By: Sam Bouchat
In a world such as ours, great people are hard to come by. Crazy people, conversely, pop up like hidden fees in a Comcast bill. But sometimes if we’re lucky, crazy and great will mix to make an interesting story that allows us to regain some of the faith in humanity we may have lost through the many outlets that exist solely to take it away (Jersey Shore).
Let me introduce Phoenix Jones, a Seattle resident with a secret identity. During the day, who knows what this man does? But, at night, he prowls the streets, dressed head-to-toe in a black and gold rubber suit fighting crime.
This masked avenger, who has been idly protecting Seattle’s nighttime streets for about ten months, isn’t alone: he has a posse. Eight other heroes, all costumed, form what is called the Rain City Superhero Movement. In fact, they all claim to have martial arts or military backgrounds. Now that’s serious.
What seems to be all the rage, according to reports, is that Phoenix Jones recently stopped a car theft by scaring the perpetrator away. However, even more recently, Mr. Jones, after putting an assailant in a headlock in an attempt to stop a street fight, was kicked in the face and got his nose broken.
While that may seem a lot less Dark Knight and a lot more Kick-Ass, this isn’t even the worse that has happened to Mr. Jones. He has been stabbed while performing his antics. This member of the RCSM can still be seen rag dolling around Seattle streets — even though he is quite banged up.
The Seattle police openly condemn his vigilantism . If you disregard Batman’s bespectacled Commissioner Gordon, which is not a practice I encourage, this law enforcement attitude seems to fit better into the mold of the average superhero movie than The Phoenix himself.
But while Seattle police more or less disapprove of Mr. Jones, not much has been done to detain him, and he continues to be, as cliché as this is, a symbol.
For what exactly? I’m not sure.