Ex-soldier puts his girlfriends 8 year old kid into coma for accidently deleting his GTA save file.

[Thyunda]

snip

So, I take it you read the Daily Mail often? Because I do. And I know a lot of people who do. And they all have one thing in common.
They already believe what they're reading. Essentially, the Daily Mail is designed to have its readers tutting at the state of the country. Not going up in arms over it. The Daily Mail will never start anything, it just reinforces what is already believed. Games are bad? Mention it at any opportunity. Princess Diana's memory is supposed to be held close? Mention it at any opportunity. There are Muslims in the country? Mention that too. People that play video games are generally not Daily Mail readers. Unless those gamers are old and wealthy. Or English nationalist. Which a lot of them are.
But I am willing to bet you anything that not one person read 'ultra-violent' in that article, and rushed off to buy the game. But I can also bet you the same amount that at least forty five per cent of the people that read that article blamed the game.

The art of debate does not rest in keeping a superior attitude and scoffing at your opponent, Squid. It does not rest in demanding to know if the opponent knows every subject personally. I know the sort of people the Daily Mail aims at. And I also know that the same people that read the latest shocker about immigrants generally fall into the same category as those that'll blame violence on games. Naturally, there are people outside the Mail's target audience that read it, me, for example. God knows why I read it...I tend to prefer my local paper, but sometimes the Mail is all there is.

It's stagnant, basically. It won't sway anyone either way but it will feed the usual gossip. Luckily for us, the Mail readers tend not to be energetic enough to leap out of their armchairs, throw down their reading spectacles and declare war on Rockstar. Luckily for us, nobody takes the Mail seriously except the aforementioned audience.

But the dig was there. That's what I'm getting across. I'm not saying the world will be up in arms over it. I'm just saying, it's not the most polite thing to do, and if they were to do it with a skin colour or a gender, then they'd be racist or sexist. Truth is, it is discrimination either way, and while I'm not personally upset by it, I would rather journalism go back to giving unbiased facts. Not trying to get a dig in wherever it can. Would you be as apathetic if the story was an Indian man who did it, and the Daily Mail decided to write "The attacker, who is an immigrant". Sure. Won't have anyone chasing Indians out of the country, but it'll have the old folks tutting and blaming immigration.

Just ain't right.

 

[Irridium]

Just more proof that the X-box community are immature douchebags. PS3 FTW.

Its people like you that make me ashamed of being a "gamer".

 

[Jfswift]

What's really creepy is that this guys family defended him and acted like nothing happened.

 

[Dfskelleton]

Poor kid...
Ya know what? I'm a vaguely reasonable artist. I should draw a picture of a giant robot with "Fox News" spraypainted on it's chest rampaging with "FOX NEWS IS COMING..." in big letters next to it.

 

[loc978]

Clearly the blame has been placed on the person... but no crime is entirely without a root cause. The sad fact is, most cases of PTSD among soldiers go untreated. It's not certain that this was the cause of his outburst, but it's common enough that it gets blamed first.
Also, considering his former platoon sergeant was pulling in his favor on the 'Donadio is Innocent' campaign, I'd say it's more than likely there are some other factors at play here that we aren't privy to.

The sad thing to me is that we all made snap judgements of the guy on one description of what allegedly happened from a news website. Myself included.

The legal judgment has been placed on the person but the public judgment that is going on here is completely different.
If there was any proof of PTSD the media would have been all over it as a scapegoat for his behavior. I see no reason to jump on the media bandwagon just because they mention something in an article or report.

In other words, you didn't read my post. I never said there was any proof he had PTSD, only that it's a likely cause. The media only jumps on the PTSD bandwagon when it's diagnosed, for fear of reprisals regarding lack of proof.
The fact remains that most cases of PTSD in soldiers go undiagnosed.

For me it is the same with every article be it video games, military or bubble gum. They are full of shit and trying to place blame on anything but the person just being fucked up. Abusers are completely normal and placid to people that are on their level and above. They do not go around calling attention to themselves by abusing everyone. So yea, he would be normal to people he works with.
The innocent campaign is what? 5 posts from last year, less than 20 comments and some pictures? It seems to be that with the amount of people he came in contact with, there would be a lot more posting his innocence in this amount of time. His ex wife even says that they divorced because she couldn't get him to be involved with the kids. This makes me think that he "HAD" to share his game with his girlfriend's kid not that he "WANTED" to.
I just get really disappointed that a site that is so intolerant of having a game even mentioned in a crime would all jump to "oh he has PTSD" or "bad military" when there is no mention of it in any article I have browsed at this point or on the board proclaiming his innocence. It would have made some sort of defense for him and I am sure he would have gotten off with a lighter sentence if there was any proof to it at all.
Just think people, the news media isn't just manipulating the game articles, they are doing it with EVERYTHING. Read multiple sources, attempt to understand and then judge.

So... you're angry at a general feeling on this board, and the fact that people are prone to jumping to conclusions without proof? What of your conclusion that "He's just a fucked up person"? Does not a "fucked up person" have a cause for being fucked up, or do you just not give a damn about the cause, as long as punishment is metered out for crime?

 

[Sylveria]

Wonder how many ex-military people need to snap and kill/maim someone before they start putting them in the proper care once they get back to the states instead of just tossing them back into normal society thinking "ah, they'll be fine."

Course, don't get me wrong, he was probably dangerous and violent long before he joined the military and he likely gravitated toward that career since there he can be violent, dangerous, and pull a pay-check.

But despite any of that, people (read: ignorant government and news people) will blame GTA cause as we know video game violence is far more mentally damaging than real life violence and all military people are upstanding citizens unless something evil like video games or homosexuality corrupts them.

 

[Best of the 3]

Jesus fuck. Look what I just found on the internet.

http://donadiosinnocent.com/

Seriously...

Jesus, the story and then this, it makes me feel sick. And there is one persistent person who claimed there was no evidence that the guy beat up the kid. Well, other than the fact that the parents lied. Just claiming that the reason for the kid's injuries were yet to be found. Some one was speaking out of there ass.

Fuck, I feel depressed.

 

[LGC Pominator]

Ultra violent videogame?
stay on focus seriously, the last need is local idiots jumping on the bandwagon screaming BAN THIS SICK FILTH because they heard a videogame made someone commit their crime.

On topic, this fella needs help, like seriously, maybe for PTSD or something, a normal healthy mind doesn't do that sort of thing, whilst I agree what he did was sick and abhorrent and prison is too good for him, I also think that this may deny him the vital treatment he needs to help reform him as a character, because this happened in the US, penitentiaries are less accommodating to people with severe disorders, and he probably wont get the treatment he needs, it seems that the states are more fixated on "punishing" offenders rather than taking correctional action, which is the original use of the modern prison system.

However I do have to sympathise, my mates bird accidentally flashed my hard drive once, RAAAAAAAGE!!!
I didn't put her in a coma though...

Honest!

 

[Captain Booyah]

Oh, wow. I'm less bothered by the GTA mention thrown in for some extra attention and the atrocity of the crimes committed than I am by the fact that after finding out what had happened to her child, the mother tried to cover it up.

The mother tried to cover it up.

She didn't punch that psycho in the face, she didn't want to press charges, she didn't even break up with him. She basically forgave him and wanted to pass off her son's injuries like nothing happened. Something like that is just beyond words. Any sane person would be horrified at anybody inflicting harm on their child. The pathetic ***** deserves a jail sentence that's just as long as her beloved partner does. I hope to God that kid's getting a foster family.

 

[DanDeFool]

Probably PTSD or something.

I don't see how someone who didn't have mental problems could just flip their shit like that on a child for something so trivial.

That said, I wouldn't be surprised if people focus on the video game as a convenient scapegoat instead of the relentless physical and mental punishment that our servicemen are subjected to in the line of duty.

 

[DanDeFool]

Oh, wow. I'm less bothered by the GTA mention thrown in for some extra attention and the atrocity of the crimes committed than I am by the fact that after finding out what had happened to her child, the mother tried to cover it up.

The mother tried to cover it up.

She didn't punch that psycho in the face, she didn't want to press charges, she didn't even break up with him. She basically forgave him and wanted to pass off her son's injuries like nothing happened. Something like that is just beyond words. Any sane person would be horrified at anybody inflicting harm on their child. The pathetic ***** deserves a jail sentence that's just as long as her beloved partner does. I hope to God that kid's getting a foster family.

Yeah.

Needless to say, it'd take some 'effing GUTS to stand up to a trained killer who just stomped your child half to death, but if someone stomps your child half to death, you need to, for lack of a better term, man-the-fuck-up.

 

[FamoFunk]

Immediately after seeing "Daily Mail" I'm a little sceptical.
But I'm a poncy Guardian reader, what do I know about this kind of thing?

Hehehh, I'm the same. Hate the Daily Fail.

Wish you found a better source, OP.

 

[Srdjan]

Yep violent games players and ex-soldiers, two by media standards most psychotic occupations, this is a holy grail for all mainstream idiotic news networks and their suburban dipshit target audience.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I blame the videogame, not the traumatic and life altering events that can come with being a soldier.

Did you bother to read the article? It stated the facts. GTA is a ultra-violent game. The kid deleted his account that lead to the attack. No where does it blame anything, just states the events as they occurred. This hypersensitivity is just as ridiculous as the other side's.

Thank you. Every time something that slightly touches on videogames gets reported in the news, gamers everywhere freak out, as if it was an attack on videogames. Nine times out of ten, it isn't, and it hasn't been at least since that shooter tried to blame everything on GTA, but still got convicted because the jury was smart enough to realize that it was just a videogame. The fact that GTA is an ultra-violent game is a relevant fact here. If the readership of The Daily Mail really is as old and ignorant about games as people in this thread has said they are, simply saying that his save file from Grand Theft Auto had been deleted could have been a bit of a non-sequitur, and stating that it was an open world game would have made even less sense. They may have been able to get away with simply stating that it was a videogame, but I see nothing wrong with being a little bit descriptive here. Nothing in that article blames anything on the game.

OT: I'm angered and saddened that anyone could be that brutal towards an 8 year old child. This has nothing to do with videogames, and everything to do with a deeply disturbed, violent individual. As much as the news agencies need to remember that, it seems gamers need that reminder much more strongly, because for the most part, the news agencies do get it now, but we have kids who were still in diapers during Columbine acting like the media is still just as hysterical on the subject as it was back in 1999. It's not, and we shouldn't be either.

 

[LondonBeer]

Pro-Tip :-

a) Ladies stay with your husbands so that your not picking up riffraff for a quicky. Lets not exclude mommy dearest from the process of little Timmy getting smacked into a coma. She sees his vinegar face is she cant tell hes a nutter tough shit thats evolution baby.


b) If a guys called Rocky, there a stereotype but its likely to be true via self-fulfilling prophecy that hes a boxer.

c) If a guys a soldier, theres a stereotype but its likely to be true via self-fulfilling prophecy that hes rough.

d) Dont let 8 year olds play with save cards.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

The boy spent five months in a coma after Donadio punched him and stomped on his stomach because he accidentally deleted his profile on Grand Theft Auto, an ultra-violent video game.

Hmm....I wonder why they pointed out that it was ultra-violent. Good job of condemning the game without making it look like you are, Daily Mail!

 

[WorldCritic]

Well shit, why did the girlfriend try to tell a different story though? I don't understand people.

 

[game-lover]

I read that article and had to shake my head at the guy's sister and other supporters. Talking about how he's such a good father and kind and all that. See the thing is, it's not relevant.

Know why?

Because he beat the shit out of an 8 year old boy, that's why!

I don't even know why they assume that maybe the poor kid was coerced into telling them Rocky hurt him this way. And that hardly matters either because something happened to him to injure his stomach that badly. And then they told not only a stupid lie but then changed their story again? If he was so fucking innocent, why tell the lie in the first place?

He best put his skills he learned as a soldier to watch his back. Because he's gonna be a walking target once he goes to prison.

Speaking of which, I wonder what's gonna happen to the mother. Her son gets hurt that badly and she tries to pass it off as a lie? Ugh...

 

[Booze Zombie]

With reactions like that, is it any wonder why he isn't handling a gun anymore?
Holy fuck, people like this are given firearms... that is a fucking scary thought, actually.

 

[Tenky]

I think it's safe to assume that being in the military fucks you up for life... plus it doesn't help that most recruits aren't those with the highest amount of brain power.

I take high offense to that as my entire family line has served in the military for hundreds of years and my time is getting close to as well, and I have exceptionally high grades and scores and am preparing for becoming an Officer at one of the most selective military colleges in the world, that rivals educationally wise to some Ivy schools in terms of technological fields.

There was NO reason to put ex-soldier in the article, as being a soldier does not always "mess someone up." A lot of people are just plain jackasses either way, soldier or not.

Sometimes I dislike the Escapist for being so ignorant in the views of the military, instead of seeing how our world is much more different and yet at the same time similar to civilian life. You just need to understand us one day, before judging.

I lost my cousin in Irak, he was serving as a soldier of his own free will and wasted his life to no good reason. The world is not a safer place, and his has killed many family men and himself made an orphan out of his 2 years old son.

I say good for you if you hold this military career path in the family for so long. I don't quite give a shit if I offended you. If you want to make a living out of injuring, killing and torturing people, good for you.

I would rather put a bullet in my head rather than hurt someone who doesn't deserve it.