Opinion: Teens Who Beat ‘Mentally Challenged’ Man Should Not Be Treated as Juveniles

My heart hurts after seeing a 38-year-old Philadelphia man get violently attacked by a group of boys, whose ages ranged from 12-15 years old. They recorded the video in slo-motion, apparently because they thought they were awesome:

The man who was assaulted is described as being “mentally challenged.” Judging by what I’m seeing with my own eyes, however, it is quite apparent that the only ones lacking wattage in the brain department are these four degenerate clowns masquerading as human beings. They obviously feel pretty good about themselves, not a care in the world that they’re only a couple of horns away from literally being Satan.

It’s a helpless feeling watching this unfold via my computer. I want to jump through the screen and wipe those smirks of their smug little faces, especially the 12-year-old. I am a parent of a child the same age, and just the thought of them remotely wandering anywhere near thinking of doing something similar enrages me.

I sure hope the parents of these kids are as outraged as I am after seeing this. I hope they want them to feel the full weight of the law, and not escape justice on the fortunate technicality that they are juveniles. There is no need to coddle these punks behind meaningless classifications. They knew what they were doing was wrong, they just didn’t care. And now they need to be held accountable for what they did – as adults. Period. Parents are all too often quick to try and save their child from punishment because it might ‘hurt’ their life down the road. They swoop in and help them escape the wrath of lady justice because they’re young, have a promising career, or have been ‘good’ until this point.

Removing the natural consequences of their actions actually harms them more in the long run. They learn that no matter how horrible of an action they take, mom and dad either don’t care or they will choose to protect you rather than let you actually be responsible for your own actions. Anyone who does this is only kicking the pain can a little further down the road, and likely it’s going to hurt a lot more when that chicken comes home to roost.

Better learn the lesson now than later.

And boy, do they have lessons to learn. They’d do well to follow a real man like Mark Smith around for a day. See the joy he brings to others. See the honest, hard days work he puts in. Smith works at a ShopRite. They’d see the damage they’ve caused, as his co-workers are distraught. They love Mark. They have nothing but praise for his “nice personality” and is non-confrontational disposition.

To say Mr. Smith is “mentally challenged,” is undoubtedly and profoundly mistaken. Mr. Smith and people like him are not the ones with a problem in need of solving, no, they are the ones who seem to have unlocked something the rest of us need a lot more of. These “challenged” people walk around with an inexplicable joy, they see the best in people, they hug, they trust, they love. We could use a whole lot more Mark Smith’s in the world right now.

It’s the rest of us who are “challenged.”
It’s the rest of us who are in need of help.
It’s the rest of us who need a change in perspective.
It’s the rest of us who’ve lost our way.

And these boys in this video some of the most lost among us.

The thought haunting my mind today is wondering what Mr. Smith must be thinking today. Is he confused, wondering why anyone would want do this to him? Oh, Lord, I pray this is not the case. I pray you put this man’s heart at peace. I pray we can use this as an opportunity to shine light into the darkness.

I pray the Cheltenham community rallies around this man and lets him know how loved he truly is.
I pray the greater Philadelphia area shows the spirit of brotherly love it is supposedly known for.
I pray that the nation can rise up and show an outpouring of love for this man.

I pray he is overwhelmed with goodness, because I have a feeling goodness is the mark he’s left on the world since he’s been in it.

And I pray we learn a thing or two from Mark, because the world sure would probably be a much better place if we did.

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