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Man beaten to the ground, robbed by mob at Downtown Crossing

Shortly after 10 p.m. outside the Rainbow shop on Winter Street - victim was attacked by 10 to 15 people.

Update: Transit Police, who first happened on the attack, release brief statement, say victim was taken to MGH for treatment, incident still under investigation.

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Comments

Is this from a tweet, a police scanner or report, a report in another news medium, something you saw yourself, ... ?

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adam's got connections, don't worry about it.

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Transit Police, specifically.

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No one wants to hear about a mob beating an individual in downtown after the zimmerman trial. Citizens might get the wrong idea and the mainstream media will avoid this story like the plague.

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What does a mob robbery/beating have to do with the Zimmerman trial?

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Are you serious? Were they a mob of 'urban youth' assaulting a, I don't know, white person?

I hope and pray [hard to do for a Agnostic] Boston doesn't start getting the violence and flash mob assaults that are common in other cities.

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I don't know what color either perpetrators or victim were, but looks like we're already going there, aren't we? At least from the way it sounded like on the scanner, this was a pretty simple robbery. Sad for the victim, shows the problems Downtown Crossing still has, but right now, that's all we know at this point.

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Wow Adam, your liberal censorship is amazing. If it doesn't comport with your views, it's wrong, right?

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In any case, I'll match my liberal "let's wait for more facts" with your conservative "Rayyycists attack!" doggerel any day.

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You're pathetic, Adam. It's "racist" if it's conservative, isn't it? I understand that this is Taxachusetts, but with all of our institutions of higher education, people should be able to respect other people's views. And learn how to spell; you're an editor of a prestigious blog, for goodness sake.

And here's a link to the definition of censorship, if you can read, that is: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/censorship

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Just curious. I appear to have missed something that provoked your obnoxious, whiny post. Also not sure what MA tax rates have to do with anything but you guys do love to throw that in, don't you?

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I'm pretty sure if it's "racist" if conclusions are drawn about the attackers and victim, without any facts being known. Adam's "liberal" comment was merely in response to name calling by you or some other anonymous coward.

It's "conservative" if it's resistant to change. "Racist" is orthogonal to conservative, though the fucking Venn diagram for that looks like concentric circles.

Finally, your "definition" of censorship references the root. Maybe you could try and define it with your own words and we can tell you how you're wrong.

Asshole.

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I'm a staunch Libertarian, and I seem to have no problem with how Adam runs this place.

You'll note the article grieving the Rolling Stone Tsarnaev cover? By definition, were Adam one-sided, that story never would've appeared here.

Meh. Must be a slow day at the BDC online comments section.

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Holy moly, you actually unironically used Taxachusetts

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Child trolls paid by "think" tanks to haunt comment zones probably don't know about this thing called "research". They didn't cover that in the Biblical home school "science" lessons.

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If you were smarter, you'd be embarrassed to have posted this.

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Censorship means your post gets deleted, not the head of the website giving his opinion that happens to disagree.

You just went full retard.

IMAGE(http://t.qkme.me/3lcd.jpg)

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You made a good point without needing it.

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It's a commonly used meme and very fitting encapsulation to sense of his comment. As such the meme is used for. I know you're very sensitive, but I'm not going censor a very fitting response.

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is the only reason you'd defend using an abilist slur with "it's a very common meme". Just because something is common does not make it inoffensive. Take some time and think out your response instead of letting the masses think out your responses for you. If someone is offended by something you chose to use as a response it's your fault for not caring enough to not offend.

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Cool. I guess I'm not caring enough. Because by your logic, both the meme and the movie (Tropic Thunder) it came from should both too offensive and thus socially taboo. Not going to go agree with your viewpoint with such restrictive implications.

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Your use (and many others' use) of the meme itself is implementing the joke incorrectly. The point of the joke in the movie was that the guy making the statement was a boor. He was also describing how an actor shouldn't "go full retard", basically calling the written characters "retards" and not calling the person he was talking to that. He wasn't criticizing someone's point of view or spelling or whatever by calling it "retarded" he was being crass and calling the movie parts "full retard". So the laugh comes from the absurdity of someone saying something so crass and stupid while giving advice and how boorish he was saying it.

I wouldn't even say that it's socially taboo to really use that word, but it's still an ablest term and is still offensive. Things aren't offensive because they offend ALL of society, they are offensive because they offend the people they are created to offend. People with mental disabilities already have a hard time dealing with the general public because of their disabilities, and slurs only exacerbate that. Most of the time the only people who can speak up for them are those who love them or work with them.

But, I'm glad you admitted to yourself and other that you are not caring enough. Honestly, it's better than making excuses like "everyone does it" or whatever. If you want to offend then offend away! If you don't care enough it shouldn't bother you when people are offended.

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My understanding of the meme in practice does differ from the definition of the movie. One site that I enjoy follow memes and describe the meme in discussion: http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/full-retard . To my understanding, the meme is used equivalently to the facepalm meme. However, the full retard meme is more flexible as one can give some statements before closing out. Facepalm is just usually one comment, which means I could have posted a picture facepalming, but ill-fitting to say more than putting the picture. It can be done probably, but to my sense the full retard meme fits better to what I can see.

Thus, I believe I used the meme correctly. Because that is how it is used. It evolved away from the movie's context, but that's the meme while still recognize as a reference to the movie and also as another facepalm-type meme. It's a meme not as an insult to a spelling mistake, but to comments that goes to borderline absurdity (and also fits with the content of the speech in the movie of not going too extreme to reach the point of the absurd).

My statement that it's a common meme was to point out I'm making a meme reference. Not to necessary make an argument that's everyone's doing it - though I do apologize that it does sound like I was. I do remember Eeka raised complaints in the past somewhere of using some kinda of word like retard if not that word. But I can't agree with the idea to self-censor with a dose of guilt. Actually, people not willing to say something fearing it may offend someone while harboring no ill-will bothers me greater.

This doesn't mean one should not consider other people. But my view on words reflects my own experiences. Words can hurt just fine regardless of using or not using words like retard. Words like retard hurt nothing at all as the context means no ill-will or inadvertent denigration. Meanwhile others reluctantly uses certain words despite being appropriate and that's bothers me too. In my experience, the common line is intent. My view is I'm making a meme reference and I cannot agree invocation of the word is enough as a denigration.

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Stop, think, listen, and grow.

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Snarkiness isn't an argument.

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The boy who can't write coherently half the time?

Please tell us more of your special rules.

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I apologize if you had trouble with my grammar. That's an earnest statement and you're free to point it out.

Snark, on the the other hand, only belittles without demonstrating anything to bring the point across. Compared the anon above, I am giving him/her serious thought.

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Like a disability slur? Really?

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I don't remember ever hearing about 15 people jumping one person in this area in the past few years. One or two, yes, but 15 sounds more than simple robbery. That's a mob beating.

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There have been people beaten up by a group of teenagers and young adults in J.P. over the past few years. Since nothing was taken I assumed that these were gang initiations. So this might have been a gang initiation.

I wonder whether the so-called flash mobs are affiliated with gangs. The one thing to be grateful for is that gangs hate each other. Just imagine what the civilian casualties would be if the small local gangs were to actually work together? At least only a few civilians are maimed or killed when gang warfare starts up.

What freaks me out is though is that I can discuss gang violence as though it were a normal, every day event. Perhaps because it is?

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I don't think they would hold gang initiations in DTX! What next, well someone open a Ferrari dealership on MLK Blvd.?

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My first reaction was to laugh out loud. My second reaction was to wonder where I would rather be walking alone at 10 PM at night. Point, MLK Boulevard. I lived near there for 2 years and never had an issue, in spite of my love for solo late night walks and bike rides.

DTX is a disgrace. The city needs to figure out what to do with that space. A block from the Common and a five minute walk from the Greenway, yet, somehow, it's an absolute shithole.

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Your expertise concerning gangs clearly surpasses that of anyone else here.

But just in case your mental crutches are a little short here is a hint: Gangbangers initiate newbies wherever a victim can be found. Gang initiations happen in daylight and nighttime. They happen in neighborhoods and zerohoods such as DTX. DTX at 10 PM is actually a great place for an intiation. Few people around and no police around.

But this assumes everyone knows gang initiate members. Perhaps there is doubt. Gang's initiate members by giving them tasks that force them to put some skin into the game. That includes beating people up. The initiation of some gangs are as crazy as requiring that the newbie shoot a law officer wearing a uniform. The absurdity of in this is that the uniform could be that of a forest ranger.

The gang activity in this city is dangerous. Civilians have been shot and killed. Where there is a possibility of gang activity I don't dismiss it with middle school insults such as "retarded."

On the other hand Mr. or Ms Smartypants you are welcome to show how big your literal or metaphorical balls are and just hang out where gangs of young adults looking to beat someone down. Please feel free to volunteer your body for their kicks and beatings.

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Flash mobs are organized by folks like Boston Society of Spontaneity and Banditos Misteriosos, and involve things like pillow fights and Super Soakers, not violence.

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In the news of other cities. They been using the term "flash mobs" for sudden violent mobs attacking bystanders and robbing shops. So far, Boston have seen little of those events.

It annoys me the media have been using flash mobs to describe both, it's hurts the original meaning of flash mob.

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http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/125027704.html

I'm as liberal as the day is long, but this stuff (while overblown by Fox and its ilk) is not just some sort of conservative straw man. Other cities have had problems with this type of thing as well--this was just the first incident that came to mind when the "flash mob" topic came up.

I was on vacation in Milwaukee with my wife that day (getting her out of the Hub to see my hometown), enjoying dinner and drinks a few blocks away when all of this went down. "White girl bleeds a lot" gave me some pause under the circumstances.

For some of the people I grew up with, this sort of thing confirms a latent, but nasty, racial bias, the type of thing that's caused some to dread going downtown, or even to get a concealed carry permit (which I advised against). As things in WI go increasingly red, it's frustrating that incidents like this make it harder to be the "liberal voice of reason" (self-deprication somewhat intended) when discussing public policy with the folks back home. Sad all around.

It can be hard to keep a grounded perspective in the face of fear, and I say this as somebody who was held up and pistol whipped by three black teenagers.

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Milkwaukee Mike, you wouldn't happen to know a certain afternoon sports radio host from Milwaukee by the name of Felger, would you? :-)

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So your fear of young black criminals=George Zimmerman's fear of young black criminals that led him to stalk and kill a thoroughly innocent and unarmed young man. Got it.

I hope and pray that Boston never becomes the kind of place where trigger-happy, paranoid vigilantism is seen as a reasonable response to fear about crime.

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Ya i don't think so!

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The herald misses you. Please return to your people.

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Because i disagree you, you seem to believe i belong with a certain group of people. This type of generalization truly shows how utterly stupid you are my cool-aid drinking liberal. Because i can form my own opinion and come to my own conclusions i'm a conservative? No that makes me an independent thinker and voter!

If you think voting based on the magic letter "D" is the appropriate way to conduct your civic duty, maybe this country is doomed! And you should probably undergo a lobotomy..

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Which opinion is it that you formed on your own? At what point have I exposed my voting record?

"Because i disagree you, you seem to believe i belong with a certain group of people."... seems to apply in both directions here, my friend.

But congratulations on using italics correctly. Your mom must be so proud.

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Yes, but he/she spelled Kool-Aid wrong.

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TOOLS OF THE DEVIL!!!!

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It's not beyond the realm of possibility that these are ingredients to "lean":

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

We're never going to have all of the facts here. There are an infinite number of ways to fill in the blanks. All we know is they both f'ed up, and one of them got killed.

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Yeah, that Travvon sure f'ed up walking back through the neighborhood his dad lived in, unarmed, and fighting back against a gun-wielding stalker that had no badge. Guess 'Stand Your Ground' doesn't apply to fists.

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It's not beyond the realm of possibility that these are ingredients to "lean"

Yes it is. The active ingredient in that street drug is cough syrup - either promethazine-codeine or hydrocodone based, both of which can taste rather bitter in large doses. In order to cut some of this bitterness, it is often mixed with beverages that are carbonated and sweet, and with dissolved sugar-candy that has lactic acid (sour) - like jolly-ranchers or sour-babies.

Ice tea, such as Travvon had purchased, is itself bitter and uncarbonated, and skittles don't dissolve easily, being coated with carnuba wax expressly for that reason. So both would be particularly poor choices to use for making 'drank'.

Illogical insinuations like this really reveal how desparate some people are to make a dark-skinned kid into a justifiably-killed monster.

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Ahaha I think someone suggesting that ice tea and Skittles are ingredients in lean is seriously the best thing I'll read all day

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assumes the Mob was black and the victim of another ethnicity. Which if true, i believe he is voicing his distaste with the fact it wouldn't make news because of the frequency of violent crimes committed by young African-American men.

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It might or might not depending on the motivations of the mob for the beating and the ethnicity of the victim vs. perpetrators. Without details it is silly to even bother speculating.

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More than likely, and I say this knowing I don't have all the facts, that the mob was of the same ethnicity as the victim. We can hypothesize this, because crime statistics of major cities bear this out. Therefore, there is nothing to suggest a 'black' vs. 'white' incident resembling that of the Martin vs. Zimmerman incident, in spite of anon's apparent argument that black on white crime is widespread, as Fox News would have us believe. If this was indeed a black on white crime, I apologize for putting my theory forth.

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The local stations didn't cover it; they barely mentioned the story about the man shot in South Boston. If you like shark wrestling though, last night was your night; each station had a big segment on a man in Nantucket wrestling a shark.

Bless you, Jack Cole.

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Please don't tell anyone that DTX is still a somewhat dangerous place after 8:00 at night. You might upset the Mayor's legacy.

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Note to DTX neighborhood groups: the kebab cart isn't the problem with that area. This kind of BS is.

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the incredibly high number of addicts and other fairly sketchy looking folk who seem to have drifted more towards DTX from Chinatown, St. Francis House, etc. And the disappearance of attractive retail in the area--no more Filene's Basement, no more bookstores. Aside from Macy's, Marshall's and TJ's, H & M and maybe DSW, there's just not much there there these days.

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Are you now implying that we have roving gangs of homeless junkies! That sound like a bad movie. Way to be rational!

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Kind of hard to tell you guys apart. I'm not implying anything, simply stating a fact that there's a population of homeless and/or addicted people who hang out between the former Combat Zone, St. Francis House and increasingly DTX who help make the areas feel sketchier and less attractive than it once was. Not sure what conclusions you're drawing from my comment. Have you been downtown recently? Get out much?

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I would imagine an incident such as this is something of an edge case. Most crime in that area would be described as petty larceny - not surprising since it is the hub of a major public transportation spoke, where all types congregate. Even if the area were one day entirely gentrified, folks would still be wise to keep on their guard for petty theft, assaults and similar crimes. However, if there were more restaurants and bars in the area, as opposed to the outdated concept of retail stores that close after nine, combined with a manned police kiosk and more cameras in the area, this kind of thing would be minimized. Meanwhile, Times Square probably has 10 times as many incidents in the same period as Boston's one. This is the heart of the city after all, not a daisy farm.

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What is disturbing is that 12 hours after this initial "report" there are no updates on any details and nothing on the internet about this "incident."

Really? A mob assault in Downtown Crossing? Was Edward Snowden there?

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This is all Transit Police are saying (in a statement from a T spokesman):

The incident involved several youths, both male and female. The incident, some of which was captured on video, is under investigation at this time. The victim was transported to MGH by Boston EMS for treatment. Transit Police are actively investigating.

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Why do the Transit Police have jurisdiction? Why not BPD?

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Have something like "cooperational jurisdiction" anywhere the MBTA operates: bus routes, T stations, commuter rail, etc. The fact that they responded first just means that they were closest at the time, I think. And then when they are the respondent agency, they own the paperwork. Again, "I think," not "I know."

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The Transit Police is unique in that it has jurisdiction over almost all of Massachusetts, possibly because the MBTA covers so much of the Commonwealth. Maybe the Transit Police just happened to be in the area when the attack occurred.

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Since it's right there. Hopefully any video they got is as good as the Red Line video of the guy with the pit bull.

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I work in the area at all hours and there are many addicts roaming at night and they are aggressive.

There needs to be more of a police presence and more nightlife and Bostonians need to stop giving money to panhandlers.

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One of the biggest problems with Downtown Crossing and that area in general is St. Francis House. It should not be in middle of Boston next to Luxury Condos and Offices. Yes, it made sense location wise when that was the combat zone but the times have changed.

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Social justice and equality for all when it's on TV far away from your luxury condo paid for by rich mommy and daddy, major case of NIMBYism when it's in your backyard.

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It is about not having junkies and drunks standing in the middle of the road panhandling and causing trouble after a nice free hot meal. All St Francis house does is provide a central location in downtown Boston for a bunch of vagrants to gather. BPD doesn't even want be on Boylston so they sit on Avery St to make sure no one causes issues at the Ritz. If you have no issues with the people St Francis brings around; why don't you invite them to stay at your place?

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Surely due diligence would have turned this fact up before you chose to move next (near) to it. Perhaps, if it hadn't been there, you would have paid even more.

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