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From: jeq@laidbak.UUCP (Jonathan E. Quist)
Newsgroups: net.singles
Subject: Re: Violence in movies
Message-ID: <227@laidbak.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 27-Sep-85 02:04:47 EDT
Article-I.D.: laidbak.227
Posted: Fri Sep 27 02:04:47 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 28-Sep-85 08:35:03 EDT
References: <140@nvuxg.UUCP> <1902@reed.UUCP> <1512@hammer.UUCP> <1921@reed.UUCP> <227@tekchips.UUCP>
Reply-To: jeq@laidbak.UUCP (Jonathan E. Quist)
Organization: LAI Chicago
Lines: 38
Summary: 

In article <227@tekchips.UUCP> eirik@tekchips.UUCP (Eirik Fuller) writes:
...
>What disturbs me about guns, and the qualitative difference in the
>violence they invoke, is that I suspect that this difference is also
>felt by those who use them (not having done so in this life, I cannot
>vouch for this on the basis of personal experience). What this means, 
>in essence, is that violence is more likely because it is easier, not
>just technically but also emotionally. If you stab somebody, you feel
>the resistance of the knife, and, in all likelihood, get blood on your
>hand. If you shoot somebody, all you feel is the recoil. Depersonalized
>violence; what a concept.

4 or 5 years back a Chicago area news station presented
statistics on violent crimes.  The results of this particular
study indicated that the likelihood of victim injury
(including death) was significantly higher in crimes committed
with knives rather than guns.

If memory serves correctly, the conclusions were that
this was partly because victims were more likely to
resist someone wielding a knife, and partly that perpetrators
perceived guns as being inherently more deadly, and were
therefore more reluctant to use guns.

I would expect that the emotional aftermath (to the attacker) of a violent
attack would be stronger after a crime involving physical contact,
as you suggested.

Of course, I am not a criminal psychologist, so I could be wrong.

Jonathan E. Quist
ihnp4!laidbak!jeq
``It's 108 miles to Chicago,
we have a full tank of gas,
half a pack of cigarettes,
it's dark,
and we're wearing sun glasses.''
					``Hit it.''