Most of my blogs so far have been memories, or attempted humour (key word was 'attempted') but now I think it's time for a more serious one. This comes after reading and hearing about all the attacks in Melbourne, and how they don't know how to stop the violence.
I lived in Melbourne for a year, and during that period that went out on many occasions, yet I was fortunate enough to not be anywhere near a fight. I was lucky to have not witnessed any of the violence that constantly sprayed the Herald Sun and the new reports at night. However, there were a couple nights walking home, alone, I did get a bit scared when I heard footsteps behind me. It seems like a lot of the attacks are unprovoked, fueled by alcohol, and let's face it, a guy my size does not stand a chance in a confrontation.
So I thought I'd google some articles about some attacks in Melbourne, and in the google search bar I started typing 'bashings' and before I had the chance to say 'in Melbourne', google already suggested it. Not a good start for Melbourne.
I found one article, which will sum up a lot of my views on the matter. It was about the attack on two men outside QBH Nightclub in Southbank, 2007.
^^^ Link to the article. But to sum it up, two men were killed in the span of a couple weeks outside two nightclubs by being punched. The article then talked about how the families of the victims want venues to take responsibility on the matter.
Now firstly, this happened in 2007, 3 years ago, and the same crap is still going on. I read an article in the Herald Sun the other day about a young male, 17 or 18, slashing another kid's throat on a tram while he tried to rob him. He then bragged about it on facebook and before he went out, he admitted he wanted to kill someone. The thug also told police there was nothing they can do to him either. I think the victim survived the attack, can't remember fully.
Let's use these two articles as my main rant and reference points.
I want to know, where the hell do these people get the idea they can just go around and inflict this type of damage on people? Two people were killed after being punched and falling and hitting their heads on the ground. Two parents lost their sons that night. Any parent reading this, I am sure the last thing you want is a policeman knocking on your door in the early hours of Sunday telling that your son/daughter is in hospital, or worse, dead. As for this punk kid who slashed the kid's throat, he should be locked up for 25 years, give him time to think about his life and maybe he might mature. Because going out with a knife with the intent to kill, isn't exactly the indication your life is good. You seriously have issues which need to be addressed, and addressed hard.
What are some ways we can reduce violence in the streets and public transport? The easy answer is, more police. But the government then complains about budget and crap. Who cares! Make room in the budget! I went out one night in Melbourne when they had a huge police blitz, there was seriously 4 police on every street block, and I felt safe. However, this was only done for a weekend. Why can't they employ this every weekend and have higher police numbers patrolling the streets of a Friday and Saturday night? When we are talking about people's lives and well being, there should not be a price.
Venues need to enforce the responsible serving of alcohol, as most of these incidences are fuelled by alcohol. I don't have any facts or sources on this, just a theory I have, but I believe venues pretty much throw the RSA out the window in search of higher profits. Basic mathematics, a guy walks into a bar (no it's not a joke) with $150 looking to spend it all on booze. He only spends $50, and asked to leave due to intoxication (examples), the venue does not know it but he could of spent another $100. Multiply $100 by say, 400 people in the venue, they have the off-chance of losing $40,000 (once again, examples). So venues keep patrons in as long as possible, so they get as much money out of them as possible, then when they are finally causing trouble, they kick them out on the streets.
People have said earlier closure times of venues, or earlier lock-out times. This would not fix the problem, it would just mean people are out on the street earlier and drunker. Let's face it, 95% of people who go out, go out with the sole purpose of getting "plastered" or "totally wasted" (a stat I made up, but seems right). If they go out knowing they can only be in the bar until 1am, they will want to drink faster and harder to reach the state of "plastered" in the shorter time span. Not really a smart idea there.
I think one way to fix the problem is tougher laws. Messages need to be sent out to the trouble makers that if you do the crime, you will do the time. Harsher penalties might not make a difference right away, but once people are being locked up, someone might think twice before throwing a punch for fear of jail time.
I think the main problem however, which can't be fixed, or maybe it can but it has to start early, is the development of the person. You hear stories of how people change when they drink, they either become aggressive, more stupid or very emotional. For me, when I drink, I never become aggressive, the most is stupid and sometimes emotional. But children need to be developed and taught how to behave properly at a early age, so when they do start drinking, they do not turn into a completely different person. Some adults, older teenagers, are just a lost cause, as lot of them go out, drink to get wasted and look to solely fight people. Maybe we should put these "tough guys" in a boxing ring with some world champions so they can be in a real fight. There is nothing tough about hitting blokes from behind, ganging up like 4 on 1, or stomping on some one's head while they are on the ground (Yes I heard this story today about the stomping, was not a pretty mental image). For these lost causes, put them in jail for life, get them off the street, we don't need them!
The problem of violence and alcohol isn't going to be fixed overnight, it is going to be a long haul of painful door knocks and new reports. But I am hoping one day to live in a world, or maybe my grand-kids, can live in a world, where violence is no longer presence. In the mean time, more police, better RSA, tougher laws and early development might be the only foreseeable way to fix the problem. We need to do something now before more lives are damaged, because next time I go out in Melbourne, I don't want to be thinking all night "Will I make it home alive tonight?"
From The One They Call Anthony, This Is The Life And Times
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