As you are all aware, knife culture is a current media theme and associated programs are everywhere. It seems to me that the media is representing knife culture as existing solely in black communities, I wonder if this is media misrepresentation or is it fact?

 

One particular program on TV earlier tonight was about knives but mostly focused on the black community without saying so in as many words. Is it a black issue? I know it affects everybody but what's causing it, where’s it coming from? Is it another American import?

 

Any views would be very much appreciated. I feel this really is a very important issue and merits a bit of good discussion and all your comments are very important. Nothing racist though please as that’s not where I coming from.

 

Anyone care to comment?

 

Regards,

 

Chris

White and Asian youths also carry knives, so it is media misrepresentation.

 

The media also give the impression that more stabbings are occurring than normal but that also is untrue.

There was a debate about it on radio 2 last week.

Some posh sounding white bloke said he carried a knife for self defence.

 

It is a bit worrying. The problem is youngsters / people who watch too many of the wrong sort of rap music videos IMHO (I bet I sound like my dad LOL). Stupid kids in gangs of 20.

It seems every time something occurs, the media quickly cry out theres a 'culture' of something, we're no more a 'knife culture' than we are a culture of people 'who wear shoes'. I'm not saying knife carrying isn't widespread, I'm just criticising the media's need for labelling.

e.g 'institutional racism', viewed collectively an organisation is either just plain racist or its not, but thats not enough for the press they have to add the word 'institutional' to make it seem like some sort of worthwhile analysis is going on, even though all these years later 'institutional racism' hasn't been properly defined.

Often 'The Media' are blamed for things unfairly.

 

If knife carrying has becore popular, the phrase 'knife carrying culture' is not unreasonable IMO.

 

'Shoe wearing culture' would be acceptable and accurate but it's not news so doesn't get mentioned.

 

I thought 'institutional racism' refered to racism which existed within institutions (such as the police / army - for illustrative purposes only).

I think applying labels that use the word 'culture' to individual types of behaviour is a misuse of such a broad label, although I will admit I would be hard pressed to properly use it myself.

 

The problem with 'institutional racism' was that it was never properly defined, some people took it to mean what you said above, another definition (the near official one)was that it described an organisation who was inherently racist because of its official procedures and the actions of its members. Another one meant that collectively the effect of an organisations existence was racist, and another said it had nothing to do with the organsiation itself and that racism was effectively the 'modulus' of all the people that organisation contained. Man, I sure am rambling

Rambling maybe but a good point, well made.

Rambling maybe but a good point, well made.

 

Thanks ;)

:rant: all the reports recently about knifings is the media highlightin whats going on to try an make a point we dont no half of whats going on until the media decide its there little project for the month u dont hear much about afganistan any more but i bet its just as bad but the media have moved on which is a pretty bad state of affairs...........imo :rant:

I know its complete off topic but think back to the culture for 4x4s and mums with MPVs:

- A few mums started driving round in 4x4s

- Media got hold of it and said about how unsafe everyone was with these mothers driving round in 4x4s

- So all the other mothers started driving round in stupidly big cars to protect their children from the other mpv/4x4 driving mothers in defence

- Now everyone drives round in MPVs/Big cars

 

 

Now apply that to knives:

- Media makes big fuss about kids holding knives

- Kids get scared and start to carry knives in defence

- ALL kids carry knives to school!

 

You see where i'm going now?

The other reason for the media hype on knife culture is there is a current knife amnesty.

My personal opinion which will most likely get me shot down in flames is that I would put money on that you MUCH more likely to get stabbed in a fight with a non white person than you are with a white person.

 

Sorry if that offends anyone, its not a racist comment just something ive observed that seams to be true, and im not talking about wtching the telly and them telling me.

My brother was stabbed in the leg while at Mancester unvi and hes a bit sacry kind of bloke it was a gang to 12 very young white lads

FACT. I was approached by as Asian gang a few years back whilst fishing. there were 8 of them aged between 14 and 18 I stood my ground and told them that even though I was out numbered I was taking at least 2 of them out 5 of them pulled blades from their pockets. I pulled my large fishing knife out and they turned away and went.

My mate also got threatened with knives by a gang. They were all white lads. No it aint a black thing its a hooligan thing.

FACT. I was approached by as Asian gang a few years back whilst fishing. there were 8 of them aged between 14 and 18 I stood my ground and told them that even though I was out numbered I was taking at least 2 of them out 5 of them pulled blades from their pockets. I pulled my large fishing knife out and they turned away and went.

My mate also got threatened with knives by a gang. They were all white lads. No it aint a black thing its a hooligan thing.

 

:bow: :bow:

 

Shame you din't have one of those big 'gafs' for hoiking out massive predatory fish.

 

I agree it's hooligans and not a race thing.

Knives are a problem all over the world, not just in the U.K.

 

Youths and olduns carry knives for all sorts of reasons and have done so for ever, and probably still will.

 

Think about this, if you were watching BBC News 24 and the reporter came on and said, "Oh by the way there is a knife amnesty" you wouldn't remember the next day and maybe turn to I.T.V cos its more exciting.

 

So my point is, the news gets written so you listen, and phrases like culture and institutional and wave of violence are used.

good effort vini, that shows the ****ers!! my mate got mugged on saturday by a white guy and a black guy with knives. wasn't guna argue with them.

 

if there is any link between a certain race and particular crimes, it is likely to be as a result of that race being generally less well off (on average) than others in this country. it's all statistics, and statistics are shit.

 

i just hate when people think that being a certain skin colour makes you a criminal!

Just to add a slightly light hearted edge to the thread, my grandad was pretty butch. About 15 years ago he was coming back in the dark from the town centre and got stopped by this hooded youth who said something along the lines of:

 

"Give me your money grandad"

 

And flashed a pocket knife at my grandad

 

Poor kid about sh*t himself when my grandad reaches inside and pulls out a Bowie knife he always carried around in his brown leather shoulder bag and says:

 

"That's not a knife son, this is"

 

Kid runs away :rofl:

 

Strangely enough the same line appeared in crocodile dundee a couple of years later lol

 

He also used to keep said knife under his mattress at night and kept it sharpened every week down the shed. It was cool watching him cut apples into slices for us kids when we went round :D lol

 

My grandad was cool and also slightly mad :D

 

This has been a problem for years. I was accosted in the Barnsley bus station by some white plonker with a Bougey knife. (you know the type like Davy Crocket used) Way back in 1978. The pubs had closed and I was waiting for the last bus, when this scrawny knob in a cap sleeve T shirt covered in tatoos and borstal marks, walk up to me pulls out this sod off knife and asks for my money or he's going to stick me.

 

All I remember was looking at this bloke, Who was evidently off his trolley, with a dotted line tatooed across his neck saying cut here and thinking how fooking dare you threaten my life you peice of sh1t. The rage that welled up in me was unbelievable.

 

I grabbed his arm and twisted it up his back till he dropped the knife and started kick the living daylights out of him. I really lost it.

 

2 coppers came running in to the bus station and pounced on me and started knocking me about, but I just screamed he tryed to knife me and one of the coppers saw it on the floor. They quickley let go of me and where on top of him finishing the job I'd started.

 

I got a un official comendation and no asault charges brought against me.

 

That was 28 years ago. There's always been knobs that what to be hard cos they have no brain to be anything else. So they carry knives or gun so people will fear them, because you wouldn't otherwise. The only difference there's more knob heads around because the Education system is failing boys, there's no corpral punishment, aprenticeships, industrial type jobs (mens work) no national service well no anything to give these guys a purpose, sense of self or moral values or just keep em busy working. So what do we expect.

 

The real worry is with the batch of media arse licking, publicity grabbing politicians we have in the country how is it going to get any better?

Last yr some 15yr old tried to take my mate's phone (his 22) so my mate gave him a slap.

It's kid's what can ya do if a gang come's up to you

The real worry is with the batch of media arse licking, publicity grabbing politicians we have in the country how is it going to get any better?

Agree 100% with you Mark - it's very depressing :(

 

Steve :)

A few years ago there was an incident I dealt with involving a guy that pulled a knife out at a girl in a night club. He was holding it at her throat and I heard him say I will push this through your neck :shock: As he was putting the knife back in his pocket I crunched his windpipe with my left hand and took the knife off him with my right hand.

I then removed him very swiftly from the night club. He came back to the main doors demanding his knife back I told him in so many words to go away and if he had a problem to go and report it to the Police van that was parked at the bottom of the street.

The next thing I know the Police are at the club doors asking to see the knife I have taken from this chap.As I brought the knife to the door he was handcuffed in about .7 of a second what a PLONKER

:rofl: :xxx:

This generation of kids are the worst, i'm 6'5", big build and 25 and some cheeky little sod started throwing snowballs at me last year. And stood his ground when i walked up to him and told him to stop it.

 

They're smoking when they're nine. The whole country's going mad.

 

No fooking respect these days, i feel old saying that :(

This generation of kids are the worst, i'm 6'5", big build and 25 and some cheeky little sod started throwing snowballs at me last year. And stood his ground when i walked up to him and told him to stop it.

 

They're smoking when they're nine. The whole country's going mad.

 

No fooking respect these days, i feel old saying that :(

 

youre right man, me and a mate were skating at a car park in brighton. some lairy little kid who was no more than 5 foot tried pushin my mate around and shoutin and stuff. what the **** gets into them??

 

we just laughed at him and told him he was lucky we were in a good mood, otherwise he coulda been a small pile of 15 year old pikie blood-mush on the floor...

I think applying labels that use the word 'culture' to individual types of behaviour is a misuse of such a broad label, although I will admit I would be hard pressed to properly use it myself.

 

The problem with 'institutional racism' was that it was never properly defined, some people took it to mean what you said above, another definition (the near official one)was that it described an organisation who was inherently racist because of its official procedures and the actions of its members. Another one meant that collectively the effect of an organisations existence was racist, and another said it had nothing to do with the organsiation itself and that racism was effectively the 'modulus' of all the people that organisation contained. Man, I sure am rambling

Not rambling, you sound like one of the reports in my Social Studies Rewiew Mag

good effort vini, that shows the ****ers!! my mate got mugged on saturday by a white guy and a black guy with knives. wasn't guna argue with them.

 

if there is any link between a certain race and particular crimes, it is likely to be as a result of that race being generally less well off (on average) than others in this country. it's all statistics, and statistics are shit.

 

i just hate when people think that being a certain skin colour makes you a criminal!

 

You hit the nail on the head there mate. Poverty will breed crime as people will eventually go to any lenghts to survive and quite rightly too.