Damaging cars for fun

[NormanH]

A tale of a group of young people between 12 and 15, lead by an older one of 26 who went out in his car  throwing stones at windscreens and damaging 45 cars on Christmas and Boxing day night....

http://www.midilibre.fr/2013/01/01/en-deux-virees-ils-caillassent-quarante-cinq-voitures,620450.php

I worked in that college for 5 months  in the late 90s and although it is a pretty little village almost on the coast it was the worst experience of my career

It goes without saying that over 1200 cars were burnt out on New Year's Eve in France as has become a tradition

http://www.lefigaro.fr/actualite-france/2013/01/01/01016-20130101ARTFIG00156-voitures-brulees-une-tradition-qui-reste-vivace.php

[Mr Ceour de Lion II]

Idiots. Be nice if they could be damaged for fun.

[idun]

So what do we do with these vandals?

The namby pamby parts of the human rights act stops any real punishment to anyone, in fact these days, it feels like the only people who are ever left with permanent scars and in some ways punished, are decent folk who do not commit crimes....... otherwise known as the victims of crime.

[Quillan]

I always remember the interview of the man with his burning furniture store in the background that had been in his family for several generations, he was crying. I really felt for the man. it was truly terrible.

These sort of vandals, who are nothing more than common criminals, should be made to clean up after themselves through community work and also be made to help in reconstruction. The phrase something along the line of actions and consequences come to mind.

With the burning of such items as cars they should have their name registered and once working the government should take payments from them directly which in turn are handed over to the insurance companies assuming that they have replaced the victims car.

The problem is however two fold. First the criminals have rights, unlike the victims. Most reasonable people would say that the criminals forgo their rights the minute they commit the crime. Secondly when the idea was broached about these criminals being made to clean up and take a part in reconstruction the trade unions started jumping up and down saying that they would be working for free and that they would be taking their members jobs and livelihood from them.

Personally I think the law should be also changed with reference to looting i.e. give the police the right to shoot them. You only have to shoot a couple and they will soon get the message.

[NormanH]

I think the key is that many vandals don't really have anything to which they are attached and which they value.

I see some a bit older who behave foolishly on scooters and I think that a good punishment for them would be to have the scooters confiscated  until they have passed an advanced course in road safety including seeing images or videos of the potential damage that they could suffer.

However I don't see how you can have a similar effect on those who have nothing to lose.

[woolybanana]

Let us consider the birch for some crimes, particularly of violence.[6]

[PaulT]

I think that when caught and punished (that's a good one) they should be informed that at some time during their life the authorities will turn up and in the case of those who have set light to vehicles their car will be torched and for those who have stolen or vandalised vehicles their car will be crushed. Perhaps with them in the vehicle is a little too far.

[nomoss]

What a pity they closed down the penal colonies in French Guiana, only 60 years ago.

They could have leased out space to UK and others.

 

[idun]

And at the other end of the scale, what should we do with white collar criminals, ie the banking world who has crippled the world economy, because they, as far as I am concerned  acted without regard, in fact with reckless endangerment and that is a criminal act...... and yet they the bankers are living very well.......

 

I do understand the frustration of the young, and lack of self esteem, but still I believe that when they commit crime that the punishment is severe enough to stop them ever doing it again and I don't care if it is the stocks or the birch, no one will come back a second time..... did anyone get birched twice in the Isle of Man?????? That is what I believe is the right thing to do.

[Frederick]

The easiest answer is for the insurance companies to write in a clause that they will not pay out for cars torched  on New Years eve.  That would force drivers to move their cars on that night to a place where they will be safe or sit in them and guard them . Given how this happens every year in Paris if I lived in an area where this was likely to happen no way would I leave my car parked in the street .... Unless I wanted it torched so I could put in a claim

[Quillan]

[quote user="idun"]

And at the other end of the scale, what should we do with white collar criminals, ie the banking world who has crippled the world economy, because they, as far as I am concerned  acted without regard, in fact with reckless endangerment and that is a criminal act...... and yet they the bankers are living very well.......

 

I do understand the frustration of the young, and lack of self esteem, but still I believe that when they commit crime that the punishment is severe enough to stop them ever doing it again and I don't care if it is the stocks or the birch, no one will come back a second time..... did anyone get birched twice in the Isle of Man?????? That is what I believe is the right thing to do.

[/quote]

Many a banks chairman has lost his job over the 2008 collapse but very few of those who actually created the toxic loans have been sacked or punished. This is not good enough, to think that in the case of banks and financial organisations removing the 'head' from the snake fixes the problem is sadly untrue.

Moving on, people have, in modern times, been birched more than once and I quote from Hansard ( http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199697/cmhansrd/vo970129/debtext/70129-29.htm )

"Mr. McAllion: My hon. Friend makes a pertinent point. The hon. Member for Ayr has said in the past that he would like a return to birching or flogging of offenders. Those in favour of birching argue that, once people have been birched, they will not come back for more, but the evidence shows that people were birched more than once. It is not the punishment that deters people from offending, but the circumstances that they live in. Their situations and the people they mix with encourage criminal behaviour. Offenders also tend to believe that they will not get caught, so they do not worry much about the punishment. It is time that Conservative Ministers and Back Benchers began to wake up to that fact."

As my father always said "Punch them on the nose or kick them in the crutch only lasts for so long in their memories. Put your hand in their pocket and take their money will be remembered a lot longer". Of course some of these criminals have no money now but later on they may well have some so deferring the repayment, and repay is what they should be made to do, seems a better idea to me and act as an almost permanent reminder not to do it again.

Also taking in to account what Mr McAllion says about these peoples backgrounds their parents have to take some responsibility as well as does society. I would like to suggest that couples who are unemployed, never worked and have no intention of working should be sterilised after two children. This can be done with implanted contraception for women and chemical castration for the men both of which can be reversed once they start work and have been a productive member of society for a specific length of time.

[sid]

[quote user="Quillan"]

 edited quote    ... Put your hand in their pocket and take their money will be remembered a lot longer...

[/quote]

Isn't this the reason that a lot of people turn to crime, simply because they have no money??   [blink]  I can't see how that helps any more than birching.

 

[Quillan]

[quote user="sid"][quote user="Quillan"]

 edited quote    ... Put your hand in their pocket and take their money will be remembered a lot longer...

[/quote]

Isn't this the reason that a lot of people turn to crime, simply because they have no money??   [blink]  I can't see how that helps any more than birching.

[/quote]

I don't know if some of these people work or not, in the case of the London riots quite a few did but then France is not the UK. My idea is that seeing that in the case we started with many were young and as you say have no money that one day they will work and then they will have to pay. It might work as a deterrent to others, the thought that what you do today can come back many years later to haunt you. Of course if neither will work just shoot them like you would a rabid dog.

[PaulT]

[quote user="Frederick"]The easiest answer is for the insurance companies to write in a clause that they will not pay out for cars torched  on New Years eve.  That would force drivers to move their cars on that night to a place where they will be safe or sit in them and guard them . Given how this happens every year in Paris if I lived in an area where this was likely to happen no way would I leave my car parked in the street .... Unless I wanted it torched so I could put in a claim [/quote]

So you turn the innocent victim in to the person in the wrong if they do not move their car - but to where. Perhaps they should drive up and down an AutoRoute all night.

Now what will our arsonists do - 'we will torch their house cos they are out in their car protecting it'.

[Rabbie]

[quote user="Quillan"][quote user="sid"][quote user="Quillan"]

 edited quote    ... Put your hand in their pocket and take their money will be remembered a lot longer...

[/quote]

Isn't this the reason that a lot of people turn to crime, simply because they have no money??   [blink]  I can't see how that helps any more than birching.

[/quote]

I don't know if some of these people work or not, in the case of the London riots quite a few did but then France is not the UK. My idea is that seeing that in the case we started with many were young and as you say have no money that one day they will work and then they will have to pay. It might work as a deterrent to others, the thought that what you do today can come back many years later to haunt you. Of course if neither will work just shoot them like you would a rabid dog.

[/quote]I think you are over estimating their ability to think let alone to think of the consequences some time in the future.

Of course while France is in the EU and the Conseil d'Europe there is no way you would be able to shoot them however tempting it may be[6]

[Rabbie]

[quote user="Quillan"][quote user="sid"][quote user="Quillan"]

 edited quote    ... Put your hand in their pocket and take their money will be remembered a lot longer...

[/quote]

Isn't this the reason that a lot of people turn to crime, simply because they have no money??   [blink]  I can't see how that helps any more than birching.

[/quote]

I don't know if some of these people work or not, in the case of the London riots quite a few did but then France is not the UK. My idea is that seeing that in the case we started with many were young and as you say have no money that one day they will work and then they will have to pay. It might work as a deterrent to others, the thought that what you do today can come back many years later to haunt you. Of course if neither will work just shoot them like you would a rabid dog.

[/quote]I think you are over estimating their ability to think let alone to think of the consequences some time in the future.

Of course while France is in the EU and the Conseil d'Europe there is no way you would be able to shoot them however tempting it may be[6]

[Quillan]

[quote user="Rabbie"]I think you are over estimating their ability to think let alone to think of the consequences some time in the future.

Of course while France is in the EU and the Conseil d'Europe there is no way you would be able to shoot them however tempting it may be[6]

[/quote]

Yea, your probably right on both counts. [:(]

[Chancer]

[quote user="Frederick"]The easiest answer is for the insurance companies to write in a clause that they will not pay out for cars torched  on New Years eve.  That would force drivers to move their cars on that night to a place where they will be safe or sit in them and guard them . Given how this happens every year in Paris if I lived in an area where this was likely to happen no way would I leave my car parked in the street .... Unless I wanted it torched so I could put in a claim [/quote]

But I dont think in many or indeed any cases its the insurers that will be footing the bill but the government AKA les contribuables, there is some crazy law/act that declares that when there are riots or civil disobedience and I think it specifically mentions public fêtes that the government indemnises the losses (sorry for my failing English).

I am hoping that someone will be able to point me in the direction of the info so that I can be clear, I may have misinterpreted it.

Certainly in Amiens Nord it is known in advance which cars are going to spontaneously conbust and for every car that is moved well away 5 others will be parked really close to it, the drivers having to get out via the windows and sunroofs.

Despite the god fearing never being able to cancel the insurance on their old and unroadworthy vehicles I am told that most of these are not even insured but the owners get paid out and of course their bonus is not affected.

[BIG MAC]

In the world according to BIG MAC..

The apprehended miscreants should have the costs of their crime registered as a legal debt that must be fully discharged before they can recieve any state benefits , loans, the use of plastic bank cards, health care. Basically if they can't give a sh17 about their fellow citizens why should the aggrieved make it easy for them?

 

[ebaynut]

Ahhhh, the joys of living in a cosmopolitan, multi-cultural, ethnically diverse community.  :-)