Category Silver Sentinel

Why We Don’t Call Ourselves Heroes

However, in practice, during discussions within the superhero community, and with others, it is to be understood that the use of the terms hero or superhero are meant the ideal to which we aspire, or the nature of the work we do.  While I may call myself a “superhero” during a discussion, I’m not actually making the claim that I am a superhero, to be treated with the respect and honor a truly heroic individual, such as a decorated Marine, or a wounded police officer, would undoubtedly be deserving of.  So, no, we aren’t actually heroes or superheroes unless we earn such titles through our actions and deeds.
posted by Silver Sentinel @ 8:01 AM
 

Ordinances Concerning the Feeding of the Homeless

Reviewing a number of these laws has shown that the average RLSH has no concerns whatsoever.  Preparing a pot of soup, or making some sandwiches, does not generally fall into the scope of these ordinances.  There would only be a problem if the RLSH took it upon themselves to set up a “feed”, a prearranged time and place to meet and give food to the homeless.  But any clever RLSH group worth its salt would simply make friends with an existing organization, such as a church, or soup kitchen, and work under their direction, thus passing legal scrutiny.
Passing out packaged foodstuffs, or foods prepared at a place of business, where the product already meets currently established health codes, is not illegal.
posted by Silver Sentinel @ 11:56 Pm

The Combative Mindset and Self-Defense

There are literally thousands of websites, martial arts schools, and “self-defense” instructors, that preach the old axiom, “To survive violence, you must become violence.”  They would have their students and admirers engage in conflict with the mindset of hardened warriors, only to end up in jail, a hospital bed, or in the ground.  Their advice appeals to the angry, the scared, and the overly imaginative, but not to reality.
posted by Silver Sentinel @ 8:50 PM

Many people think that I am being a stick in the mud when I talk about being sure to obey the law whenever they are on patrol. Actually I’m being extremely practical. Here is why. Every time you break a law, you run the risk of drawing negative attention to yourself. Even by walking across people’s lawns, flashing your flashlights down people’s driveways, etc, you draw attention to yourself and run the risk of someone calling in a complaint. It doesn’t matter if you are doing nothing wrong, an officer may be sent to respond. An officer will then, in most likelihood, fill out a Field Interrogation Card (or F.I. Card), and don’t forget Dispatch will also have their own notes on the encounter.
You want every contact with the authorities to be on a positive note. Having an officer fill out an FI Card means that he is making note of something suspicious.. this is not a positive thing. FI Cards are used to make note of “someone of interest” so that if later a criminal complaint is made, the police have a point to begin an investigation. If Dispatchers keep getting calls about someone looking into car windows, and walking over people’s lawns enough times, then police will eventually.. and possibly erroneously (or accurately).. attribute it to guess who.. you. They will then begin to watch you more closely, cutting you less slack each time they have to talk to you. Even officers who have not made contact with you yet will see that a number of FI Cards have been filed on you and will think, “Hmm.. other officers think there is good cause to talk to this person, so there might be reason to think they’re up to something.” Think of it this way, police officers are sharks, and having FI Cards attached to you, and special notes in your file, makes you an appealing lure. They will begin looking at you, and not the waters around you. Being a crime fighter is about helping to alleviate crime conditions, not muddy the waters.
By keeping off people’s lawns, not climbing into trees, not arousing suspicions, and obeying even the most innocuous traffic laws (avoid Jay Walking), you don’t give police a reason to stop you and speak with you. They will not have any past complaints to weigh against you. They will have no reason to be suspicious of you. And most importantly, they will not have a negative image of you when you approach them with information, meaning you will less likely get a brush off, or have an unfair accusation turn and bite you in the behind.
It doesn’t matter what your own personal philosophy on the matter of society’s rules and laws are. If you thumb your nose at them, don’t complain when you suffer the inconvenient consequences of your actions. Drawing heat down on yourself and then loudly complaining abut it is ridiculous. Nobody will listen. You brought it down on yourself.
If you go on patrol, keep your nose clean and pay attention to what you are doing.??
 

Originally posted: http://www.therlsh.net/public-forum-f8/appearances-may-be-deceiving-but-should-always-be-presentable-t3570.htm
By Silver Sentinel
Have you ever seen Geist? In his photographs, and his videos, he’s flashy, he’s impeccable, and he looks just damned cool! He has spent a lot of time, and effort, crafting his appearance, and his public persona. But what message would he be sending people if he smelled like he hadn’t bathed in two weeks? Yeah, that would definitely detract from his carefully crafted image. (Fortunately, I’ve been told, he does not have an odor problem. I merely use him as an example here.)
Whatever our appearance may be when in our dramatis personæ, we should always maintain ourselves in a clean and presentable manner. Our costumes should be clean, and well maintained. The parts of us that are exposed should be well groomed, and clean. And we should be free of offensive odors. This not only adds to our public image, but to our self confidence as well.. which in turn adds to our public image even more.
If you expect to remain active on a long patrol, or perhaps participate in a day long event in the hot sun, carefully consider the use of deodorant, or even carry an extra uniform to change into should the need arise. For myself, my body seems to react badly to spandex, making me smell like a funky monkey after a few hours, so I have to take extra precautions, such as talcum powder, and changeable under layers.
Your image is part of your command presence. When you appear presentable and confident, you automatically command a certain degree of respect. If you suddenly needed to give emergency directions, such as, “Everyone please proceed calmly to the nearest exit”, or, “Remain calm. The ambulance is on the way”, people are more likely to respond favorably to you.
Waving your arms like a lunatic, looking like a crackhead, and shrieking on the edge of hysteria, will most likely make people think you’re nuts, and fail to obey you, even if it’s in their best self interest. You do not want to distract people from the seriousness of a situation. You want to carefully guide them to safety, and rational behavior.
A positive and confident appearance will automatically attract attention in a good way. Swaggering, boisterous behavior, and general bossiness will attract attention in a bad way. Carefully maintain your appearance in public, and amongst your peers. Let your composure and behavior reflect your message, and your beliefs. Let people know that what they see is what they get. That you can be trusted, that you can be taken seriously, and that you act professionally in this thing you do.
 

Some people just can’t seem to understand the difference between being vigilant and being a vigilante. One is a responsible citizen, doing their part to make their community a better place. The other is a criminal, no better than those they seek to stop.
A vigilante is someone who sets out to take the law into their own hands, to enact justice on their own. When someone steps outside their door fully expecting to use force on another person, that person is premeditated in their use of force. They aren’t just prepared to use force, but are hoping to. They are looking for the opportunity to kick some ass.
If you set out to fight crime through the use of force, then you are going to break the law. Let me clarify this. If you are planning on.. not preparing to use force to defend yourself or others.. but actually planning on the use of force to make criminals pay for their crimes, then you are planning to break the law.
If I am on a neighborhood patrol and I see someone being mugged, and the victim is in danger of harm, then yes, I will step in and use force to protect the innocent. Legally [in my jurisdiction] I am allowed to use whatever force is necessary to stop the criminal. What’s the difference you ask? If I know I may use force against a criminal when I go out on patrol, aren’t I planning on kicking someone’s ass? No.
Just because I acknowledge that there may be a time and place for the application of Hard Power (the use of physical force), does not mean that I am planning ahead of time to go out and stomp a criminal into the pavement. While a vigilante mindset not only sees the need for violence, but is looking for the chance to use it. Where I might seek to use alternative methods to violence, if circumstances allow, a vigilante is already predetermined on their course of action. Their intent is clear. They are out to exact justice and mete out punishment.. and break the law while doing it.
Let me give a very famous and clear example of what I mean by being prepared to use Hard Power (physical violence), but choosing to use Soft Power (non-physical means) to de-escalate a situation. If you watch the video of Dark Guardian as he enters Washington Park and confronts a drug dealer, you are witnessing a true superhero at work, not a vigilante. He confronts the drug dealer, the situation gets tense, the moment could erupt into violence at any moment, but it does not. Even had the drug dealer not backed down and left the park like he did, Dark Guardian did not escalate the situation to where the use of physical force would have been needed. He would have stepped away and called the police. At no time was it Dark Guardian’s intention to jump the dealer and punish his wicked and evil ways. However, during the entire situation, Dark Guardian was prepared to use his martial arts to defend himself if needed.
Without a doubt Dark Guardian’s approach in the video was confrontational. He approached the dealer with the clear intent of forcing the crook out of the park, but he wasn’t planning on putting the boots to him to accomplish his goal. This is different then the vigilante mindset. He wasn’t going to enact his own brand of justice on the dealer, even though he was being confrontational. He wasn’t going in looking to pick a fight.
In the vigilante mindset, one sets out to accomplish their goals through the use of violence to exact punishment. Their goal is not to chase bad guys away, or to call the police to report a crime. Criminals must pay for what they have done, and the vigilante is going to collect on those debts. The vigilante is judge, jury and executioner, even if they leave the punks tied up in front of the police station for the cops to find. They pick fights. They want to engage crooks in combat. They escalate situations unnecessarily. Their ends justify their means. But their ends put them on the wrong side of the law, and they are no more morally superior then the criminals they confront.
Additional-
Yes, it is possible to use force and not be a vigilante. It is the intent that makes a vigilante. A vigilante wants to go out and purposely use force to stop crime.
Someone might break the law unintentionally while stopping a criminal from hurting someone, but that does not make them a vigilante. Nor does it make them morally wrong. Yes, the law was broken (maybe they used too much physical force, or whatever), but just because they broke the law does not make them a vigilante
I can not, nor will I, ever condone the intentional commission of a crime in the fight against criminals.
 

By Silver Sentinel
Having taken up the mantle of a hero, I feel its important to have a code of conduct to follow. This is my own personal code that I try to follow whenever doing work related to my mission.
Discipline: As a superhero, I shall maintain myself in a disciplined manner. I shall obey all the laws and regulations of my jurisdiction. I will not condone, nor encourage, unsafe or illegal behavior in my fellow heroes, or fellow citizens.
Courage: As a superhero, I shall face my mission with courage and not shrink from doing my civic duty in the face of adversity. I shall trust in myself, to know right from wrong, and to always strive to do the right thing.
Forgiveness: As a superhero, I know that I am not perfect. I shall accept an apology when offered, and offer an apology when I have done wrong. It is better that I offer apology and allow another to save face, than it is to rob another of their dignity.
Compassion: As a superhero, I have sworn to defend the weak and offer my strength to the downtrodden. Nor shall I seek reward for doing my civic duty.
Honor: As a superhero, my sworn word is the Word of a Hero! When I speak, my words reflect not just upon myself, but for my brothers and sisters in the RLSH Community.
Wisdom: As a superhero, I shall show sound judgment in my words and in my deeds. If I am in doubt, I shall seek someone more knowledgeable then myself for their advice.
Loyalty: As a superhero, I will stand by my fellow heroes through thick or thin. I shall not speak ill of a fellow hero in public, nor show disloyalty through my actions. If I disagree with a fellow hero, I shall speak to them in private and not offer my grievances to the public view.
Respect: As a superhero, I shall respect my fellow man, no matter their race, their religious views, education, or social background. I shall treat all others as I, myself, expect to be treated, with courtesy, compassion, and dignity.