by Jack
It started in 2013 and it spread to a number of major cities across America. By November of this year even some of the suburbs were getting involved. It’s called the knock-out game.
What’s a knockout game? A group of young thugs targets an individual and one of them has to deliver a knock out punch. Typically it is video taped.
The victims tend to be white and the suspects tend to be black, but the most recent attack was done to a black man in his late 80’s by a 27 year old white male. This is called sport and at least two people have died from head injuries. Yes, there are videos and yes we have confirmed this is really true. But, we won’t be posting any video links here. This is only being reported as a public service for your safety.
How do you avoid being a victim? As in most crimes it’s situational awareness! Being observant and aware of your surroundings is your best defense. Walking down the street, yaking on your cell phone or bopping along to the music in your ear-buds, totally clueless to those approaching you, is a good way to get whacked. So, if you see some young punks watching your movements, be especially careful, and don’t put yourself in a place that would favor the attacker.
Next, the airport scam. Some airline passengers desperate to secure a place at the head of the line learned you can ask for an airport wheel chair. Nobody will ask if you need one, you simply borrow the wheel chair, roll up to the boarding gate and you will quickly be ushered to be among first to board.
What kind of person would do this? I won’t even go there, but apparently plenty do and it’s been one of those dirty little secrets that has been going on for years. The airport folks are well aware of these scammers, but the American’s With Disability Act makes it all but impossible to question anyone asking for a wheel chair, no matter if they just sprinted up to ticket counter!
I don’t know how you feel about these things, but I see it as further signs of a society in decay and the people who do it are total bottom feeders, lacking in both character and conscience.
Fun facts: “Columbus discovered the new world for Spain, which explains why we all speak Spanish.” David Letterman
You guys NEED to watch The Daily Show. And I’ll tell you what’s sad: when a nation NEEDS a satirist to debunk “news” reports.
Not sure what you mean Libby? Are you saying this is a non-existant or overblown threat the news media has created?
“CNN writes that “A sick so-called game known as ‘knockout’…is catching the attention of law enforcement throughout the nation,” and USA Today echoes the report with a brief on beefed up police vigilance in cities such as New York, Washington, New Haven, and Philadelphia.
It’s not hard to see why media outlets have latched on to this as an ongoing story. The prospect of random assault from rowdy, aggressive teens is scary, especially if they’re uninterested in theft and just want to attack. It’s as if we’re living in A Clockwork Orange, with our cities under siege by violent young men.
But it’s this media panic—as well as the strongly anecdotal nature of the coverage—that should give us pause before we declare the “knockout game” a national problem.” Jamelle Bouie. Bouie calls this a phony panic.
Five people have died according to Bouie, but he sees no cause for alarm. I’m not alarmed, but I would like to be aware. An Bouie is mixing awareness with phony panic, something it’s not. Yes, people are appalled by such a crime and they should be. It’s dangerous, senseless and moronic and five people died because of it. Panicked we’re not – disgusted and angry we are. Righteous anger and indignation to appalling things that people do, whether it is one isolated event or a serious of events that kills five people, is absolutely warranted. This brings attention to and puts pressure on the thugs that do it and results in a greater chance of detecting and apprehending them.
On average 32,000 people are killed each year in the US by gun violence. To me this seems like a worse problem than the ‘knockout game’
Jim, actually you’re a little high on that number. Not sure where you got it, but the real number in 2011 – the latest year for which detailed statistics are available – there were 8,583 were caused by firearms and this includes justifiable homicides. So, it looks like your number is off by…. 400%.
You may be surprised to know that homicide by gun is on the decline, despite the rise in gun ownership! We currently have 88.8 guns per every 100 citizens. Lot of responsible gun owners out here, aren’t there?
In 2010 there were 11078 homicides by gun, also including justifiable homicides. Meanwhile there were 578,000 deaths from cancer projected to occur in the United States in 2013. Per the Cancer Journal for Clinicians. Guns didn’t even come close to the top 10 leading causes of death in the USA.
1.Diseases of the heart
2.Cancer
3.Chronic lower respiratory diseases
4.Cerebrovascular diseases (stroke)
5.Accidents (unintentional injuries)
6.Alzheimer’s disease
7.Diabetes mellitus
8.Nephritis, nephritic syndrome and nephrosis (kidney disease)
9.Influenza and pneumonia
10. Suicide
In the most recent 2010 edition of Lott’s book, “More Guns Less Crime,” Lott concludes that “[a]llowing citizens to carry concealed handguns reduces violent crimes, and the reductions coincide very closely with the number of concealed-handgun permits issued.” (p. 20) Lott writes that the result of his research “clearly imply that nondiscretionary [concealed carry] laws coincide with fewer murders, aggravated assaults, and rapes” (p. 57). He contends that “[w]hen state concealed-handgun laws went into effect in a county, murders fell by about 8 percent, rapes fell by 5 percent, and aggravated assaults fell by 7 percent” (p. 59).
More directly related to the Newtown incident, Economist John Lott co-wrote a 1999 study that concluded, “Deaths and injuries from mass public shootings fall dramatically after right-to-carry concealed handgun laws are enacted. Between 1977 and 1995, the average death rate from mass shootings plummeted by up to 91 percent after such laws went into effect, and injuries dropped by over 80 percent.”
Here’s something that is really dangerous…In 1999, an estimated 205,850 playground equipment-related injuries were treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms! 205,850 injured children! This adjusted estimate translates to a rate of about 7.5 injuries per 10,000 U.S. population in 1999. Age-specific incidence was about 29.1 injuries per 10,000 children younger than 5 years, 34.8 per 10,000 children 5–14
years, and 0.6 per 10,000 population 15 years and older.
Where Government has failed us and turned a blind eye to our basic every day protection, the phrase “Self Reliant ” becomes more meaningful, with regards to personal safety.
These days, and because of attacks like those mentioned in the article, awareness is more important than ever. As well as a well armed society is a polite society, has even more of a aspect.
Good awareness advise column Jack, Thanks for posting it.
I didn’t intend to debate gun ownership. The courts have been clear, it’s a Constitutional right. I only intended to point out that a handful of punks punching people is hardly a serious epidemic. If I had the choice, I’d much rather be punched than shot.
However my figures are correct. More that half the suicides are committed with guns. That figure is around 19,000 a year in this country. Add that to the homicides and accidental gun deaths, and now we are around 32,000.
You are correct that gun ownership is up, unfortunately hunting and participation in gun sports is down in most states. I say unfortunately because when people learn the proper usage of firearms, they have more respect for the gun, and therefore less likely to injure another person.
I strongly disagree that more guns make us safer. If that were true, Afghanistan would be the safest place on earth.
“…but the real number in 2011 – the latest year for which detailed statistics are available – there were 8,583 were caused by firearms and this includes justifiable homicides. So, it looks like your number is off by…. 400%.”
Alas, Jack, it is you who have it wrong. You are looking at gun murder stats, not gun death stats. You’re forgetting about all those children who get hold of their responsible-gun-owning-parents’ firearms. Jim does indeed have the number:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-19/american-gun-deaths-to-exceed-traffic-fatalities-by-2015.html
Re #2 Post Scripts : “Not sure what you mean Libby?”
Neither is Blame-The-Victim Libby.
Allow me to rephrase her responce, “You guys *HIC* NEED to *HIC* watch *HIC* The Daily *HIC* Show. *HIC* And I’ll tell you *HIC* what’s *HIC*sad: when a *HIC* nation *HIC* NEEDS a *HIC* satirist to *HIC* debunk to *HIC* debunk to *HIC* debunk “news” *HIC* reports.
Pie? …
Did you say something?
I thought maybe I heard you say something?
… but I guess not.
Before we go nuts on the damage done to citizens by guns maybe we should consider the underlying problems that make this more likely to happen.
Morality isn’t a very popular topic with leftists today. Probably because the the topic would invoke discussions about abortion and child abuse which, as problems go, are much more serious than death by gunshot. Personal and civil immorality is championed and encouraged and religious morality is shunned and mocked in our society.
National Child Abuse Statistics:
According to this site there were 1569.5 reported deaths by abuse in 2011 but many more are suspected.
Abortions come in at 1.06 million in 2011.
Lack of respect or reverence for human life, the right to life, the laws of humanity and the laws of our land are responsible. A failure to teach personal responsibility and accountability are at the heart of all of this.
Black kids have been doing this for weeks now but apparently our government finds this game significant only when it involves a white on black crime:
The administration is not doing black kids any favors and is just fueling the fires of division and racism, both black and white. This is leadership?