I just watched the CNN interview with the kid-beating mom. Was it just me or did she she seem as f’d up as a football bat?
Jesus H. Christ in a chicken basket, this chick was higher than the front row at a Dead concert!
She did seem lidded, but I’m not sure if it was chemical or just stupidity.
A couple of things I noticed were that she dyed her hair and had flown to MD ostensibly to get her daughter checked out by a “neutral party”. My guess is that she was going to try to go on the lam but was advised against it or something.
Another thing that came up in the interview that raised red flags in my mind was that she is one of those “Irish Travellers”. Here’s a link that goes into a little bit of that: Link
I remember seeing something on 20/20 or somesuch showing this group having little girl beauty pageants that would make Jon Benet’s mom shudder, and that arranged marriages between 12 year old girls and thirty-something men weren’t unusual. Also it was noted that many of the members of this group were grifters who went about the country preying on old ladies and the like with paving and painting and other home repair scams.
Now, to be fair, I’m sure not all the members of this group are that way, and I’m not sure what their relationship with the UK version of this group is, so please don’t accuse me of being prejudiced, etc. Just reporting what I’ve seen on TV, etc. I also knew of the group that lived outside of Aiken, SC when I lived near there briefly. A coworker of mine’s wife was a teacher that had many of them as students and reported many of the traits that are rumored are true, i.e. thirteen year old girls who were married, etc.
I just hope that in this case, the cycle will be broken somehow…
From An Arkys link:
Good lord what a scary name for a town…
I’d bet dollars to doughnuts she didn’t pay for those jeans she was trying to return.
Yep, it means pretty much what you think it means:
I saw this interview on CNBC in Ireland. She seemed stupid not stoned to me.
Irish traveler??? Maybe her parents or grandparents were but she was American as far as I could see. If you’ve ever heard a traveler you’d know what I mean. Brad Pitt did a vaguely OK version of a traveler accent in the movie “Snatch”.
Do travelers get hassle in the States BTW. They get a terrible life over here. There is a element who are bad but you can say that about every group in the world.
Oh and An Arky I may be reading you wrong but Irish Travelers come from Ireland which is not in the UK 
unless they hail from the north which the majority of them do not.
Irish-American Travelers:
Sorry, I didn’t make the distiction between Ireland and the UK. Thick yank, I know. Anyway, the “Irish Travellers” that are in America are American, and have been for a long long time. I know that the ones in America aren’t just poor repressed nomadic people, but a more virulent strain that uses that lifestyle to perpetuate their scams. At least the ones you hear about on the news, anyway. Again, no offense to law abiding nomadic folks out there, I’m just talking about the bad apples here; Ms. Toogood seems to be one of them…
No question about it. Seems like a bitch of the hightest order.
“Virulent strain”? You’re talking about people, not fucking germs.
Offence taken, fuck off.
Kal, what would you call a group – however large or small, or representative of the clan at large – who has made a lifestyle out of being scam artists with seedy, scary family dynamics?
Perhaps virulent was a poor choice of words, but the sleazy faction of the Irish Travellers is a taint on all facets of society, and a disgrace to their ancestors who were, indeed, victimized. A pox on them, I say. A good and rightly pox.
The phrase “More virulent strain” was one of the things that pissed me off. I mis-quoted. The use of “more” signifies that other “strains” of Irish Traveller and other ethnic groups who traditionally live a nomadic lifestyle are also virulent, albeit to a lesser degree. I’m of a race that numbers 10 million, that suffers from the same sterotypes the Irish Travellers do. I found An Arky’s post to be offensive.
Second thing that pissed me off was the line, “Again, no offense to law abiding nomadic folks out there, I’m just talking about the bad apples here.” Y’know, I hear shit like that quite a lot. Someone will go off on a rant about my ethnic group and then follow it with, “Oh, I don’t mean true Romany Gypsies, just the bad, thieving ones”.
It pushes my buttons, pal. I am a law-abiding “Nomad”, I took offence.
Also, to correct you: Irish Travellers, along with the Roma and other “Nomads” are still being victimized today. See this thread for an example.
To answer your question:
Politicians.
kal, I agree with you. I am upset by comments such as An Arky and tlw;
An Arky & tlw see this thread especially my post near the bottom and the links.
Does it upset you that certain people who self-identify as Irish Travellers in America are, indeed, convicted felons who have conspired together to con and scam people – or that any one would acknowledge that fact?
Does it upset you that the inter-familial dynamic in some sects of Irish Travellers prompted South Carolina to change their marriageable age?
Or does it upset you that that particular tidbit of information has become well known, and further, that it only happened after a pretty scathing expose piece by Dateline NBC, complete with footage of a fashion show of sorts with 12 and 13 year old little girls being paraded out so that men twice their age or older could pick which one they wanted to marry?
It upsets you that I feel that these people are a blight on society and bring disgrace upon their own families and ancestors – largely because their actions have increased ?
What about any of that is worth being upset about?
That should have read “largely because their actions have increased prejudice against all Travellers, including those who have no connection to the criminal activity of that well-publicized minority?”
tlw: It upsets me that yesterday, one of these “strains” dies in my wife’s womb.
It upsets me that doctors had to suck it’s body out of her uterus.
It upsets me that - after spending 12 hours at the hospital with her, trying to strong, watching her blame herself for our loss, providing as much comfort and support as I can - I come here to take my mind off of things a little only to find that because some fucking bitch smacked her kid around, people are posting a bunch of ignorant fucking crap about “Nomads”.
It upsets me that one person thinks of “Nomads” as a fucking virulent strain.
Now, are you happy? Does knowing what upsets me make your existance worthwhile?
Good.
Now piss the fuck off and get out of my face.
Kal
Kal –
Obviously my poorly worded post upset you. I apologize. I didn’t intend to offend, I only phrased my post badly. I don’t have anything against any group, I was merely trying to point out that this particular group had some bad apples. Very dumb on my part. I know this won’t make you think I’m not an asshole, but I’m very truly sorry for my choice of words, and if I could untype them, I would.
I’ll keep my big stupid mouth shut on this from now on.
Kal, I’m sorry for your loss. I’ve had three miscarriages, I know the pain.
However, your loss and tlw’s and An Arky’s opinion of the criminal activities of some portions of the Irish-Traveler sub-culture have nothing to do with each other, and you are over-reacting.
The fact is, these criminal elements in this sub-culture exist, in an organized way unique to this sub-culture. Getting mad that people point this out serves no purpose.
I am of Italian descent, and I acknowledge that there is (or was, mostly) a criminal sub-set of my ethnic group, unique to that group. I find them as reprehensible as everyone else does, and when people have a less than favorable opinion of their actions, I am angered by the people who took the actions, not the people who take offense.
An Arky: Yep, your post was poorly written and I found it offensive. Your last post is classy though and your apology is accepted.
I hope you’ll read the thread that I provided a link to and then read the links I posted there: Learn a little about Roma and Travellers and you’ll see that we do not deserve the treatment we’ve received for the last 700 years.
Kal - A damn proud Romanichal.