tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408560922017496252.post2465553671755627970..comments2008-02-29T10:05:26.760-08:00Comments on KawallerBlog: Dumb Kid Gets Hate-Crime Allegation on Top of Miserable FutureBen Kawallerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02075626451272837825noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408560922017496252.post-41727073149762427662008-02-29T10:05:00.000-08:002008-02-29T10:05:00.000-08:00Your entry definitely made an impression on me. Fi...Your entry definitely made an impression on me. First of all, to use a "Remembering Larry King" group to self-promote and get people to come here to read your opinion on the subject, that just seems low. You write, "I blogged on this (kinda)." Kinda = understatement. <BR/>Beside that point, let me say that I think our criminal justice system is completely messed up, ignoring the concept of rehabilitation completely and more or less does very little good for our society. So I think we both agree that this Brandon kid has a bleak future in front of him.<BR/>But what upsets me is your cavalier dismissal of hate-crime at its very core. Who are you to make guesses at why this child committed this crime--you say perhaps he was gay? Perhaps he was questioning his own attractions? Perhaps he was asserting his manhood out of these fears? This does not change the fact that he acted out his fear, and his hate, by resorting to violence. Perhaps that hate was fed to him by society, but it was still something within him that he acted out in the name of. <BR/>And, by giving less power to language like "fag" and the people who use it, I believe we are only keeping the door open for hate crimes. This kid felt that being a fag and being associated with fags was a scary enough, terrible enough thing that he should resort to violence. If we, as a society, don't change the general perception of GLBT people, if we don't take a strong stand that the word "fag" and others like it are not appropriate, we are just fueling the fear...making children think that homosexuality is a terrible enough thing that if associated with it, life has to end.<BR/>In this case, the life that ended was that of an innocent person. And I do think that this poor killer does represent more of a society's undoing and a society's falling apart than his own personal downfall, but unfourtantely he made a choice that in many ways is supported by mainstream American culture and he does have to deal with the consequences of that. <BR/>There is no easy answer, but to say this wasn't a hate crime is completely off in my opinion. Now, whether it was a hate crime committed by one child or a whole culture, that is something I would be willing to debate.That Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03389667167162914123noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408560922017496252.post-75236856540595593192008-02-22T10:46:00.000-08:002008-02-22T10:46:00.000-08:00I agree to a certain extent. You have to be sick t...I agree to a certain extent. You have to be sick to stand there and point blank end the life of someone who had never shown anything but love to you, and he SHOULD be punished and tried with a hate crime. DEF not life, and maybe not as an adult, but this is what he did. This is his punishment, and this is his lesson to learn.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408560922017496252.post-40222049922513090952008-02-18T18:36:00.000-08:002008-02-18T18:36:00.000-08:00Ben Kawaller joined the group Remembering Lawrence...Ben Kawaller joined the group Remembering Lawrence King.Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01008162886941682988noreply@blogger.com