# A Superhero acting Illegally **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 4, 2006, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177 "2006-04-04T01:11:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2006, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177/1 "2006-04-04T01:11:39Z")
A superhero, Superguy, is active and working in the present day. Saving lives, defeating criminals, saving the Earth from giant meteors, and so on. Doing all the things that are impossible for law enforcement, or at the very least prohibitively expensive. There are no other superheroes. However - he has an unpleasant flaw. He himself has admitted to having this flaw, and chooses to not seek treatment/submit to punishment for it willingly. Apart from this flaw, he continues to do heroic work otherwise. Let’s say the government has the ability to force him to undergo punishment/treatment for this flaw; they have a kryptonite cage. Obviously, though, while he’s in the cage, he can’t go out and save people or stop crime. Plus, he’s likely to carry a grudge, and so may not be so willing to help out in the future. How much illegal behaviour are you willing to accept before the government should incarcerate Superguy? Should they step in if he’s a petty thief? A bank robber? A pedophile? If Superguy kills one person for every two he saves, should he be locked up? ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2006, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177/2 "2006-04-04T11:50:27Z")
If he has superpowers, and chooses not to submit to punishment willingly, how can the government force him to go into the kryptonite cage? Yet you say that the government _can_ force him to submit. This is a contradiction. Can you clarify? ---
**Author:** ![Harborwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Harborwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harborwolf)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2006, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177/3 "2006-04-04T11:59:51Z")
> [@Alive At Both Ends](#): > > If he has superpowers, and chooses not to submit to punishment willingly, how can the government force him to go into the kryptonite cage? Yet you say that the government _can_ force him to submit. This is a contradiction. Can you clarify? The point is that the government has the ability to incarcerate him for his behavior, and that includes the arrest, trial, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2006, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177/4 "2006-04-04T17:05:31Z")
> [@Alive At Both Ends](#): > > If he has superpowers, and chooses not to submit to punishment willingly, how can the government force him to go into the kryptonite cage? Yet you say that the government _can_ force him to submit. This is a contradiction. Can you clarify? What **Haborwolf** said. Assume they have a means of forcing him to submit and get in the cage, but that he’s not going to go willingly. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2006, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-superhero-acting-illegally/351177/5 "2006-04-04T17:06:33Z")
Or **Harborwolf** , even. And I even went back to remove the “u” I put in. :smack: