12 year olds stab friend to prove Slender Man is real

This video came up as one of the recommended watches the Supernatural one and I think it's especially appropriate and on topic because it's a reminder of what kind of parents exist in America, and what kind of children they raise. I mean sure, I personally don't want this kind of family tree to survive another generation. But I'm not going to let my personal dislike for these people cloud my judgment to the point where I claim that a 12 year old Honey Boo Boo is capable of making "adult" decisions.

The most troubling thing is their complete lack of empathy & remorse. It doesn't bode well for their future decision making. However, they are both 12 year olds and we have a juvenile system for a reason. The article said they could be held until they were 25. They could literally be in prison for longer than they've been alive, even in juvenile detention.

That said, I have little to no faith in our prison system as a tool to rehabilitate rather than just punish. I also have no idea if the juvenile system is any better at fixing people than the adult system. But I suppose punishment vs rehabilitation is probably an argument for another thread.

Mist_sl said:

I don't even think it punishes them that well. If these two really are devious criminal minds, they're just going to be rewarded with knowledge of how to become better criminals.

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Devious seems pretty far-fetched since they bumblefucked their way through an attempted murder they planned for months, then confessed to the whole thing in great detail under what appears to be light questioning.

But still, point taken on the state of the system.

Mist_sl said:

That's not counting a lot of court ordered in-patient rehabilitation facilities for juvenile drug users (these are almost all private,) or court ordered in-patient psychological 'treatment' facilities that aren't technically full committals (these are about half and half, but getting more privatized each year.) There's also privately run school facilities that are basically prisons or day-prisons.

I'm an educational psychologist who's worked in these facilities, both public and private. I will try to get better numbers but because of the way some of these facilities are classified it's really tough to get the whole picture.

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Treatment facilities where you can walk out anytime you like?

Mist_sl said:

No. In-patient facilities that aren't committals. And the rehab facilities you can't leave either.

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So locked metal security doors, fences, cameras, thug ass guards who will tackle you to the ground if you try to escape the premises?

Admittedly, I don't know what the answer is but therapy doesn't work for people like this. 99.99% of children that age have an aversion to killing other human beings. This type of crime isn't a function of someone's immature reasoning centers but rather it's psychopathic behavior that portends psychopathic behavior as an adult. Remember that woman who pushed her husband off a cliff just to end the marriage? That's these girls in 10 years.

Remember that woman who pushed her husband off a cliff just to end the marriage? That's these girls in 10 years.

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This.

These people are simply defective and are beyond redemption. You can never let them out unsupervised, they have demonstrated that they are willing to cross the line.

There are some things in life that you shouldn't get a second chance for regardless.

• Choose to walk in front of a train, you get death
• Choose to shoot a cop, you get death
• Choose to stab a 12 year old 19 times, you get death

Keep it simple

Can we ban knives already?! Banning knives would really solve this problem.

Mist_sl said:

What does this even matter? I was talking about how private companies profit from juvenile facilities. How does it matter just how tightly they're locked up?

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Because if that's not how it is then its not a detention facility. Here you go again, "I was talking about how private companies profit from juvenile facilities", when you specifically said that nearly all juveniledetentionis private for-profit, and that looks to be false.

Lots of companies profit from criminal justice/rehab/treatment, its an industry which requires service businesses to function.

dak_sl said:

This.

These people are simply defective and are beyond redemption. You can never let them out unsupervised, they have demonstrated that they are willing to cross the line.

There are some things in life that you shouldn't get a second chance for regardless.

• Choose to walk in front of a train, you get death
• Choose to shoot a cop, you get death
• Choose to stab a 12 year old 19 times, you get death

Keep it simple

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Talk about having no empathy or compassion
Ariz. Boy, 4, Accidentally Shoots, Kills Father - ABC News
This kid needs the death penalty!

But for these kids, based on the article, at least one definitely appears to be mentally ill. There's nothing to say a 12 year-old needs to be locked away for life because of it. Plenty of people with 0 empathy lead fine, violentless lives (actually, I believe the statistic on the genetic psychopathy with low MAOA activity shows that they're LESS violent than normal peeps unless some childhood trauma/abuse/shittiness). But don't we owe it to ourselves as a society to try, not to mention study, and not just lock away/killchildrenwho don't conform. We also need to look at their upbringing and parents, because I'm going to bet there's something there that we can learn from that caused her empathy level to be near zero.

The amount of people here who think death/locking up pre-teen children is cool is scary.

BoldW_sl said:

But for these kids, based on the article, at least one definitely appears to be mentally ill. There's nothing to say a 12 year-old needs to be locked away for life because of it. Plenty of people with 0 empathy lead fine, violentless lives (actually, I believe the statistic on the genetic psychopathy with low MAOA activity shows that they're LESS violent than normal peeps unless some childhood trauma/abuse/shittiness). But don't we owe it to ourselves as a society to try, not to mention study, and not just lock away/killchildrenwho don't conform. We also need to look at their upbringing and parents, because I'm going to bet there's something there that we can learn from that caused her empathy level to be near zero.

The amount of people here who think death/locking up pre-teen children is cool is scary.

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There's no way they are getting 60 years like the article said anyway. And no one here is advocating that, but charging them as adults is something I am cool with, yes. They'll sit, likely not in an adult institution, until trial and get time served with a suspended sentence and significant probation. Possibly even get juvenile probation officers rather than force them into the adult system. And they'll be monitored and given mandatory mental health treatment.

Mist_sl said:

Then how would Keg's mommy cut his steak?

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With a gun of course.