Quote:
Originally Posted by swilliamsny
Your point is not invalid, but this wasn't like she was trying to stop a Ferguson-type mob. This was a group of teenagers having a party. I'd be interested in seeing how many of us feel unsafe around a large group of kids. Seriously, have we reached a point in our society where we have to call the cops for every damned thing? You really couldn't ask your neighbor to turn the music down just because they're bigger than you?
Our society is lost if we can't have an expectation of dealing with each other without injury. Your 'land of make believe' is my reality. When this type of behavior reaches enough neighborhoods that a polite society is seen as a fairy tale by the majority of people, I'd expect there will be a tipping point in this country.
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Yes, technically, they are "kids", but teens can often be much taller, much larger, much stronger than adults...especially little old ladies.
Yes, our soceity is lost. It's been lost. There's a lot of people who pretend it's not, there's a lot of people who insult you when you say that it's lost, but we can not have an expectation of dealing with each other without injury anymore. We can't go to a rally without being attacked. We can't wear certain clothing without being attacked. We can't drive down the road without being attacked. We can't say things without being attacked, etc. We do not live in a decent society anymore, and despite what the German thinks of me on this forum, the very reason is because our society will not tell the truth. It "offends" people to tell the truth.
So here's reality. It is your responsibility not to put yourself in to situations that you cannot handle if they go badly...as many of them do when you have a crowd of people who clearly do not give one spit about the rules. How many teens were there? Do you understand how groups act when they have a lot of others in their group around them?
Instead of living in "we shouldn't have to deal with this", which no longer exists, we have to face reality and protect ourselves. We have to make those decisions because the powers that be don't give a damn. Clearly.
I should be able to ask my neighbor to turn his music down without being verbally threatened. But that's not reality.
I should be able to ask my neighbor to stop banging around on the walls and screaming at the top of his lungs while he plays video games at 11 o'clock at night. But that's not reality.
I should be able to drive down the road without someone getting all huffy if they think I'm going too slow, and they tailgate me with their highbeams on instead of passing when they have plenty of opportunity to do so.
I should be able to drive down the road faster than some other cars without someone getting all huffy and speeding up when I pass them.
I should be able to tell someone that something they're doing is wrong without them threatening me or physically attacking me (latter has not happened because I know the boundaries...and despite what 'should' happen, that doesn't help me if I'm in the hospital or dead now does it?)
But it's not reality.
She should not have put herself in that situation. That does not mean, again, and again, that the little punk that threw her in to the pool gets a pass. I've said. Repeatedly. It does mean that it's time for people to wake the hell up and realize that our society hasn't been nice for awhile. You're going to get yourself hurt or killed, sometimes for even less than asking someone to turn their music down, if you put yourself in to a situation that you cannot handle if it goes bad.
As tinytrump said, you need to know where you are and what you're dealing with.
Quote:
Originally Posted by swilliamsny
I can't resist adding one more thing. If that were my kid (assuming any of mine ever did something like that, which I think is highly implausible), he would NOT be going to basketball. Church and school, fine, but what it this teaching him if he gets to continue to do something he likes? He would also have no access to phone, computer (aside from school work), iPad, etc., and he would be hauling groceries and cleaning that lady's toilet.
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I agree with this. When I would get grounded as a teen, (not for physical altercations, I don't hit or assault people...it was for my smart ass comments towards teachers more than anything...something that I'm sure the people of CD are
so surprised to hear), I got everything taken away except school, go home to my room, and we had to go to church on Sundays. Everything was taken out of my room that might bring joy except books, because books are education. I was not allowed to go skiing if it was winter, not allowed to go to track practice or b-ball practice if during the school year despite my "team" relying on me, and I was not allowed to go to swim team practice OR races if it was in the summer. I didn't get phone calls, I didn't get to watch tv, I didn't get to play on the computer, I didn't get to listen to music...it was all gone.
Didn't teach me to respect authority without question, but it did keep me from boldly telling the teacher exactly what I thought about them for awhile after each time.
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