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I'm clueless about what other countries have to do with the culture of violence in America.
It would be nice if you could stick to the topic or start a thread with your choice of topics.
I reckon you need to refer to your first post of this thread. This one right here:
Quote:
You just described it. I live overseas a lot of the time.
I always feel more safe, no matter where I live, than when I live in America.
It is a very violent country.We have more people incarcerated than any other industrialized nation.
Incarceration in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs2/r188.pdf http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/23/wo...3738.html?_r=1
Some countries have crime against possessions or property; the US has crime against people.
We're number 1 (hey, we're no. 1) U.S. prison population dwarfs that of other nations
The United States has less than 5 percent of the world's population. But it has almost a quarter of the world's prisoners.
Funny, the white collar criminals that affect us most, do little or no time and if they do end in prison it's a country club type.
There it is. You might want to keep track of what you are writing, lest someone read it and respond.
Violence is entitlment-fueled. We, as a nation, have built up a standard whereas the individual is perceived to be lacking in capability and accomplishment if he/she does not have what the other person has. Therefore, we ply away daily seeking whatever it is that we and others perceive us to be lacking. For some, that means doing whatever it takes to get it, including violence.
It usually revolves around money. In the United States, money is power. Personal financial ills have lead to this culture of violence, in my view. Too many people are frustrated by their lack of getting ahead no matter what they do. In one way or another, they're tired of being behind the curve. Violence, be it domestic violence or gang violence, 9 times out of 10 it can be linked back to money.
Money is the root of all evil.
Not to be picky--OK, yes, it's to be picky--but the actual quote is "The love of money is the root of all evil."
Some countries have crime against possessions or property; the US has crime against people.
We're number 1 (hey, we're no. 1) U.S. prison population dwarfs that of other nations The United States has less than 5 percent of the world's population. But it has almost a quarter of the world's prisoners.
Funny, the white collar criminals that affect us most, do little or no time and if they do end in prison it's a country club type.
Ahh yes, wonderful Europe. Barely 65 years removed from a 20 year period which saw more than 100 million of it's people raped, enslaved, imprisoned, tortured and genocided.
Yet somehow we have a culture of violence?
[quote=Jericho-79;15307855]Would you guys agree that society breeds mass violence?
Would you guys agree that "society created the monster by being the monster"?
Take school bullying and school shootings, for example. In these cases, a kid is pushed too far by his tormentors and commits a massacre.
Monsters created the monster?
In other words- Is the perpetrator solely at fault? Or is society at fault? Or could it inherently be both?
What do you guys think?
If the US society is to blame it's because we no longer hold anyone accountable for their own actions. If you have a rough time, no worries there is a government program that will help you out. You are a victim, afterall.
Maybe if our schools taught reading, writing, math and science again instead of sex ed, personal heritage, politics, and subjects that point out the "differences" in everyone kids wouldn't feel so overwhelmed. If we went back to teaching the things kids actually need to know to get a job...things that are unifying as opposed to dividing, kids wouldn't be forced to deal with controversial issues before their minds are developmentally ready.
Maybe if parents taught kids that they are responsible for their own actions and that you have to face the consequences for your actions, they would think twice about being bullies or reacting so dramaticly.
Is the perpetrator at fault or is it society?
Well, I guess if you are taught that the world owes you a living and all you have to do is TAKE it then society would be to blame. But if you believe that we are all responsible for our own actions, then perpetrators are at fault.
If parents were ALLOWED to teach their own children values and morals at the rate they personnally feel their kid can handle it, if teachers were allowed to teach the basics and do a good job at it, kids might be kids again and see that although we are all different in some aspects, we are actually all alike.
When you pull race, politics, religion, and sexuality out of the equation we are all alike. If schools went back to teachng the basics it would be a common bond for kids to unite in. If we are allowed to deal with our differences as they occur, after puberty, we have that uniting common ground to fall back on and the differences aren't the first thing we see in each other. They are also not the factors that we identify ourselves with.
Sorry for the ramble, I just feel that it's more important to point out how much we are alike than to focus on our differences. And also to try to correct problems rather than place blame. Blaming creates victims.
I reckon you need to refer to your first post of this thread. This one right here:
There it is. You might want to keep track of what you are writing, lest someone read it and respond.
My personal experiences and feelings.
What does that have to do with those countries if it is my personal perception of where I live.
Please show me where I accused others of being anything? Have I said that any country is more or less violent?
I am fearful of being in the US. I see the US as violent.
Was my link in error?
Since you're looking at my posts, show me where I said other countries were or were not anything.
I'd appreciate it.
Last edited by chielgirl; 08-03-2010 at 02:35 PM..
Ahh yes, wonderful Europe. Barely 65 years removed from a 20 year period which saw more than 100 million of it's people raped, enslaved, imprisoned, tortured and genocided.
Yet somehow we have a culture of violence?
You could start with living in the present. At least, I try to.
I happen to live in Europe at this time; I've lived in Asia as well.
I've lived on 3 continents in the past decade.
I've felt more comfortable in other countries than I have in the US.
Here's a few interesting links that show a correlation between television viewing and violent/aggressive behavior in children.
How TV Affects Your Child
• Kids who view violent acts are more likely to show aggressive behavior but also fear that the world is scary and that something bad will happen to them.
•TV characters often depict risky behaviors, such as smoking and drinking, and also reinforce gender-role and racial stereotypes.
Violence
To give you perspective on just how much violence kids see on TV, consider this: The average American child will witness 200,000 violent acts on television by age 18. Kids may become desensitized to violence and more aggressive. TV violence sometimes begs for imitation because violence is often promoted as a fun and effective way to get what you want.
More at link.
Children And TV Violence | American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
… Hundreds of studies of the effects of TV violence on children and teenagers have found that children may:
•become "immune" or numb to the horror of violence
•gradually accept violence as a way to solve problems
•imitate the violence they observe on television; and
•identify with certain characters, victims and/or victimizers
Extensive viewing of television violence by children causes greater aggressiveness. Sometimes, watching a single violent program can increase aggressiveness. Children who view shows in which violence is very realistic, frequently repeated or unpunished, are more likely to imitate what they see.
More at link, also.
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posted/archive/2009/10/29/violence-against-women-female-teens-surges-on-tv.aspx (broken link) Incidents of violence against women on mainstream television have increased by 120% in the past five years, with the depiction of teen girls as victims rising by some 400%, Los Angeles-based conservative television watchdog Parents Television Council says in a new report.
Last edited by chielgirl; 08-03-2010 at 02:35 PM..
"Culture of violence" tends to hide the fact that the murder rate has actually declined quite a bit in the US since the 1970's. Most states hit their murder rate peaks in the 80's or 90's, and have brought rates down quite a bit since then.
The numbers on this graph are jumbled, but you can see the trendline from 1960 to 2008:
All the same, the overall murder rate (5.4 per 100,000 in 2008) is a lot higher than in most other developed countries (England and Wales have a rate of 1.2; Australia is 1.35; France is 1.4; Canada is 1.8), so, it does raise further questions about how to bring the rate down much more, and bring it in line with developed-world standards.
Nine people were shot dead at their workplace in Connecticut today.
No one cares.
Violence, what violence?
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