# I just learned that Mark Wahlberg assaulted an Asian person in a hate crime as a youth. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 4, 2013, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326 "2013-02-04T18:50:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2014, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/101 "2014-12-09T00:53:28Z")
> [@Claverhouse](#): > > Anyway, about this person, I dunno why people keep saying Asian when the poor victim was Vietnamese. Why does this matter? > [@elbows](#): > > (Let’s not forget two black men lie dead, one for stealing a cigar and one for selling a loose cigarette! ) False statements. One black man lies dead for attacking a cop, the other lies dead from having an underlying health problem and resisting when cops attempted to arrest him. > [@](#): > > I’m glad he turned his life around, but those actions should stick to him like glue. It should never be erased, in my opinion. I tend to agree. > [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > What about the victim he blinded? Nothing in this list addresses what actions he has taken to make this person whole again. There’s not even an apology mentioned. Did he ever do that? I think I did mention in that post that he didn’t ever try to make amends, and that I felt some attempt at amends would/should be considered. > [@](#): > > The second argument is also ill-thought, especially given current events. Why should we want someone with a history of violence (racially-motivated, at that) immersing himself in LE? Maybe he’s overcome his aggressive ways, but there’s no guarantee of that. Plenty of convicts are able to mentor youth without the privilege of being pardoned, so he should be able to do that too. It’s not entirely clear what his intentions are with respect to this. He states several things, like becoming a parole officer. He does have an active role with a law enforcement agency working with troubled youth, and I can see how he might be trying to work other positions through that agency but hitting roadblocks because of his record. I also agree his ongoing violence issues don’t help his case there, either. > [@](#): > > And lastly, if becoming a big-name actor, model, and musical artist in spite of his criminal past isn’t enough of a “symbol” to troubled youth, then a pardon will be completely lost on them. You’re probably right. > [@levdrakon](#): > > It’s a concessionaire’s license. I don’t know why a restaurateur would need that, but that’s what it said. His restaurant has a bar, like Chili’s. It wouldn’t be the same atmosphere without that element. At least that is the argument. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2014, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/102 "2014-12-10T01:14:20Z")
I’ve been following this story the past couple of days. And I’ve been wondering, would this restaurant still be able to get a liquor license if they worked out some sort of franchise arrangement, where Wahlberg would remain one of the owners of the trademark and the corporation, but the restaurant itself would be owned by someone else? Howabout if he set up an LLC or some type of holding company to list as owner of the restaurant? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2014, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/103 "2014-12-10T18:51:42Z")
I wonder why there have been no interviews with the victim (or, if he’s died since the 1980s, his family). ---
**Author:** ![Claverhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Claverhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claverhouse)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/104 "2014-12-10T19:51:25Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Why does this matter? Perhaps because if he only disliked Vietnamese, it would be _false_ to claim he disliked all people from Asia, and would have attacked them all in his fiery youth ( if, presumably, they were smaller than he ). Precision is important. To claim someone hates Americans when they solely hate Texans would be just as misleading. Or if some massive gang of bullies killed an old Libyan man horribly for spite that would not mean they hated Africans. I am willing to believe this person did hate all Asians, or all non-Southies, or all people who looked at him funny, but I’d prefer to go with the facts as known. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/105 "2014-12-10T20:41:35Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#): > > I don’t really feel any sympathy for Mark Wahlberg individually, although I do think the one thing that should be kept in mind is until the “super-predator” scare of the **1980s it’s likely Wahlberg’s crimes would have been handled as a juvenile matter, he was 16 years old.** I wouldn’t be so sure. He robbed one man, beat him unconscious, and then blinded another. This wasn’t his first offense either, nor his last. How he got so little time for his crimes is amazing. It really takes some stones for him to demand more leniency. A lot of fans didn’t know about his past until he came out with this request. Maybe he didn’t think this would be picked up by the press? He’s done more to damage his image by asking for this pardon than just letting his record stay dirty. ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/106 "2014-12-11T16:53:52Z")
If only he’d been successful stopping 9/11. [Where were you?](http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2012/01/mark-wahlberg-thinks-he-could-have-stopped-911.html) > [@](#): > > On being scheduled to be on one of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center > “If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’” ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/107 "2014-12-11T17:12:08Z")
I believe he later apologized for those remarks about 9/11. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/108 "2014-12-11T17:20:07Z")
> [@Claverhouse](#): > > I am willing to believe this person did hate all Asians, or all non-Southies, or all people who looked at him funny, but I’d prefer to go with the facts as known. Seems excessively generous. He’s also known in his youth to have gotten into fights with African-Americans during which he was witnessed making racist slurs. Maybe that means he hates blacks and Vietnamese only. But most reasonable people would take the facts as current known as sufficient to extrapolate that he was fairly broad minded when it came to racism. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/109 "2014-12-11T18:12:54Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I wonder why there have been no interviews with the victim (or, if he’s died since the 1980s, his family). Apparently, there is now an interview - [Mark Wahlberg -- Assault Victim Wants Him Pardoned ... He Didn't Blind Me!](http://www.tmz.com/2014/12/11/mark-wahlberg-pardon-blind-victim/) ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/110 "2014-12-11T18:41:56Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > Seems excessively generous. He’s also known in his youth to have gotten into fights with African-Americans during which he was witnessed making racist slurs. > > Maybe that means he hates blacks and Vietnamese only. But most reasonable people would take the facts as current known as sufficient to extrapolate that he was fairly broad minded when it came to racism. Weren’t most of Mark’s friends black when he was a youth? I’m not trying to excuse his douchey behavior but it seems to me if he grew up in a world where all of his (black) friends are using the word “Nigga”, _him_ using that word wouldn’t necessarily be racist. He’s still an ass, I’m just say’n… ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/111 "2014-12-11T19:03:26Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Apparently, there is now an interview - [Mark Wahlberg -- Assault Victim Wants Him Pardoned ... He Didn't Blind Me!](http://www.tmz.com/2014/12/11/mark-wahlberg-pardon-blind-victim/) Hmm. And he says that Wahlberg didn’t blind him in one eye and that he had no idea it was the same Mark Wahlberg. That seems… a really oddly delayed revelation. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/112 "2014-12-11T19:08:01Z")
That’s an interesting revelation, but I’d like to hear it from more sources than TMZ. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/113 "2014-12-11T19:08:45Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > I’m not trying to excuse his douchey behavior but it seems to me if he grew up in a world where all of his (black) friends are using the word “Nigga”, _him_ using that word wouldn’t necessarily be racist. Not for certain, but one of the [rap sheets](http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/back-day-marky-marks-rap-sheet-0?page=1) is pretty nasty. He and 3 white boys chased some black boys around and one of them (not necessarily Wahlberg) was heard saying “We don’t like black n_ **s in the area, so get the fuck away from the area.” And they all chanted "Kill the n** _, kill the n\*\*\*\*\*” while giving chase. He might not have been necessarily racist, but he did an awfully good impression of one as a youth. Also, “He might not racist, some of his best friends were black” is incredibly cliched in 2014, much less 30 years ago. In any case, it’s still a large stretch (supported by one poster, anyway), his entire history considered, to pedantically insist we only know he was racist against Vietnamese people and not necessarily against other Asian peoples. Sniff test says no to that. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/114 "2014-12-11T19:22:36Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Hmm. And he says that Wahlberg didn’t blind him in one eye and that he had no idea it was the same Mark Wahlberg. > > That seems… a really oddly delayed revelation. Let’s just hope he was paid handsomely for saying this. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/115 "2014-12-11T19:27:01Z")
Gang banger violent youth hate everyone outside their gang and use bad language. News at 11. What, it’s okay to be a violent gang banger as long as you’re a politically correct and sensitive violent gang banger? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/116 "2014-12-11T20:07:38Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Gang banger violent youth hate everyone outside their gang and use bad language. News at 11. What, it’s okay to be a violent gang banger as long as you’re a politically correct and sensitive violent gang banger? I can’t fault anybody for their words when they were a teenager, but their actions are another matter. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/117 "2014-12-11T20:46:38Z")
I’ve grappled with myself what sort of reparations Mark Wallberg should make to a guy he permanently blinded for a long time. I think the simplest answer is: none. I think a fairer answer would be: the amount court ordered. Let’s have some opinions: How much? The actuarial value of a lost eye? Mark Wallberg might have that amount in his proverbial front pocket, or as change lost in his couch. Or instead a certain percentage of his current worth? Or maybe a certain percentage of his possible future worth, if all his next movies are as popular? Does Mark Wallberg get that money back if his next few movies tank? (I know the answer to that one – no.n Cf Dave Foley re alimony) Should he lose as much money as necessary to revert him and his family to lower middle class lifestyle? Is that more fair, for some definition of the word? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/118 "2014-12-11T22:04:27Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > I’ve grappled with myself what sort of reparations Mark Wallberg should make to a guy he permanently blinded for a long time. It appears that the victim has been contacted and has stated that Wahlberg didn’t blind him, it was a pre-existing condition. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/119 "2014-12-11T23:35:32Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > I wouldn’t be so sure. He robbed one man, beat him unconscious, and then blinded another. This wasn’t his first offense either, nor his last. How he got so little time for his crimes is amazing. It really takes some stones for him to demand more leniency. I’d argue his sentence is in line with other cases I’m familiar with for persons who are juveniles. Juveniles almost never receive the same sentences as adults, even when they are transferred to the adult courts. Prior to the big scare about juvenile “super-predators” most States had not passed laws making it easier to transfer juveniles to adult court, at this point all fifty have. > [@](#): > > A lot of fans didn’t know about his past until he came out with this request. Maybe he didn’t think this would be picked up by the press? He’s done more to damage his image by asking for this pardon than just letting his record stay dirty. He’s talked about it on TV shows before, I think anyone that knows much about him probably had heard about it. More casual “fans” (or people who just watch his movies but aren’t really his “fans”) probably had never heard about it. FWIW this story didn’t stay on the front of Google or Yahoo News for more than a day or so. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2014, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326/120 "2014-12-12T02:16:00Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It appears that the victim has been contacted and has stated that Wahlberg didn’t blind him, it was a pre-existing condition. A further wrinkle, in my list of what ifs and how fars. We took the news stories at gospel that Mark Wallberg’s attack resulted in perm-ant disability. Now he’s just an asshole, and not a crippler and maimer. So retuning to the question – “How much cash does Mark Wallberg owe?” And would he have gotten any of the payout back once these new facts are known? Its this sort of thing that moderated my stance, at least as far as monetary punitive damages go. With what **Telemark:** has said, does anyone take back what they’ve figured Mark Wallberg owed? If so, and if he’d already paid it out, would you accepot the responsibility of returning it to him? If not, then maybe we all shouldn’t be so quick to judge. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-learned-that-mark-wahlberg-assaulted-an-asian-person-in-a-hate-crime-as-a-youth/649326.md?page=7)