[jkeel]

I dislike that in the article they removed the context of his statement. Just reading this, it sounds like he was making a threat, but if you read the KHOU.com (Houston) article it appears that here's merely mocking the person who is calling him insane.

http://www.khou.com/news/texas-news/Texas-teen-charged-with-...

NPR version: "I think Ima shoot up a kindergarten / And watch the blood of the innocent rain down/ And eat the beating heart of one of them."

KHOU version: 'Oh you're insane, you're crazy, you're messed up in the head,’ to which he replied 'Oh yeah, I'm real messed up in the head, I'm going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts,’ and the next two lines were lol and jk.,"

[watty]

I think he crossed the line of "merely mocking". Stating something so non-funny and grotesque shortly after a elementary school shooting on a public facebook page is idiotic. Not only is it stupid but he also a young white male (and appears to lack common sense) - why shouldn't it be considered a threat?

Edit - I never said he deserved jail time or the ridiculous bail. I'm simply stating that his words on a public medium should be taken seriously and looked into. I'd expect the same from bomb threats or other terrorist activities.

Devils advocate - if an American Islamist made a comment about bombing ______ but then stated "jk", is it crossing the line? What if they were radical?

It's a slippery slope and I'm not a judge. I'm simply stating that I believe he crossed the line and I'm glad someone looked into it. No, he doesn't deserve to be in jail.

[DanBC]

Why does it matter that he's young, white, or male?

Most people agree that it's stupid and deeply offensive to make that kind of comment.

Where people disagree is with a $500,000 bond; and with a prison sentence; and with jail time; for something that's no more nor less stupid that the stupid shit children do every single day.

EDIT: For the cost spent on him so far we could have shown him his comment, put it in the context of a recent school shooting, explained that some people are scared by that stuff, shown him the costs and process involved in checking if he's a terrorist about to kill a bunch of children and EAT THEIR BEATING HEARTS, asked him to consider his language in public in future, and asked him to talk to the woman making the complaint so she can see he's not going to kill children and he can apologise for scaring her.

That way you get a young man who stands a chance at getting a job in future (because felony convictions tend to affect what people can do) and who doesn't hate law enforcement.

Obviously it doesn't work for everyone, and when it doesn't work you use further measures. Luckily, by doing a bit of triage you have less people in prison and more money to spend rehabilitating them.

[watty]

I don't disagree - simply stated the crossed the line. I would expect someone to look into a bomb threat followed by "jk" as well.

[mikeash]

"Look into" does not imply "put the person in jail".

[pyre]

But we have to find some way to justify the expense. E.g.:

  Look! All that money we spend was well spent! We
  found a terrorist!

[InvisibleCities]

You are right. No white male has ever suggested eating babies as a form of satire before.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Modest_Proposal

[ok_craig]

Wow, this should be top comment. Reading this in school was part of my public education.

[john_b]

"non-funny" and "grotesque" are both subjective judgments and are no basis for imprisoning someone. You're suggesting that someone who demonstrated no capability or motive to carry out his "threat" should be imprisoned simply because an unrelated tragic event happened a few weeks before? And it's somehow more deserved because he is a young white male? That is a perverse notion and it is the antithesis of justice and equality under the law.

[watty]

Devils advocate - if an American radical islamist made a comment about bombing ______ but then stated "jk", is it crossing the line?

It's a slippery slope and I'm not a judge. I'm simply stating that I believe he crossed the line and I'm glad someone looked into it. No, he doesn't deserve to be in jail.

[jerf]

I fail to see your point; you've changed so many details that your attempt at argument simply falls flat. We aren't talking about anyone with any sort of history, we're talking about a kid, a kid who posted something of a similar caliber to things expressed on the internet thousands of times an hour. Entire communities are notorious for containing this level of discourse, continuously; XBox Live first person shooters and 4chan leap to mind, but those are merely the large ones. If this is "crossing the line" than your "line" is simply useless, it's been crossed more than once just in the time it took me to post this, I'm sure.

[jlgreco]

> why shouldn't it be considered a threat?

Because no matter how shocking or unfunny you personally may find it; it clearly is not a threat?

What is his real crime here, be honest. Offending you?

[watty]

I don't know what his intentions were, adding "lol" or "jk" afterwards doesn't make it go away. Honestly, I do think it was a joke from a dumb kid. I don't think he deserves jail time but I'm glad someone took it seriously enough to look into it.

[jlgreco]

> adding "lol" or "jk" afterwards doesn't make it go away.

Make what go away? Even without those words there is clearly no threat. Anyone who thinks otherwise needs their head examined.

> I do think it was a joke from a dumb kid. I don't think he deserves jail time but I'm glad someone took it seriously enough to look into it.

So... you don't think he deserves this, but you are glad somebody is subjecting him to it? Come again?

[watty]

1. Canadian woman saw post, reported to police to look into

2. Law went crazy overboard

I agree with 1, I think it was a smart thing to do. Similarly, I'd hope "jk" bomb threats would be tipped to police as well. I don't agree with 2.

[jlgreco]

> 1. Canadian woman saw post, reported to police to look into

> I agree with 1, I think it was a smart thing to do.

No, it was not a smart thing to do. When you see things like that, you should think. Not regex for scary or even mildly offensive combinations of words, but think. Put that gray matter to some use.

Anyone who reads the comment he made, in its context, and thinks "whoa, better call the cops", demonstrates a serious failure to think.

[kristopolous]

I threaten a bomb. jk.

The call is yours to make.

[sageikosa]

Moral panic is no reason to go on a witch hunt.

[socalnate1]

There is a big difference between "looking into it" and sending someone to jail and facing years of hard time That's the problem here.

[phaus]

If you think that the kid really presents a threat, he isn't the only one that lacks common sense.

Of course many people don't think his comment was funny, but dark humor's been around for quite a while, and many people do find similar jokes funny.

In the end, if the kid told a bad joke, that's not really grounds for charging him with a felony.

[jkeel]

I'm don't think I agree with laws that can throw people in jail for making non-funny and grotesque comments. I'm not sure what being a young white male has to do with it either.

On the flip side, I would have found it more understandable that the police do a thorough investigation to decide if any laws have been broken. I fail to see the crime committed.