What Makes Young Criminals?
“Light On Psychology Of The Young Thief”
According to New York City Police Commissioner Richard Enright:
“The type of young men who commit these petty crimes are those who do not want to work.”
“They have come to the conclusion that the world owes them a living, and they are going to collect it.”
“Of course the war has had a great deal to do with bringing this type forward. Before the war they were ne’er-do-wells existing after their own haphazard fashion. They were pickpockets or sneak thieves and did not carry arms. They were incapable of big crimes because they did not have the physical courage to commit such crimes. They were cowards.”
“The draft swept all of these types into the army and gave them weapons. Once they were discharged some of them became bold and resourceful crooks with the knowledge of how to use a gun. Such men have no possible conception of the magnitude of the crimes they commit or the results if they are caught. The war has made cowardly crooks and sneakthieves courageous because it has taught them how to use a gun.”
“It seems to me that a great deal of this petty crime could be prevented by home and religious training. Where there is no respect for the Supreme Being there can be no value placed on human life and property by those who lack religious feeling. Lots of these young men who commit these crimes have never heard the voices of any uplifting agency. they have been brought up in idleness, have never learned an honest dollar and do not intend to begin. This is a false and criminal psychology and leads to a life of crime.”
“The spread of the idea that wealth should be distributed also helps to make criminals of these young men. Sovietism and Red propaganda have a great appeal for young men lacking in the ability to discriminate between the false and the true. They get the crude appeal of the ‘soap-boxers’ and understand only the violent part.”
[New York Times, February 18, 1923, p.XX10]
According to New York City Police Commissioner Richard Enright:
“The type of young men who commit these petty crimes are those who do not want to work.”
“They have come to the conclusion that the world owes them a living, and they are going to collect it.”
“Of course the war has had a great deal to do with bringing this type forward. Before the war they were ne’er-do-wells existing after their own haphazard fashion. They were pickpockets or sneak thieves and did not carry arms. They were incapable of big crimes because they did not have the physical courage to commit such crimes. They were cowards.”
“The draft swept all of these types into the army and gave them weapons. Once they were discharged some of them became bold and resourceful crooks with the knowledge of how to use a gun. Such men have no possible conception of the magnitude of the crimes they commit or the results if they are caught. The war has made cowardly crooks and sneakthieves courageous because it has taught them how to use a gun.”
“It seems to me that a great deal of this petty crime could be prevented by home and religious training. Where there is no respect for the Supreme Being there can be no value placed on human life and property by those who lack religious feeling. Lots of these young men who commit these crimes have never heard the voices of any uplifting agency. they have been brought up in idleness, have never learned an honest dollar and do not intend to begin. This is a false and criminal psychology and leads to a life of crime.”
“The spread of the idea that wealth should be distributed also helps to make criminals of these young men. Sovietism and Red propaganda have a great appeal for young men lacking in the ability to discriminate between the false and the true. They get the crude appeal of the ‘soap-boxers’ and understand only the violent part.”
[New York Times, February 18, 1923, p.XX10]
posted by A. Mattson at 1:48 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home