Narnia Yet another poster who realises that Penguin68 recycles daily mail / book read rot - without the intelligence of their own formed opinion. I would dearly love to meet he/she to discuss some of the posts which I now watch closely! ------------------------------------------------------- > Narnia wrote :- > > Quote: > penguin68:Young men and violence are easy > bedfollows > > > On what grounds can you possibly justify this > statement? If you can't then I won't take anything > you write seriously. > > I think you will find that almost all reported > acts of mindless (gang) violence in our streets > are associated with young men (there are some girl > gangs, but relatively few). I am not saying that > all young men are violent, but that when men are > young, testosterone fuelled (as young men are) and > wanting to make their mark in a sociey, violence > is a typical response. Add alcohol as a > disinhibiter (and very many do) and you have a > recipe for violence. > > There are some 'young middle aged' violent men > (some of the football gangs of the 70s and 80s had > 25-35 year old thugs in them) but, in the main, > violence is a young man's game. You are violent > often when you have nothing much to lose (no > family yet to support, often no job worth it's > name to risk losing) when you are physically at a > peak and when you have over-much energy (it's > amazing how a full-time demanding job and > full-time demanding children can wear you out). > > I could refer you, but I won't, to numerous > articles by social anthropologists on the links to > gang or group violence and late adolesence, and > how this normally dissipates over time. And the > numerous studies showing how male children have a > tendancy to play-act violent confrontations (Cops > & Robbers, Cowboys and Indians in my day). Many > young (male) animals also 'play-fight' and then, > as young adults, really fight over mates etc. > > The young have two things going for them, physcial > vigour and a sense of personal immortality. > Without those we wouldn't have the necessary fuel > to sustain the wars that older men (politicians) > get others to undertake for them.