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NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

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Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#31

Post by patrickgzill »

Zak wrote: post #30
patrickgzill wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People in Texas are allowed to have guns. NY not so much. Just ONE adult with a shiny chrome .45, 1911 frame or shotgun would have stopped all of this in its tracks. EDIT to add: "An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life." -- Robert A. Heinlein

As a gun owner and advocate of gun rights, I feel the need to call this out as an example of an inappropriate time to use or display a firearm. Vandalism and misdemeanor battery are not cause to threaten someone with deadly force. To do so is highly irresponsible and usually criminal.

Please have another look at the article and notice that they were throwing rocks in some cases, and caused the shutdown of a couple of buses due to damage, as well as throwing items at people not inside cars, including someone out with their child in a stroller.

From the article: "An older man in his late 60′s was driving along Gerritsen Avenue when his car was hit by eggs, when he exited the vehicle he was pelted by dozens of eggs, rocks were thrown, chucks of brick, and someone tossed a hammer."

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#32

Post by Zak »

patrickgzill wrote: post #31
Zak wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a gun owner and advocate of gun rights, I feel the need to call this out as an example of an inappropriate time to use or display a firearm. Vandalism and misdemeanor battery are not cause to threaten someone with deadly force. To do so is highly irresponsible and usually criminal.

Please have another look at the article and notice that they were throwing rocks in some cases, and caused the shutdown of a couple of buses due to damage, as well as throwing items at people not inside cars, including someone out with their child in a stroller. From the article: "An older man in his late 60′s was driving along Gerritsen Avenue when his car was hit by eggs, when he exited the vehicle he was pelted by…

I read it. I consider it borderline at best. While these objects could cause serious injuries, they probably won't under those circumstances, and a retreat is probably a better option than brandishing a gun. I believe you should never brandish a gun unless you're prepared to kill somebody, and I'd be very hesitant to kill somebody for throwing rocks.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#33

Post by rhizome »

patrickgzill wrote: post #31
Zak wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a gun owner and advocate of gun rights, I feel the need to call this out as an example of an inappropriate time to use or display a firearm. Vandalism and misdemeanor battery are not cause to threaten someone with deadly force. To do so is highly irresponsible and usually criminal.

Please have another look at the article and notice that they were throwing rocks in some cases, and caused the shutdown of a couple of buses due to damage, as well as throwing items at people not inside cars, including someone out with their child in a stroller. From the article: "An older man in his late 60′s was driving along Gerritsen Avenue when his car was hit by eggs, when he exited the vehicle he was pelted by…

Most places would not consider this to be a weapon-brandishing situation. Furthermore, New York State has more restrictive gun laws than most states.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#34

Post by stretchwithme »

pyre wrote: post #23
sofuture wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cry me a river! If the worst of the things that I did as a kid showed up in my Google results I'd still be hireable. Why? Because I was a goody two-shoes who never did anything wrong? Nope! So why, then? Because while I was maybe mischievous, I wasn't a malicious little shit doing pointlessly antagonistic and destructive things.

I'm thinking that you don't subscribe the the idea that people can get a second chance to turn their life around (or that people can turn their life around).

I don't think anyone is advocating jail time for egging people. But you should at least get SOME negative repercussions from your behavior. A $200 fine should still enable people to turn "their lives around". They should at least be forced to clean up the mess they've made.

In olden times when we lived in small villages, yes people knew when someone was being an asshole. And they remembered. One more disincentive against bad behavior.

And people know they are dealing with a young person and the potential to grow out of it. All the more reason to make the consequences immediate and not have them learn they can treat badly without consequence.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#36

Post by stretchwithme »

pyre wrote: post #28
sofuture wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, that's not it at all. I just think that someone so blatantly being a jackass, and being filmed in the act, deserves all the publicity that they get. I'm not suggesting we burn these kids at the stake or tattoo their crimes on their forehead. I just fail to see why anyone should bemoan their potentially besmirched reputation. Boo. Hoo.

At the very least, publicizing it before a trial taints the jury pool... I'm not one to champion the idea of trial by public opinion (because there are a number of cases where public opinion is wrong).

If that's the case, all crimes should be kept private.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#37

Post by akgerber »

jimbokun wrote: post #24
pbiggar wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps, but their attempts to do valuable things will be more difficult. They'll have a very hard time beating a viral video before they apply to college, and getting into college is going to be incredibly difficult once the selection committee Googles them.

"They'll have a very hard time beating a viral video before they apply to college, and getting into college is going to be incredibly difficult once the selection committee Googles them." Are you saying that these kids should be admitted into college over kids that don't throw rocks at people and destroy other people's property?

There are plenty of decent-quality state universities that have essentially mechanistic admissions by functions of GPA, class rank, & standardized test scores.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#38

Post by Zak »

stretchwithme wrote: post #34
pyre wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm thinking that you don't subscribe the the idea that people can get a second chance to turn their life around (or that people can turn their life around).

I don't think anyone is advocating jail time for egging people. But you should at least get SOME negative repercussions from your behavior. A $200 fine should still enable people to turn "their lives around". They should at least be forced to clean up the mess they've made. In olden times when we lived in small villages, yes people knew when someone was being an asshole. And they remembered. One more disincentive aga…

>I don't think anyone is advocating jail time for egging people.

I am. I don't think a fine effectively gets across the point that battery and vandalism are crimes, not minor violations like jaywalking. $200 is a speeding ticket, and to some upper-middle class teenagers, little more than pocket change. Three days in jail (or juvenile detention), on the other hand is most likely a novel and frightening experience that's actually likely to discourage similar behavior in the future.

Re: NY Blogger Criticized For Posting Photos of Teen Vandals

#39

Post by gscott »

sofuture wrote: post #21
pbiggar wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Must we be accountable for every little thing we do? Of course you're right that in general people must be held accountable for their crimes. However, it's somewhat different for children, who need and deserve some protection from the stupid things they do in their youth. I fully support the punishment of the children, and any and all legal ramifications they receive, but I don't believe they should be help account…

Cry me a river! If the worst of the things that I did as a kid showed up in my Google results I'd still be hireable. Why? Because I was a goody two-shoes who never did anything wrong? Nope! So why, then? Because while I was maybe mischievous, I wasn't a malicious little shit doing pointlessly antagonistic and destructive things.

For $500 I will seed the web about your accomplishments in nursing baby kittens back to health, your support for the disabled, and how green you are in your buying goats to mow your lawn instead of a gas mower.

The part were you are an arsonist, run a medicare fraud ring, and have stolen millions from investors will be so far back in the Google results it will be like it never happened.

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