A Tribute to Heroes

This thread is dedicated to fiction heroes, whether they are bearers of great powers and ability or simply people who make our world brilliant with the smallest of ideas.

Share your thoughts.

I'm not sure it's tasteful to pay tribute to both fictional and real heroes in the same context as if they are alike. An exception being if a fictional hero has had a real-world influence.

Since we're all friends here (I say hopefully), I would like to share an unpopular opinion that I hold. I dislike how in the UK, the word 'soldier' is synonymous with 'hero'. They aren't heroes by default. They are no more heroes just for going to war than a scientist is just for doing science; or a teacher is for teaching. I'm not questioning the important of a strong defence, or the risk they are putting themselves in. They are heroes if they die saving a school of children, or to save their squad, or for rescuing someone... not just for signing up.

I don't actually know if I could name my favourite hero. In context of the game rather than the hero itself, Kratos and Ratchet rank quite high on my list of favourites...

3mptylord wrote:I'm not sure it's tasteful to pay tribute to both fictional and real heroes in the same context as if they are alike. An exception being if a fictional hero has had a real-world influence.

Since we're all friends here (I say hopefully), I would like to share an unpopular opinion that I hold. I dislike how in the UK, the word 'soldier' is synonymous with 'hero'. They aren't heroes by default. They are no more heroes just for going to war than a scientist is just for doing science; or a teacher is for teaching. I'm not questioning the important of a strong defence, or the risk they are putting themselves in. They are heroes if they die saving a school of children, or to save their squad, or for rescuing someone... not just for signing up.

A hero does not need to be someone who does something visibly incredible. Any man who signs up, knowing that he could be deployed into the horrors of war, losing possibly life, possibly limb, and even more possibly sanity, for the sake of defending everything he loves, is to me a hero. Just because a man has not jumped on a grenade to save his squad, or saved a classroom full of schoolchildren at the cost of heavy casualties, doesn't mean he is not a hero.

It's possible it was just my cousin that soured my opinion of it purely because he thinks he's better than everyone else just for being in the army (and he's not the only one)... thus I actually dislike the arrogance rather than the title.

I don't know. I really don't. *sigh*

Teachers give us education (at risk of mental stress); Construction workers build us homes (at risk of injury)... there are other professions that the focus is to do things for other people. I think police are equally heroic to soldiers... yet they aren't treated with the same respect (over here at any rate, watching American TV your police don't appear have such negative stereotypes/connotations). They are regarded as never being there when they're needed, always there to give out parking tickets, always ruining the fun, etc. I mean, I'm sure people who have been helped by the police regard them higher... but they don't get the same respect by default.

I"m sorry, but I can't compare the sacrifices of construction workers and teachers to those of the army and police (on that I do agree). Mental stress is not the same as PTSD, not at all. Injuries on a construction site rarely approach the severity and ubiquity of those in more violent dangerous professions, nor are they the result of malicious intent which shall try again when it fails.

We have the same stereotypes. The cop shows are still popular, and often glamorize the very things that most will happily decry. I'd like to see a comparison of the ratings of TV shows with the number of hands down illegal things cops do.

Also, I shouldn't say that all soldiers and police are heroes. Many people who want power over others find those lines of work attractive, same can hold for violent people. But I still think one doesn't need to visibly have done something amazing to be a hero, and even those power hungry violent types should be accorded respect (not status) for serving.

No, I agree it doesn't have to be visible.

Also, I wasn't being entirely serious with teachers and such.