The Volokh Conspiracy - Standards for "Heroes" Are Going Way Down:

You're 17 years old. You discover that some of your high school buddies are plotting a Columbine-style massacre at your school. You go home, tell your mom about it, and then report it to the authorities, who arrest the suspects and discover that they had stockpiled a cache of weapons. Good work! But does that make you a "hero?" Hardly. Doing what any sensible, decent person would do under similar circumstances, at no physical risk to yourself, doesn't make you a hero.

	[David Bernstein, September 21, 2006 at 9:16am] Trackbacks Standards for "Heroes" Are Going Way Down: You're 17 years old. You discover that some of your high school buddies are plotting a Columbine-style massacre at your school. You go home, tell your mom about it, and then report it to the authorities, who arrest the suspects and discover that they had stockpiled a cache of weapons. Good work! But does that make you a "hero?" Hardly. Doing what any sensible, decent person would do under similar circumstances, at no physical risk to yourself, doesn't make you a hero.