I know what I'd do but what about you?

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

These people are my hero's.

[Meli]

Thank's

Lovely way to start my day.

I note that the vid seems to have been taken in a small town. Wonder If they would get the same result in a big city?
(not being cynical, just wondering in the spirit of the research if our sense on community and protecting the helpless breaks down in larger communities.)

[Dumah]

Very heartening to see compassion towards the "residence challenged", It reafearms my bewlief there is hope for humahity afterall.

Cheers, Dumah
Halifax, NS

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Survival in the big city sometimes means minding your own business.
People get numb to violence unless it's happening to them.
I've been on the receiving end so it's personal for me but before that I tended to be one of the people who would quietly call the cops and just watch.
That's a good question.

[Meli]

Regarding what I would do, It depends on the circumstances.
I've faced off 3x 14 yo's bullying 2x 10 YO in a park.

I've faced off blokes bullying me.

In a situation like the first (without the bat) I'd go straight in and give em hell.
The second? probable call cops first (mobiles are wonderful things) the from a reasonable distance, distract the thugs verbally till help arrives.
Bullies like these can rarely resist an opportunity to brag to onlookers, professional thugs will just ignor a witness and get on with the job.

It would depend a bit on if my kids were with me.

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Back to my original question, what would YOU do?
Would you stick your neck out and say or do anything?
Good for you Meli.

[Meli]

what I find interesting in the video is the ages and sex of those that came to assist in all situations.

In the first (homeless man victim) the women bystanders just watch and a younger man assists
In the second (armed attack) an older man verbally intervenes and then leaves to call the cops while a woman stands her ground and takes the risks.
In the third (homeless woman) men singly intervene first, but women quickly group and charge en mass

I think this last is the most interesting, It's the way women have always dealt with invaders since ancient times.
What I find alarming is no teenagers, male or female seem to come to the assistance of anyone!!
Well maybe they were all in school.

[Paul Pless]

Google 'Kitty Genovese'. As a matter of fact the phenomenom is named after her. . .

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

When I was attacked, a tiny elderly black woman came to my aid and theatened them with her cane.
She put herself between them and me and made all kinds of noise.
Hero's come in all sizes and walks of life.

[Meli]

from wiki.
The lack of reaction of numerous neighbors watching the scene prompted research into diffusion of responsibility and the bystander effect. Social psychologists John Darley and Bibb Latané started this line of research, showing that contrary to common expectations, larger numbers of bystanders decrease the likelihood that someone will step forward and help a victim. The reasons include the fact that onlookers see that others are not helping either, that onlookers believe others will know better how to help, and that onlookers feel uncertain about helping while others are watching. The Kitty Genovese case thus became a classic feature of social psychology textbooks.
In September 2007, the American Psychologist published an examination of the factual basis of coverage of the Kitty Genovese murder in psychology textbooks. The three authors concluded that the story is more parable than fact, largely because of inaccurate newspaper coverage at the time of the incident.^[10] According to the authors, "despite this absence of evidence, the story continues to inhabit our introductory social psychology textbooks (and thus the minds of future social psychologists)." One interpretation of the parable is that the drama and ease of teaching the exaggerated story makes it easier for professors to capture student attention and interest.
Feminist psychologist Frances Cherry has suggested the interpretation of the murder as an issue of bystander intervention is incomplete^[29]. She has pointed to additional research such as that of Borofsky^[30] and Shotland^[31] demonstrating that people, especially at that time, were unlikely to intervene if they believed a man was attacking his wife or girlfriend. She has suggested that the issue might be better understood in terms of male/female power relations.

There are often events such as the Genovese case reported in the media, especialy tabloids.
Rarely are they accurate.

EG, I personally witnessed one reported in our state rag.

A woman was beaten up at our main rail station in full view of 50 people. Said the paper.

What actually happened was that a man and woman of about 30 years of age, both tattooed and drunk were having a row on the platform.(and rightly or wrongly less likely to attract sympathy)
The man grabbed the woman as the train pulled in.
She obviously knew her attacker well.
She pulled away and jumped on the train screaming obcenities. Before anyone could intervene, her Companion/attacker followedand the train pulled out.
She got beaten up at the other end of her journey on a near deserted platform

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Too bad someone wasn't carrying and shot all of them dead. How many actors need to die before this behavior stops?

I love the mother who armed only with a cell phone and a big mouth, demands they put down the bat, she was fearless.

[B_B]

Google 'Kitty Genovese'. As a matter of fact the phenomenom is named after her. . .

.... The three authors concluded that the story is more parable than fact, largely because of inaccurate newspaper coverage at the time of the incident.^[10] ....

While the Kitty Genovese story may be more parable than fact, and newspapers may be likely to get things wrong (intentionally or not), I do recall an incident in Winnipeg, MB, must be 20 odd yrs ago now, where a woman was stabbed by her ex at The Forks (a farmers market type thing at the time) while a bunch of people, including an off-duty police officer, watched.

No-one intervened.

The one thing about the John Quinones (sp?) situations that are apparent is that pretty women, kids, and the elderly are far more likely to be helped by bystanders than are men. Possibly evolution's way of protecting those who are supposed to be weak but eliminating those who are weak but are supposed to be strong?

[David W Pratt]

IIRC, the Kitty Genovese disaster had an element of homophobia, she was a lesbian

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Both victims were elderly in the video.
I really don't think it matters who the victim is.
I think it matters more, who the people are that happen to be walking by and see what's happening.
I would probably step in no matter who the victim was and have the scars to prove it.

[Phillip Allen]

good thing that didn't happen where there was concealed carry people... a very dangerous (but instructional) prank

still... I actually helped break up such an event... I was first in, no, second in. the first in was an old man who got hurt right away... it turned out to be a stabbing (long story) but when I grabbed kids and threw them out of the action, they stopped and no one (of the original group) came after me (a 40 year old bricklayer at the time). Sombody's gf attacked me with a butcher knife but it didn't work for her because I guess she wasn't serious... I moved in to break a skinny arm but she ran up the street... the cops took 45 minutes to get there and made all the witnesses go inside.

[B_B]

good thing that didn't happen where there was concealed carry people...

Why?

[Phillip Allen]

Why?

it would dangerously tempt fate...

[B_B]

it would dangerously tempt fate...

Yes, yes it would...

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

The teenagers who would do something like this could be packin too, that's what makes gettin in their face dangerous.
They're not just punks but dangerous punks.
I guess that's why some people wouldn't do anything and rightfully so.
You have to really care to put yourself in a situation like that.

[Phillip Allen]

The teenagers who would do something like this could be packin too, that's what makes gettin in their face dangerous.
They're not just punks but dangerous punks.
I guess that's why some people wouldn't do anything and rightfully so.
You have to really care to put yourself in a situation like that.

I already know what I'd do... some here may know about themselves and not want others to know though

[ChaseKenyon]

I always have my "walking stick" with me. I as a member follower of the USCCA (United States Concealed Carry Asssociation) am often carrying.

First response is my LL Bean Hiking stick that can be extended in a heartbeat from 3.5 foot walking stick to almost 6 foot mountain hiking stick.(Made to LL spec. and design by LEKI the famous mountaineering equipment and ski pole folks)
It has as heavy top "ball" hiding the metal for use as single stick camera stabilizer mount. My military training makes that with it's unexpected range a very serious weapon. If carrying and grossly out numbered (more than 3 youths) a S&W 40 cal. round into the air can be expected to put the perps on the run instantly. I'll chance the hassle of "threatening with a weapon" easily over letting that kind of thing put a homeless or similar person in the hospital or worse (dead).


THe way I was raised in a military family YHou can take a swing at me you might even hit me but if you do that toi someone else I usually step in before a perp even is aware of my presence.

[B_B]

Remember the Chinese video of the little girl hit by a truck who lies in the street for ages as people literally step right over her?
For all those who disparaged the Chinese, here's another view:

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

I try to think of what my Grandmother would do.
She was fearless.

[John Smith]

I've been there. Sitting with my mom, looking out the window, a guy with a bat strated beating on an old man. I ran out an yelled at him. Two guys waiting for the bus, when they saw me go towards the man with the bat, joined me. Now it was three guys versus a man with a bat. He got in his car and drove off. Police and ambulance arrived quickly, and we had a description of the car and the street he had turned down: it was a dead end.

[Phillip Allen]

I try to think of what my Grandmother would do.
She was fearless.

good ad

[ChaseKenyon]

I've been there. Sitting with my mom, looking out the window, a guy with a bat strated beating on an old man. I ran out an yelled at him. Two guys waiting for the bus, when they saw me go towards the man with the bat, joined me. Now it was three guys versus a man with a bat. He got in his car and drove off. Police and ambulance arrived quickly, and we had a description of the car and the street he had turned down: it was a dead end.

Go John!!!!

Nice to know we have many here who will not tolerate abuse of the less fortunate (financially and physically).

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

.....and then there's this......

[skipper68]

I am gracious, but I am strong. I protect the weak and stand up to bully's.I fear NO ONE, as I know I am RIGHT when I say so. I cant see the video's, But I WILL give my small life to protect the innocent. TRUE.I am a force to be contended with.Even sober!

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

Hey Skipper, basicly the Orlando police arrest 6 people for feeding the homeless and hungry in a public park(free meal) because they don't have a permit. The real problem is that the police are trying to run the homeless out of the park. We had the same problem here but public complaints at city council meetings and media coverage changed their minds for them.
The city's still trying to close our homeless shelter but we do have the support of the local police. When they pick up a homeless person tresspassing in an abandoned house or sleeping in the park, they can take them to jail or drop them off at the shelter. The second option involves less paperwork for them and it no longer becomes their problem.


I had the luck of being identified as a homeless person on the front page of the local paper back in 2010.
Photos and article here--->
http://www.morningjournal.com/articl...ewmode=default

[skipper68]

So, they go do down the toilet? Now they have a police record. GRRRR.Many city's are making illegal to be homeless. You cant get a PO box w/o an address. I have been working on the million's of people homeless or under paid wages. HERE is the answer: PT pay gets same benefits as full time. Work on that. I'm SO sick of taxes paying for substandard pay. Yes they work, but $ht pay.EIC,food stamps and medicaid are subsidizing a REAL paycheck. That would work. Collage education? NO. They want the down and out at minimum wages. When you work hard, and live-if your [ucky-in your car].. 4,100 people lost their unenjoyment last week in Rochester. Desperation causes crime. It is a fact. UGHHHHH

[purri]

Collage education? I bet they stick together.

[skuthorp]

Good thing about modern media that I am watching this, seeing their faces, hearing their names on the other side of the world. Were there any charges, and what result if any yet?

Re original question, when younger and single I drove a Landrover and kept, amongst other things, an axe behind the seat. And on one occasion in similar situation I had cause to use it. The young blokes involved didn't believe I would. The back of an axe breaks bones. I have also used the car in a mob situation. Nowadays at almost 70 I don't know.

[Paul Pless]

I have also used the car in a mob situation.

who needs a gun?