Can the US get any shittier?

[pErvinalia]

And bollocks to the "10 year old reasons like an adult" thing. As an MD you should know very well that frontal lobes in boys don't develop fully till the early 20's.

[Collector1337]

And to think... before ratskep and this forum, I used to think that Brits, Australians, and New Zealanders were normal, civilized folk.

Turns out, they're actually elitist, bigoted, ethnocentric scum.

I appreciate having my eyes opened to this reality.

Thanks.

I certainly hope that this doesn't generalize to all of them, and there's still some decent, non-ethnocentric folks in those countries.

[pErvinalia]

What's bigoted about it? It's talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society.

[Collector1337]

What's bigoted about it? It's talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society.

It's sad you have to ask. You should probably take a cultural diversity class.

With a thread title like "Can the US get any shittier?" You've left, "talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society" before you even started.

[JimC]

What's bigoted about it? It's talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society.

It's sad you have to ask. You should probably take a cultural diversity class.

With a thread title like "Can the US get any shittier?" You've left, "talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society" before you even started.

You may not have noticed that I disagreed with MM about his US bashing approach (and I dislike the thread title) but the points of substance are real, and haven't yet been addressed. Leaving aside any gun issue, does anyone from the US want to seriously defend the judicial treatment and sentencing of a 12 year old boy as an adult? Most thread responses have skirted this issue, or brought in the Bolger red herring. The horrified criticism in the article itself, by the way, was coming from American journalists and legal people, not MM...

It's not about abstract reasoning power, it's about an unformed ability to make responsible choices.

[Collector1337]

Yes, it is completely absurd to treat a 12 year old like an adult, most definitely.

It's that same kind of fear and overreaction people have to traumatic events that is similar to wanting more gun laws after a shooting.

But now, because he's been treated like a monster, he'll probably remain a killer because that's the master status society has given him.

[pErvinalia]

What's bigoted about it? It's talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society.

It's sad you have to ask. You should probably take a cultural diversity class.

With a thread title like "Can the US get any shittier?" You've left, "talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society" before you even started.

That was one person. You've lumped other people (via other nationalities) including me in with that. What basis do you have for calling all these other people bigoted?

[MrJonno]

Of course it could get shittier, we could elect a LibDem / Tory coalition.

That hurts laklak, more than any of your guns

[Collector1337]

What's bigoted about it? It's talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society.

It's sad you have to ask. You should probably take a cultural diversity class.

With a thread title like "Can the US get any shittier?" You've left, "talking about your justice system and your approach to guns in society" before you even started.

That was one person. You've lumped other people (via other nationalities) including me in with that. What basis do you have for calling all these other people bigoted?

The constant elitism and ethnocentrism that is constantly displayed, primarily by those in those countries. Sorry to lump you in, but those voices from your countrymen are louder than yours.

When you have clowns like mrjonno and blind groper who constantly push for this massive nanny and police state, where everything should be banned, it's very off-putting. And the worship of "society" and government is just downright sickening.

[Thinking Aloud]

Sorry to lump you in, but those voices from your countrymen are louder than yours.

I never assume the loudest people from a particular country are the most representative.

[JimC]

Yes, it is completely absurd to treat a 12 year old like an adult, most definitely.

It's that same kind of fear and overreaction people have to traumatic events that is similar to wanting more gun laws after a shooting.

But now, because he's been treated like a monster, he'll probably remain a killer because that's the master status society has given him.

Leaving aside the unwarranted gun comparison, I agree that remaining in jail for a ridiculous length of time will have a scarring and possibly criminalising effect on him, which is a good reason not to do it. "Remain a killer" is not a given at all - he seems to have been a confused follower in this instance...

And surely some questions have to be asked about how easy it was for a 12 year old to obtain a handgun - surely some adult gun owner has been criminally careless...

[Collector1337]

Well, at least careless anyway.

[Collector1337]

Sorry to lump you in, but those voices from your countrymen are louder than yours.

I never assume the loudest people from a particular country are the most representative.

In addition to loudest, add also, most frequent, and greatest quantity.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Arbitrary limits are arbitrary. The idea of "childhood" is really rather new.

Surely not at 12, though? A 12 year old simply doesn't have the reasoning abilities of an adult. Trying them as an adult is just wrong, no matter how heinous their crimes.

I love absolute statements.

[JimC]

Arbitrary limits are arbitrary. The idea of "childhood" is really rather new.

Surely not at 12, though? A 12 year old simply doesn't have the reasoning abilities of an adult. Trying them as an adult is just wrong, no matter how heinous their crimes.

I love absolute statements.

I know what you mean, but in this case I agree with rEv, particularly as (unlike the Bolger case), he was also sentenced as an adult would have been...

Children should not have the same legal standing as adults, end of story. Maybe there's a grey area from 16-17, but 12 is just crazy...