Take for example the news about the stricken cargo ship MSC Napoli. Containers have been strewn across Branscombe beach in Devon, and it is reported that looters have been turning up in droves to scavenge what they can find on the beach. This has rightly been condemned by the police and coast guard officials as the goods inside these containers obviously belong to other people, some of which are personal items.
However, as much as the greed of these people disgust me, the thing I found stupid beyond belief was a comment submitted to BBC News and quoted within the article:
“Let them keep what they find. They are removing rubbish from the beach!”Umm… no. You see this is rubbish (which is clearly being left behind):
Ken Bolton from Manchester
What is actually being removed is barrels of wine and BMW motorbikes, and other valuable items.
Also in the news is a two year old boy who was banned from a shop for refusing to remove his “hoodie”:
And on a more serious note is the story of a man who lost his life during a mugging that went wrong. The Judge David Hodson is quoted as saying regarding the murderer:
“The dreadful catalogue of physical and emotional abuse you have been subjected to as a child has undoubtedly contributed to the anti-social behaviour disorder you suffer.”I'm sure this statement will bring great comfort to the victims family. If you click on the link to the news article you can watch video phone footage of the murderer "suffering" from the affects of his anti-social behaviour disorder.
Two questions: Is anti-social behaviour a disorder?* And is physical and emotional abuse as a child a justifiable excuse for a completely unrelated murder in adulthood?
I'd just like to point out that I have friends who wrote the book on suffering physical and emotional abuse, and yet they are balanced, upright members of society. They don’t mug people; they don’t carry knives; and they don’t stab people to death.
*If so, I’m sorry kids but your ASBO no longer makes you look “tough” and “cool” – it just proves you’re a fruit cake.
Images from BBC News
6 comments:
mmmm makes me wonder if I could get away with murder
Hi,
Regarding the 2 year old boy... perhaps they were afraid and thought this "gangsta" was gonna pull out his nine and bust a cap ;)
Yeah Aiders, go for it :) Who do you have in mind?
I feel I should point out though that he didn't really "get away" with it. The Judge (reluctantly it seems) sentenced him to 22 years after saying:
"For the offence of murder there is only one sentence I can pass by law, that is of life imprisonment."
He makes it sound like he wouldn't have given him 22 years if he didn't have to by law.
It just makes me so mad.
Hi Mr Grumpy!
Is that a 9mm gun or a 9 inch babies bottle? :)
Well that's very decent of them TP, but I look at it like this: they went to the beach in the first place to take things that weren't theirs. Some may have drawn the line at taking personal possessions; some may have taken them and had a pang of conscience later; but how many of them have just taken them home with the attitude "finders keepers"?
To be fair though, some may have gone with the intention of looking for personal items to be able to rescue them, and I applaud such ones. (Or am I just being incredibly naïve?)
I completely agree, although Police resorces and people power are already stretched.
Now here's an idea: we keep being told that there are increasing numbers of PCSO's, and yet I was told recently that they are not able to actually arrest criminals - so send them to the beach as glorified security officers!
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