - or you can disappear. I hear the Gobi desert is good this time of year.

In a cases like trafficking, a cash business, I'd take a fee from the perpetrators (maybe 10%, and return any other funds to the victims. Even heroes need to eat, and a place to sleep.

[Otto]

I mean, who can stop Superman?
Doomsday (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Death_of_Superman).

[levdrakon]

Depending on the power would determine if I would be public about it. Superman like I would be public and help put out forewst fires and such. If it was something like walking through walls or turning things into gold I would keep that secret.I'd keep it secret no matter what. Who wants to be Superman? Let's say this morning all you want to do is get up and have a nice quiet cup of coffee for 10 or 15 minutes.

Then a train derails in India killing 36 people. Where were you Superman??? People died!

Multiply that by however many bad things happen to people every single day, all over the world. Millions and millions of people at any given time are going to resent you for not saving them. No thanks.

I'd try to be a hero, but it would be behind the scenes, if at all possible. I like to keep my own hours. :)

Okay, maybe that doesn't make me the most selfless hero in the world, but I really need a good night's sleep and my coffee in the morning.

[GreedySmurf]

Makes it hard to know whether I'd be a hero or not, without knowing what power I would have.

Some of the powers on the show, wouldn't really help you to be a "hero"

If I get any sort of mildly useful power, I think I would be selfish with it intially, making sure me and my family was comfortable. Once that was done, then I might turn towards helping others more. Once again depending upon what the power was.

[Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor]

Mankind is its own worst enemy.
All people need to do to save themselves, is to stop hurting themselves.
How can you help somebody who doesn't really want to be helped?

[BrainGlutton]

"With great power comes great opportunity."

-- Peter Parker's other uncle, Gordon Gecko

[Peter Morris]

If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.

No, it would depend on if you have any morals or not. Buddy, I don't like what the US Military is doing in Iraq. But what I want is for them to stop doing it and come home. If you destroyed them, then your villainy would be far worse than anything they have done. Do you really want to be a murderer many times over?.

[Peter Morris]

I mean, who can stop Superman?

Batman, if he's prepared

[Peter Morris]

Unlike Batman or Superman or Spiderman, I'm not going to throw you into a revolving door prison. You can surrender, confess, and accept punsihment - or you can disappear. I hear the Gobi desert is good this time of year.

In a cases like trafficking, a cash business, I'd take a fee from the perpetrators (maybe 10%, and return any other funds to the victims. Even heroes need to eat, and a place to sleep.


your real name wouldn't be Simon Templar, would it?

[papaw]

I was a hero once for about 4 years, when as a teacher, I joined the Peace Corps and taught school in Tanzania for 2 years, and then spent 2 more years building schools in the bush where the local government wouldn't or couldn't build them.
Most satisfying time of my life!

That is the kind of hero we should try to be.

[Der Trihs]

No, it would depend on if you have any morals or not. Buddy, I don't like what the US Military is doing in Iraq. But what I want is for them to stop doing it and come home. If you destroyed them, then your villainy would be far worse than anything they have done. Do you really want to be a murderer many times over?.Killing an invader or occupying soldier isn't murder. Killing people in the process of conquest is. I'd be a villain if I didn't destroy them. If they come home safe and sound, then they have gotten away with murder.

Were the Allies murderers for killing German soldiers during WW II ?

[Bryan Ekers]

Had I the power, I'd likely intervene in favour of Canadian military operations, destroying leftover Talibans and such. I'd be inclined to just disarm Iraqis if possible (no point creating generations of revenge) because that nation may be salvageable while the Taliban... isn't.

On a smaller scale, probably some kind of emergency rescue kinda guy. Needless to say, life-and-death decisions made in proportion to my ability to assume them.

[Charger]

I am of the mindset that Superman's greatest power is (or at least should be, all dickery aside) that he doesn't give in to "human" desires like vengeance and that he doesn't develop such an ego that he dictates right and wrong, he just saves people from immediate peril.

With that said, I like to think I will become a very active hero when the inevitable day comes when I get my super powers. However, I know it would be a daily battle with myself not to just fling the troublemakers into the sun. I would try to convince myself that an action that actually harms someone would cost me my powers. But the normal human in me would counter that with "harming this one guy will save so many." I would have to try not to think like that.

[Jolly Roger]

I am of the mindset that Superman's greatest power is (or at least should be, all dickery aside) that he doesn't give in to "human" desires like vengeance and that he doesn't develop such an ego that he dictates right and wrong, he just saves people from immediate peril.

With that said, I like to think I will become a very active hero when the inevitable day comes when I get my super powers. However, I know it would be a daily battle with myself not to just fling the troublemakers into the sun. I would try to convince myself that an action that actually harms someone would cost me my powers. But the normal human in me would counter that with "harming this one guy will save so many." I would have to try not to think like that.

I think Superman's selfless attitude is what makes him a true hero, though its hard to believe anyone is THAT good.

It would depend on what powers I had, but if I were at least able to make quick escapes (flight, inviso-power, teleportation) and keep my identity secret I'd probably actively go after drug dealers and the like. It'd be fun to have that comic book moment when you see the authorities on the news trying to deny your existence. "No folks, there is no Twilight Avenger....its just the ravings of a deranged drug dealer."

[tirial]

Killing an invader or occupying soldier isn't murder. Killing people in the process of conquest is. I'd be a villain if I didn't destroy them. If they come home safe and sound, then they have gotten away with murder.

Not touching my view of the war in Iraq, but doesn't that make you a murderer as well? And you are leaving the people at the top who made the mess there to raise more troops, declare you an enemy of the state, discover krytonite etc.

With superman level powers wouldn't it be more effective just to put the troops in their vehicles, and move the vehicles back to the US/other home country? Do this a few times and the cost of repeatedly shipping them back and setting up again makes the war completely uneconomic. (especially if you carefully placed an aircraft carrier or two in the middle of, say, Nevada...) You might even get public support if you took that route. Why the mass murder?

What I'd do? With a lower level power, probably find a way to make it commercial e.g. spreadbetting is easy when you know what's going to happen in the next ten minutes. Once my family were comfortable, there are a few local causes that could do with the aid. Invisibility could make investigative reporting a really interesting career option.
But I would still be keeping a low profile.

[RikWriter]

Killing an invader or occupying soldier isn't murder. Killing people in the process of conquest is. I'd be a villain if I didn't destroy them. If they come home safe and sound, then they have gotten away with murder.

Were the Allies murderers for killing German soldiers during WW II ?

You'd definitely be a supervillain. Thank God no one actually has superpowers.

[Max the Immortal]

If I could, I would use my powers for profit, but not for crime. If I were super-strong, I'd win as many boxing titles/purses as I could before I was banned from competing. If I could heal people with supernatural powers, I'd expect to be paid as much as a medical doctor (or several doctors, if I can do the work of several doctors). If I were able to teleport, I'd work as a premium courier or somesuch. I don't think that I would have the guts to endanger myself to help others.

[Nava]

I'd be a hero or villain, depending on who you asked, and how much power I got. If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.

Just remember to leave La Pieta intact when you destroy Vatican city, ok? And the libraries.

Some of those powers would be a bitch to have. Two-way telepathy, for example. Let's say there's some powerful people whose behaviour I find quite unacceptable; I believe that "doing things right" would actually produce better results both for other people and for them. Is it really ethical to change their behavior using telepathy? Eeeeeh... not really... But what if doing so would actually result in more people living better and on those guys actually getting more money and power than with their current misbehavior? Eeeeeeh... still not really...

[Jolly Roger]

Not touching my view of the war in Iraq, but doesn't that make you a murderer as well? And you are leaving the people at the top who made the mess there to raise more troops, declare you an enemy of the state, discover krytonite etc.



Sssshhh...don't confuse him with logic.

[C K Dexter Haven]

Moderator comment: I don't see that this is about arts, entertainment, or leisure... so I'm moving it to IMHO.

[Epimetheus]

If I had Peter's power, I would go around like Sylar, except instead of killing everybody I would just get to know them and their abilities. I would form a political group to protect my kind, and fight for their survival. Kind of like on the 4400.

[MrDibble]

With Superman level powers? I'd be a villain in the Ozymandias mode - only, I'd pretend to be an invading alien fleet, moving a hollowed-out asteroid into orbit and dropping small space rocks on the most densely-populated parts of US, Asia and Africa, not doing what he did. More bang for your buck that way, I think. The world could use 2-3 billion people less and a common enemy to unite against. Plus the dust-cloud winter effects might come in handy right now what with climate change and all.

Less powerful but still awesome powers - say, just invisibility, mind-control, illusion or telepathy? I'd be out for myself. Of course, part of that looking out for myself would be anarcho-socialist political action that would (IMO) benefit a lot of people - so I'd say I'd be an accidental hero.

Other powers like flight, healing, super-strength, telekinesis - ones that don't really allow you to influence other people - would be where I'd take the hero route. Too much trouble to stay secretive about your powers, although a secret identity isn't out of the question. That or a WWE persona.

[Sunrazor]

I'd be a hero or villain, depending on who you asked, and how much power I got. If I got Superman-level powers, I'd do things like destroy the US forces in Iraq; needless to say, whether that makes me a hero or villain would depend on whether you are an American or not.Why wouldn't you just gathere 'em up and bring 'em home, out of the danger they've been put in through no choice of their own? That would make you a hero and restore the respect I had for you just before I read your post.

[chowder]

I like your posts Der Trihs and for some crazy reason I like you.

But will you please leave it off?

You never miss an opportunity to snipe at the US armed forces, for that matter the USA in general. Give it a rest old chap, there's a good fellow

[Jolly Roger]

I like your posts Der Trihs and for some crazy reason I like you.

But will you please leave it off?

You never miss an opportunity to snipe at the US armed forces, for that matter the USA in general. Give it a rest old chap, there's a good fellow

Yeah, I said that in post number 10.

[Caffeine.addict]

I'm afraid that depending on the power I would become an opportunist or villain. With telepathy, you have some great opportunities to engage in what would amount to insider trading without getting caught. The downside, is you get to find out all the crap that people think about you and about other people. That might make you into a bitter recluse. If you can influence people, the temptation to "fix" society would be hard to resist.

Flight would be a useless power. Too easy to be found out and too hard to use covertly for the most part although maybe you could save some money on airfare.

Something like super strength might be interesting although how do you use it responsibly? The temptation to off a few drug lords and keep some of the funds might be hard to resist.

[Balance]

Based on my past behavior, I know that I am prone to heroic impulses of a sort, and that I have a strong protective streak. If presented with a situation in which I could use my powers heroically, I would almost certainly do so...probably without adequately considering the negative consequences (danger, exposure, property damage, and so forth). I can be a little, well, stupid that way. :smack:

However, I am also fundamentally lazy. I very much doubt that I'd go out looking for opportunities to do heroic things. Mostly, I'd use my powers for my own convenience and that of my family and friends--hopefully without doing anything really unethical. Maybe if I had Superman-class powers, I'd become more of an active do-gooder...after making myself independently wealthy in whatever fashion my powers made easiest.

[MrDibble]

Why wouldn't you just gathere 'em up and bring 'em home, out of the danger they've been put in through no choice of their own?
Because, of course, none of them volunteered, they are all conscripts...

I'm sorry, I was going to let the whole Iraq thing go, but I wasn't going to let such a blatant lie pass without remark.

[Chronos]

Am I the only one who would immediately seek out appropriate labs to study my powers, or if I couldn't find any, establish my own? Understanding how it's possible for a human to fly unaided (or read minds, or resist bullets, or whatever) would be a lot more beneficial, in the long run, than the existance of a single human who can do so. The exception might be if my power were something exceedingly dangerous, like time travel: In that case, I would skip directly to founding the lab myself, and be very, very careful about who else I let in on it. And with a power like that, I wouldn't use it in any public way (that its existance could be discovered) at least until I understood very, very well how it worked.

[Balance]

Well, Chronos, that's sort of orthogonal to the heroic/non-heroic question, and it didn't occur to me to address it. Besides, the answer seems pretty obvious. I would definitely investigate the mechanism behind the powers, although I'd be careful who I let in on it regardless of the nature of the power. Even if no one else stood to benefit from the information, I'd want to know for my own sake--what if my nifty power was slowly killing me as I used it?

[Jolly Roger]

Because, of course, none of them volunteered, they are all conscripts...

I'm sorry, I was going to let the whole Iraq thing go, but I wasn't going to let such a blatant lie pass without remark.


You should have. Many people join the armed forces to serve their country, get some training, get college money or just to see the world. Do you think that Joe Average walks into a recruiting station and says "I want to go the middle east to kill motherfuckers?". They don't. I was a recruiter a few years ago and most people joined up for the other reasons I mentioned.

Sp why don't we all lay off of the whole Iraq thing here? Its actually getting tiresome.

[Sunrazor]

Because, of course, none of them volunteered, they are all conscripts...

I'm sorry, I was going to let the whole Iraq thing go, but I wasn't going to let such a blatant lie pass without remark.Oh, Mr. Dibble, would you be so kind as to step into The Pit (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=438125 ) with me? It will just take a minute.

[Lemur866]

Der Trihs wouldn't be a supervillain because he wanted to stop the Iraq war.

He would be a supervillain because his first impulse when given the power to do so would be to go murder a bunch of people he hates.

[SlowMindThinking]

The physicist in you is showing, Chronos. (Magic can't exist. If it happens repeatedly it does not violate a law of nature, it is a law of nature. Now, how does it work.) I may be a physicist too, but I'm not sure I'd study my superpower. First, in order to get anywhere on something so unusual as to never have been noticed or existed before, you'd not only need skills I don't have - I'm a theorist - you'd need a large, lab of the sort only govts can afford. And who says anything discovered would be used for good. Most likely it would be kept secret, as you proposed so how can you argue, and then used for purposes that someone else thought was right. (I'm sure even Hitler thought he was right.)

I think I'd give in to my heroic impulses - rescuing hikers, pedestrains, etc. No point in having powers, if I use them for no more taking the trash out after I'd forgotten. Eventually, I'd probably take advantage of the resulting opportunities to get laid, and end up the Wilt Chamberlain of superheros/villains. (Look! Up in the sky! It is banal hero/villain!) Eventually, politics would rear up, and I'd get confused.

Perhaps stopping a war requires actually killing someone. Or lots of someones. I don't think I could. Isn't murder if they have no legitimate defense? Or maintaining an evil status quo. I can't imagine there are too many situations where I'd know what to do.

Unless my power was the ability to resolve knotty philosophical problems. Of course, I probably couldn't use that power to get laid.

[Chronos]

Oh, if it was something harmless like flight, I'd publicize it myself, before anyone got a chance to make it secret. And if it were something dangerous, I wouldn't let the government (any government) in on it in the first place. There's still a risk that whatever they learn from something like flight could be used for evil, but then, that's a risk with any scientific endeavor. Fire and the wheel were both used for evil, but it doesn't mean we were better off without them.

Oh, and I'm a theorist, too, but I have the opposite view you do on the implications of something so radically new. With an old, established science, you need an experimenter's skill set to make any experimental progress, since all the easy experiments have already been done. But with something radically new, there's still elementary things to discover, accessible to even us theorists. I've dreamt that I'm flying often enough to have designed at least a half-dozen experiments I could do on that alone (one experiment I even designed while I was still dreaming).

[Der Trihs]

Why wouldn't you just gathere 'em up and bring 'em home, out of the danger they've been put in through no choice of their own? That would make you a hero and restore the respect I had for you just before I read your post.Because they'd just go right back. And being an army of conquest, I don't think they deserve any compassion to begin with.

Der Trihs wouldn't be a supervillain because he wanted to stop the Iraq war.

He would be a supervillain because his first impulse when given the power to do so would be to go murder a bunch of people he hates.How else do you normally stop wars ? Assuming the aggressors won't listen to reason ? Why, morally, is it evil for a superpowered individual to destroy an army of conquest, but moral for an army to do the same thing ?

It is NOT mass murder to destroy an army of conquest, whether it's done by another army, Superguy, or an orbital beam cannon. It's simply self defense/the defense of others.

[Sunrazor]

Because they'd just go right back. And being an army of conquest, I don't think they deserve any compassion to begin with.Well, my son must be the only guy over there who doesn't want to be there, then. Oh, and those five sergeants who wrote the letter to the New York Times. But I'm sure you've interviewed many, many of them, and are thus confident that all of the rest of the troops over there are just having the times of their lives, right?

Sorry, chump, I once considered you a well-reasoned if somewhat radical atheist who could be counted on to ground his arguments in fact and logic. No more.

[SlowMindThinking]

Oh, if it was something harmless like flight, I'd publicize it myself, before anyone got a chance to make it secret. And if it were something dangerous, I wouldn't let the government (any government) in on it in the first place. There's still a risk that whatever they learn from something like flight could be used for evil, but then, that's a risk with any scientific endeavor. Fire and the wheel were both used for evil, but it doesn't mean we were better off without them.

Oh, and I'm a theorist, too, but I have the opposite view you do on the implications of something so radically new. With an old, established science, you need an experimenter's skill set to make any experimental progress, since all the easy experiments have already been done. But with something radically new, there's still elementary things to discover, accessible to even us theorists. I've dreamt that I'm flying often enough to have designed at least a half-dozen experiments I could do on that alone (one experiment I even designed while I was still dreaming).

I guess I was thinking of something like time travel. It just takes one person who knows how to go back in time to ruin it for everyone.

And no way I would know how to investigate flying. The energy comes from somewhere. Of the four forces we know about, I'm confident I could detect some forms of E&M. (If I'm at all nimble in the air, there has to be some frequency above 10 hz or so. If I don't see anything, and I can fly in the dark, it can't be light. Iron bars don't wing their way to me as I fly. My photomultiplier container registers nothing when I fly in it...) But, frankly, if it was related to E&M at energies I can investigate, it is even more unlikely that I'd be the first exhibition than that I can fly. Any interaction of any of the other forces, or some new force, is going to be, um, difficult. (Let's see, my pocket gravity wave detector is designed to detect two black holes colliding. I need a different frequency range, ...)

[Ranchoth]

I dunno...my normal desire towards godlike post-human power would be tempered by my natural fear of getting caught doing something I wasn't supposed to be doing—This, I suppose, rather illustrates the whole debate of the difference between "illegal" and "immoral." And of "immoral" and "immortal to me, personally."*

That, and the fact that I don't really like dealing with people. At all. You ever watch Cops? And all the ambassadors of high culture that the police have to deal with on a regular basis? Multiply that by 1000, punctuated by the occasional Carlos the Jackal or natural disaster. That's the life of Superman for ya. Plus I'd get people protesting me (believe me, I'm from California. I know...it doesn't matter what I'd do, for who, or how well, I'm sure someone would be picketing.), the occasional assassination attempt, and obsessed fans and/or cultists. Great.

I'd probably end up wanting to use my powers to accumulate just enough wealth to retire to a cabin in the middle of the Sierras before I'm 40.

*insert pithy comment here.