Gang Violence

[15yearsofhistory 0]

Just recently, one of my close friends had his live taken by a mindless act of gang violence. I grew up with this kid and he moved out south where he got tangled up with the wrong people and eventually got killed because of it. I just wanna know, what are all of y'alls views on gangs/gang violence?

[greech 4]

Honestly? It's a bunch of kids playing 'thug life' just trying to act cool. I don't think people grasp the severity of it until someone is dead. A friend of a friend was shot and killed over a dime bag earlier this summer, it's just stupid.

[LkptTiger 1]

Do you really have to ask?

[jps39 0]

Gangs=Pu***es

[Monty22 833]

Just recently, one of my close friends had his live taken by a mindless act of gang violence. I grew up with this kid and he moved out south where he got tangled up with the wrong people and eventually got killed because of it. I just wanna know, what are all of y'alls views on gangs/gang violence?

What an odd question. But since you asked, I view it as "more air for me."

[Chadd 916]

Do you really have to ask?

Exactly, as if anyone not involved in it would be in favor of it.

[willsnipe 0]

I guess you could say gangs help create job's. Think about how many jobs are created to deal with the gang problem today.

Other then that, there's nothing positive about them.

[Fredrik 0]

Well, I think you probably know what most people thinks about criminal and violent gangs.

I'm sorry to hear that you've lost a close friend. Maby you can honor his memory by spreading the knowledge to young people: stay away from criminal gangs!

[gxc999 7]

The problem comes from the inherent group mentality mixed with youthful aggression. Study after study has shown people will do violent/risky/criminal things in groups that they would never even considering doing individually. However, arguably the greatest factor is that many of these people come from extremely broken homes and gangs promise to be like "a real family" to them. Socioeconomic states is mixed in here as well. It's a mess and becoming a real problem in many places.

[chippa13 1844]

I guess you could say gangs help create job's. Think about how many jobs are created to deal with the gang problem today.

Other then that, there's nothing positive about them.

Right, who cares about the plummeting property values of the areas gangs dominate and how many businesses have to cut and run from those areas. Then there's the ruined neighborhoods that the good people who live there have to suffer in. But yeah, hooray for a few more cops.

[willsnipe 0]

Hey buddy guy, obviously i wasn't promoting gangs, merely just pointing out one upside amid thousands of negative aspects.

[the_sock 1]

Some join because they have no other choice (or so they say), some because they like the lifestyle, some because they have been brainwashed with crap coming out of the entertainment industry (mixed messages, glorifying the gangster/thug life, etc). Also issues of bad parenting (I'll take flak for this), but parents are not taking the time to raise their children and are much more selfish and let their kids do the bad things without any type of feedback.

I personally think that it's a problem of glorifying the lifestyle in some mediums and parents not raising their kids properly. The excuse of, "there is no other choice" is crap. Everybody in this day and age has a choice to make and has the opportunity to do better in their lives.

[Patrick67 1]

Around here bad parenting is the number 1 reason for gangs and street violence.

I've coached immigrant kids (8-14year olds) in a local ghetto, and they were all nice and easy going for the most part... only difference between them and kids from other parts of town is their language and tone of voice could be pretty bad.

They sometimes would talk more harsh to each other and things would escalate easier than with middle-class kids.

The +14years olds in the area are different, instead of "sometimes" it's all the time.

Their parents are no where to be seen for the most part.... Dad is out working and mom is a stay at home mom.... But stay at home mom has 5 kids, and they live in a little apartment, and she has to clean and cook for when dad comes home. So all the kids get told to go outside and "play"... and not come home untill dinner and/or bedtime.

This results in the kids, already from when they are 8, hanging around on the streets with nothing to do for most of the day everyday... and no one to discipline them. So out of boredom they start doing shit and wrecking things left and right, and the parents never intervene or take notice, mainly because the parents don't see their kids for most of the day, and don't really give a shit.

I have 12-13year olds hanging in groups at 10pm on street corners in my area pretty much every day of the week. And the only feedback they get is from their peers..... and the police....

When kids in my area are 14+ they are almost "tainted" for life. Sad but true.

They start out just like any other kids in terms of behavior, but after a whole childhood with almost no parenting, and their main influences beeing their friends incouraging them in participating in some stupid shit...... It's no wonder they end up in gangs.

The county is doing alot to prevent this, doing workshops sportsactivities etc in the ghettos, but without the kids parents participating, there is no way they can break the habit.