[Sixstrings]

This seems to be a new trend:

Teen Mob Hits Walgreens On The Mag Mile
Some 50 young people barged into a Walgreens at Michigan and Chicago on the Magnificent Mile on Tuesday afternoon. They took bottled drinks and sandwiches off the shelves, then ran off, CBS 2′s Suzanne Le Mignot reports.
A police report says authorities were able to nab three of the thieves.

(snip) The Mag Mile earlier this year was hit by similar mobs of young thieves. Attacks on commuters and bicyclists have become violent, and police have stepped up patrols.
Chicago

I've seen other articles along the same lines. I wonder how they coordinate.. like actually using twitter to meet up for a robbery? If not social networking, how else to you get a mob of 50 together for mass petty robbery. But then that makes no sense.. obviously coordinating over the internet leaves a trail.

So I'm stumped.. how does this happen, how do fifty people just suddenly storm in and rob a place?

[Sixstrings]

Some other flash mob robberies in the news:

Teenage Flash Mob Robberies on the Rise
The same technologies that for years have brought together the mostly benign and goofy "flash mobs," in which groups suddenly break into dance at a mall or stumble around like zombies at train stations, is being used to plan and execute bold robberies.
Fox News

A flash mob robbery in in Minnesota, again 50 kids involved:

Mob robbers hit convenience stores in St. Paul
On Saturday, St. Paul police say 50 kids swarmed a Holiday store on Wabasha, a so-called mob theft or mob robbery. They stormed in together, their numbers overwhelming and just started stealing.
Kare 11

Flash Mob Robberies Not A Rare Occurrence in DC
My Fox DC

Disturbing new crime trend: Flash mob robberies
ABC

[rangerone314]

I wonder how long before coordinated flash mob assaults on police or police stations?

I mean radical stuff happens across the border in Mexico with the cartels now.

[Sixstrings]

I wonder how long before coordinated flash mob assaults on police or police stations?

I think that's a stretch.. this isn't political, these are ROBBERIES. People are flash mobbing to steal sandwiches, booze, soda, potato chips and whatnot. An attack on a police station would have to be politically motivated.

What's most interesting to me is just the sociological angle here.. how a totally new tactic for crime can organically spring up. The articles I've read are blaming Twitter and Facebook etc., but I'm curious how they're actually doing it. Maybe it's text messaging networks.

It's just so hard to comprehend.. that somebody could tweet out "hey lets rob the quickie mart" and FIFTY PEOPLE drop what they're doing and show up to clean the place out.

[Outcast_Searcher]

Well, since we want to punish those who, say smoke a joint with jail sentences, but let folks who rob stores go for lack of jail space -- I see this increasing until society steps up and allows dissuading punishment.

I remember a gang of kids that got caught breaking stone street signs in a Detroit suburb got to choose between real time in Juvenile Hall, or spending their summer making such signs for no pay -- full time. That seemed like a constructive punishment to me.

So in this case, it's either 30 days in the slammer, where you might get beaten up or worse -- or work MANY hours for no wages in the place you rob. Which means you need to work TWO jobs if you want a salary. That ought to wake such criminals up.

I know I'll now be roundly attacked for being mean, etc, but it's about time that people get shown they can't just go around doing whatever they want.
This goes for criminals at all levels, including banksters, BTW.

[Fishman]

While some scratch their navel, and other lament their particular crimes being prosecuted, others are actually looking at ways to respond. Large cannisters of pepper spray should slow down at least some of the criminals. But then of course the cockroach lawyers will sue the shop owners, nutjobs will whine about the poor youth dealing with the pepper spray, and it looks like the Chicago chief of police will call you a racist if you actually try to defend your property. More people will move to states that allow self defense/castle laws. Chicago becomes Detroit II. Consequences.

[pedalling_faster]

i have heard another term used to describe these incidents. however, it is a racist term, in some contexts.

"chimp-out" - that's the term some people use ... related to the ethicity of the people doing the robberies.

if you were a Social Engineer, aka a legislator, what would you do ?

to perform a robbery in front of video cameras ... that's a sign you don't have much to lose. probably don't have a job. have not assimilated into an increasingly digital economy.

i think the old "40 acres and a mule" saying provides a hint of what would be useful in this situation - if there are no jobs to give them, at least give people a piece of land. but that doesn't solve the problem, today, because many people don't have the skills to use a piece of land. if the land is in a forested area, then the neighbors have to worry about a forest fire starting in the "government-gifted 40 acres and a mule" section.

sooo - can't just give unemployed people land. also have to re-structure American education so they know how to use the land.

whatever you call them, i think there will be a lot more flash mob robberies this summer. i would pick the weekends of July 15-16-17 as a starting point, because of the closure of highway 405 in Los Angeles. they are already warning people that LA will be one big traffic jam that weekend - to not drive that weekend.

so police response will be inhibited. great weekend for a robbery.

[stephankrasner]

What's most interesting to me is just the sociological angle here.. how a totally new tactic for crime can organically spring up. The articles I've read are blaming Twitter and Facebook etc., but I'm curious how they're actually doing it. Maybe it's text messaging networks.

It's text messaging. At least that's what the other two cases were in Chicago. The other hits have been on buses and at the McCormick Center where poor youths flash mobbed a doctor's convention, beating and robbing people on the street on the way out.

I think the main driver behind these flash mobs is boredom. The kids are sitting around with nothing to do, they are poor, poorly educated, and a flash mob is a great way to have fun and make money.

[Pops]

Anonymity, that's the psychology of a mob, right? So put the video on TV and give a reward - probably wouldn't need to be very big or even very productive - just seeing those faces on the tube would be a big deterrent - maybe.

As far as how it's done, everyone is wired so one guy calls 2, they call 2 - in the time it takes to make 6-8 correct calls - texts - you got 50 people if they are the right numbers.

Like Outcast says, we lock people up for so very many non-violent drug crimes there is little room for criminals. Of course we won't put Sudafed behind the counter because it might cut into Pfizer's profits but that's a different thread.

[dorlomin]

Mobbing shops is as old as the hills. The phones and the twitter is new, but its just a new theme on an old tactic.

[Quinny]

i've never sole in my life and don't condone theft in any way. When I was a young man at grammar school and our school football teams (at least 60 lads) were playing away, everyone would go into a sweet shop near our oppositions school and the staff would be so inundated with11-8 year old lads they wouldn't know where to turn.

Sounds a bit like a 'flash mob' to me, nearly 40 years ago!!

[pedalling_faster]

i got Flash-mobbed in Tijuana about 15 years ago.

what the kids do is suddenly coalesce around a tourist, then start poking them, pinching them etc.

it's to distract you so they can check out your wallet.

[Sixstrings]

i got Flash-mobbed in Tijuana about 15 years ago.
what the kids do is suddenly coalesce around a tourist, then start poking them, pinching them etc.
it's to distract you so they can check out your wallet.

I haven't traveled internationally for a long time, but when I did I always wore a money belt:


This was before debit cards were so widely accepted. So I wore the belt around my waist, shirt tucked in over top of it. Kept my passport and travelers checks and all cash other than spending money for the day. That makes it practically IMPOSSIBLE to get robbed. The robber would have to untuck your shirt, turn the money belt around front to back (it's strapped to you), plus I kept the belt halfway tucked in my underwear so I guess a thief would have to get their hands that far in.. and on top of all that the thing has a zipper. So they'd have to somehow unzip it after halfway undressing you.

I highly recommend a money belt to anyone who travels internationally.. it's no big deal to step into a bathroom to get more cash out as you need it. Plus you should be keeping your wallet in a front pocket, not back.

[the48thronin]

As far as how it's done, everyone is wired so one guy calls 2, they call 2 - in the time it takes to make 6-8 correct calls - texts - you got 50 people if they are the right numbers.
Like Outcast says, we lock people up for so very many non-violent drug crimes there is little room for criminals. Of course we won't put Sudafed behind the counter because it might cut into Pfizer's profits but that's a different thread.

Phone contact lists with groups.. even prepaid walwart 45$ a month straight talk phones have groups.. so 50 people in your group, 1 text message in your unlimitedtexting plan and poof 50 people going to the same pleace for Fun and games. nothing difficult in figuring out how they gather if you think it through.

[Oneaboveall]

It's getting worse:

This eye-witness account is from Paul Wilkinson, president of the Altamont Park Neighborhood Association:

Tonight, around 11 p.m., a group of at least 60-70 African American youth marched down one of the side streets (W. Thrush) to the 4 lane main drag (Sheridan). They were yelling threats to white residents. Things such as we need to kill alll the white people around here. They were physically intimidating anyone calling for help from the police. They were surrounding cars. Cars on the main drag had to slam on their brakes to either avoid the youth blocking not only all four lanes, but a large section of the side street as well. fights were breaking out among them. They were rushing residents who looked out their doors, going on to porches, yelling threats to people calling the police for help.

Cars were doing U turns on the streets just to avoid the mob, mostly male. One youth stated his grandfather was white and several assaulted him on the spot. One police officer answered the call. The youth split into two large groups, one heading north, the other south. They were also yelling racial threats to the police officer but he was outnumbered. Another police car did not show up until after the youth finally dispersed and the patty wagon (van) also eventually showed up.

Residents are very shaken, both black and white alike. This is the fifth large mob action in about a month with smaller groups of 10-12 are out threatening children and adults a few evenings a week or later into the night. The times vary, even occuring during the day. In talking to the police officer, they are short staffed. Residents were advised to simply keep inside and to lock their doors. In other words buckle down, it’s not even safe to sit on your porch or go into your yards.
“The fifth large mob action in about a month.” Wow. This is really outrageous. Why is this neighborhood having to put up with this? “Residents were advised to simply keep inside and to lock their doors”? Seriously? That’s the best we can do for our fellow citizens’ safety?

This needs to be addressed, and quickly.

[Oneaboveall]

Recently, editors for the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, and the Chicago Tribune have all publicly admitted to censoring black crime. They all said they justified it to protect blacks from being stigmatized. In his recent undercover videos, LA Lawyer Ben Shapiro recorded the creator of the TV show COPS stating the same thing.

All have decided that political correctness is more important than public safety. In recent days there has been a major online backlash against these policies. It is playing out on newspaper websites in the comment sections, on craigslist "rants," youtube comments, and facebook.

Many in South Carolina are particularly outraged over the treatment of the near fatal beating of Carter Strange in Columbia, SC. Carter Strange, 18, was jogging late at night near five points. A group of 8 black males aged 13-18 were out looking for a white person to attack...

http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz- ... confronted

[Oneaboveall]

CHICAGO—Police here are girding for another weekend of "flash mob" attacks after arresting 29 people in connection with a recent rash of assaults and robberies in and around the city's tony shopping and dining district.

Twelve crimes involving large groups of young men were reported last weekend, in addition to others earlier this spring. The incidents are some of the first major problems confronting newly appointed Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy.

The attacks have received wide attention in Chicago because they have occurred around the city's affluent north side, including near the "Magnificent Mile," a Michigan Avenue strip popular with tourists.

The latest attack occurred early Thursday morning. A spokesman for the Chicago Police Department said the attack involved "multiple" perpetrators near an elevated train platform. Described in the police report as a "strong arm robbery," the group of assailants took the victim's iPad and money and punched him in the face. No arrests have yet been made in that case...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... 28354.html

[Oneaboveall]

An Editor from The Onion was attacked:

Those of you who read this site and our parent site (and perhaps our other city sites) with any regularity know that it’s rare for us to venture into areas of hard news, like politics and crime. But events that transpired in Philadelphia this weekend have pushed us across that line, as a violent attack hit home for us. Late Saturday night, a roving mob of teenagers—one of the kind of groups the mainstream media have taken to incorrectly calling “flash mobs”—wreaked havoc in North Philly, including the assault on a group of adults at the intersection of Green and Broad. Several of the victims sustained concussions, lacerations, and bruises. One of the victims was A.V. Club Philadelphia City Editor Emily Guendelsberger, who suffered bruises and a broken leg. She remains hospitalized...

http://www.avclub.com/philadelphia/arti ... hil,58134/

[Sixstrings]

Here's another source on that Onion attack..

Eichel said that when her group tried to run, about 20 teens chased them down the street. "They were kicking kids down and punching them when they were down," she said.

Two other friends sought treatment at area hospitals for facial injuries, Eichel said.

The only redeeming factor about the experience was that a few people realized the extent of Guendelsberger's injuries and tried to protect her, Eichel said.

From the hospital yesterday, Guendelsberger gave her protectors shout-outs on Twitter. "On the positive, a bunch of girls from the mob protected me from the boys trying to hit me and take my purse while I was on the ground," she wrote.

(snip)

According to the police report of the incident, Guendelsberger was "jumped" by 30 to 40 men who punched and kicked her numerous times. Police said they checked the area for surveillance but had no luck.

Shortly before Guendelsberger's assault, police said, they responded to another assault, about five blocks away at Broad Street and Fairmount Avenue, of a 20-year-old man who said that he was attacked by a large group of men and women.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20110627_Woman_s_leg_broken__others_hurt_in_Spring_Garden_mob_attack.html?c=r

Err... yikes.

So what the heck's going on here? Are these the post-collapse "zombies" everyone around here jokes about? Seems to fit the bill.. roving gangs almost always 40-50 people, willing to break your leg or smash your teeth in for potato chips and a sandwich. Or maybe just because they don't like the looks of you.

Or.. have returned to the gritty crime-infested 1970s? This is certainly different from then because of the social networking aspect.. such big groups of hoodlums get together in a flash, clean a place out or just go on the prowl rampaging on innocent pedestrians.

This is a tough situation.. how do individuals even defend themselves? You really can't.. nothing you can do against a mob of fifty people attacking you. The stores are in the same boat, just not much they can do faced with numbers like this.

I don't want to be hyperbolic, but this really looks like collapse.. these en masse robberies are essentially LOOTING. I wonder what's next, full on riots?

By the way Sears in Philadelphia was flash mobbed.. same city separate incident from the pedestrian attacks:

Large Mob Robs Upper Darby Sears

In and out in a flash, that's how Upper Darby police describe the mob of about 40 youths that alleged robbed a local department store last Thursday.

Upper Darby police confirm that 15 kids and one adult (19-years-old) were arrested after a flash mob rushed into the Sears on 69th Street and stole thousands of dollars worth of merchandise
http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/15-Youth-Charged-After-Upper-Darby-Flash-Mob-124586214.html

[Oneaboveall]

I don't really have an answer honestly.

I wondering at what point do people start fighting back against these mobs. I think they're totally justified in defending themselves. I also wonder how ugly will things get when that happens. Someone already ran off a Mob in MIssouri with a Mosin Nagant (http://www.fox4kc.com/news/wdaf-metro-m ... 2112.story). While I say "good for him", my fear is that this will escalate. What becomes legitimate defense against violent mobs later becomes an excuse people will use to start chasing anyone they don't like out of their neighborhoods. "We got rid of the thugs terrorizing the town; now we should get rid of those spooks who live down the street, and those wetbacks on the next block..." Later still it becomes "I'm pretty sure that family on High Street are Catholics and Joy's daughter's a dyke..." and so on. Can anyone else tell me they can't picture that happening?

Another thing that I've noticed is that cops in this country are trampling over the Constitution and abusing their power ( See the "Isolated Incidents" thread) killing 69-yr-olds in no-knock raids, tasering grandma's, beating suspects, but are nowhere to be found when stuff like this happens.