Please, Somali pirates know that piracy is wrong. They do it out of despiration and greed, but they know perfectly well that if they get caught it will not be without consequences and aren’t trying to sue other people for pointing out that they are doing acts of piracy.
Even they are raising kids with more responsibility than the parents of these kids.
I’d never thought of this before, but thanks for pointing out a pretty profound observation:
When Somali pirates are better at raising children than rich Americans, we got ourselves a problem…
I remember being a teenager. My sisters and I threw a grand party when my dad was out of town. We tried to keep actual damage to a minimum because we didnt want to get busted. the fact that these kids were gleefully trashing shit implies - to me - that they knew the house was NOT owned by one of their friends. The ONLY case where that kind of destruction would be overlooked or even encouraged was when we all knew that the house was abandoned. The fact that windows were being smashed indicates that people knew that one of their “friends” would not be held responsible. I do not buy the whole “they are just kids” argument. Yes, they are kids. If they had been raise to hold even an iota of sense, they would not have caused that kind of destruction.
And a “Reality Show”.
Some of you are making it sound like all the kids there were trashing the place, or should be held responsible for the place being trashed. There were hundreds of kids there, and I’m sure a lot of them didn’t trash anything and weren’t clear on whose house they were in. Even the ones who, say, wrote their name on a wall that was already covered in graffiti…that’s assholish but perfectly normal teenage behavior. It really is. It is normal, not just all-too-common but absolutely normal and expected for teenagers to get into low level trouble. Most grow out of it. Legally blowing it out of proportion makes it *less *likely for them to grow out of it. This is an accepted fact.
Ideally we’d know who exactly did what (even though in many cases that’s not possible to know, it would be nice) and the ones who were most responsible would be sentenced to a bunch of community service, their parents would make THEM pay for the damage (not the parents paying), and then if they stayed out of trouble for the next 1-2 years or until age 18 or something, it would disappear from their records.
I would say that everyone who was there should help clean up, but I’m not sure because that might just turn into a fun social event with the big group of kids being there. Picking up trash by the side of the road might be more appropriate.
Nice to know when wealthy white children get it stuck in the wringer… cutting a check and picking up some trash is an option…
Seriously… the only reason the parents give a shit is because admission officers google search names and images now… And save me the pre-frontal cortex stuff… this isnt a death penalty case… it’s some assholish kids crapping over someones house who 1) they knew Brian Holloway… 2) Several knew and had gone to school with his kids… 3) Felt pretty damn certain that nothing would happen to them hence the writing of names on the wall… tweeting and posting updates…
It seems to me that parents should talk to their kids about situations like these. This scenario - a wild party in a house where the owner is out of town - is pretty common. Parents should warn their kids about going to these parties, and should tell their kids what they should do when they’re in the presence of illegal activity (get the *&^@$# away from it and call the police). Yeah, I know, the kids will roll their eyes, but some of it might sink in.
Well, I think that should be an option for any juvenile who does something on that level, and it’s the first time they’ve gotten into trouble. I don’t think the system should be *harder *on them because they’re wealthy white kids.
Paying for the damages and doing something productive instead of destructive sounds like a pretty fitting punishment to me. I think paying hundreds of dollars and spending their weekends for the next couple months picking up trash instead of hanging out with friends (hopefully they’d be grounded too) would be a big deal to most teenagers. And if they do complete that and don’t get into any more trouble, I can’t see what benefit there could be to keeping it on their record for years.
The parents who feel that way are irresponsible idiots but that will be true regardless of what happens to their kids.
What would you want to see happen? Time in juvie?
The best response the authorities could make would be to charge and convict them for burglary and vandalism. Give them a record and make their lives more difficult. Not so much to punish these specific kids but to send a message to the other narcissistic sociopaths out there who might be deterred from doing the same thing.
And then give them a sentence of community service–but it must be served by speaking at high schools, in small groups.
Maybe 2 offenders visiting a class of 30 students at a time, and explaining what happens when you fuck up. Let the kids hear the facts from other kids their own age…and maybe the message will sink in.
Any possibility in law in that jurisdiction for the parents of the children to be held jointly and severally liable for the damages?
Of course. But knowing something is wrong, even for very good reasons, isn’t generally a useful deterrent to the undeveloped mind (see: teen sex). I already said they should do community service and their parents should be held financially responsible. I just don’t think they deserve to be arrested or jailed.
I think it likely that Somali pirates are feeding their kids stories about how they are freedom fighters and “liberating” the wealth that is rightfully theirs, and that they have been oppressed for too long, and other such bullshit. So it’s possible the pirate kids would strip the place bare AND take hostages (if any were around to take) and feel entirely justified.
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And a “Reality Show”.
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The Real Housepirates of Somalia or Somali Like it Haute.
I watched a report on this the other night. Was amazed at the cool and class of Holloway in handling this and, unfortunately, not at all surprised by the ‘protect my child at any cost’ attitude of a majority of parents. It’s pervasive and stinks in most every scenario.
I’m glad this kind of thing is being taken more seriously these days. 25 years ago when a similar event occurred http://www.salon.com/1997/08/13/excerpt970813/ the story did not make the national news - in fact, it did not become known outside of the area in which it happened until the perpetrators became notorious for a later (worse) crime. The wrecking of a house and its contents resulted in no consequences at all for the people who did it.
“These youngsters were questioned briefly, their parents were informed and that was the end of that. None of them was charged with a crime… none of them lost his athletic privileges or eligibility.”
" In a section of their yearbook, where each student listed personal highlights, many of them cited their participation in “Ryan’s Wreck” as an outstanding event of the past four years."
Apart from Holloway’s own statements, has there been any evidence that parents are threatening to sue him? Because he’s coming across a bit of a nutjob in this interview. Jump to 2:50 in or so, though the whole thing is worth watching. Anyway, they ask him about a report that a neighbor claims the house is in foreclosure, and is falling into disrepair (which by no means excuses what the kids did in the slightest). His response - “I only have one neighbor, and I’ve never let him in my house, because he beats his wife.” and later “Yes, it’s in foreclosure because I told the bank I won’t pay the note, because I refuse to be pushed around.”
Oh, let’s extend your argument a bit further. Back in Biblical times, when people were REALLY moral, and the human brain probably was as developed as it is now, when the kids in one city defeated the kids in another city in battle, they would kill all the boys over the age of 12 and enslave all the women and children. It was pretty much Standard Operating Procedure. Tradition! People may have WANTED to lose a war, but dammit, they UNDERSTOOD that if they DID they would be held RESPONSIBLE and killed or enslaved by the victors, as is only right.
Point is, just because a morality is traditional doesn’t make it right. Sometimes our morality changes due to improved understanding about ourselves and the world around us, and it’s a good thing, y’know? Now I think the kids who attended the party deserve to feel some consequences. Killing and enslaving them would be wrong. And a lifetime mark against them would be wrong. Some public shaming, community serviice, a mild fine … seems about right.
Call me a bleeding heart, if you will, but I think I’m just being smart here.
Rich Americans DON’T raise their kids because they WORK 60-80 hours a week, as is GOOD and PROPER!
That was spectacularly horrifying.
Now TMZ is reporting that neighbors are reporting that Holloway’s house was already partially trashed and he is trying to get money to avoid foreclosure. No reason not to believe the neighbors but still even if it was just a pile of sticks there’s no reason for those kids to have been there doing what they were doing.
Re: claims of being sued - You’re right, muldoonthief, no one else has really said anything aside from Holloway saying people are threatening to sue him.
Well, maybe, but I think we can assume most of those neighbours are local people who probably know the families of the kids who did this (it’s a town of less than three thousand people). And Holloway is a rich guy from out of town who apparently has had previous arguments with some neighbours.