<![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating - Kotaku Comments]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating - Kotaku Comments]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Jesus Christ..... Jack Thompson, T-minus 5 hours and counting....

Acclamator

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> so a 2yr. old dies and you guys are cracking jokes, CLASSY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

freespeech

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: Is disagreeing with you means for being banned as well? Just want to be safe.

kyosuke9999

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @zanzibarlegend: I hope Kratos takes good care of her.

kyosuke9999

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> It's some of the comments on here that make me wish Kotaku had an ignore poster button, ala Fark.

Those of you making jokes about this: gb2/b/

Those of you complaining about the above group: This is the internet. This is not reality. Lighten up.

Karunamon

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I'm tired of reading about this shit on Kotaku. I think this is the third or fourth story posted here about a child being hurt or killed in some way that is loosely tied to video games. I realize the world is a pretty terrible place and this is why I occasionally fire up the console to escape this reality.

What blows my mind is that people are actually being banned for voicing their opinions that this story shouldn't be posted here. Well, I'm adding my voice to that choir.

Cheers

ADAM

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This really upsets me. I cant look at that picture without feeling terrible inside. I wanna go to York Pennsylvania and beat this guy with a Steel Battalion controller. Sorry if that comes off like a joke, but it was the biggest controller I could think of, if it wasnt stated already btw.

Not trying at all to make light of this. You cant no matter what you say. A 2 year old girl is dead and for what? Did she mess up his game? Did she knock over a 360? What could the kid POSSIBLY have done to deserve this???

THE ANSWER IS NOTHING. HAVE A 2 YEAR OLD AND YOU WILL SEE THAT THEY MIGHT DO SHIT YOU WON'T WANT TO HAPPEN, YOU JUST DEAL WITH IT!!!

THEY ARE VIDEO GAMES. FUCK YOUR ACHEIVEMENT POINTS AND FUCK YOUR PERFECT SCORE. NO ONE CARES. AND EVEN IF SHE DID SOMETHING TO PISS YOU OFF, REMEMBER SHES A FUCKING KID. YOU LITTLE 26 YEAR OLD PRICK! YOU ARE NOT A MAN AT ALL YOU LITTLE BITCH!!!!!!

Sorry about the caps...

Sorry everyone. Not directed at anyone, just so sad looking at that picture of the little girl. I am infuriated. I have a lot of children in my family, and if anything ever happened to them like this, I would be in jail for killing the killer.

NMC ONE WAY

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @dv8godd: "merely *out of fear"

... and sorry for getting so off topic there, but I liked where you were going. :)

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @jayntampa: Agreed.

The internet seems to have trained us to be little more than wild beasts in many respects. The great experiment in the proliferation of information seems just as capable of spreading errant behaviors like a virus.

I think there is a lot shared between the behaviors of piracy, anonymous insult, trolling and the like: it is the "I don't physically SEE the effects of my actions on the victim so I don't have to feel AS responsible" kind of attitude that tends to separate humanity into different levels to me.

To me, being able to see past the abstraction is part of what separates people into categories of quality. That you can't see the effects physically is all the MORE reason, not less, to be cognizant of your actions.

It reminds me of a debate I once had with a person whom could be best classified as a religious zealot over concepts of "god", "trust" and "morality"...

My adversary postulated that it was not possible to trust someone who did not believe in his concept of God to behave morally because they did not believe in divine repercussions...

... I countered that not acting "evil" merely our of fear of such repercussions was hardly a good measure to judge someone's true morality. That the better judge of a man would be one who need not act in kindness due to fear of punishment, but for the sake of the act itself.

I find it disturbing how much the mentality of "course of action dependent upon the likelihood of effective punishment" motivates so many of us.

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @dv8godd: Sadly, I think part of the problem here is indemic to the Internet. Readers believe they own what it is they read; as you succinctly pointed out, people are free not to read certain stories.

However, instead of looking at it as a privilege to post comments on Kotaku, it seems quite a few see it as a right -- and a right to demand a change to what is not theirs. It's pretty disturbing to me. It's a similar logic that leads people to believe that since they CAN download games, movies, and music, that there is nothing wrong if they do.

It's a weird sense of entitlement that I don't really understand.

jayntampa

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> the human part of me says thats pretty fucked up and the guy deserves the large and long sentence in prison he will get.
The gamer first asked which, and then logically decided it was either a ps2 or ps1, gamecube or wii-mote+wii-nunchuck... An Xbox 360 and ps3 are both wireless...

simmo

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Didn't this happen a few months ago with a drunk guy when his kid broke his Xbox???

I wish the media would focus on most of the lethal child beatings having nothing to do with games, but they do not seem to care.

Still, those writers will die and be replaced with younger gamers eventually. Out with the old, in with the new!

EdwinJ85

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Infradead: So... it's disgusting AND funny... and we're not supposed to get you wrong... and you apparently have some big message that we all should "know this"... and you're trying to be meaningful and clever in some kind of "take one for the cool kids" martyrdom of banning.

My father had a favorite saying when I was growing up: "Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt."

As for your personal evaluation your desensitization makes you "no less human": I think that's more a statement on the poor quality of what constitutes "human" than your quality as a person. Stating so in the that way you did also has the added benefit of proving you no less an asshole.

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Infradead: You make prinny sad.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Infradead: "Well, that's me banned."

That's the only thing you got right.

BigSassy

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Don't get me wrong, I'm as disgusted as anyone else about all this.
... But you have to laugh. Dead baby jokes are the best kind.

Well, that's me banned. But before I go, know this - being desensitized to violence doesn't make me any less human. Just a lot more... Banned.

Infradead

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is one of the sadest stories I've read in a long time. PapaBear434 put it perfectly when describing why this is nothing to to laugh about. Us gamers are supposed to be these desensitized murderous criminals in hiding, but I think this thread shows a much different view. As of me writing this there are 392 posts. Posts of people, not geeking out or flamewarring till morning, but posts from people who are truly disgusted by this act of brutality. We the Kotaku community have shown our selves to be more than gamers but people. People with families and children. This story hits too close to home for many of us. I think that there is a saying that "thing come to light in tragedy", if not I just made it up. Either way the point is that we have shown our selves to be more than letters on a screen. Its too bad that it take a story like this to get us to come together on something. Thank you guys for reminding me that I'm not the only sane person out there.
I think it safe to say that all our hearts got to the people who actually cared about that child. We are, I am, truly sorry.

svexo

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Mujah: I sincerely doubt the controller was the closest blunt object at hand, unless he was literally holding it at the time, which really makes it relevant. Maybe their house just has controllers lying all over the place, again relevant.

Stop trying to write this off as irrelevant news. If this shit happened in a reverent gamer's house, it's worth putting up here.

Sunjammer

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> So, yeah. The dust has settled. Nasty flame war. Sad story. I feel compelled to offer my opinion, again.

STORY RELEVANT? -- I say yes, but barely. The murder weapon was an unnamed video-game controller. The story at its core is about child abuse, not video games, so an argument against its inclusion is sound. But, as one poster pointed out, CNN has published the story, with "video game controller" in the headline. Suddenly the news is more relevant to us; though the abuse has almost nothing to do with video games, when a major news organization runs a story about violence with "video game" in the headline, some people will start making assumptions and jumping to conclusions. I for one am glad that I am now better informed on what may be a big news story tomorrow.

VIGILANTE JUSTICE? -- Yeahhhmmnnnoo. Tough call. The guy who committed the crime is a very bad person. My reaction, and that of many others, was to wish pain and suffering on him. But it probably ain't something we should be writing down. Hey, I'm a hypocrite here; when the 7-year old was killed by the boyfriend using Mortal Kombat moves, I wished prison-rape on him and wrote about it in the comments section. There was a lot of other commenters saying the same thing this time, too. This sparked some outrage from other posters. And I'm inclined to agree with them this time. I don't know, maybe I've turned into a big softie. But to wish harm on anyone, even on those who have harmed others, makes me feel like I'm stooping to their level.

JOKES APPROPRIATE? -- No. Not for this story. Hey, the comments section is usually a place for funny jokes, sometimes we all try to 1-up each other for the funniest remark. Get the joke in quickest before anyone has had a chance to post so it appears higher and more people read it. Well, this was a murder story. Real. Not your virtual Ninja Gaiden 2 bloodbaths. Something worse. And I'm reading the story... And I scroll down... and... "Wii Condom". Ick. Very poorly timed joke with accidental innuendo.

BANHAMMER BRUTALITY? -- Absolutely brutal. I was loving it at first. The first few guys were trolls who were really asking for it. A couple of guys toward the end got smacked down for merely questioning the Banhammer. That was comedy, but after re-reading the thread, it seemed excessive. I'd vote for reversing the last two. But, the jokers needed to be taken out. Their comments represented this blog and its community very poorly.

See, there's a bunch of people out there that think gamers are heartless violence-mongers, and we don't want to prove them right. It supports the argument that "Videogames desensitize kids to acts of violence and turns them into killers." We should strive to prove them wrong and make them eat their words.

In a nutshell: when we're talking about an FPS, yeah, go nuts, laugh about people getting shot to pieces; it's a game, and it's fake. But when we're talking about real people dying, ya gotta take a step back and think twice.

(highlander wolf stops preaching and goes back to warcraft)

Highlander Wolf

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> How can people do these things..? It's just heartbreaking..
This guy has just forfeited his humanity, I don't care what the Bible says, there's no salvation or forgiveness for such a crime.

Nico8332

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @deathbunny: agreed, wholeheartedly.

This is newsworthy for Kotaku as it prepares us for the next indictment against the video game industry that is likely to come down.

As far as the act itself goes, I'm a father of a five year old boy, and I hope that this guy gets a dismissal due to a mistrial, and he gets let out (very publicly) to the neighborhood he committed this act in. I hope that some of those stressed out EMS workers and cops that had to come into the scene and see the spectacle that they saw take their sweet time with him. Looking at the pic, it's fairly obvious that he's not exactly an upstanding figure in his community... not even a mom would miss a guy like that. There's no reason to get emotional over it... even if he's put in jail, remember, all it takes to get in there with him is an unpaid jaywalking ticket. If the girlfriend didn't protect her daughter, you can probably bet that there was some previous beating of her involved.

masterdingo

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Brian Crecente: "He killed her with a video game controller, how is that a tenuous connection to gaming?"

Well, in the sense that the instrument was gaming-related, it is. However, the motivation and the action of beating a child to death itself aren't game-related. The controller just happened to be the closest blunt object at hand, so he used it. It's not actually related to any specific game, and any jury would be hard-pressed to actually connect the case to a video game.

Mujah

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @uranutan:
@aaa:
@mgy:

Shouldn't you guys be on 4chan or something? If you want to make jokes about the death of a child, this place is definitely populated by far too many decent human beings to have any room for shitbags like you.

Mujah

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> When I heard about this story it made me sick and almost ruined my day. Now, reading some of these comments hit the nail on the head.

I understand that you guys are just voicing your opinions, but Jesus - some of you are defending the guy as if HE were the victim. He might just be a fuckin moron (his girlfriend's probably got problems too). SO THE FUCK WHAT? That doesn't take away the fact that he brutally KILLED an innocent little girl who had no idea WTF was going on.

And over what - a bad day at work? And why her - because she was at the wrong place at the wrong time? And why was her mother just watching obliviously - who the fuck knows?

These questions sadden me and the answers may sadden me more, so I don't want to know.

I don't know jack shit about the legal system or capital punishment or any of that shit. But please keep these people the HELL away from me, my friends and family, and everybody else who doesn't deserve to cross paths with them.

Khalil

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Byakko: "the connection with video gaming in this news appears purely peripheral."

I see what you did there...

@Fonic: Uh dude, nobody is saying he should be let off the hook for what he did. He is going to jail. Just because I don't believe he should be killed in an act of violence as retaliation doesn't mean that I'm A-OK with people murdering and pillaging.

Krytha

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Brian Crecente:

Because if we replaced 'video game controller' with 'toaster oven', or 'DVD player', it wouldn't mean a connection of violence with the home appliance or home entertainment system industries. Likewise, I agree that with the current information we can get from this article, the connection with video gaming in this news appears purely peripheral.

Although it stands to reason that this man prolly played violent games.

Anyway, this really isn't the issue here. The kid's dead for no good reason, and the man appears remorseless. Death's too good for him.

Byakko

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> ugh whats wrong with this guy, killing inoccent children i hope he rots in hell

xxarcobearxx

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @dv8godd: Thank you for always writing out what I never have the patience to write, and far better than I probably would. I just go off onto other tangents for no reason without realizing it and then my posts seem to meander in all different directions without returning to the topic that I started with, but I digress.

Erwin

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Bishmon, @aaa, @IntelSilver: It has relevancy, if for no other reason, than this is the kind of news that hits the mainstream. As gamers and advocates of the hobby, it is in our best interest to at least be aware of what game-related, no matter how loose, information hits the general populace.

As hopefully sane, logical thinkers, of course we can see the tenuous relationship between "gaming" and the act, but sane, logical thinking is not always in abundant supply.

If this were a story about death by vehicle, it is unlikely that the mass population would jump to assume that vehicles are automatically dangerous and their users in need of close administration... but that would likely be because the vast majority of people engage in the activity of driving and therefor have perspective. But if driving were considered by the mainstream, like gaming, to be a niche activity, then we would likely see people generating connections between "drivers" and "danger".

Like it or not, non-gamers (or even people who are gamers but view the "hardcore" crowd as "fringe") will continue to build up mental images of people like Johnson as representative of "gamers", because they lack personal perspective and/or an abundance of counter examples.

It is useful to be aware of news items like this because it gives us an opportunity to stay ahead of the negative press than the average joe comes into contact with. Perhaps if we are aware then of the particulars of the case, we can better represent ourselves and our passions with an intelligent voice rather than being just as ill-informed as our opponents.

Besides which, if you don't personally find the information relevant, you are always free to not read it. ;)

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is just wrong.

SolInvictus

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Did it for the lulz.

ShadowMuse

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Flame war...

Allen750

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Well I hope this guy suffers big time in jail because he doesn't deserve to see the light of day anymore and I hold the mother responsible for this too. Ohh and Uranutan you were in the wrong so just accept it.

Bluejuan85

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is horrible, i just hope some government bastard doesn't try to use this in their inane assault on games.

Neo-Senku: The World's Finest Pervert

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> So unbelievably sad. My condolences to the family.

sonofnone

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Bishmon:
As much as this story saddens me, I must agree with him.

IntelSilver

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: First off, we are the most violent industrialized nation ... there really isn't any debate on that. Second, I didn't say you called anyone that -- but you did call their beliefs that, and that's nearly the same thing. Finally, I'll drop it here ... I'm really not trying beat a dead horse. The whole story is completely tragic, and I wanna read more about fun games.

jayntampa

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I hope they rot in jail.

superevilcube

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> No relevance..

Vileyaser

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> jaw droppingly terrible

AroundTheFur

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Bishmon: He killed her with a video game controller, how is that a tenuous connection to gaming?

Brian Crecente

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Nevermind what he used to do it... HE KILLED THE DAMN KID!!! String his ass up!!!

Enigma_20XX

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @sandwiches: "Jesus.. the ass-kissing, back-peddling, hate-mongering and brutal insensitivity on this thread is shocking."

Or... at least it "should" be.

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is terrible but the jokes some people have made....for fucksake guys its a fucking murder case...this is truly a henious crime, why the hell would the mother just watch that happen? I've got chills just looking at that toddlers's picture, may she rest in peace

@Witzbold: Kotaku would not be Kotaku without you Witz, and thank goodness you don't put up with that free-speech bullshit when people post crap, please keep up the good work

excel_excel

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> No wonder our country is so fucked up. I don't understand how you can commit a crime this horrific and only get a few years in prison.

Our "land of the free" officially became too free many years ago.

unmarkedone

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Jesus.. the ass-kissing, back-peddling, hate-mongering and brutal insensitivity on this thread is shocking.

All I know is a 2-year-old is dead, and that actually brought tears to my eyes today.

sandwiches

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Jonathan Harford: I know it's a long thread but try and read previous posts before repeating what has already been addressed by other people.

The debate on whether or not violent video games inspire violent acts or acts of aggression in general is far from over.

What are the chances that the perpetrator was playing videogames before beating the poor child to death? What are the chances that even if he wasn't, most people reading that story would assume he had?

Regardless of the fact that most if not all Kotaku editors would fall on the video game violence does not equal real life violence, they are doing a service to the video gaming community at large by keeping them informed of stories that could conceivably be used as arguments for either position.

If you confident in your beliefs you should be open and willing to be informed of things that might challenge them.

It sounds like you want them to keep their heads in the sand if something happens that does not explicitly affirm their positions on issues.

chinesedentist

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I dont think I've ever seen so much banning and flame-thrower-ing in a Kotaku comments section.

For the people that are thinking this is worthwhile at poking fun at, do you honestly do this outside of your Internet life? To look at articles like these and have the balls to boldly proclaim your "freedom of speech"? Or are you at peace with the fact that you remain a faceless douchebag?

My point is that even if you're faceless, your words are very real. I took offense to quite a number of posts here. So for the love of humanity, have SOME decency? Please?

Ichidou

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Kiden4911: If I was, would it change anything?

HJungle

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Superawesomerad: And there are also people here arguing that people who murder children should be let off the hook. What's your point?

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I completely agree with Bishmon that reporting this story is entirely inappropriate. I assumed the editors of Kotaku were of the opinion that violent acts were *not* caused by violent videogames?

If they aren't, then how is this a story about videogames?

Jonathan Harford

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Obviously, this guy had anger management issues and didn't seek therapy. Well he's going away for awhile. I mean seriously -- you'd wished they'd spend life in prison after taking someone's life - ESPECIALLY A CHILD. But the American "justice" system is gonna put him away for alittle bit and release him back into society. Its pretty pathetic!

smokinbettycrocker

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> What a fucking piece of shit. I hate people like this.

Sollus

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> unbelievable.

Wubbytoes

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Krytha: Are you kidding? if sombody killed my brother, no beat him to death with a blunt object, so it wasnt quick or accedental, it was slow, and repeated hits to him, do you think i should say "o well he wasnt given a fair chance in life so i should forgive him". my life wasnt peachy, ive lived in hotels had to deal with gangs and being abandoned, but that doesnt mean i dont have a sense of morals, you cant say because he was brought up wrong he needs to get away with things, nor does the legal system punish him, people who are "put to death" live so long after they initial sentence what are we really doing but getting rid of old men who lived a life? if sombody killed my brother like that, i would want him to pay, slowly, painfully, and i would like to be the one who administered it. violence isnt the solution to voilence, the only solution is to get rid of human nature,and so long as human nature exsist, i think we can just say its good to live by this, a eye for a eye and a tooth for a tooth, because if we gave you a punishment that resembled what you did, ie beating him to death, im sure that would set a lovley exsample for those who ponder murder in the future

D Mitsuki

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> A truly sad story indeed. First a stabbing between siblings, then the shooting between friends, and now a little girl gets killed for not leaving her father alone while he's playing games...

With the increasing popularity of video games comes more and more scumbags with no control over themselves that scar the gaming world. It's like guns: get them into the wrong hands and all of a sudden anyone who collects them is a killer.

psychobaka

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Another innocent falls to the dregs of society. Vigilante justice could be considered a cleanser if it prevents the gene pool from expanding with these dead-enders.

Awoken says FUCK kotaku for disabling my comments!

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @baxterpunch: And yes, there is a backstory, and his backstory can end with a person who kills a child beign raped and killed

Psychotic173

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @uranutan:
There is a time and a place for jokes, a comment blog of a deceased little girl is not one of them.

Psychotic173

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Its times like this i hate how there is no cruel and unusual punishment, because all i want to do is slowly beat this fucker with a wiimote and nunchuck then piss on his open wounds...

R.I.P

D Mitsuki

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Wow, there are people here seriously arguing for torture, vigilante justice, and public executions.

Superawesomerad

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> As a PA resident, I can't help but wonder why all of this game related insanity (The Eminem stole my XBOX guy/ Man who Killed Toddler over Xbox/ This imbecile) are all from my state.

...Must be the damn water from the Schuylkill River.

Jsplisim

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: No crying here man.

Callidux

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: Cry some fucking more is all I say to those who are against who I am.
Obviosly not mate.
Give a statement and i get bit by a mod. Im not worryied with who you are or how you got Hired i just reading and it sounded you were just swinging your authority over head on a rope for all to see. Just to see if anyone would say anything. I dont see the others doing this. And i didn't mean to insult yet you come and bite my head.

@-EDGE-: But all i am saying i would liked to have seen done a little more discrete. Flare was definately in my opnion not needed.

SO i guess i should curse someone that knocks me then as everyone on the internet does.

Back on Subject,
Guy surely has anger problems. Sure i get mad at my nephew but he is 5 and gets into stuff around the house when he is over but all i do is grunt at him and say he shouldnt do that. I see this and Im just astounded.

Jopan

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is just sad...

EmeraldDragon

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @uranutan:
Death is not funny. Especially the needless death of an innocent child at the hands of a brute for no reason.

There is a time for mirth, but it its not now. Not so soon after such a terrible ordeal.

Dragonis

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: first of all, keep up the good work dude, fuck all the haters.

Secondly, if you wanna talk shit on this post face the wrath, plain and simple. as a father of a 4 year old i am appalled by some of the idiots festering on this site. this no laughin matter.

Third, i hope this kiddo can rest in peace, at least she will be in god's hands.

zanzibarlegend

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> The guy who did it had a history of abuse, he shouldn't have been around children in the first place, hell he shouldn't be around people.

Stueymon

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @KMatt: Please explain your cryptic statement to us lesser mortals.

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic:

"I was not condoning prison rape. Don't put words in my mouth. I was condoning the death penalty." -Fonic

"I said the idea of humanely killing someone is idiotic because it almost seems like an oxymoron to me. And also because it is so expensive, but that's another debate" -Fonic

Yeah. This makes a lot of sense.

KMatt

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Kiden4911: I know, I was walking too fine a line with that. I tried to put a few clarifications in there though.

My point hopefully shone through, every situation is unique. There's a backstory to everything, and sometimes things don't boil down to "he murdered a child, let's have him raped and killed."

baxterpunch

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold:

dOOd, all BS aside, I think you do a great job, and I know it can't be easy. These people are just hating on the playa for the game Bro.

Believe me there are many more of us thankful for what you do, and know it's never pleasant, and either way you can't win.

EDGE

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Jopan: They knew I talk and act this way before hiring me.

Cry some fucking more is all I say to those who are against who I am.

The world aint kittens and flowers mate. My job here isnt to play nice and make friends, its to keep wankers from polluting the comments section. And until the day Crecente fires me thats exactly what Im going to do.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @jayntampa: I didn't call anyone in this thread idiotic or absurd. I said the idea of humanely killing someone is idiotic because it almost seems like an oxymoron to me. And also because it is so expensive, but that's another debate. I also said that paying massive amounts of money to save a person on death row's life because they have a rare heart condition is absurd. Again, I didn't call anyone here idiotic or absurd. If you took it that way then I apologize.
Ultimately my opinion comes down to this: I don't think it is evil or wrong to hate or wish harm upon those who commit acts like murdering children. You might disagree, but that is what I think.
And just because America has more people in jail doesn't mean we are the most violent industrialized nation. It just means we incarcerate more people than other industrialized nations. And don't blame the violence in society on people who simply wish to see child-murderers put to death.
Also, with the advent of DNA testing, there are less and less innocent people on death row every day. Not saying it never happens, but you argue to throw the baby out with the bathwater, whereas I believe otherwise. Furthermore, in cases like this, we know he did it, he isn't innocent, so that doesn't apply here.

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: Wow man, you've REALLY got your work cut out for you on this thread. I'm not so sure all those other people that wanted your moderator job want it now! I sure as hell wouldn't be able to handle this!

ThisCharmingMan

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @rakefighter: Err... what sensationalizing? Reading the article it's just plain news reporting. Feels like a cut down version of what I just read on the provided link and [www.cnn.com] report on it.

tnx3

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Highlander Wolf: If you have ever seen a buddy-cop movie you know that you can't take out a bad guy with out a sweet one-liner after....

Mr.SithNinja

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Callidux: Being an idiot and saying shit like "this doesnt belong here, not news etc" all get a kick in the face from me.

Use your head while commenting.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @HJungle: Nice generalization. And what are you exactly...just a passerby who happened to show up here while searching for porn?

Kiden4911

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Highlander Wolf: I agree it's interesting but as for the Banhammer smack talk is something an official should not do. All else though let it rain.

Jopan

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is relevant to a gaming blog how exactly? You criticize people like Jack Thompson and media outlets like Fox News for sensationalizing violence related to games when there may not be a link yet you are doing the exact same thing here. Kotaku sickens me almost as much as the story.

rakefighter

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> If anything, I feel this post shows that gamers aren't emotionally stable or mature enough to hand this sort of news. I love how quickly people are ready to flip the switch on the guy after reading a single news article.

I'm not defending him, but your reactions are similar to that of the mainstream anytime a "video game" crime is committed.

HJungle

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Wow. This thread is incredible! People are talking about everyone and everything... it's MADNESS!

@Witzbold: ROFL... the blood is oozing off the banhammer in a thick, pixelated drizzle... and your mighty Banhammer smack talk makes it all the sweeter. Will we ever get to see the list of banned offenders, and their crimes?

Highlander Wolf

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I actually feel physically ill reading stuff like this. I have a real hard time with it. Not with the rage part…I get that, it happens. What I will never get or understand is allowing anything so trivial to take your self-control, and clarity away long enough to kill a child, or anyone for that matter.

I hope the little one finds peace, it sounds as if she suffered abuse from this piece of filth before.

EDGE

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @baxterpunch: I think you're getting dangerously close to saying it's better off she died. And like others have said before me, just because you're raised in a harsh environment doesn't mean you automatically turn into a violent prick like this guy. There's plenty of people who grew up with abusive bad parents who later on lived a healthy normal life. It's not an excuse.

As for a lot of people calling for the first degree murder, I agree on the fact that he should be getting the same punishment as a first degree murder but unless I'm mistaken, first degree murder is a PREMEDITATED homicide. From what I've read about the story, it seems he did this in a fit of anger in the spur of the moment. I'm not trying to lessen what he did or deserves, but the way our legal system works First Degree murder doesn't apply here.

Kiden4911

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Absolutely disgusting.

Amb1ence

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: So, wait, are you saying we shouldn't comment if we don't like something?

Because I see people comment in here all the time about things they don't like Kotaku has done sometimes. Some have even been featured in the Multi-tap.

For the record this has nothing to do with that free speech BS earlier on this thread, I'm truly curious if voicing an objection on Kotaku is banworthy.

Callidux

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> The mother should be made to take parenting classes as well as human relation classes after being charged with wrongful death.

gospel_alien

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: I agree it is inexcusable, and I agree that she was never allowed the chance to be a wonderful person, and that is horrible.

Like I said, he doesn't get a free pass if he was abused.

All I was ever referring to was your (and others) reaction to the situation, the immediate call for death (and more).

baxterpunch

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: Fonic, I respect your point of view ... a lot of people feel that way. But, it's not absurd or idiotic for people to believe that societies should rise above the actions of killing people. A culture is often judged upon how it treats those who are in it's care -- that includes prisoners.

I agree it's absurd that we can find the will to take care of them, and not the will to take care of upstanding citizens that are having a rough time. However, that doesn't mean that I believe we're wrong for being humane to those who have done nothing but harm the society I believe in.

The purpose of incarceration, primarily, is rehibilitation ... secondarily, to remove chaotic elements from our society. To be able to rehabilitate someone, they have to be treated with humanity. And, they have to see that even those being killed ... well, that the taking of a human life by the state needs to be done with respect for the event, and not done with hatred or vitriol -- justice has no place for those kinds of feelings.

To be honest, the anger and desire to cause pain that I'm seeing in this thread is disturbing. It's a clear example of why America is the most violent of the industrialized nations ... and that 1 out of every 100 adult Americans is incarcerated. That's right -- a full percent of our population is in jail ... that's more than any other nation in the world, including China! (source: [www.nytimes.com])

Obviously, simply imprisoning people isn't working. And, to be honest, we the number of innocent people on death row, it's hard to condone the death penalty. I have absolutely no respect for a nation that would execute an innocent man, so since we know there ARE innocent people on death row ... how can we execute anyone? The cost of a mistake is far too great.

Again, I respect your opinion, but I humbly request you avoid words like "idiotic" and "absurd" for topics that other people have equally valid opinions on ... with equal or greater support on their side.

jayntampa

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I hope that asshole rots in jail (and becomes the bitch of many) because to kill him would be too kind

ajiezer

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Fuck Jack Thompson! This guy needs the death penalty for kiling that poor little girl. Any publicity whore who uses this to push their perverted agenda is a POS!

Orionz Dream

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> The next time people are complaining that videogamers are getting a bad rap, consider how it looks that some people are here making jokes about this awful awful tragedy.

Cruithne

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @ShirtGuyDom: Asked a few times around already. I do feel this story isn't usually Kotaku, but what stories come up are up to the editors/writers. And they are able to post what stories they want.

And as readers and commenters we have an affect on what is reported on it. There's e-mail links and comment posting to express our views on the topic (within reason, poor Witzblod). Not to mention there's always the choice of not reading Kotaku anymore.

As for me, I feel that news is news. Doesn't really matter what source it came from as long as it is reliable. I wasn't expecting for such a sad story though. But I'm glad I read it for I spent that much more time thinking about subjects that needed more thought (parenting, community, forum trolls, etc.).

Prayers for the little girl and those affected by the tragedy.

tnx3

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @PapaBear434: You need to bribe better. ;)

dv8godd

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @baxterpunch: He'll get a trial, that's a big "pause."
This child didn't survive the ordeal. She died, by his hand. As opposed to your negative example, she could have just as easily grown up, and achieved great things in life. She could have become an activist for abused children, she could have cured cancer, who knows. She could have become many things. She deserved a chance at life. He got one. He wasted it, but he got one all the same. But she didn't. She's dead. He took her future away from her. That is inexcusable.

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I'm sure this will get spun into yet another "games are the root of all evil" argument by the self-righteous dipshits on the news and in Washington. But does anyone really believe that, in the absence of a game controller, this pathetic excuse for a human being wouldn't have hit that child with something else?

texicali74

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @ShirtGuyDom: You cant make things better by hiding from the truths out there.

Since its articles like these that fuel the fires of hate towards gamers regardless of how little you may think it has to do with Kotaku.

Its better to know what kind of "weapons" those who would wish to bring harm to the gamers way of life are getting armed with so to speak.

You dont like it dont comment its that simple mate.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> It's kind of annoying the increasing number of murders related to videogames,directly or in a relative way,I believe is just a mirror of the actual times,the world is a trouble place and gets worst everyday.
The rage is increasing in every thing and shapes,and nothing saves from this,that's why videogames get involved in this bad kind of things more than before.
By the way,you're very sensitive in the comments today Witzbold.

OT79

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Why is it starting to seem like more and more of these things have been happening lately? Either it was just not reported as much until a few months back, or there's been an increase.

Either way, I find it unsettling. Has the world really gone this far down the tube?

Aerokii

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @jabedoben: I agree, and make it slow(start breaking his kneecaps first!!!).

KM91

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: The genetic thing was just an example, not condoning it or anything.

"My point about not equating witch burnings and putting murders to death is that in the case of witch burnings or lynchings, the victim was a victim. They did nothing wrong, yet were killed. They were innocent."

It's a reasonable point. But the people in that mob sure thought they did something wrong, and more than likely they thought that based off of the same amount of info we have in this case.

If I believed that I knew enough about this case, then I'd probably feel the same way you do. I know this kid was murdered by this man and that's it.

Alright, let me try a different approach.

Ok, let's say this child survived this ordeal. And no one ever hears about it. Let's say she grows up in the same house, being abused like this dozens of times more. Now, more than likely, living in that situation, when she has a kid of her own.... well, statistically, she may either beat that child just like she was beaten or... maybe she beats her child to death? Would she then deserve the punishment you ask for, for all child murderers?

Knowing that she was once a defenseless 2 year old, subject to untold horrors... even though she killed, would you not have the sliver of reluctance to throw the switch?

She never got the chance to prove the statistics wrong, and it's a tragedy.

But, it's very likely the murderer in this case grew up in the same situation, probably beaten by his father, or mother. Does this means he goes free? Or deserve anything less than life in prison? Not at all, but maybe a pause is in order before we comdemn him to death.

baxterpunch

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: Totally agree. Well spoken.

todde7

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I'm all for knowing about these tragedies and grieving for the lost, but why is this story on Kotaku? It seems as if the only reason is because the murder weapon was a game controller.

Why not say the poor child was beaten with the closet blunt object (which, technically, was the case), and leave it to the websites that usually cover these kinds of stories (which wouldn't be Kotaku).

This is not the way to distance video games from real-world violence.

ShirtGuyDom

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Krytha: here's the thing: I don't care if he was or was not raised by two loving parents. Unlike you, I don't see that as an excuse to commit evil acts. Plenty of people had horrible childhoods and still don't do things like this. You're insulting everyone who had it rough in life yet still live upstanding lives. Besides, for all you know he had a wonderful childhood. I'm afraid I don't believe in excusing atrocities based on one's upbringing. You're trying to humanize evil. Hitler loved his girlfriend and played with his dog. Does that make him worthy of our sympathy and mean that had he not ended his own life we should have just forgiven him and let him off?
Secondly, many states don't have the death penalty, all that do usually have those who receive it sit on death row for years. Look how long it took them to off McVeigh. Someone who commits murder probably figures he either won't get caught, or will get out in a number of years as they often do. I didn't say the methodology of the death penalty was perfect, but even if it prevents a single act of murder from being committed, it is worth it to me. And as for the cost, it is only lethal injection that is terribly expensive. Hanging or firing squad is quite cheap. Especially firing squad as you only need one bullet. It is the idiotic idea of "humanely" putting someone to death that costs us so much, just as all the food, counseling, medical treatment, guarding, clothing, and what have you for a prisoner costs us an arm and a leg. Heck, we even foot the bill for expensive operations and treatments if a murderer has a rare illness of some sort. It's absurd.
Finally, do you truly believe that "giving someone a chance" will solve things? At least my way ensures that someone who murdered a child will never be able to do so again.
But since you apparently left the thread I guess typing this was pointless to some extent. Oh well.

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Krytha: ^^Read above sentence.^^

todde7

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Lots of kneejerk reactions here (including my own), but on a topic this volatile i think that's to be expected.

Cooling off a bit, it makes me think of what raising your hand against a child with intent to harm actually signals to society. Personally, i think it means you're tapping out of humanity. At that point, getting back in is going to be very, very hard. It's just how the world works. Who would want someone hostile to the propagation of the species among them?

Keep in mind, i've been slapped and shook and yelled at as a kid; who hasn't really? There's a huge, vast boundary between punishing your kid and damaging it. One is a necessary part of growing up. The other is something human society has been working for thousands of years to remove.

Death penalty is something i'll never condone, but that dude is going to feel the ban hammer of SOCIETY coming down on him, and he almost has my pity for it.

Sunjammer

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold: Wow! A 2 min Banhammer responce time! That must be a Kotaku record....

Mr.SithNinja

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @todde7: "Let the punishment fit the crime." Hope that clears it up even more for you. That is if you care which you said you don't.

todde7

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Fonic: @baxterpunch:
You know.. even if he is mentally handicapped in some way.. that is unfortunate.. but doesn't excuse his actions.

"You know.. I personally get stressed out more easily than other people.. so I think I should be immune to charges of assault. I mean I just don't have the same coping mechanisms as most people and lose my temper much more easily."

It may be true.. hell everyone is different and have things they can handle and things they can't.. but where do we draw the line in terms of handing out excuses? Excuses don't prevent these tragedies from happening again.

Hey I'm all for individual rights and freedoms.. I think we should let people do whatever the hell they want so long as it doesn't hurt anyone else.
But once it does we need to switch our priorities away from protecting the single person that is the cause of the problem and immediately look to what best serves the community, society, rest of us affected by their actions.

Here is an extreme and admittedly ridiculous scenario to help make my point. You and a group of survivors are making your way out of a zombie infected city and trying to find refuge. Along the way one of your friends is ambushed and gets bitten. Well you know what happens next right? We either leave them to die or we put them out of their misery ourselves. There is no other choice.. regardless of the fact that it isn't their fault they got bit.. that they won't be able to control their actions when they turn.. yeah it sucks for them. There is no doubt they got dealt a shit hand.. but sympathy is no reason to endanger the rest of the group.

((I swear I wouldn't use this analogy in any other forum but it should be understood with this particular audience.)) ;p

Bastard11

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Krytha: I'm totally fine with public hangings. Understand now? I'm trying to say that I agree that you can get to a point where you can go overboard in punishment. But, in this situation it is not the case.

todde7

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @lanion: Feel free to make your own blog then!

With your account now BANNED I am quite sure you will have LOTS of time for that.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> this is not game news. why is this posted here.

If someone threw an ipod at someone it wouldn't show up on gizmodo. wtf.

lanion

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> (~_~)

yashichi8bit

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I live in York, and saw this article this morning. I for one, know that it isn't the games, it's York itself. This city is so horrible, crime is everywhere, drugs on every corner, this isn't a surprise at all in this damned city.

Kanadwen

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I feel sick... poor toddler. That sick bastard robbed her of the only life she, and the rest of us will ever get, this one.

He deserves to fry.

And guys, leave religion out of this. It has no real place in the REAL world...

humongous_mouse

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> This is fucked. Any sick fuck who would even remotely consider the decision to beat a child like this needs to be tortured for years on end before eventually being fed to sharks. Nothing could possibly make up for the wretched act, but this person shouldn't be spared because of it.

Death penalty. Now.

cybereal

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> The girl's mother is 19 years old.

That strikes me as significant, somehow.

Superawesomerad

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Krytha: Sounds to me like you wanna pat the guy on the head, give him a great big hug, and tell him it's not his fault.

In case you missed it, he savagely beat a 2 your old girl to death. That is not a "mistake" (to use your terminology). That is a reflection of who he is. He is an evil person. He should be removed from, not just society, but the world permanently.

You can phycho-babble it all you want. Blah-blah-blah, he was abused himself, blah-blah-blah, Daddy didn't love him, blah-blah-blah, he is chemically unbalanced, so on, and so forth. None of that means a goddamn thing.

All that matters is that a little girl is dead by his intentional hand. She will no longer be able to experience life....why should he be able to?

Mr.SithNinja

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @bigman88zz: There's always the stereotype that girls like the "bad guys." Honestly, I don't take stock in it as I'm a pretty nice guy/geek and I've had no shortages of dates.

I just wonder what does attract women to these guys. Do they assume that abusing a child is normal?

battra92

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @baxterpunch: You put forth the idea of altering someone's genetics to make them suitable for society and say I seek to play God?

My point about not equating witch burnings and putting murders to death is that in the case of witch burnings or lynchings, the victim was a victim. They did nothing wrong, yet were killed. They were innocent. Here we have someone who beat a child to death. They are not the same. Not to me anyway.

Also, I would assume that if he were mentally retarded, the article would mention it. It would be quite important to the story after all.

Fonic

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I hope that motherfucker gets absolutely destroyed in jail. And knowing how childkillers are traditionally treated in prison, my guess is he will be. You asked for it, now take your fucking medicine you piece of shit.

Nothing makes me blindly furious like this kind of thing. And anyone making a joke out of this post need an apocalyptic cock-punch from another dimension.

Sunjammer

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I didn't mean to hang around in a controversial story which is tenuously related to gaming (at best) and I'm going to get out of here quick.

@todde7: I have no idea what you're trying to say here. First you equate public hanging with less crime but condemn regression and then start talking about balance. Are you agreeing with me? Are you disagreeing with me? This guy is going to jail. That is a consequence. The rest of your post is like you're agreeing with me sort of. I don't really know... or care at this point...

@Fonic: The tragedy is in your thinking that we MUST punish him violently, that he is now reaping what he has sown. You said "Therefore, even if tragedy does beget tragedy, that is irrelevant to this case." No, it is probably THE most relevant thing in this whole story (cuz it sure ain't vidjogames!) Do you think this guy was raised by two loving parents? How do you think this situation started in the first place?
Then you said "Secondly, putting a murderer to death is not about bringing the victim back. It's about making an example in the hopes that future potential murderers will think twice about doing such things, as well as lessening the financial burden on society that keeping such an individual in prison would cause." Um ok. Well, by your logic I think we've made enough examples of murderers that we should be living in a murder free society by now. Is something not working? Are you sure you set the chair to deep fry? Somebody earlier said that the process of killing a guy in the legal system was more expensive than his maintenance for his term. I have no idea if it is true or not, but I doubt you know the actual numbers either.

You said "You see punishment as always ending poorly, but I see your mentality as the one that ends poorly. There are genuinely evil people in this world and forgiving them just gives them the opportunity to put another knife in your back so to speak." What is a "genuinely evil person"? Are people born evil? Original sin and all that? Or are certain people just bad and that's all there is to it? Nobody is created this way. There are biological tendencies, but overwhelming consideration has to be given to social circumstances. Punishing people who have never had a chance in our lopsided society is what allows a cycle of violence to perpetuate itself.

"I also have to ask, would you "nurture" and "love" someone who did this to your child?" I'm not Christian and I don't love everyone and pray for their souls night in and out, but forgiveness would have to suffice. It's one form of closure, and seeing this guy not as a psychopathic serial killer, but a person who has never had the opportunities many of us have is a definite step in the right direction. Killing this dude is not going to make an example of him, nor is it going to make things right.

That's right. I'm a hippie leftist commie pig. Praise Mother Russia!

Krytha

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> What kind of controller?

Asurastrike

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @deathbunny: "Follow your own advice. Or at least notice when you aren't."

Done. Normally I try to abide by what I say I do, but I couldn't have explained myself any other way in this instance.

caleb

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Bastard11: Oh dip, you aren't just being antagonistic. Just ignore my previous comment.

baxterpunch

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Witzbold:

I just find it strange. I've got a large number of followers and friends (comparative to everyone else, not you), and I have been featured on "A Week In Comments" and "Multitap" multiple times.

So, I guess I am just suspecting that the editors hate me. :P

Ok, enough emo-jabbering, back to the subject at hand. Who has the tar, because I'm bringing the feathers.

PapaBear434

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Bastard11: "You know how we got here in the first place?
This fucking hippy liberal christian pansie bullshit that you preach."

You really think that was a completely reasonable statement? Really? Why would I need to distill anything when you do it so well yourself?

Sorry if I just pointed to the word "christian." I should have realized that the words "fucking,""pansie," and "bullshit" provided the context needed to make that sentence reasonable. I apologize if I can't provide a word for word analysis of your obviously complex and well thought out comment.

I'll try harder next time...oh wait, actually I won't.

baxterpunch

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @Duphman2:

Clusterfucs?

PapaBear434

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @PapaBear434: Dont worry about the star, since personally I would prefer not to have one. Because

1: I know most folks know me

and

2: Those who dont know me will very quickly if they step out of line.

Im sure you will wind up with one eventually since you still do comment quite a bit and something you say should catch the editors eye in time.

---

On the thing about reform that you were talking about yeah Id have to agree with you there. My own personal opinion while it matters jack shit, I seriously think those who beat a child to death have little to no remorse over one who kills another adult. Thats just my own personal view now and I aint gonna go any deeper into it than that. But yeah I do agree that I dont think reform programs is going to work for this guy.

Witzbold

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> ::edit post:: possibly

Sorry...it was a fast response...

caleb

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> I don't really see them attacking the video game industry, but it can be construed as them attacking video game players (as being violent, not in-touch with reality, and in general idiotic prats). But, as we all know, only a small handful of gamers are that effed up, just as only a few gun owners are psychotic and homicidal, and only a few kitchen knife owners decide to use them to stab people with. I can guarantee that if he'd used a (forgive me for being crass, mates) baseball bat, there'd be no fall out for the Louisville Slugger or Mizuno people. But, this is what makes news nowadays, since so many politicians are catering to parents who have NO idea how to raise their own kids.

shinykid

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @caleb: "Don't spew your generalization's on how we should and shouldn't react to what surrounds us or how we should feel about something."

Follow your own advice. Or at least notice when you aren't.

deathbunny

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> Wow that went to crap pretty quickly. Maybe tommorow we'll get a Resident Evil 5 update for addition clusterf***s.

Duphman2

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @baxterpunch:
"You don't know this man, neither do I, yet you ask for his death based on a couple hundred words you read on the internet?"

This was a good and sobering statement though, I'll give you that one. ;)

Bastard11

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @PapaBear434: Well, if you ask me, you should have one. I wasn't debating that. :)

Jandlecack

]]> <![CDATA[Toddler Dies Following Game Controller Beating]]> @deathbunny: Sorry for the late response, I am @ work and just dropped back in and lo-and-behold I have a witty response to one of my posts. My posts are few and far between normaly, I sit and enjoy the posts by others but today I was greeted by a garbage post, period. Following the garbage post was a longer, response to the overall "feeling" of everyone's posts done well with umbrella statements and all. And to be clear that I didn't mis-read any of your original post, here it is in broken down form.

"You know... whining and grousing over a tragedy which you cannot possibly have a personal connection to, and cannot possibly differentiate from 1000s of similar tragedies that happened today, makes you weak and obnoxious. "

Weak and obnoxious couldn't be more unappropriate labels. Did I know the little girl personally, no I didn't. Having any form a personal relationship with or being directly attached to doesn't take anything…anything away from how horrible of an act it is to take a childs life. Your right man, 1000's of similar tragedies happen daily and for each one that I ever catch wind of…it does and will continue to envoke feelings of pain, symathy and grief because there is nothing on earth like knowing the joy of what a child can bring, how much love they are capable of giving and what potential they have…

"Then, invoking some kind of hand of god, like the ban hammer, or hell, or prison rape, to make you feel like you have some kind of power to stop horrible things from happening makes you laughable."

What's laughable is that you thought we were under the impression that the responses to the "garbage posts" would stop horrible events from happening…no, no, no…the reactions to the "garbage posts" were spot on and shouldn't have come as a surprise by any means. The reactions were intended to stop horrible posts from continuing. Period.

"You can't have a legitimate reaction to every tragedy that happens in the world, or you would be paralyzed. Going insane just because someone set this in front of you makes you a dumb animal. Human beings would have something useful to say."

I can't? Thanks for clearing that up. Common guy, stop and think about what your tossing on the intertubes. A reaction is what we were built to have happen when something triggers us emotionally, or physically. The legitimacy of it is between you and yourself. Being hurt that something like this happened to that little girl falls under legitimate in my books. Again judging by this post, it appears that we are on different pages, but then again I didn't ask you to be co-author of my book of "How I should feel" by Skinny Caleb.

"Here's an example: [www.thedvshelter.com]
you can send them your old cell phones so that they can help communicate with people who need help."

Send the phones brother, that's great. In fact here is another option that possiblely has a local drop off spot! [www.cellphonesforlife.org]

"Everyone who's wasting time talking about hell and prison and death penalty should do something useful or die in a fire (teh lolz! See what I did there? See how stupid it was? Reflect on the stupidity). Be a human being and do something about it, or ignore it. But don't spew emo crap on someone just because you have a kid, and you experienced a momentary gut-panic."

Here is where I first responded and where I am going to end this post: Don't spew your generalization's on how we should and shouldn't react to what surrounds us or how we should feel about something. Proofread your original post and listen to how you sounded, while your at it look at that little girls picture before and after you do.

caleb

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