A question for the Brits and Aussies.

[Kopikatsu]

http://blog.chron.com/momhouston/2011/10/study-finds-one-in-10-texas-6th-graders-have-had-sex/
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/11/us-rape-mcdonalds-idUSTRE7AA5KY20111111
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/19/national/main20055336.shtml
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41883757/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/boy-accused-shooting-parents-siblings/

So, I want to know if that kind of shit happens in the UK and Australia, too. Because...seriously. (There are literally tens of thousands of articles I could have taken, I just used those four as examples)

Stories like this crop up literally every other day. It's starting to feel like all of the crazies are centered in the US, so, I'd like to know if it's true or not. (For anyone who wants to say 'DON'T JUDGE EVERYONE ON SOME PEOPLE', this isn't 'on some people'. The US has less than 5% of the world's population, but 25% of the world's prisoners. Also, that would be the purpose of my asking)

 

[Hawkmoon269]

Well when it comes to the shooting related crazy, we here in the UK have less because... well we have less guns, and we don't have a culture of guns, which is a good thing.

As for the article about the 6th grader having sex, we do have a problem with people having sex (and getting pregnant) at a young age. Unfortunately, it just seems to be becoming normal (especially amongst working class folk) rather than something that should be addressed.

 

[ramboondiea]

yes, it happens all the damn time, pick up any morning paper, (except mybe the metro) and you will find articles on rape, gun crime, general racist overtones, murder. hell its even in my local paper because some foreign looking guy has been attacking women in the next town over.

youll find the bad one everywhere, but if you only look at the news thats pretty much all you will find. joe bloggs workaday life just doesnt make good news

 

[Blunderboy]

You get idiots in every country. If there's one where you don't I would move there in a heartbeat.

 

[Kopikatsu]

You get idiots in every country. If there's one where you don't I would move there in a heartbeat.

Some rich guy built his own island city. He could probably keep it idiot free. Utopia!

 

[Fooz]

erm, if it does happen over here (UK), it doesnt happen often

 

[DalekJaas]

These are not regular stories in Aus, that's not to say they never crop up though. I consider the U.S to be a 'special case' as far as countries are concerned.

Even on here you can use arguments comparing America's ridiculous levels of gun violence and massacres to Australia or other western countries and people will still try to defend owning guns.

You know how many massacre's Australia had to have before guns were banned? One.

Also the US is full of religious nuts, 27% of Australians believe in God compared to the US' 83% (or something like that). And even I think that number is too high for Australia.

These are what I would call the 2 reasons for most America's bad news stories, even if they don't specifically relate to the above stories.

But then I don't live there, so I don't really know, I only know what the media tells me about America, and pretty much every T.V show America produces paints the same picture (albeit sarcastically... I hope).

If gun nuts and religious people quote me I am not going to reply, these are not strong opinions or deep beliefs of mine, its just speculation.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Aside from the gun crime, yea.

We have a lot of kids getting involved in gang culture and young pregnancies etc.

I would wager it really isn't anything that new. It's just becoming more apparent.

I'd hope that last bit isn't true. 'Cause if it is...then...

 

[ACman]

Not many guns so we don't get as many shootings; certainly not by children toward entire families or classmates.

I'd say the rates of underage sexual assault and sexual activity generally are probably about the same when comparing similar demographics.

We certainly don't try children as adults though. You American's are fucked in the head when it comes to law and order. I see lot's of insane examples of law and not very much order.

 

[ACman]

*Snip*

http://www.battleofthebadasses.com/season3/Snake.jpg
Welcome to the human race

Someone really needs to start a Kurt Russell meme.

 

[DEAD34345]

I've heard more than a few times that the UK actually has worse under-age pregnancy issues than America, but there is less gun-crime at least, simply because guns are much less readily available here.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Aside from the gun crime, yea.

We have a lot of kids getting involved in gang culture and young pregnancies etc.

I would wager it really isn't anything that new. It's just becoming more apparent.

I'd hope that last bit isn't true. 'Cause if it is...then...

That doesn't make any sense.

Why would you want things to be getting worse? If it's just getting more apparent and it isn't some absurd new trend, then that means humanity isn't getting worse. So that really didn't make any sense.

I know young pregnancy isn't a new thing at all. Ask most of your parents how old their parents were when they had them. And if you go back even further people were getting married at like 12. The whole settle down and have kids by 30 is a newish thing.

As for gang culture, it's a trend with children in all areas with relatively low living standards. And that's been true for a long time.

Don't be so melodramatic.

The reason that way back when, when it was considered normal to have kids by 12-ish, the maximum life expectancy WAS 30. 12 was entering mid-life. Settling down by 30 is a new thing because people live long enough that they can do that now. They didn't used to. Also, a result of massively increased lifespans is that humans develop (Physically, emotionally, and behaviorally) slower.

Still don't get the whole gang culture thing, though. Why are there even gangs again? Serious question. I can't think of any function that they serve. Besides maybe drug dealing.

 

[ACman]

Aside from the gun crime, yea.

We have a lot of kids getting involved in gang culture and young pregnancies etc.

I would wager it really isn't anything that new. It's just becoming more apparent.

There is some though that the rise of internet porn is causing kids that you wouldn't normally expect displaying behaviours such as "inappropriate touching". Normally it's just abused children who might do that sort of thing but welfare groups are seeing more non abused children.

I remember some of the girls when I was 12-13. It was like they were in heat. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be worrying but that is when people start to feel those funny feelings.

 

[AusGamer44]

These stories make me sad.I'd like to know more of why these 'normal' kids went ballistic though.I'd suggest they had a LOT more going on than the articles indicate.I'd wager there's more to the story of why the 'good religious kid' went nuts.And precocious sexuality in mid/pre-pubescent children is often a sign of abuse.
Shooting murders outside organized crime are pretty rare in Australia as personal ownership of guns for anything other than sport or farming were pretty much banned following the Port Arthur Massacre.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Australia#The_Port_Arthur_massacre_and_its_consequences
I still find it amazing that so many Americans insist on having these intruments of death in their houses and yet don't lock the f***ing things away from their kids.(Correct me if I'm wrong-but wasn't the 'Right to bear arms' written in mind of having a red coated British soldier in your backyard,not for Mrs Jones to be allowed to keep a Glock next to the jam?) And even if you don't have rugrats,it takes 10 seconds to reach for a gun in a fit of temper & commit a crime that will have you rotting in a jail cell for 30 years.
I don't think Americans have these crimes because they're especially different from anybody else.'Glassing' attacks are on the increase in Aus & knife crime has been a concern in the UK for years.But if you get pissed off with somebody, a punch,broken glass or knife is not always fatal.Gun to the head though-it's game over.Add the huge population-312 million as opposed to 62 million in the UK & 22 million in Australia,the odds of violent crime increase purely by dent of numbers.
And if I lived in an area where I felt I needed a gun to protect myself,I'd pawn everything I own and work three jobs to get out of said sh**ty neighbourhood.

 

[J-meMalone]

These are not regular stories in Aus, that's not to say they never crop up though. I consider the U.S to be a 'special case' as far as countries are concerned.

Even on here you can use arguments comparing America's ridiculous levels of gun violence and massacres to Australia or other western countries and people will still try to defend owning guns.

You know how many massacre's Australia had to have before guns were banned? One.

Also the US is full of religious nuts, 27% of Australians believe in God compared to the US' 83% (or something like that). And even I think that number is too high for Australia.

These are what I would call the 2 reasons for most America's bad news stories, even if they don't specifically relate to the above stories.

But then I don't live there, so I don't really know, I only know what the media tells me about America, and pretty much every T.V show America produces paints the same picture (albeit sarcastically... I hope).

If gun nuts and religious people quote me I am not going to reply, these are not strong opinions or deep beliefs of mine, its just speculation.

I'm sorry, but what's wrong with religion/theism? I'm an atheist myself but I don't really see has any relevance here, or why 27% of the population believing in god is too high.

On topic: Yes in the UK, much less on shootings obviously, but stories like this catch people's attention, and so will be reported on, maybe even exaggerated and blown out of proportion.

 

[ThreeWords]

Aside from the gun crime, yea.

We have a lot of kids getting involved in gang culture and young pregnancies etc.

I would wager it really isn't anything that new. It's just becoming more apparent.

I heartily disagree. In my opinion, such cases are rare, but picked up on and made much of by the media industry.

I do not much care for the culture of stress and fear that is becoming apparent.