dealing with scumbags

wiensta

Admittedly this was triggered by Tellox's post earlier and his experience. I felt the need to ask directly to get a wider response to a question boiling in the back of my mind for ages.

I live in Kilkenny and we have our fair share of scumbags. They dont seem as severe as the ones mentioned in Dublin but Im still interested on dealing with them cos Im heading to college there in september...and the college is in Ballyfermot.

These guys really pi$$ me off. My girlfriend was up a few weeks back and we ran into two packs of knackers in one day.. Mostly it was just hurled abuse.. The fact I didnt respond the first time made me so angry/frustrated inside. I told the second group to phuck off aggressively.. Which i regretted, because I had stooped to their level.

So this rises the question;

How can you deal with scumbags?

Ive personally changed my mind about carrying around a knife going to college as some of you said most scumbags dont really care, unless youre prepared to use it. I considered carrying around my broken phone/pack of cigarettes (i dont smoke) so if I am stopped Ill just give them one. My girlfriend suggests not to stop at all..just to ignore them and make em look stupid; shes got a point, but what if you are stopped and then threatened?

Please only give answers you consider truly valid as I will have to live with the worst of these people for the next 4 years.

KdjaCL

Dont stop ,dont make eye contact if your well outnumbered get ready to run.

Now if you going to Ballyfermot college and i assume you wont be living there, the bus stops are about 100 metres from college (straight walk) and its on the main street (very busy all day up to 6pm) so you wont have much problems unless it night time.

I hate that place ,horrible place but the main street is ok its the upper end thats the worst part.

kdjac

Boston

ballyfermot is a doggy enough area, my cousin went to that PLC, and i've been there afew times, basically anywhere with flats around is a rough area, fact. Thats not saying anything that prejudices, most of my mates are from flats and would probably be called scumbags, its just a mentallity, if your an outsider your fair game simple as that.

AS for carring a knife, for the sake of 20 euro in your pocket are you willing to go to jail for a long long time. You stab someone with a knife,and wait around for the gardi, your screwed,. you pull a knife and don't stab someone your also screwed. Some of the most street wise guys from the roughest areas have been mugged and killed or seriously injured. Giving over you phone or whatever doesn't mean anything, if i recall correctly the case of that guy in collock, where they had his phone, rang his girlfriend while jumpping up and down on the guys head. I actually went to school with one of the guys who did that, (bite younger then me) real piece of ****. Unless you can go down to their level of scumness don't stand around, don't talk just walk or most likely run away. Better to be a coward and alive then dead and on the 6 o clock news.

As for avoiding eye contact, just look straight a head, if they think your scared, they will hassel you.

Tiesto

no eye contact,walk on, and get ready to run.

Sarky

All of the above, and if you can make friends with a big guy in college that uses the same buses, go for it. Scumbags are like vultures, they'll usually only attack if you look scared and defenceless.

Try and look confident and just ignore them, but stay aware of them.

Never had any trouble myself in Galway with these tactics. That said, I am rather a big fellow...

And I really wouldn't worry abouot letting abuse slide.

Sean101

Poison the Dublin water supply. There would be major collateral damage, but I belive the end justifies the means.

Lump

Wiensta...... are you doing animation in the college or wha. Oh and you're skinny, run away from them;) I on the other hand tend to look evil and people stay away



John

Ste-

I was mugged once but I was willing to give the money simply coz I didn't want a stabwound anywhere. and for £40 wasn't a lot.

But since that I never get hassled in all my drunken nights walking home from town to Cabra, nothing.

Maybe coz I'm 6ft and shaved head they don't bother.

But try and get away or to a safe public place if he/they corner you just hand it over.

My $0.02 anyway.

Tails

Well your less likely to be mugged or anything in a group so just stay with a group i guess, safety in numbers.

Space Coyote

As was said already, ignore any taunts from scumbags, look confident and don't dress like a tourist. Run like the wind if you think there's going to be hassle. As Boston said "Better to be a coward and alive then dead and on the 6 o clock news."

And get a Dublin gaa jersey.

Sangre

And/or Rangers jersey.
Or is that Celtic?

Oh well, only one way to find out

gs39t

You've really gotta wonder WHY these people are even like that. Just being scumbags for the sake of being scumbags. Were they abused as children? Just jealous of people who are more successful than they are? Think its cool to be a total d*ck?

It boggles the mind. Criminals are one thing, scumbags are another. It would almost feel good to run into town at 12am with a very expensive mobile phone, laptop, rolex and whatever else you can, and have half the scumbags chase you, only to stop and press the "detonate" button on the C4 strapped around your waist

T'would be at a time like that you could die knowing you did some good :ninja:

RicardoSmith

Just ignore them, act as if they don't exist and act like a tough bas.... But at all time keep an eye on them, if they look like there making a beeline for you then cross the street or walk in to a shop and call a taxi etc. You never know if theres a another group waiting out of sight. If they talk to you just ignore them and keep going but Never stop. Even if you get into a shoving match with them, Never stop. Always vary your route and try never be in the area on your own. This works in any city in the world 98% of the time. Oh and if in doubt run like f...

Stand and fight if you want but why take the risk. If you're 200% certain you can take them, and they don't know who you are then go for it. Otherwise expect their entire family (they have big families usually) to turn up waiting for you with baseball bats either at your flat or on the route you take sometime in the future.

You meet that kind crap everywhere in the world. Most of the time you can avoid it. The Smart thing is to avoid it.

Gordon

I usually just give an honest face to scummers. If I feel threatened I'll put on my angry ignoring face and I'll walk with a sturdy purpose (heh, that worked one night when some guy saw me wearing my suit and high heel clip clop shoes - he ran after me shouting something while his mates watched on and I did my angry ignoring face striding on with a purpose - and clippy cloppy shoes. It worked amazingly.)

They want you to be afraid but you don't have to be.

Sangre

Originally posted by Gordon
I usually just give an honest face to scummers. If I feel threatened I'll put on my angry ignoring face and I'll walk with a sturdy purpose (heh, that worked one night when some guy saw me wearing my suit and high heel clip clop shoes - he ran after me shouting something while his mates watched on and I did my angry ignoring face striding on with a purpose - and clippy cloppy shoes. It worked amazingly.)

They want you to be afraid but you don't have to be.

Lol, while saying 'Go away you ruffian, I have to get these files into office by tomorrow or I'll lose my stock portfolio'.


Or you could hit them over the head with your clippety clop shoes.

sci0x

Best thing to do when you see a rough gang coming your way is look straight past them as if you see someone in the distance who you are trying to make out.

Or if you are walking with someone else start talking to the person constantly until they have passed completely ignoring them. Try and laugh as well or something as if saying a joke to show you dont give a damn about them.

Dont make eye contact. Basically ignore them but try not to look like you are trying to ignore them

ella minnow pea

Ok, being a culchie who's only ever been to da big schmoke on Saturday, in Grafton St., i've a n00b question, as I'm going to college dere me hopes:
Do they bother girlies as well? should i re-new my tae-bo membership?

sci0x

F**k yeah, in Grafon Street the girls attack you!!

AngelofFire

theres lots of 12 year old wannabe hardmen near me they hang around the shops one guy thought he was real cool throwing stones at me so i jus took a run at him and he got scared so he ran off. as for the older guys just try and act as casual as possible one time me and my mate were walkin down the street and a group of the local hard men came up and started slagging us and tryin to pick a fight. and my mate sed"lads can i not walk down the fvcking street without yas hassling me" then they jus went silent and walked off. i couldnt believe it i thought they`d kick the sh1t out of us but they didnt. I wouldnt reccomend tryin something like that again jus to be safe.

Shad0r

Originally posted by denis_o_leary
F**k yeah, in Grafon Street the girls attack you!!

:rolleyes:

I was mugged once when I was 16 and even though they only took 20 quid from me I vowed it would never happen again. That said I would never carry a knife around with me. Thats just stupid. Never have any weapon that you arent prepared to use. Either you'll put yourself in an irrecoverable situation by breaking the law and seriously hurting someone or they'll take it off of you. If your really worried about all this take up a martial art/self defence. Your hands and feet (aside from your brain) are the best weapons you can have cause they cant be taken and used against you.

The idea of bringing ciggies everywhere with you so you can give them one is a bad one aswell. You dont want to talk to these people let alone give them an opportunity to stop you.

The best things to do are:
- Walk with a purpose wherever your going.
- Stay switched on to who is around you.
- Never make eye contact with a guy unless you have to, i.e. if he touches you. (In this case the best thing to do is probably pre-empt whatever he's going to do or say with a look straight in his eyes like your a second from killing him and walk on. I wouldnt even say anything...the craz'ed look has worked for me before)
- Know where you are and where your going. You really dont want to end up in some areas of town
- Dont acknowledge anyone who's shouting or trying to start a conversation with you. Keep walking.

Ivan

Well when i was in secondary school in 3rd year I think, one of the lads I went to school with (a traveller/knacker/whatever) claimed that I had stated that I "beat him up" when we were in primary school.

As sad as that sounds he felt obliged to fight me. So after already having a rather limited social life I figured, why not, why alienate myself further.

So I accepted.

What followed can only be described as a clash of the titans.

He was training to be a boxer for like 6 years before this and i was obviously outmatched. But I had some Karate & just a massive bulky frame that was rather difficult to hurt.

In the end he boxed me till my ears bled and then I grabbed him by the head and kneed him repeatedly in the face till he fell to the ground.

Next his entire (immediate?) family decided to "jump in" and aid him or maybe just to hurt me.

I'm told several people I knew tried to help me but I dont think it worked.

This big mob and me started to steer towards a bush. I was sure that if they got me into the bush I was quite literally dead. but I managed to get away from the lot of them.

At the end the guy, stood up and asked if I'd fight him again. I just laughed and told him sure, if he leaves his family at home the next time (i.e. meaning NO).

The next day there was a group of about 5 guys all around mid twenties hanging around the shop outside of my primary school waiting for me to come out for lunch to "get me".

Apparently one of them had a baseball bat and another had a cleaver that he used in work (a butchers).

Another guy I know was walking down the road on his way home with his girlfriend, when 3 guys around his age started with him.

I dont know exactly what happened next but apparently he beat the crap out of them, which I'd believe because he is a rather tough fella.

A few days later a group of about 23 guys most being ALOT older than him got up with him and took their revenge.

He went to the gardai but they said there was nothing they could do.

And before anyone gets any ideas that I live in Cork, Limerick or even Dublin... I come from tullamore in Co. Offaly.

My advice : How badly do you want to go to college in Ballyfermot?
-or-
No matter what happens, NEVER fight back. If they want to act "hard" fine, back down. All you have to do is not be afraid to be humiliated and you should be grand. Rather that than the alternative. Besides, they dont exactly have alot to be proud about either.

deadduck

i like ivan's story, he speaks a good bit of sense, as do most people here. in a proper country, although i can't think of a good example(maybe there isn't one), this kind of crap would be on a much more limited scale. i, personally, think a death penalty would be a good thing, i believe it would be the ultimate detterent. when the bollix is 100% guilty, like that toe-rag who paralysed that italian chap a couple of years ago, he should be thrown to a pack of lions, or hanged in public. sure who would miss him. he's only taking up taxpayers money in jail, which could be used for some far better things. or that guy in england who was in jail for drug dealing(heroin), suing the farmer for LOSS OF EARNINGS. i mean, ffs, is the world gone crazy, he's basically saying "cos you shot me while i was trying to steal from you, i couldn't sell as many drugs or steal from as many people, therefore you owe me money". and to top it off, and insult the farmer even more(who shouldn't have served a day in jail), he ends up serving 5 months of a 18 month sentence while the farmer was locked up for 3 and a half years. i know thats a different country, but since most of our laws are similar or based on theirs, you know the same could easily happen here. i hope i haven't drifted to far off topic here, but to sum it all up, people shouldn't have to deal with intimidation of fear of mugging when walking home from the local pub after a few drinks(just look at o' connell st.), and a proper state would ensure this.

Chowley

Im from Cork so unfortunately have a bit of experience with this.

I considered carrying around my broken phone/pack of cigarettes (i dont smoke) so if I am stopped Ill just give them one

Dont bother if they ask for a fag they just wanna catch you off guard (most of the time) you put your hand in your pocket , he hits you, you look down to pick a ciggie out of the box , he'll hit you.

If they ask for the time dont look down at your watch or stop, keep walking and hold your watch up to see it.Its another ploy to catch you out you look down to see the time.............

I generally find I can walk straight past most of the ****ers and not get a bit of hassle.

If you want self defence go for Wing Chun, a form of Kung Fu.Very good for close range fighting (street fighting).It allows you to exact as much force as you can while expending the least energy.Its about the best youll find.Tae Kwon Do is very flashy but not so great as far as I know (i have never done but my bro and sis have) it was originally created for the Korean army long ago and the whole point of it was to disable or kill your enemy with one punch or kick.Very powerful techniques but not much of it would be suitable to the street, although I have heard otherwise.

If you want a martial art as a hobby they are both good but if you want to learn some flashy kicking go for Tae kwon do but for protecting yourself Wing Chun.

Dr. Dre

personally, think a death penalty would be a good thing

Absolutely, gotta be public executions/humiliations.
Tar and feathers anyone ?
And what's the worst that could happen.......there maybe the odd wrongful conviction but I can live with that when I look at the bigger picture.

Emboss

wear lots of gold, check shirt and a pair of air max, they'll think your one of them

Chowley

LOL good idea.

Nothing wrong with Air max though a comfortable runner, unless they are one of those awful shiny colours.

ToxicPaddy

A guy I know of, ex army and fairly big bulky lad, about 6ft and 15stone was walking across a narrow enough bridge one evening and there were 2 scumbags standing having a fag at one side, when he passed them, the started following him, then he noticed 2 on the other side walking towards him..

He reached the 2 walking towards him first and they asked him for his wallet. He just replied...

I know that there are 4 of you and only one of me, im not giving you my wallet so if you want it you can try and take it, but remember I wont be able to take you all, but I will definitely **** 2 of you off the bridge and maybe 3, so who wants to be first..

The stepped aside and he continued walking..

F**king classic..:D

Boston

The getting a dublin GAA shirt is sound advice, not so much if your in the south side, but in the north side you have to have one, don't even think about going out on match day without one. Personally i hate GAA and i never where their stuff, but i'm big and well known so i never get hasselled. All the north dublin inner city head cases i know where dublin GAA shirts, if you where one they will think your one of there own.

ToxicPaddy's story has a point, if you are going to fight, pick the middle guy, or focus on one guy at a time, no point in tryign to fight two or three, and once you conmitted stay committed. if your going to run, hide, roll up into a ball or fight, stick with that.

Ivan, we all have stories liek that, in my time in school i've been involved in 1 drawl, me and my mate against about 20 other lads, i got out of it without a mark, mate didn't come out so well, not vicious enough, broken two legs, two arms and afew fingures, not mine the other guys and went to throw a guy down a flight of stairs for treatening my family. Its one thing pasting by scumbags on a once, off, its another when you know them.

One thing about street fighting, short hear and nails, afew rings, don't be afraid to bite, and kick them in the balls. Infact a swift kick to the balls and then runing works well.

btw, yes women will be attacked, and yes will will attack you. where about areyou going to college.

Ps Judo is pretty handy, well the version i learnt anyway

jammy_dodger

It's all about how you look, and act.
unfortuneatly due to my athletes foot, i wear sandles.(with tracksuit and a tshirt)
You'd be surprised what effect wearing sandels has, people approach you with a much more relaxed and less aggrovated attitude.Sounds cracked but it's true. Where as if you go walking past a load of them looking like joe90, wearing rugby shirts, of looking like a frail nerd, Their gonna taunt the feck out of you.
As for how to act, same as everyones posted before me. Look as if they're not even there. and don't take it personally when they slag you off, just let it brush off your shoulder. Is it worth ending up in hospital, cause some stranger called you a f@g ?

wiensta

Thanks so far everyone.. answers are fairly consistent which is a relief. I really need to set out a plan now.. My situation isnt helped by the fact that I have long hair, am skinny and dont have any sports jerseys.

Wiensta...... are you doing animation in the college or wha.

Yea definiely, I was accepted into Dun Laoghaire for the same course although I hear Its rubbish.

Boston

Originally posted by wiensta
Thanks so far everyone.. answers are fairly consistent which is a relief. I really need to set out a plan now.. My situation isnt helped by the fact that I have long hair, am skinny and dont have any sports jerseys.


Yea definiely, I was accepted into Dun Laoghaire for the same course although I hear Its rubbish.

Dun Loaoghaire(well where the college is) would be saver. That is a really good course in bally fermot, the only reason why anybody would go to that hell whole. Its what my cousin did, really good opertunities and money, but you really have to be willing to travel.