The Use Of The Word, "lynching" In The Media.

[WindyCityJames]

Does anyone else feel that the use of this word marginalizes the victim of the theft and paints the ladrón as the victim? Something doesn't sit right with me about this. Thoughts?

 

[ajoknoblauch]

Does anyone else feel that the use of this word marginalizes the victim of the theft and paints the ladrón as the victim? Something doesn't sit right with me about this. Thoughts?

Given that it's mob "justice," with no chance for the accused to defend himself, lynching is indeed an appropriate term - unless you limit the term to stringing up someone from a tree. Even if he's guilty, theft is not (or should not be) a capital crime. There is no death penalty in Argentina, unless you count the gatillo fácil by the police.

 

[PhilipDT]

I think the word has far stronger negative connotations in English than it does in Spanish and for that reason probably doesn't marginalize the crime that much.

 

[Davidglen77]

When I was about 10 years old, my Uncle Tony (RIP) who was a tall, dark and handsome guy, living in the Bronx with his wife in a ground floor apartment, was awoken by an armed burglar who forced apart the steel bars of his window and broke in to his apartment at 3 o'clock in the morning. My Uncle beat the daylights out of him, broke both of his arms and tied the guy up with sheets, and then called the police. When the police got there they beat the guy up some more and then took the burglar to the hospital and my Uncle and his wife down to the 52nd precinct stationhouse. They had to give statements, and were there for hours. Then the burglar filed a lawsuit against my Uncle and the police, which went on for months and my Uncle having to go to court and miss work for more than 10 days......and while the case was dismissed, the hospital tried to sue my Uncle for the burglar's medical expenses. This went on for several years, with my Uncle having to pay a lawyer to get the situation straightened out. My Uncle and his wife were so distressed by all of this, that they moved to another state and felt that they were treated unjustly when they were the actual victims.

In January of 2013 I was walking along Cerrito in front of Teatro Colón, about to cross Tucumán when the light changed. I was waiting on the corner while the light was red. I was carrying my briefcase/bag which has a long shoulder strap and I wear across my body. I took the bag off to open it and while I was holding it in both hands, a moto passed by within inches of where I was standing and the guy tried to grab it out of my hands. I unconsiously reacted with a kick and pull and the guy fell of the bike, on top of his leg and in front of several people. I was shocked and so were some of the people around me a couple realized what just happened and others scurried away. I still don't know who called the police but in 3 minutes there were a good 10 officers surrounding us. The guy on the floor was screaming in pain and said that I just kicked him off the bike. An older couple stayed as I was shaken up and cursing and told the police what they had seen. An ambulance took the idiot on the ground away and they took me and the couple to the comisaría. They and I both gave statements and a couple of days later I got a telegram from the fiscalía saying I had to present myself on such and such date. I went and was told I was being charged with assault and vandalism. I called my lawyer and he said that I was better off with a public defender as they know how to deal with this. So I contacted the fiscalía and told them I wanted a public defender, I was assigned one. The next meeting (audiencia) it's called, the lawyer requested the video from the security cameras in the area on the date of the incident from the Policía Metropolitana. They made a formal request and at the next audiencia, it was turned over to the fiscalía. It showed exactly what happened, the guy leaned over while he was passing me and tried to grab my briefcase and I raised my leg (looked like Bruce Lee) and I jerked my bag at the same time while his hand was on it, causing him to pop off the bike and fall over. That combined with the statement from the very nice older couple who witnessed the incident was enough for the public prosecutor. I was cleared. Thank goodness for the cameras....all in all I missed about 3 days of work and quite a bit of stress. Be careful out there!

 

[wineguy999]

http://www.clarin.com/opinion/Solicitadas-chorros-linchadores_0_1115288600.html

 

[GS_Dirtboy]

I always associated the word "lynching" with hanging but Wiki says it can also mean beating someone up. You learn something new every day.

In 2009 I was standing on a corner waiting for a light and I happened to be looking at the right direction at the right time. Two motochorros passed by another group of people waiting for a bus a half a block away. The guy on the back grabbed a woman's cell phone. They raced away - in my direction. I was going to my speed skating training so I had my skate bag (which is pretty heavy). I stood a bit back in the crowd and when they passed I swung my bag and clocked the driver right in the face. They both tumbled off of the bike and it kept going into the intersection where it was promptly run over by a bus.

Not sure what happened after that. I didn't hang around to introduce myself to anyone.

 

[Matiasba]

Does anyone else feel that the use of this word marginalizes the victim of the theft and paints the ladrón as the victim? Something doesn't sit right with me about this. Thoughts?

If you had a global view you'd realize that the ladrones are the actual victims.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

If you had a global view you'd realize that the ladrones are the actual victims.

Both can be victims, but the ladrones are the initial victimizers.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

http://www.clarin.co...1115288600.html

This could make a great movie, and Borenzstein is a TV producer.

 

[Matiasba]

Both can be victims, but the ladrones are the initial victimizers.

I meant social victims.