A vile teen fad: beating the homeless

[Alonzo]

WASHINGTON; AND SAN BERNARDINO, CALIF. - Across the nation, America's homeless are under attack - literally. They are hunted down during youthful rites of passage by roving packs of males armed with prejudice and tools of torture.

The number of violent incidents against our country's most vulnerable members has risen dramatically this year, with 16 murders in the first nine months so far. One homeless man was set ablaze in his wheelchair in Spokane, Wash.; another man was beaten with baseball bats in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; a homeless woman was drowned by two young men who rolled her into Tennessee's Cumberland River while she slept.

The hate behind this brutality is not fostered in rural Klan rallies or overseas terrorist camps, but in high school locker rooms and suburban living rooms. While homeless people have often been stereotyped as worthless, depraved, and disposable, prejudice now has a potent new ally: "bum rushing" videos.

This twisted fad has inspired some youths to kill for the "fun" of emulating what they see on a video screen. One group of teens inspired by these videos murdered Michael Roberts, a frail homeless man who succumbed after being relentlessly pummeled by nail-studded two-by-fours and a log in Holly Hill, Fla. Teens buy and trade hundreds of thousands of these videos, making their producers rich. They also film their own assaults, broadcasting them online.

In the first nine months of 2006, 36 of 58 known homeless attackers were teens ages 14 to 19. Such violence seems to be correlated with the rise of bum videos. The number of reported incidents in 2003 nearly doubled, jumping from 36 reported attacks in 2002 to 70 in 2003. The number of nonlethal attacks reached 77 through the end of this September.

In Calgary, Alberta, youths filmed themselves beating and urinating on a homeless man, and screaming out "bum fights!" In Los Angeles, a youth admitted that he, too, was inspired to kill a homeless man with an aluminum baseball bat after viewing a video.

Perhaps most disturbing is not the media's influence on violence and prejudice, but the nation's almost casual acceptance of this violence and the images that derive from it.

If any other minority group reported hate- crime homicide numbers this high there would be a national outcry for justice. A comparison by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, and the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH), found that from 1999 to 2005 there were 167 homeless homicides by domiciled attackers. The number of these killings is more than double the number of all other officially tabulated hate- crime homicides combined. The glaring disparity underscores the case for action. But how do we act?

We need to enhance data collection by law enforcement and improve outreach to the homeless community. Homelessness must be added to vulnerable-victim laws and hate-crime legislation.

Officials should work to raise community awareness so neighbors can help eradicate homelessness altogether, not just remove it from their own line of vision. Community education efforts should model the NCH's Faces of Homelessness Speakers' Bureau. The Bureau is made up of of current and former homeless people who give talks to break stereotypes. This year, this panel has made more than 300 appearances, speaking to more than 17,000 people, mostly youths.

Their work is leading the way to stop the dehumanization of those without homes. Without further effort, violence against the homeless will continue. The burden falls on all our shoulders to end homelessness. Until the day when all Americans are housed, the least we can do is ensure their safety.

* Michael Stoops is acting executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless in Washington. Brian Levin is director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20061018/cm_csm/ylevin

I've always felt that video showing real deaths, attacks and coerced fights should be banned barring any educational value (ie. the only things affected would be videos like these). Things like this just reinforce that.

[Labrocca]

Any act of violence on another human being is despicable. I don't believe in "hate crimes"...I think all violent crimes are technically hate crimes. When I was a kid we thought we were cool because we egged cop cars. What is happening to this world?

[Elrathin]

Any act of violence on another human being is despicable. I don't believe in "hate crimes"...I think all violent crimes are technically hate crimes. When I was a kid we thought we were cool because we egged cop cars. What is happening to this world?


I wish some of our posters agreed with that, the sad part is some agree with that as long as it is against Muslims it is ok.

[Anti-Racism]

Any act of violence on another human being is despicable.


This comment is delusional. Force will always be necessary because not all people are reasonable, and compromise creates death.

Still, beating up homeless people is disturbed, but I guess it's better than beating up productive citizens. It seems like today's kids are so sick of our failing society that they're violent as hell.

[Alonzo]

So let me guess, if it was your kid you'd just give them a stern lecture and be glad they picked the most helpless people in society?

[Anti-Racism]

So let me guess, if it was your kid you'd just give them a stern lecture and be glad they picked the most helpless people in society?


Ad hom, illogical. Did you see my post about argumentative logic?

[Elrathin]

but I guess it's better than beating up productive citizens.


How is it better?

[Anti-Racism]

How is it better?


No loss to society as a whole.

[Elrathin]

No loss to society as a whole.


That's not better. Each time we excuse behavior like this as "better" it makes it worse for society as a whole.

[Anti-Racism]

No loss to society as a whole.


That's not better. Each time we excuse behavior like this as "better" it makes it worse for society as a whole.


The loss of a child is worse than the loss of an old man. Think about it. If you cannot figure this one out, I'm afraid you have a mental problem.

[Alonzo]

So let me guess, if it was your kid you'd just give them a stern lecture and be glad they picked the most helpless people in society?


Ad hom, illogical. Did you see my post about argumentative logic?


If I were to say "You're an idiot", then that would be an ad hominem argument. But I'm not attacking you personally, I'm attacking the line of thought.

No loss to society as a whole.

So you'd feel the same if they attacked residents at a nursing home? They're not actively benefiting society either.

[Alonzo]

The loss of a child is worse than the loss of an old man. If you cannot figure this one out, I'm afraid you have a mental problem.

See, it's best not to accuse someone of something and then turn around and do the exact same thing.

Ad hom, illogical

[Elrathin]

The loss of a child is worse than the loss of an old man. Think about it. If you cannot figure this one out, I'm afraid you have a mental problem.


The point being is neither is better, they are BOTH unacceptable.

Do you think these kids are gonna stop with a homeless person? So by excusing this behavior they may move on to someone else eventually.

[lily]

Anti-Racism Wrote:

The loss of a child is worse than the loss of an old man. Think about it. If you cannot figure this one out, I'm afraid you have a mental problem.


I guess I definately have a mental problem then.

[Labrocca]

Bah you guys get hung up on small points.Â*Â*BTW...I never said violence wasn't neccessary.Â*Â*I firmly believe in violence however...I do wish for that utopia where it wasn't neccessary...but I ain't delusion about it.Â*Â*

Also every life has a value...that's just fact...what thay value is depends on many factors.Â*Â*For instance the 9/11 victims families were compensated differently depending on certain factors. I am sure age, income, offspring, and other items were considered on settlement agreements.Â*Â*Bums imho would be pretty low on the value scale but not altogether valueless (arguable I know).Â*Â* If you can't see that Lily or the rest of you then you may very well indeed have a metal problem which btw...brings down your value.Â*Â*:)

hehe

[Cobra]

The loss of someone close to you is worse than the loss of a stranger, so old men would get preference if you were related to them and the kid if not.

Anyway this is pretty sad if they're just going out and beating people to death just for kicks, very wrong. Harsh punishment should be handed down to all who are caught, make an example of them.

[lily]

If you can't see that Lily or the rest of you then you may very well indeed have a metal problem which btw...brings down your value.

Well, you're not the first one to tell me I have mental problems......and I'm sure you won't be the last. To me, life is life........but then I may be prejudice......I'm old and obviously have mental problems......I may be next on the list.;)

[underdawg]

When humans start rating each other's life in terms of who's life is of more value it sure gets easy to ignore compassion, kindness, and love and empathy. If the young are better than the old, the rich are better than the poor, whites are better than the blacks. Christians are better than the Jews, heterosexuals are better than homosexuals, the innocent are better than the guilty, and the healthy are better than the handicapped, It then gets to a point where we have no feelings for people different than ourselves and then it gets easier and easier to justify hate, violence, intolerance, and even murder.

[Labrocca]

If you can't see that Lily or the rest of you then you may very well indeed have a metal problem which btw...brings down your value.

Well, you're not the first one to tell me I have mental problems......and I'm sure you won't be the last. To me, life is life........but then I may be prejudice......I'm old and obviously have mental problems......I may be next on the list.;)


Steer clear of the teenagers with bats Lily. btw...can I take out an insurance policy on you? Maybe we can bring your value up a bit.

[lily]

Steer clear of the teenagers with bats

........but my grandson swears he loves me and it's only for baseball!

Lily. btw...can I take out an insurance policy on you? Maybe we can bring your value up a bit.

I have to laugh at this......come Nov. 6., I have been married to the same man for 36 years. Since our dating era, we have always played the game of "how I will kill you". I figure out how it can be done......he punches holes in my "theory"..........for some reason, he has more insurance than I do.:D

[askates]

No one has mentioned yet that these sociopathic teenagers are blaming their violence on videos, granted i do believe that there is a degree to which one becomes dehumanized, but you become that way to only fictional violence. Watching TV violence does not prepare you for real violence. I watched horror movies,faces of death,played the nastiest video games, but my parents raised me as a human being, which is obviously lacking from these kids lives. I guarrantee if you look at the backgrounds of these kids, a majority of them come from wealthy backgrounds. Few things are more dangerous than bored rich kids. To me this entire situation is about power and control. Those were not values instilled in my house.
(I know my spelling sucks,sorry)

[askates]

speak of the devil....
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/raskin/1906

[Alonzo]

No one has mentioned yet that these sociopathic teenagers are blaming their violence on videos, granted i do believe that there is a degree to which one becomes dehumanized, but you become that way to only fictional violence.Â*Â*Watching TV violence does not prepare you for real violence.Â*Â*I watched horror movies,faces of death,played the nastiest video games, but my parents raised me as a human being, which is obviously lacking from these kids lives.Â*Â*I guarrantee if you look at the backgrounds of these kids, a majority of them come from wealthy backgrounds. Few things are more dangerous than bored rich kids. To me this entire situation is about power and control.Â*Â*Those were not values instilled in my house.
(I know my spelling sucks,sorry)


Actually, watching violent movies does increase hostility. It's well documented as a short term effect, long term effects are what is controversial.

Violent video games alter brain's response to violence
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8449

INDIANAPOLIS - Exposure to violent media may affect the brains of youths with aggressive tendencies differently than the brains of non-aggressive youths, according to research at the Indiana University School of Medicine.

http://www.medicine.indiana.edu/news_releases/archive_02/violent_games02.html

Continuing their study of brain functioning and exposure to media violence, IU psychologists, psychiatrists and radiologists investigated the relationship between media violence exposure and executive functioning in a correlational study involving 54 boys and girls between the ages of 13 and 17 years.

Executive functioning is a person's ability to control and direct their thoughts and behavior. It involves such things as the ability to stay focused on a thought or task, the ability to plan, screen out distractions and to use experience to guide inhibitions.

Results showed statistically poorer executive functioning among adolescents who reported more past exposure to violent media. The result was more dramatic in teens with diagnosed behavior problems.


http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=25203

Results Effect size estimates were combined using meta-analytic procedures. As expected, the short-term effects of violent media were greater for adults than for children whereas the long-term effects were greater for children than for adults. The results also showed that there were overall modest but significant effect sizes for exposure to media violence on aggressive behaviors, aggressive thoughts, angry feelings, arousal levels, and helping behavior.

Conclusions The results are consistent with the theory that short-term effects are mostly due to the priming of existing well-encoded scripts, schemas, or beliefs, which adults have had more time to encode. In contrast, long-term effects require the learning (encoding) of scripts, schemas, or beliefs. Children can encode new scripts, schemas, and beliefs via observational learning with less interference and effort than adults.


http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/160/4/348

Also, with videos like this, they introduce a new activity. Going out and shooting people is well known, but the films seem to suggest that beating up homeless people is relatively easy to do, with minimal risk of consequences.

[askates]

I wonder what the results of that study would have been if they used non-violent but intense actions videos, the results of that study really only prove that constant overstimulation causes adhd/add, but not that violence provokes violence.Â*Â* "Executive functioning is a person's ability to control and direct their thoughts and behavior. It involves such things as the ability to stay focused on a thought or task, the ability to plan, screen out distractions and to use experience to guide inhibitions. "
AdHd(googled) symptoms

Inattention
Often does not give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities.

Often has trouble keeping attention on tasks or play activities.

Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly.

Often does not follow instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand instructions).

Often has trouble organizing activities.

Often avoids, dislikes, or doesn't want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework).

Often loses things needed for tasks and activities (e.g. toys, school assignments, pencils, books, or tools).

Is often easily distracted.

Is often forgetful in daily activities.

Granted im not ignorant, i will accept the possibility that seeing violence may provoke violent tendancies in children who have already show signs of violence, but for the most part, im young enough to have grown up in this technically advanced society and have watched violence in movies and real life since i was a baby, as well have all of my peers.Â*Â*The only difference between these kids and the kids of my generation is the instability, insecurity,and self hatred that alot of americans now have for their country.Â*Â*As things get worse, people get worse. Adhd has destroyed my generation, i was on 2 different medications as a child and the only thing that has given me any sort of remedy was giving away my TV(now im on the internet,lol)Â*Â*But how do you step backwards in a society that is so technically advanced.Â*Â*This article also brings to light the fallacy that these bum fight videos were new. I saw a bum fight video in 97 were some kids gave these homeless guys money to skateboard down this crazy hill where they both got really hurt.Â*Â*These and other videos where bums were paid to fight each other have been around for years,Â*Â*just recently these kids have set out to make their own.Â*Â*Websites like youtube and yousendit make it easy for these videos to become public access.Â*Â*regardless of what these kids were shown, there has been some obvious misdirection in their lives, they have been taught zero respect for life.
more on video games and adhd
http://www.time-scout.com/register/index.php?act=tv_adhd

[Alonzo]

Well, that one study you picked out is correlational, not experimental. It does not pinpoint cause. The others dealt with the issue of causation. Such as the effect of violent media on those with aggressive tendencies compared to those with non aggressive tendencies.

But what you have to understand with these things is no one suggest a 1-1 connection. Whether you were affected, or people you know, does not tell you much of the big picture. For example, if 15% (I am completely making these percentages up, no idea what it could be) increase aggression due to such exposure, that can have a very significant impact. But, that also means that 85% do not, and the bulk of people you know will be within that group.

[askates]

I agree with you on that note completely, im am just arguing the point that all studies are based on fallacies, percentage in itself is one,Â*Â*If there is no way to logically define justice, how can someone be judged, just like if there is no way to prove the honest effects of violence in media on our entire culture,what is the point of doing the study if the results are flawed.Â*Â*There are too many predetermining factors that are not taken into account. ( half these kids were probably listening to gangster rap and playing grand theft auto on the way to the test) Maybe if these studies were done on children that were kept in isolation from birth until the test, the results might be more credible, but in that case there would be the variable of that childs isolation to consider.Â*Â*I just do not trust anything that our government(fear) provides us with for reading entertainment. And testing what violence provokes in violent children, is like testing if a bird will fly if you throw a rock at it.