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NEWS: 4 Middle Schoolers Arrested for Threatening Akihabara Otaku for Money


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configspace



Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 3717
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 3:52 am Reply with quote
I think by the time you are 14 or 15, you should be able to defend yourself. And conversely, a beating would provide just accountability.

It's too bad that they couldn't provide that justice themselves.
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mewpudding101
Industry Insider


Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Posts: 2210
Location: Tokyo, Japan
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 6:30 am Reply with quote
configspace wrote:
I think by the time you are 14 or 15, you should be able to defend yourself. And conversely, a beating would provide just accountability.

It's too bad that they couldn't provide that justice themselves.


I can't believe you just said that. These people are victims who were targeted, and absolutely didn't deserve this. I really hope you are being sarcastic.

These people are going to probably be scarred for life because of this. Just because they are guys doesn't mean they are equipped to not be MUGGED on the street, something that happens to lots of people, man or woman.
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nhat



Joined: 21 Jan 2008
Posts: 922
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 6:47 am Reply with quote
configspace wrote:
I think by the time you are 14 or 15, you should be able to defend yourself. And conversely, a beating would provide just accountability.

It's too bad that they couldn't provide that justice themselves.


Maybe if they're not using weapons and its 1v1 but they're travelling in groups and most likely have a knife or something.
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TsunaReborn!



Joined: 08 Sep 2012
Posts: 4713
Location: Cheltenham UK
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 6:53 am Reply with quote
configspace wrote:
It's too bad that they couldn't provide that justice themselves.


Yes because two wrongs make a right...
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configspace



Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 3717
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 8:58 am Reply with quote
mewpudding101 wrote:
configspace wrote:
I think by the time you are 14 or 15, you should be able to defend yourself. And conversely, a beating would provide just accountability.

It's too bad that they couldn't provide that justice themselves.


I can't believe you just said that. These people are victims who were targeted, and absolutely didn't deserve this. I really hope you are being sarcastic.

These people are going to probably be scarred for life because of this. Just because they are guys doesn't mean they are equipped to not be MUGGED on the street, something that happens to lots of people, man or woman.

Of course they didn't deserve it. However, using the word MUGGED gives the wrong impression. It's more accurate to say that they were BULLIED into giving their money away by the other teens. The perps didn't have any weapons (but if they did, so too should everyone be armed)

What I'm saying is that had the victims actually tried to defend themselves, they would've likely been in trouble too, and that is the part I am lamenting, with the unfortunate trend in encouraging this attitude.

TsunaReborn! wrote:
Yes because two wrongs make a right...

No, they would be righting the wrongs.
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Polycell



Joined: 16 Jan 2012
Posts: 4623
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 9:10 am Reply with quote
configspace wrote:
Of course they didn't deserve it. However, using the word MUGGED gives the wrong impression. It's more accurate to say that they were BULLIED into giving their money away by the other teens. The perps didn't have any weapons (but if they did, so too should everyone be armed)
That the threat was of a beating doesn't change the fact that these boys were extortionists.
Quote:
What I'm saying is that had the victims actually tried to defend themselves, they would've likely been in trouble too, and that is the part I am lamenting, with the unfortunate trend in encouraging this attitude.
You're assuming the victims were even able to do so - even had the situation been one-on-one, there's zero reason to believe this was a fight any of the victims could win(I would imagine few otaku have any martial arts training).
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revolutionotaku



Joined: 19 May 2011
Posts: 899
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 9:58 am Reply with quote
I was once pickpocketed while at an outdoor flea market in Akihabara back in 2011. I didn't even feel it. Whoever did that must've been a ninja. Thankfully, it was just a small ziplock bag with coins less than 1,000 yen (around $10). The rest of my large currency was in a specially made fanny pack located beneath my underwear.
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revolutionotaku



Joined: 19 May 2011
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PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 9:58 am Reply with quote
I was once pickpocketed while at an outdoor flea market in Akihabara back in 2011. I didn't even feel it. Whoever did that must've been a ninja. Thankfully, it was just a small ziplock bag with coins less than 1,000 yen (around $10). The rest of my large currency was in a specially made fanny pack located beneath my underwear.
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kei0kusanagi



Joined: 23 May 2013
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 10:00 am Reply with quote
Ya'll are making this difficult. They target otakus in Akihabara because they have money and probably because they wouldn't defend themselves. Don't forget, they are Otaku. I mean, would you target someone who clearly carries a gun? go up to them as say "Give me your money"...NOPE.
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kei0kusanagi



Joined: 23 May 2013
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PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 10:02 am Reply with quote
revolutionotaku wrote:
I was once pickpocketed while at an outdoor flea market in Akihabara back in 2011. I didn't even feel it. Whoever did that must've been a ninja. Thankfully, it was just a small ziplock bag with coins less than 1,000 yen (around $10). The rest of my large currency was in a specially made fanny pack located beneath my underwear.


Hahahaha good place to keep the big bills Rolling Eyes
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configspace



Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 3717
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 11:49 am Reply with quote
Polycell wrote:
Quote:
What I'm saying is that had the victims actually tried to defend themselves, they would've likely been in trouble too, and that is the part I am lamenting, with the unfortunate trend in encouraging this attitude.
You're assuming the victims were even able to do so - even had the situation been one-on-one, there's zero reason to believe this was a fight any of the victims could win(I would imagine few otaku have any martial arts training).

The problem is that they've been discouraged to do so. But the legal, and especially the social environment, needs to disincentive the perps from attempting such victimization, to create an environment where it shouldn't be so easy to pull off in the first place. They don't even need to win absolutely or fought by themselves, or they could have tried to escape, and/or calling around for help (not just keep silent during the threat as I'm 99% sure they did). The environment should be where someone else would help out. But that is also discouraged, both culturally and legally for liability (the later also being true in the US)

In fact it's kind of useless relying on the police as the first line of "defense" since it's allowing it to happen and giving them opportunity to get away.

Like was mentioned:
kei0kusanagi wrote:
Ya'll are making this difficult. They target otakus in Akihabara because they have money and probably because they wouldn't defend themselves. Don't forget, they are Otaku. I mean, would you target someone who clearly carries a gun? go up to them as say "Give me your money"...NOPE.

I'd say the arrest isn't effective in changing the attitude of: "Hey, let's pick on otaku kids! They'll just give us their money and we don't even have to do anything!"

It'll probably just lead them in being more careful next time: "But what someone sees us?" "No worries, we'll wear those coughing masks and sunglasses"
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vangelionite88



Joined: 09 Dec 2009
Posts: 285
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 1:21 pm Reply with quote
no balls, no balls.

one day i was walking to a freinds house, i was with my two freinds and these three other kids stand infront of us, the one in the middle pulled a gun on me and pressed it against my neck, except when he gave it a squeeze i realized it was a plastic gun, he gripped it hard and told me to give him my money, i actually had 80 bucks on me coincidentally enough that was the first year I went to the anime expo, I was not going to give him shit, so i step forward and without a word my freinds follow, the kids infront just let us through, they said some shit afterwards but we kept walking.....
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Otaku_X



Joined: 25 Nov 2008
Posts: 298
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 4:35 pm Reply with quote
revolutionotaku wrote:
I was once pickpocketed while at an outdoor flea market in Akihabara back in 2011. I didn't even feel it. Whoever did that must've been a ninja. Thankfully, it was just a small ziplock bag with coins less than 1,000 yen (around $10). The rest of my large currency was in a specially made fanny pack located beneath my underwear.


This is why when I go to cons, I always either keep my wallet in my front pocket (which is annoying, and hard to remember to do, but makes it more noticeable if someone's trying to take it) or wear a chained wallet. Granted, nobody's ever tried to take my wallet at a con, and when a friend of mine lost his, it was found and returned with nothing stolen, but still, better safe than sorry. When there's 30,000 people in one place, odds are there's a few willing to do something underhanded for one more figure.
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DeathScytheRuler



Joined: 14 Oct 2012
Posts: 103
PostPosted: Fri May 24, 2013 11:27 pm Reply with quote
vangelionite88 wrote:
no balls, no balls.

one day i was walking to a freinds house, i was with my two freinds and these three other kids stand infront of us, the one in the middle pulled a gun on me and pressed it against my neck, except when he gave it a squeeze i realized it was a plastic gun, he gripped it hard and told me to give him my money, i actually had 80 bucks on me coincidentally enough that was the first year I went to the anime expo, I was not going to give him shit, so i step forward and without a word my freinds follow, the kids infront just let us through, they said some shit afterwards but we kept walking.....


So because they didn't fight them off, they don't have any 'balls'?

Also, do you really think that your little 'story' makes you look like a tougher person?
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Adamb15



Joined: 10 Jan 2012
Posts: 115
PostPosted: Sat May 25, 2013 1:55 am Reply with quote
(Old man voice)

Ehhhh. Damn kids.
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