« A Gift From On High | Main | New Episode of Pure Pod for Now People! »
Monday, May 14, 2007
Portland Big Swarms of Teenagers
Posted by on Mon, May 14 at 1:06 PM
An Oregonian editorial that ran today is getting plenty of play in local blogs: Several people have raised smart criticisms about the knee-jerky editorial.
The O rails against “big swarms of teenagers, called ‘flash mobs,’ collecting in various hot spots around the city,” and calls on Police Chief Rosie Sizer and District Attorney Mike Schrunk to “make it an urgent priority to reach them.”
As b!X correctly points out, the O’s really showing it’s age with this editorial—just because you have a big group of kids (and just because city staffers have been using the term), doesn’t mean these groups are “flash mobs.” A flash mob—if you’ve never attended an impromptu pillow fight at Pioneer Square—is a group of people out to do something silly for a few minutes, then vanish. They were all the rage a year or two ago. They had nothing to do with kids out at night, gathering to socialize.
Or, as Scott just said, it’s like Grandpa just learned a new word, and was eager to use it.
And as Amanda Fritz says in her blog entry today, the O doesn’t do a very good job about explaining what’s wrong with groups of teens hanging out in our city. “What kinds of problems are these crowds of teenagers causing? How are they ‘intimidating and inherently dangerous’?” she asks.
The closest the O comes to explaining what’s the matter with these erroneously named “flash mobs” is this: “These kids have no business being anywhere but their own homes, but there aren’t very many options for handling these kids.”
Okay. Kids should stay home. Because the city’s daily paper says so.
I have a better idea—how about encouraging our city’s kids to be out and about, socializing and doing fun things the city has to offer (and we should offer a hell of a lot more to our city’s youth, so they don’t feel that congregating in a park is their most entertaining option). As long as the kids aren’t breaking any laws—and I’m not talking about curfews, either, as I think we should do away with those—I don’t see the harm in leaving them alone.
Comments
You mean, is "flash mobs" the O's shorthand for "large crowds of black teenagers—panic!"
This is no joke! According to the editorial, these kids "text-message each other on their cell phones about where to go next, keeping one step ahead of the police."
With those type of technological skills, who knows what these "flash mobs" are capable of! What's next, these kids will start using the internet?!
Amy: I thought everyone understood by now, that's what "Flashmobs" means?
You're right, though. That's what I think they're trying to do with the term.
At least they are not bowling alone http://www.bowlingalone.com/ If they had something more fun and creative to do, they would do it. Maybe they are.
In our society, large numbers hanging out on the street and talking is considered threatening. Like the day laborers. In other countries it's the social fabric.
Personally I find large numbers of police hanging out on the street disturbing.
(and we should offer a hell of a lot more to our city’s youth, so they don’t feel that congregating in a park is their most entertaining option)
This, ultimately, is the key point. Where is the city -- or our newspaper of record -- when it comes to helping to remove obstacles to things such as (just to name one) all-ages clubs and music venues?
We give huge tax breaks to high-end real estate developments. How about tax breaks for (to name another) local coffeeshops to stay open late so people -- including kids -- have somewhere to go?
Etc etc.
Here's the city with regards to one all-ages club: http://www.portlandmercury.com/portland/Content?oid=293360&category=22101
What, kids don't sit around at the Roxy until 4am chain-smoking and reading Camus? That's what I did as a 15-year-old and I think I turned out okay.
Simply asinine.
This feels rather like "fuel on the fire" now. I'm sorry we ran it...
http://www.portlandmercury.com/portland/Content?oid=55916&category=22101
On Saturday, August 19, a crowd of somewhere between 120 and 150 kids, mostly African American, reportedly trashed more cars, and threw rocks at police who were trying to stop a fight between two girls. That incident happened two blocks from the Pattersons' home, at Kerby and Skidmore. One car owner who confronted the kids was brutally beaten, according to the police.
Yeah, no cause for concern there. Just stay inside with your head tucked between your legs while the little bastards destroy your property. Gods, how I hate teenagers....never thought I'd say that...
Comments Closed
In order to combat spam, we are no longer accepting comments on this post (or any post more than 45 days old).
Our Friends
- UrbanHonking
- Your Daily Awesome
- Portland Metroblogs
- Hype Machine
- Lelo in NoPo
- Furious Nads!
- Oregon Media Insiders
- Huffington Post
- Loaded Orygun
- Food Fight Grocery
- Jesus Christ's Blog
- Willamette Week
- BlueOregon
- Pampelmoose
- The Etchasketchist
Our Enemies
- Russian Amputee Brides
- God Hates Fags (Westboro Baptist Church)
- Portland Indy Media
- Oregon Republican Party
- Jack Bog's Blog
- The Stranger
- Men Who Look Like Kenny Rogers
- Any Dumbass Still Using MySpace
- Portland Monthly
- Life Decisions International
- Courtney Taylor-Taylor
- The Earthly Minions of Emperor Klaktu
All contents © 2006 Index Publishing • Privacy Policy • Contact Info • Production Guidelines
The O editorial smacks of fear-mongering, and am I wrong in detecting the faintest whiff of a racist subtext?