Current Events > "You have to keep powers secret or the government would capture you"

(+) Yeah! (+)

This is such a stupid argument in any "money or power" topics. Like, did you ever think about it? If somebody irl had Spiderman's powers and showed off in a crowded city, "the government" wouldn't be able to just capture them and "do all kinds of experiments" to them. The Bill of Rights protects citizens from that. Especially if they made themselves publicly known by showing off, people would notice. "The government" doesn't have some secret labs where they make super soldiers, we're not in the Stranger Things universe.

Maybe if you were smashing through buildings, or flying in commercial air space, they could pull some Patriot Act thing and take you to Guantanamo, but otherwise you would be asked to volunteer for study, not taken to some secret lab. It would be at universities or pharmaceutical companies, and they would basically take blood samples, do some MRIs, monitor vitals, shit like that. Not some inhuman torture.
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The hell is this, some new White Wolf pencil & paper game?

I'm pretty sure in a topic that assumes you have superpowers, they're also assuming that the government does have super secret labs like Stranger Things.
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You would be declared a matter of national security or danger to the country and they would do whatever they wanted. There is no handbook for dealing with people that have super powers. I'm pretty sure they would figure out a way to make it happen if they government/military wanted you badly enough.
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Government would want to control you, not just as a Nat security risk but you also don't know how the public would react ie religious lunatics and the media
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glitteringfairy posted...

You would be declared a matter of national security or danger to the country and they would do whatever they wanted. There is no handbook for dealing with people that have super powers. I'm pretty sure they would figure out a way to make it happen if they government/military wanted you badly enough.

The house always wins.
You think Uncle Sam is going to let you fly around all willy nilly without finding a loophole to put a stop to it?
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glitteringfairy posted...

You would be declared a matter of national security or danger to the country and they would do whatever they wanted. There is no handbook for dealing with people that have super powers. I'm pretty sure they would figure out a way to make it happen if they government/military wanted you badly enough.

And people would protest that the government can't just abduct citizens that haven't committed any crimes.

Also, that's contingent on "if the government wanted you badly enough" anyway. Irl they aren't kidnapping people to create super soldiers. They would be perfectly content asking you to volunteer for some research, and it would be ethical.
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glitteringfairy posted...

You would be declared a matter of national security or danger to the country and they would do whatever they wanted. There is no handbook for dealing with people that have super powers. I'm pretty sure they would figure out a way to make it happen if they government/military wanted you badly enough.

All depends on how powerful you are. If you're a guy like spiderman maybe not, but if we're talking someone like a not so good Superman or plastic man or something then you might disappear
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ReignFury posted...

Government would want to control you, not just as a Nat security risk but you also don't know how the public would react ie religious lunatics and the media

It's not that big of a deal. Even if you were spiderman tier with your powers, you're still far less effective than a bunch of drones for military purposes. The investment in creating a specialized military role for you is not worthwhile, nor worth the backlash.

DemonBuffet posted...

glitteringfairy posted...

You would be declared a matter of national security or danger to the country and they would do whatever they wanted. There is no handbook for dealing with people that have super powers. I'm pretty sure they would figure out a way to make it happen if they government/military wanted you badly enough.

The house always wins.
You think Uncle Sam is going to let you fly around all willy nilly without finding a loophole to put a stop to it?

Yes. Well, not with flight in particular (air traffic laws are complex and it could be a problem), but if you were super speed running around they're not going to kidnap you.

Seriously. Does the government capture David Blaine after his big tricks until they determine how he pulled it off?
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DarkChozoGhost posted...

The Bill of Rights protects citizens from that.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
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DarkChozoGhost posted...

Well, not with flight in particular (air traffic laws are complex and it could be a problem)

so long as they stick to vfr levels then there really wouldn't be an issue
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The government would never do anything like test syphilis on its citizens in secret, cause we have a bill of rights. So people having to hide their secret powers from the government is indeed a very outlandish premise.
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It's a stupid plot device. Not half as bad though as "If you kill them, you'll be just like them."

3rd_Best_Master posted...

The government would never do anything like test syphilis on its citizens in secret, cause we have a bill of rights. So people having to hide their secret powers from the government is indeed a very outlandish premise.

I never implied the government doesn't do shady and illegal shit. I'm just saying that they can't arbitrarily kidnap a high profile figure for no reason to take them to some secret lab, and that even if they could it wouldn't be an optimal course of action.
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Id go to the Government if i had powers. Save them the time of hunting me cause the superpowers id have would scare everyone around me.

People today dont get along with differences each of us have. A superpower human being would give me soooooooo much unwanted attention
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Run for president, obviously.

Skye Reynolds posted...

It's a stupid plot device. Not half as bad though as "If you kill them, you'll be just like them."

I mean, in the fictional universes where this happens, the government has a division that specializes in that stuff. But for "money or powers" topics, the scenario implies it's real world, but you suddenly get these abilities.
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The government would catch you. Imprison you, and experiment t on you like in Firestarter.

Take Spider-Man. The government would flood the area with drones and listening devices. They'd know it was Peter Parker within days of the first sighting. It's then a simple matter to make both aunt may and Peter dissappear.
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lordofmud posted...

The government would catch you. Imprison you, and experiment t on you like in Firestarter.

No, they wouldn't. It wouldn't be beneficial to them.
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