rambling thoughts going through my head

I'd go join the Police, as wearing a costume and putting yourself out there probably will not deter crime, I could be wrong though, its just my opinion. Security Guard is another thing which comes to mind.

If your able to be anywhere near crime then a more discrete level of real usefulness is to gather intel on it for the Police, eg. taking pictures of the crime and of identities involved. Maybe a roaming freelance Private Investigator sorta thing.

The problem with that is it doesn't really stop crime but you could always tell the perp you've uploaded photos to the Police and they are on there way right now.... that might stop it, but many times even that will not stop it and in those circumstances I do not know if having a costume will make any difference, unless that costume includes bullet proof plates in a plate carrier, a ballistic helmet and one of those bullet proof siege shields!

I'm sure TOTJO would not endorse this idea of placing yourself in danger....

oskirk wrote: look up phoenix jones and he rain city superheroes, guys. real life heroes there. im looking for that kind of heroism. im not expecting to be a spiderman or superman in this world. im looking to do for the cops what they cant do because of due process.
not saying im definitely going to do this, but it is in the front of my mind.

Ah yes. Mr. Jones.....

Saw him about a year ago in the news. I follow him on FB. He may do vigilante justice, but he also does a lot of community service and over night stays in jail. The cops can't stand him. The only thing he has been decent at as a vigilante is being an accurate third party witness to brawls and thefts.

I caution this. He may look cool, but he doesn't post up all the bail money he spends because vigilantism isn't exactly legal in the states. And he's backed off due to high arrest rate to getting more involved with Charity's and speaking out against crime as a public speaker. He's also doing his own thing with a comic line and whatnot.

I think it was last year that the BBC had a documentary on Phoenix Jones. To me he didn't come across a very affective 'hero'. It made him out to be a bit of a deluded hero wannabe, and if any thing he ended up exacerbating situations rather than resolving them. Two scenes stuck in my mind after watching the documentary.
1. He tried to stop a fight and got himself beat up.
2. When he tried to stop another fight he used CS gas to incapacitate the person who he thought was the aggressor, but it turned out he'd got the wrong guy. He gassed someone who also had stopped to help.

If someone is going to attempt to be a have a go hero, then they can't be inconsistent, and must be able to back up their actions with hard evidence. As soon as you make a mistake, you end up falling foul of the law and get in trouble yourself.

My view on it is, help when confronted by a situations that needs your assistance or intervention. Do not go out looking for that situation.

i brought up phoenix jones as a point.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ohi2WV2HV4&feature=related

As magnanimous as your intentions sound, this is dangerously irresponsible. Might does not make you a hero, and forgive me, but this sounds almost childish. I used to post about constructing real lightsabers and fighting real battles, which is why I find myself able to dismiss fantasies and deluded perceptions. I don't mean to be unkind, but it is unlikely that you will find any encouragement from any reasonable adult here. The best way to serve your community is to obey the law and support victims of illicit activities. Acting capriciously rarely ends well.

Angelus wrote: I don't mean to be unkind, but it is unlikely that you will find any encouragement from any reasonable adult here.

Adder wrote: I'd go join the Police, as wearing a costume and putting yourself out there probably will not deter crime.

I am inclined to agree with some of the people who do not support this idea, to an extent. In many aspects of my own life I am told that I am not, nor have I ever been a reasonable adult. I dream ideas and I consider them to be possible, regardless of improbability or impracticality.

I also look at society and I see a population of "socially acceptable" people who consider any digression from that path, even with honest and good-willing intentions, to be inadmissible behaviour. Which is a perfectly reasonable view. However, what makes society happy isn't necessarily the best thing to do, especially when one wants to make a radical change in their neighbourhood.

The problem lies in what the best way is exactly, to make a radical change. Maybe it isn't donning a costume and "looking for trouble". Maybe I am deluded as has been suggested, but I do not see this issue as black and white - there are many sides to the die. On the one hand, vigilantism is against the law. The last time I looked pirating was illegal too, but that's done all the time. Wait, so is crime. My point is, vigilantism only does harm as far as the mistakes the human makes, such as Phoenix's accident with the CS gas. To say this is unacceptable behaviour, one should probably think on how many mistakes the police make. They are only human too.

Phoenix Jones' idea was to do what the police can't do, which is be on the scene right away and prevent the crimes from happening, if not at least witness them. Is this irresponsible? Or is it courageous? It's all a matter of perspective. Either way, it has been shown to make a difference.

Please make no mistake, I would never ask anyone to obey social mores. Phoenix Jones has been stabbed, beaten, and if I'm not very much mistaken, he's been shot at. A proclivity for violence is not a responsible method for stopping crime. Dying on the streets is not helping anyone, least of all yourselves. If you fell compelled to rush into action, or to begin preparing for this, stop and employ reason. Ask yourself if it's REALLY the best thing to do, and if you're REALLY the best person to do it.