Poll: do you think there is a place in society for a REAL dark knight?

[Starik20X6]

Disclaimer: I've had a few drinks and been reading about scumbags in the paper.

At the moment, I'm pretty keen for someone to go all Batman on some people's asses. Where I live people like to go into town and start fights, ruining other people's good times. Not too long ago a young man was killed when someone drunkenly punched him in the back of the head. The police are trying to make it safer, but it's still happening. People would probably be a lot less likely to start shit if they knew that around every corner could be someone ready to break their limbs.

Also, someone needs to weed out pedophiles with a bit more crowbar-assisted justice.

 

[AngelBlackChaos]

No, because they wouldn't stay anonymous for long, and at least around here, once his identity was found out, he'd be dead within a week.

Let's put it this way, about 20 years ago, a snitch got caught and they found her on a bridge raped, murdered, and with her breast and hands cut off.

Jesus Christ, where do you live?!

Oklahoma. She was a local going under cover, usually not a good idea around these parts because everybody at least knows the families. Yeah, even before the mill went out, drugs were one of the largest exports. And getting caught by the drug lords for being a snitch is a good way to get an example made of you.

Might have been longer than 20 years ago though, can't remember, it's been awhile since mom told me about it. Though I do remember that she met some people in NC when she was at college that went rafting down Glover and almost got shot when they stumbled into someone's pot patch for lunch.

I want to read more about that, care to give a link/give more info? I can't seem to find anything on it.

 

[Froggy Slayer]

It'd work better if you were more of a Sherlock Holmes. He operates outside of the police force, but still within the law so the police can't go ape on you.

 

[MammothBlade]

Sadly, I have to say no. The problem is the relationship between the legal system and crime, not whether or not we need a vigilante running the streets. Now, I live in Canada, in one of the more crime-laden cities of Saskatchewan, and I would not find that a masked vigilante going around killing the guilty would do any good. All it starts is a witch hunter from the gangs and thugs seeking revenge, who hunt through their victims or potential victims looking for the culprit. The legal system would not be solved or avoided, as the vigilante's mess would still be left to the same system. You don't go making a salad taste better by hiding it away from hungry mouths. What I see in the concept of a dark knight is that people are trying to hide the flaws of the legal system by making a character that can operate outside the legal system, thereby making the legal system inconsequential or unneeded. You don't fix any problem by ignoring it, especially one that is an theoretical entity that is incapable of ageing, thought, or coming to its own conclusions. If the cops were all vigilantes, the legal system would just be as fucked up in a hundred years as it is now because no one will pay it any attention.

Good question, though.

What if the role of the dark knight was to force the legal system to get itself together? What if the legal system itself was corrupted and needed a clean-up? Anti-heroes must do the unthinkable and may become universally hated, pariahs in the name of a greater good. The world needs more anti-heroes to take on the true villains in society.

 

[orangeban]

Oh good grief no, vigilantism is incredibly dangerous. I mean, firstly, the justice system doesn't need to be more harsh, it needs to focus on rehabilitation. Secondly, we're forced to trust the vigilante, trust that they are getting the right people. Thirdly, let's be real, they'd probably just get killed. Fourthly, even if they didn't, they'd probably just end up killing criminals.

 

[shrekfan246]

so it has me wondering why isnt there an over ambitious male or female out there who has decided to sit at home with a police radio, mask and a make-shift weapon and dish out their own brand of justice to their local area

Except there has been. A fair few times, actually.

Anyway, my local area is... kinda quiet, really. I think my state has one of the lowest average crime rates in the US... a quick Google search shows that I'm pretty much in the cluster of towns that are considered the 'least safe' in Vermont, and I used to live in the town that has one of the highest 'crime' rates, but most of it is just underage drinking/illegal drug use/the occasional domestic violence case. Of course, I don't watch the news all that much either, so I could just be woefully uninformed.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go play some Arkham City I think.

 

[HardkorSB]

With all the crime going on in today's society such as people attacking others purely because they are bored or someone mugging a pensioner for their watch. The police are doing their job and 9 times out of 10 they are doing their job well, but they are tied down by the legal and justice system which is often not harsh enough on criminals.

look at your area and surrounding areas and I can guarantee that at least one area near you has a high crime rate. Now imagine someone was actually fighting back against crime striking fear into those that strike fear into the community. i understand that this dark knight is still breaking the law and would have to avoid the police ironically like the criminals he/she is facing. i also understand that in america guns are more common among criminals so there is more of a risk however in the UK guns are very rare of course the risk is still there but not as obvious.

I don't think petty crime is something a dark knight should be after.
If there really was a group (one person wouldn't be able to do everything, even if he knew how, he wouldn't have the time) with that kind of funding and training really determined to be "heroic", they would be after organized crime, corrupt politicians, terrorists and all the rich and powerful bastards that, because of their position and wealth, are above the law.
That's what I would do under these circumstances.

Also, it's more probable that if indeed someone funded this, it would be more like G.I. JOE that Batman (since a group of specialists doing their thing is more efficient than 1 dude who can't even turn his head around

Heh, I'd do it if I won the lottery

I saw some rough count of how much would it take to become Batman and it was somewhere above $600 million (not counting repairs to the suit/gadgets/vehicles/medical bills/etc) so you would have to win a lot of lotteries.
That's why it has to be a billionaire like Wayne, he has a billion or 2 to waste every now and then.

 

[Alandoril]

It would depend entirely who you had in charge of the police force. Personally, if there was a Dark Knight working in any area of Britain and I was in command of the police, then I would just let him get on with it.

Sometimes, as is the case with bankers and such, the law isn't enough.

 

[In Search of Username]

No. I enjoy the Batman films, but they're to be taken symbolically, not literally - a real Dark Knight probably wouldn't stick to the 'don't kill' rule so carefully, nor would it be possible to stay anonymous with such ease. That's the trouble with vigilante justice, it's all fine if it's done by someone as principled as Bruce Wayne, but you've got no way of controlling how moral your vigilantes are going to be since they operate outside the law. You could end up with a Dark Knight or just a serial killer.

 

[Euryalus]

To quote yahtzee

"Short answer: NO!

Long Answer: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

 

[Scarim Coral]

Haha! No!!! Just to be clear, while I would think there is a place for a real life Dark Knight to exist (well that person can try) but it ain't going be this area!
I mean yes there are crimes like shoplifters or some crazy guy wielding a knife (this really happen over here ages ago during the night) but it's nowhere near bad compared to other places like let say South London where murders can happen over there.

Shame SpectacularWebHead ain't online anymore as he would had love to talked about this (I pretty sure that real life superhero thread he made had demoralise him).

 

[gh0ti]

Mixed feelings to say the least.

If the vigilante had motives as pure and selfless as Bruce Wayne, and left the actual process of punishment to the legitimate authorities, then I would largely be supportive of the idea.

However, the films themselves make cautionary statements about vigilante justice.

Spoiler

Jim Gordon: What about escalation?
Batman: Escalation?
Jim Gordon: We start carrying semi automatics, they buy automatics, we start wearing Kevlar, they buy armor piercing rounds, and *you're* wearing a mask and jumping off rooftops. take this guy: armed robbery, double homicide. Got a taste for the theatrical, like you. Leaves a calling card.

A vigilante that criminals are genuinely afraid of could push them to new extremes. In the UK, this might take the form of increased use of firearms by criminals. As the Joker himself says, he is the product of Batman's crackdown.

Furthermore, corruption is nowhere near as widespread in the UK police force as it is in Gotham (phone-hacking scandal notwithstanding). Nor is crime out of control. Recent figures have shown a marked dip in violent crime, with homicide at an historically low level.

 

[someonehairy-ish]

The only problem with crime we have locally is with drugs. I don't honestly think we need a vigilante taking dealers down, because - and this will seem like a strange statement - the ones I've actually met seem like nice enough people. The locals towns are pretty small, and most of the dealers there are just urban white guys looking to relax with a tasty joint and make some cash in the meantime. You'd have to do something monumentally stupid to really piss them off, and even then these are not the types who're likely to enact any harsher revenge than maybe nicking some of your stuff.
As for the higher up guys, they're apparently pretty hard, very scary and not hugely trusting. Even then, they're still a far cry away from whichever psychopathic cunts did this:

Let's put it this way, about 20 years ago, a snitch got caught and they found her on a bridge raped, murdered, and with her breast and hands cut off.

Actually, with that thought, there is a small group of neo-nazi skinhead bastards around. They look like a bunch of idiot white men pretending to be hard, but people who're pretending to feel hard are probably more likely to stick a knife in your ribs than people who actually are hard and don't need to reassure themselves. If a vigilante were to take them down they'd be doing everyone a favour...

 

[hazabaza1]

Wasn't there a thread about this recently? Ended up with OP getting really defensive when people told him that a real life vigilante with a moral code would quickly get killed.

 

[DarkRyter]

No, because they wouldn't stay anonymous for long, and at least around here, once his identity was found out, he'd be dead within a week.

Let's put it this way, about 20 years ago, a snitch got caught and they found her on a bridge raped, murdered, and with her breast and hands cut off.

Such is the fate of a rat.

The streets be cold, dog.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

If you only responded to police radios, you would accomplish no more than they could, you would just get in their way, and you would end up in jail probably. If you went after people who were charged but released but you still believe are guilty, then you are a nutbag. Otherwise, you would have to be psychic to know where the criminals are.

 

[General Twinkletoes]

What is a hero? [Smashes glass] Nothing but a miserable pile of secrets!
...sorry.

Anyway, you haven't seen/read Death Note, have you?[footnote]And that's my final answer[/footnote]

Not sure that's a good analogy, Batman doesn't have the power to kill anyone he wants with by knowing their name and face though that would actually make me care about batman
Nope. I totally love Batman. Internet, don't hit me please!

OT:

Hell.
No.
That stuff doesn't work IRL. People aren't that awesome.

 

[Chairman Miaow]

Also, realistically I couldn't see a female doing this sort of job unless they were more of a gun wielding crime stopper. Physically even a fit woman with fight experience wouldn't stand much of a chance against a reasonably sized man who's not clueless on how to fight and hasn't been stunned by surprise.

Fine, but you have to be the one to tell these women:

Spoiler

I'm sure as hell not doing it for you.

 

[Guffe]

Nope, not were I live.
Doubr anywhere close would even be a good place to start playing a good guy.
The stuff that happens here isn't too big stuff and such a small place, everyone would probably know who he is in 48 hours or something like that.