An odd question

[nexus]

Lets say you got superpowers. You're young (late teens, early 20s) fairly powerful (700-800 Points in Hero Terms) and a member of a small coalition of similiar beings. Would you feel obligated to use your powers to "Change the world" in the sense of imposing your vision on it? WOuld you feel you had the right or responsibility to do so? In most cases your powers have not gifted you with any particular insight or wisdom beyond what you normally have. Fishing for opinions here.

[Agent 13]

Re: An odd question

 

Are you asking from my own life experience at that age, or for a generalized young adult?

[nexus]

Re: An odd question

 

Are you asking from my own life experience at that age' date=' or for a generalized young adult?[/quote']

 

Either/or really. I'm interested in any viewpoint or opinions.

[Guest WhammeWhamme]

Re: An odd question

 

I'm 19. Five world leaders owe their lives to my lack of superpowers.

 

I wouldn't feel obligated. I'd feel empowered.

[McCoy]

Re: An odd question

 

Would you feel obligated to use your powers to "Change the world" in the sense of imposing your vision on it? WOuld you feel you had the right or responsibility to do so?

Heck yeah! In my teens and twenties I was convinced that if everyone would just Do It My Way everyone would be happier and better off.

 

For that matter I'm still convinced that if everyone would just Do It My Way everyone would be happier and better off, but now realize that the happier and better off would come about only if everybody agreed to Do It My Way, and I don't have that kind of powers of persuasion. Nor am I claiming a monopoly on Utopia, if we could all agree on ANY plan we would be better off.

 

Humm, how much megascale area effect invisible mind control can I buy for 700 points?

[McCoy]

Re: An odd question

 

I'm 19. Five world leaders owe their lives to my lack of superpowers.

Only five?

[Jhamin]

Re: An odd question

 

There was a thought experiment years ago on another board where folks asked if you had 1000 points to spend on yourself, what would you buy?

 

First I wanted to buy myslef world shaping powers to put things right.

When I really, really thought about it I had to admit that it would take me about 3 days to "pull an Authority". (They didn't call it that at the time).

 

Then I thought about just improving myself and exploring creation. When I thought about that, I realised I would quickly destroy anything I recognzied as myself or my humanity. (At least the way I would likely "improve" myself).

 

I also suspect that if these abilites were foisted upon me I would likely quickly use them in a moment of weakness and regret it later.

 

The world is a better place because I'm not in a position to arbitrarily "help" it.

 

I hate to admit I would probably try.

[Speedball]

Re: An odd question

 

I grant you that I probably have a vested interest in weighing in on that question, but...

 

I'm a high school history teacher and I work with 17-18 year olds, most of whom want to do nothing *but* remodel the world according to their ideals. Young people have an innate sense of injustice--I think for some its from being bossed around by adults all the time. For others I think it's because they're understanding for the first time that they can affect the wider world.

[Guest WhammeWhamme]

Re: An odd question

 

Only five?

 

Yeah, only five.

 

So far.

 

I figure with them out of the way, things might improve (so I'd wait a little before taking out anyone else).

[Outsider]

Re: An odd question

 

I suppose it would depend on the power set, partly. Even at 7-800 points, some power sets are not really capable of world-shaping except in the crudest of ways, such as killing (lots of?) people. Other power sets lend themselves much more readily, or even unavoidably, to world shaping. Like Jhamin, if I had such a power, I'd eventually use it, even if my better judgement said not to.

 

Being a member of a small coalition of such beings, all young and powerful, I suspect there would be differences of opinion, and then infighting, about just what constituted 'world improvement" too.

[simplygnome]

Re: An odd question

 

Yes, I certaintly would.

 

Even now, without superpowers, I live every day attempting to shape the world around me to fit my perception of correct, as do mostpeople, whether its consciously or, more often than not, subconsiously.

 

To balance that, I constantly seek to educate myself and second guess my world viewpoints, making sure that I do indeed have the "correct" ideas in mind.

 

With 800pts behind my belt, it would be no different.

[assault]

Re: An odd question

 

Well, I was doing political activism by my early twenties, so count me as a "yes".

 

It's as likely as not, though, that I would have ended up trying to stop the rest of the group from imposing _their_ view of the world on the world, since my view and theirs' would probably have differed.

 

Whenever I address issues like this, I end up saying that. That's largely because I don't expect that the other supers would share my Real World political views. My opinions have changed over time, but a lot of the essentials haven't, so I guess I would have found myself in the same boat back then.

[Red Knight]

Re: An odd question

 

Like Speedball, I work withy young students... I am a School Resource Officer / D.A.R.E. instructor at a "inner city" middle school, so I deal with kids around 11-13 years old. I would be very afraid if some of these kids had superpowers.

 

There is a very strong "Me" attitude that I have seen. They are out for themselves and all that they can get... like the world owes them.

 

If I had 800 pts to spent on myself.... Hmmm... I regret to say but I think that I would end up becoming a vigilante. I have often thought of it. I would love to have the powers of the Green Lantern or super psychic powers.. but I fear that I would eventually slip and cross the line. I actually based a character design off of a cop that is suddenly granted super-powers.

[OddHat]

Re: An odd question

 

I was an activist as a teen, and absolutely convinced that I was a genius and that the much more experienced adults who disagreed with me were fools and criminals. So, yes, I would have tried to change the world in the most stupid, direct, and violent way possible.

 

I'd have also used my powers to try to get rich and pick up girls.

[AlHazred]

Re: An odd question

 

I was also very idealistic as a teen. If I'd been granted superpowers, I'd have tried to make the world a better place according to my ideals at the time (environmentalism, social injustice, etc.) Violent revenge power fantasy would have been something I'd have done further down the line. Heck, at this point, I could probably be on UNTIL's most wanted list.

[Rapier]

Re: An odd question

 

Lets say you got superpowers. You're young (late teens' date=' early 20s) fairly powerful (700-800 Points in Hero Terms) and a member of a small coalition of similiar beings. Would you feel obligated to use your powers to "Change the world" in the sense of imposing your vision on it? WOuld you feel you had the right or responsibility to do so? In most cases your powers have not gifted you with any particular insight or wisdom beyond what you normally have. Fishing for opinions here.[/quote']

Young men? They would use their powers to achieve "booty." It's all about the booty at that age. If you are not actively pursuing it, you are planning out how to pursue it.

[CBikle]

Re: An odd question

 

It depends on what kind(s) of powers I'd received.

My general answer is I'd make myself rich and help out where I could, hopefully

without drawing too much attention to myself from the media and the government.

Don't know if fighting crime would be in my mission plan (not looking to start

trouble with La Cosa Nostra). Probably just stick to rescue type operations if my

powers lent themselves to that type of work.

If my powers screwed me over like Bruce Banner or Cyclops, I'd be much more

pissed off and less likely to put up with too much nonsense.

[knuckles]

Re: An odd question

 

Yep the question is an odd one alright, I'm going to have to say that if i was given super powers at the age of 19-20 i would probably went for the celebrity get my fifteen minutes of fame, impress the girls that sort of thing. If my superpowers came at a price, say, i dunno a huge orange rocky exterior i would probably hide away from the world and become another urban myth like bigfoor or the loch ness monster.

 

If i was given powers now however, i would probably just abuse them for my own amusement, such as destroying the cars of wreckless driver who cut me off, or eliminating the people in front me in the line!

[incrdbil]

Re: An odd question

 

Depends on what comic boosk they read growing up.

 

I'm sort of serious--I mean, background and how they were raised means a lot, who they look up to, and other life influences.

 

Perhaps the current world situation has been rough on them--they are more likely to change the world. If life is pretty darn good, they may have a different viewpoint, or maybe even be status quo fighters (No one's messing up my free ride!) Others might be of the selfish 'the world cant take care of itself, I'm taking care of me). I think that would be a significant number, but not the majority.

 

You'ld probably get a healthy number of change the worlders, since that age is replete with people who think they know how the world works, and are still naive enough to believe they know better than everyone else.

[Blue Jogger]

Re: An odd question

 

Lets say you got superpowers. You're young (late teens' date=' early 20s) fairly powerful (700-800 Points in Hero Terms) and a member of a small coalition of similiar beings. Would you feel obligated to use your powers to "Change the world" in the sense of imposing your vision on it? WOuld you feel you had the right or responsibility to do so? In most cases your powers have not gifted you with any particular insight or wisdom beyond what you normally have. Fishing for opinions here.[/quote']

 

I've felt like I need to "Change the world" up to my late 20s and I didn't even have any powers. I don't know if I would call it a responsibility, but I felt at that time, that the only way the world was going to change was if I did it alone and by myself. I've also known people who have felt that it was there duty to fight evil and enforce their vision of moral correctness even to the point of violating people's civil rights.

 

If I was given 700 or 800 points of raw kick-ass superhero power, it would be hard NOT to be tempted to do SOMETHING with that power.

 

"Have you ever felt the odds stacked up so high, you need a strength most don't possess?

Or has it come down to do or die? You've got to rise above the rest.

I've never had to knock on wood, but I know someone who has.

It makes me wonder if I could." - The Impression That I Get

[Moody Loner]

Re: An odd question

 

The major difference between me now and me in my late teens/early 20's is that now I know that I'd abuse the power, especially 700-800 points worth. Young me probably wouldn't see changing the world as abuse.

[Bucky]

Re: An odd question

 

Lets say you got superpowers. You're young (late teens' date=' early 20s) fairly powerful (700-800 Points in Hero Terms) and a member of a small coalition of similiar beings. Would you feel obligated to use your powers to "Change the world" in the sense of imposing your vision on it? [/quote'] This is a great question.

 

My views: Free will is what defines us as humans and separates us from animals or even machines. It is free will that makes this universe a game, rather than a machine.* To circumvent another's free will, without really good cause, such as defense of life or property of others or yourself, is a very bad thing to do.

 

Changing the world means changing human choices. One can do that either by persuasion, or coercion. Coercive actions in general are far less desirable, as the fundamental difference between the two approaches is that when employing coercion, you are effective stating you will take action unrelated to the consequences that would result from the proposal itself, to garner compliance. (You threaten to kill me if I don't do as you ask, as one example.) The focus is on removing the threat, and sometimes compliance is not the only way of doing that. In effect, by employing coercion, you jumper around the other person's thought processes, and take the focus off the proposal, and instead make the focus your threatened retalitory action.

 

Sometimes the best way to defeat such a power is to do EXACTLY what they want. And let them find out why they did not want it.

 

If persuasion fails, then that might indicate that maybe its not a good idea. Humans are not that dumb, and the more brains you got, the more people you have focused on the consequences of a particular action, then the more likely that unseen, or unexpected consequences can be foreseen, predicted and worked around. Of course, when you employ persuasion, there is a greater chance your proposal will be rejected. Some egos can't handle such rejection.

 

In any event, if you have powers, you will change the world. Villains get defeated, or at least delayed, because the Hero fights them, and tries to stop their nefarious plans. Every thing you do changes the world from what it might have been, to what it will be. Just because you have powers and abilities beyond moral men, does not change this. If anything, it just makes the changes you create more flashy.

 

Would I try to get others to comply with my worldview, and try to change the world into what I think it should be, if I had powers? Yeah. I do that without superpowers as it is. So do you and every other human being on this planet.

 

*Ben's theory of the Universe, short form: All games have 4 components. "Pieces", the parts and things that get moved around and interact with other objects. "Arena", the time and place that the game takes place, and includes all the areas that COULD contain an object, but does not. "The Rules" how the various pieces interact with the each other, as well as how the Arena interacts with pieces, and is altered and modified by the pieces (See General Theory of Relativity).

 

The last component is "Players" Players have free will and because of this, have an unpredictable and chaotic effect on things. Players pick and choose the actions of their "Pieces" in "the Arena" in accordance with their perception of the rules and situation, as well as other factors, like goals, (Goals which are chosen by the player himself anyway) risk assement, etc. Without the chaotic factors introduced by "Players", you end up with nothing but a machine. Like a domino setup or a Rube Goldberg machine, it may be cool to watch, but that is all. Machines are predictable, and where is the fun in that?

[Bucky]

Re: An odd question

 

There is one caveat I should mention. To change the world politically, would mean having some serious political power. To do so coercively means ruling the world, governing it. (Government, by its very nature is coercive. Kill a person, you go to jail, if not the gas chamber. Therefore a lot of folks will not kill, just to avoid the risk that the threat of punishment implies.) To me, that is a lot of paperwork and tedium that would prevent me from enjoying my life. Once you fix one problem, you got two more. Once you satisfy this group, that other one wants a special favor, or decision or something from you. And as ruler of the world, with super powers, you have to deal with that, whether you want to or not.

 

In essense, a world leader no longer belongs to himself, but the rest of humanity. His life is filled with dealing with other folks problems. (And lets face it, most people can solve their own problems themselves, as long as they are granted the independence in action to do so.) But nobody but hired sychophants to deal with his problems, his issues, and things that are important to the Leader. A coercive leader has to constantly deal with whether the people working for him really like him, are doing what they are doing out of agreement, or trust. Or whether they are just going along till you fall, waiting, even hoping, that eventually you do fall.

 

Plus you have the entire information problem that Hayek talks about. (Frederick, not Selma) All in all, world domination may look pretty, but damn.

[Speedball]

Re: An odd question

 

Rather than focusing, as Bucky did, on the big picture and world domination, I'd like to make a case for optimism regarding young people and their desire to participate in changing the world.

 

Many young people feel disenfranchised by the electoral system, as evidenced in low voter turnout among young folks--this is not a new trend: Hunter Thompson talks about it in Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail, 1972.

 

Left with little or no faith in elections to change the world, young people--and I'm talking high school age (whom I teach) to maybe 25 (which is how old my character is), I think there are a lot of people out there who are working to change the world with the abilities we have at our disposal, another concept which isn't new. An earlier post brought up MLK. I would include Gandhi, Thoreau, Sanger, JFK, you name it--all these historical figures imploring us to go out and do The Right Thing as our consciences dictate. I'm not suggesting that young folks should go out and start assassinating world leaders with whom they disagree, but I don't think it's too big a logical leap to think of young people using their powers and skills to build what the Authority refers to as A Finer World. We might not agree with the results (or the methods), but I'm not 100% sure I would disagree, either.

 

[TaxiMan]

Re: An odd question

 

Depends on the culture and specific environment of the young man. Testosterone absolutely plays a part! I would not have been able to resist using it on a local level (showing off mainly). But I was unsure of myself and my understanding of the world to use it to re-make the world.

 

Now, I'd try my damndest to hide it. I have no desire to be considered a freak by billions of people, to be sought out for pleading, manipulation, or freak-worship. If I could benefit myself or others without revealing myself, that'd be cool. No blatant world changing though.