Ronn wrote:
> And at the risk of needing to find my asbestos underwear, which do the
> members of the list think is more fair or just?
Answering this question has turned out to be more difficult than I had
anticipated.
As a parent of a seven year old daughter, I say leave them locked up for the
rest of their lives.
Looking beyond the obvious emotional influence, I would lean toward leniency
after they (the two boys in England) have been incarcerated and
rehabilitated for the last eight+ years . But one stipulation would
certainly be lifetime probation and monitoring.
Just from what I have read in the media, I tend to believe that Lionel Tate
(who emulated the pro wrestlers) probably didn't intend to murder the little
girl, but was just stupid.
On the other hand, it appears the two children in England intentionally
murdered the little boy and therefore should have harsher and longer
punishments. As for granting them anonymity, that is probably a good idea
under the circumstances. If they are to be paroled, then give them a fair
chance to prove their rehabilitation. That is something that would be
difficult or impossible using their real names. But certainly any local law
enforcement agency should be aware of their new names and locations.
Back to Lionel Tate for a moment, this should not excuse him from what
happened, but with all of the responsibility and liability litigation that
happens in the US, I am surprised that Pro Wrestling didn't get hit with a
lawsuit. I can clearly see and acknowledge how Pro Wrestling and even movies
and cartoons could lead a young child to attempt those types of moves with
another child. Wrestlers do make the moves look easy and unfortunately look
safe. While most of us adults know that the very first body slam or kick to
the head would cause injury and put the normal person out of action,
children have not had the experiences that we have had to know those
limitations. You have to admit, the Pro Wrestling franchises go out of their
way to preserve the illusion that the whole thing is real and not staged.
Ask yourself this: how many times on any given Saturday morning does a young
child see Wiley E Coyote get an iron anvil dropped on his head or blown up
or hit by a truck? At what point can we reasonably expect a young child to
understand the difference between fantasy and reality when they are
completely immersed in violent behavior with everything from Power Rangers,
to Pro Wrestling to cartoons like Bugs Bunny and the Road Runner (just to
name a few).
The bottom line is this, I would not want to see this used as a defense
when a child murders another child (accidental or intentional), but I think
that someone should be looking at the environmental factors that possibly
led up to the situation.
My daughter does watch Beetle Borgs (Power Rangers rip-off) occasionally,
but when she is watching something like that, I go out of my way to attempt
to explain the difference between reality and fantasy and to make sure that
SHE understands the difference.
___________________________________
Gary L. Nunn
Delaware Ohio
