I don't have specifics, but...

I listen to a radio station out of Atlantic City on my way into work; and this emorning I heard a quick report that several teenagers have attacked a homeless man with paintball guns. The homeless man lost an eye.

The case is being treated as a bigotry/bias/discrimination/hate crime case. Not quite sure what the correct term was that they used.

For those of you who search News groups; expect to see this.

:vangry: :vangry: :pow: :vangry: :vangry: :vangry: :vangry:
:wacko: :wacko: :wacko:
Oh J-US-H-CRISTE!!!
Where are the PARENTS?!?!?

ARGGHG

Even more bad news.. http://www.nbc5i.com/news/2332414/detail.html
dosnt it suck when the sport you play is only shown in the news when something bad happens... you never hear about the inner city youth fundraiser programs going on in Cali with of all people Arnold Schwarzenegger. Or all of the many other happenings around the country and world that involve paintball...

<ohh no back on a rant> ...

do you know what the 4th biggest "extreme sport" is??? PAINTBALL... do you know what the 25th most shown sport on TV was last year????.. WOMENS COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY..which brought in $28 million...thats TWENTY EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS!!!!!! ... ... can someone PLEASE explain that to me...

<rant mode off>

Horrible...

I thought we moved up to third on extreme sports?

Well, since it seems we're on a roll with horrible paintball misuse, I'll add a disappointing local news item.

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/story.asp?...3E-E0C01934A27C

The only redeeming factor is that these kids were so unbelievably stupid that they filmed their shooting spree, so their getting the book thrown at them.

It's sad and disheartening that all these horrible things are happening, and even worse that they all seem to be getting national publicity.

Marc

Criminial Mischief my ASS, in Virginia it's major crime or felony to discharge ANYTHING from a moving vechile.
So many idiots, so little ammo...

This is just a few of several annoying trends. It is not so much a thing about paintball as a Social thing. All across the nation, in towns large and small people are raising their little hordlings. Well...the people are not raising them that is the problem. They don't care about their children, or if they do, the government has tied their hands as to what discipline they can impliment to turn brash youths into productive citizens.

Think, how many times have you been driving down the road and encounter a person, usually age 8-18 that simply will not get out of the way of your vehicle? They may look you square in the eye, grin and not move a bit. I see it often here in my small down of 1,200 in W. NY state. They are exceedingly bold!!! Their bold ness is only matched by their disrespect for anything. I am 30, my father is 72 years old. I have spoken to him at length at what would have been done with such people in his youth...My father has stated repeatedly that the disrespectful youth would have likely been beaten severly for simply knowingly disrupting traffic...not to mention what would occur if someone actually shot another person with a paintball gun if they exhisted in that day and age. It was common then for a bystander to correct a youth in the err of his/her way sometimes verbally, somtimes violently. Furthermore, the parents of said child back them would have endorsed such action due to the child being a menace on society.

Kids today have no boundries. They have no fear. They do not have the moral social base instilled with discipline on a broad scale of previous generations. I an a nurse by profession, I am well aware of the social agenda of our societe (and government) I sat in school and had it pounded into my head for hours on end. There IS a concerted effort to reform our society. It has been going on since the 1940's and has gone awry.

I personally, was harshly disciplined as a youth. My mother and father were hard on me due to the fact that if you are going to be a productive citizen, life is going to be harsh. The biblical adage of spare the rod, spoil the child is absolutely true!! I border on agnosticism, however, I firmly believe that discipline is fundamental to producing good children. Which is better, punish a person enough to make them fear authority and consequence or to not punish them and have them routinely break the law and spend years in prison. Our Society is Fuc%ed up beyond repair.

I realize too, that there are many decent kids out there, however...there are many, many bad apples out there too. In this instance the bad does outway the good. Our society is on a decline and had been for a long time now. We are now reaping the harvest of social reformers like DR. Spock (Who recanted his lifes work on his death bed wondering....what have I done to the world!)

I really hate to be a nay sayer in this, but this is the truth in my books.

I don't know, it is a tough issue. If I had the answers I would make the world a better place on my own. I can't though. All I can do is hope for a better place and do my part every day to make it that way. I can't give up hope for people when there are so many good folks left in the world. I am truly sorry if I have angered anyone with my statements, however I feel it to be true, therefore I shall speak my piece.

Take care all, thanks for the ear.

Six

Sadly, I must agree.

I did find a way to get the bold/dumbass kids that wont get out of the way of your car like you mentioned. Hit em! Nothing makes a dumbass think again more then a 2 ton Chevy 4X4 that just kicked the 4barrel open :evil:
I did that once to a group of "youths" that were just running back and forth across the street to annoy people. They'd step out then motion the car to go, then step out again and so forth. Till it was my Turn...Muuhhhhha VAROOOOOOOOOM 4 wheel tiresmoke and the dumbass thought I'd stop....wrong. Unfortunatly he moved at the last second, BUT they gave up the game after that.

~CHUBBIE~

PS sorry to change the post topic, but it's sort of fitting :)

there all wussies(if the board will let me say that). invite them to a field and theyll be afraid to play. or if they do they will sit there, and "guard the flag" or stay back, and "snipe". meanwhile were here workin our asses off trying to keep a good name for paintball theres ppl like them out there doing .01% of the work we do. just my lil rant

The thing that ticks me off about these events, is not that they happen (well it does, but theres more to it) but how the events are reported by the media.. when someone gets their head bashed in by a dude with a baseball bat, do they say " and today a baseball player seriously injured so and so on the corner of...." Ofcourse not!! so why then do they report that <"paintball players" injured so and so in a drive by?? > This is where we need to concetrate our efforts in my opinion.. the people doing these crimes arent paintball players, their thugs using paintball guns.. no different than thugs using baseball bats, or firearms, or whatever.. :vangry:
The world is full of idiots, and thats no surprise, but when a reporter puts them in the same catagory as a sports person playing paintball, thats where we need to really fight back and educate them.... write letters, make phone calls, get our sport back into prospective and make it clear, that we, as real paintball players would never condone such acts of violence, or commit them! <_<

id have to advise against running people down in cars.. its real hard to explain later on.. been there, done that.. not worth it... :blink:

maverick i agree with you totaly. we have to start a movement to let people in the news media that paintball players, on the whole are the most responsible people to handle a paintball gun. its the bad eggs that buy a gun from walmart and have never played a game in thier lives that are giving our sport a bad name.( i also agree with the ass whupin' point of view put forth in an earlier post. i received many whupins in my life and deserved every one) its like you said any other sporting equipment used in a heinous act dosnt link the perpertrator with that sport so why should using a paintball gun to prove your a moron automaticly place you as a paintball player? i own a baseball bat? does that make me a baseball player?
no, it certainly dosnt we need to send letters to any local paper that paints (haha) a bad picture of paintball players just because some drunken morons get it into thier head that shooting people with paintball guns is fun. ( i of course mean off the field)

It's a good thing Nail guns aren't cheaper. Drive-by nailings would sure put a bad light on being a carpenter.

~CHUBBIE~

heh, funny you should mention the nail gun thing, there wasa story on the local news recently about a car being vandalized by a group of kids with a nail gun (im guessing it was battery operated??) , and sure enough, no mention of carpenters... they were described only as "juviniles".. not even juvenile delinquents.. just "juviniles who commented an act of vandalism"... almost sounds like the reporter wanted to invite them home for milk and cookies for gods sake..ugh... :vangry:

Mav is correct in pinning much of the blame on the media. The media (very similar to lawyers morally speaking) are at the forefront of social mannipulation in this day and age. They influance our lives more than many would like to admit. Were I given the oppertunity to dine between a famous lawyer, nationally known news anchor, crack whore or drug dealer I believe that I would choose the crack whore and drug dealer to share company with over a fine meal. <WHY??!!> Because the crack whore and drug dealer (in my experience) are the more honest people. They know they are dregs and have come to terms with it, while a lawyer or media hack (and other such ilk) pretend to be good people, when in reality they in general are quite the opposit. In all actuallity, the average lawyer, media anchor and crack whore have much in common. They are all prostitutes over something. The crack whore at least sells her body honestly and openly, whereas the mouthpiece and media hack prostitute everything they have in subtrofuge. The crack whore is a whore, and open about it. Mouthpieces, and media hacks are whores in private and will go to great efforts to make themselves appear what they are not. Evil trys to hide and camoflage itself.

I would venture a guess that the media and lawyers play just as important a roll as the social scientists in the decline and fall of our society and the rot and decay, socially speaking that we all witness daily. Lawyers, media, social theorists... they are all equally evil in my books. Social theorists ruin the society, lawyers make money off of the vicisitudes from the rot and decay, and media hacks report it with a toothy grin and a wink!! (live at 6 Eastern Standard time!!!) What more could we want?!!! Ring side seats to the fall of Western civilization!

Am I a kook? A consperisy theorist? In loss with reality? Na... I wish it were simple as that. Most folks would say that I am out of touch with reallity, I would say that I am very much in touch with things as they TRUELY are, but most everyone chooses to not see the truth of it, as long as they have their sporting events to watch, or favorite sitcom. As long as they can shop at Old Navy and have Buffalo wings every other day all is right with the world, and civilization is OK too. Every day the people (Sheep-le) are being fed, and led by forces that lerk and sculk about. I am not trying to start a movement or anything. I am NOT some radical. I am however into THINKING, and SEEING what happens every day right under all of our noses.

On a final note, do you remember Rome... If not, read about it, study it. Gather information and analyse the facts - make associations between them...and us. For example, we have our collosium, we get to see all the horror and icky detail nightly on the news from a sharp looking gal with a $13,000.00 smile, and 6,000.00 dollar Ta Ta's bringing the gore to all of us with a wink and a toothy grin! (by the way, she gets her teeth so white with those strips, like on TV...because shiney teeth are VERY important...) <giggle>

Six

I'm with you easix6. Been watching the decay of our nation, destroyed by design, since I got out of the system some years ago. It's sad the way the vast masses just lemming around thinking nothing buy stupid trivial "reality show" thoughts. Never questioning, never researcher, just dumb thougthless animals slowly digging thier own graves.
Back on the education system though, you might find this article interesting.

Here's a quip...
-----
In 1905 the Rockefeller Education Board—which funded the creation of numerous public schools—issued a statement which read in part:

In our dreams...people yield themselves with perfect docility to our molding hands. The present educational conventions [intellectual and character education] fade from our minds, and unhampered by tradition we work our own good will upon a grateful and responsive folk. We shall not try to make these people or any of their children into philosophers or men of learning or men of science. We have not to raise up from among them authors, educators, poets or men of letters. We shall not search for embryo great artists, painters, musicians, nor lawyers, doctors, preachers, politicians, statesmen, of whom we have ample supply. The task we set before ourselves is very simple...we will organize children...and teach them to do in a perfect way the things their fathers and mothers are doing in an imperfect way.

----
Sounds pleasant doesn't it? :wacko:

Here's the whole article.
http://www.thememoryhole.org/edu/school-mission.htm

Cargo... Thanks for the information. I will share this with my wife, a very intelligent woman, possessing a masters degree in English. When I met her she was a Teacher, she has since removed herself from teaching due to the fact that the educational system is not only ineffective, but also exceedingly corrupt.

Nation wide administrative educators are $hitcanning older experienced teachers in preferance of neophite college grad teachers who are "easily molded" for a teaching position. Many of these older teachers (like my wife) proposed that children THINK freely, and QUESTION often. This type of teaching (critical thinking) is not in vogue with the current social or governmental goals in regard to molding the type of sheep-le that either do not vote, or are easily led to vote thoughtlessly.

If many people actually THOUGHT about things, that would be very dangerous indeed for those in power.

Great article Cargo. KEEP THINKING FREELY!!!! Noncarborvundvm Illigitimvs (don't let the bastards get you down!)

Six

That just rolls right off the tounge :P

~CHUBBIE~