Real life Masked Vigilantes

What comes to mind when someone mentions the word “superhero”? Do your thoughts

automatically resort to comics and movies? If so, then it would probably shock

most of you to know that right now, here in the U.S., there are 300 registered

real life “superheroes”. I know, sounds like something right off of the silver

screen right? Well thanks to comics, and more recently, movies, the popularity

of putting on a costume and fighting crime has entered the realm of everyday life.

I wouldn’t call these people Superheroes, exactly, seeing as how in order to be an

actual superhero, you have to possess super human abilities. Masked Vigilantes is

a more appropriate term, and that is exactly what these people are. The premise

of this will remind you of a certain comic/movie, Kick Ass, in which a teenage boy

grows tired of being bullied, and watching others being pushed around, so he decides

to take matters into his own hands by putting on a costume and going out into

the streets to fight crime. But, as the movie shows, it is not as easy as it might

sound. You can not simply put on a costume and call yourself a hero. Without the

proper amount of training and practice, you could end up causing more damage

than good. The lead character of Kick Ass found that out the hard way, when he did,

in fact, get his Ass Kicked. In real life, there more than likely will not be a Hit 

Girl around to save you. Take Batman, for example, as a young man he seen the chaos 

and despair caused by criminals first hand the day his parents were killed right in front of his 

very eyes, and he vowed to take revenge on his parents’ killer, and every other 

criminal in his city. Like any other masked vigilante, Batman owned no super human 

abilities, so he spent his life training and gaining the proper skills needed to be 

better than the authorities who make a living going after criminals everyday. But, 

just like anyone else who chooses to become a costumed crime fighter, taking a 

beating in the beginning is inevitable. The point is, unless you have access to the 

proper resources, and unless you are willing to devote your life to “the cause”, then 

don’t bother putting on that costume. 

I personally think that this cultural revolution of costumed vigilantes is an

excellent idea, as long as these undercover crime fighters know what they are in

for. Criminals are ruthless, especially if you are not wearing a badge. I am rather

interested in seeing how this all unfolds, and I will be on the lookout for the first

costumed villain. Because, after all, you can’t have heroes without villains, right?

Furthermore, I hope that the idea of these real life “superheroes” will inspire 

the rest of us to take a step out of our comfort zones, and get out there and 

make a difference. What are your thoughts on the subject?