Tony Stark gets a lot of heat for supporting the Registration Act. Originally he was opposed to it. At the time, I couldn't tell if he was sincere or if this was part of his plan to convince others (like Spider-Man) to support it. Stark told the rest of the Illuminati that if they supported the act, it could help diffuse a tense situation. He felt that if super-powered individuals ever made a mistake, the government and the people would be all over them. This turned out to be true when the New Warriors fought Nitro, which resulted in the death of hundreds, including a nearby school of children. Was that tragedy the fault of the improperly trained New Warriors or would the same results have occurred even if a more experienced team was there?
I was never a strong supporter of the SHRA, let me make that clear. The problem that people like Captain America had was the way the Act was set up. The civil liberties of the super-powered individuals were in jeopardy. The Act required those with natural superhuman abilities, powers granted through magic or science (including gods and extraterrestrials) and even those using advanced technology to register with the U.S. government as "living weapons of mass destruction." The individuals would then be properly trained when the Fifty State Initiative was set up.
== TEASER ==
What it comes down to is, individuals with superpowers can be dangerous to themselves and those around them. They do need proper training. If a police officer is given a gun, he or she is going to receive the proper training in using it before hitting the streets. The powers that some individuals get are obviously more extreme than a simple gun. It just has to be asked, should they be forced to have training? Should they be forced to tell someone their real identities? I didn't agree when someone like the Prowler was required to register. He started out as a window washer. He just made some cool gadgets. I didn't see how that made him fall under the SUPERHUMAN Registration Act. But if a person does have powers, there should be some accountability in using them.
Even after all these years, I'm still not sure where I stand on the SHRA. You could say it was a good idea that was just executed poorly. Professor X has been trying to prevent 'accidents' for years by training and guiding young mutants. We will be seeing the Avengers Academy which will hopefully also help young powered kids learn to use their abilities and to do the right thing with them. That would be my biggest fear in training people to use their powers. You have to hope that they don't decide one day to use their finely honed skills for ill purposes.
Since it's been four years now, do you still feel the same about the Registration Act? Do you think super-powered individuals should be required to register themselves the same way people register owning a firearm? Do you think things should have been handled differently? If you had powers, would you have registered or would you have left the country? "With great power comes great responsibility." What should suiper-powered people be responsible in doing?