Air Jordans mob mentality and violence????

[fordtrucksforever]

WTF???? For shoes????

[Nighthawk]

[Diamondback]

Originally Posted by fordtrucksforever

WTF???? For shoes????

wtf????? please explain post.

[fordtrucksforever]

All over the country there are long lines of mostly african american(insert racial profiling here) teenagers waiting to buy a pair of the brand new re release of famous Air Jordan sneakers from Nike. They have been kicking down doors breaking in windows, shots fired, fighting, frenzies and chaos. Police have been summoned to many Foot Locker locations and try to maintain some type of civility over the situation.

I hope they make a Boondocks episode of this. It would be so hilarious.

[Prizefighter]

Here's a report:

New Air Jordans cause shopping frenzy across US

And excerpts:

The release of Nike's new Air Jordan basketball shoes caused a frenzy at stores across the nation Friday as scuffles broke out and police were brought in to stamp out unrest that nearly turned into riots in some places.

Shoppers stood in long lines through the night to get their hands on a retro version of one of the most popular models of Air Jordans ever made. The fights were reminiscent of violence that broke out in the early 1990s on streets across America as the shoes became popular targets for thieves.

...

The frenzy over Air Jordans has been dangerous in the past. Some people were mugged or even killed for early versions of the shoe, created by Nike Inc. in 1985.

The Air Jordan has been a consistent hit since then with sneaker fans. A new edition was launched each year, and release dates had to be moved to the weekends at some points to keep kids from skipping school to get a pair.

No one anticipated the hysteria around the original Air Jordan, which spawned a subculture of collectors willing to wait hours to buy the latest pair. Some collectors save the shoes for special occasions or never take them out of the box.

...

Elsewhere Friday, police say about 100 people forced their way into a shopping center in Taylor, Mich., around 5:30 a.m., damaging decorations and overturning benches. A 21-year-old man was arrested.

In Lithonia, Ga., at least four people were arrested after a crowd of customers broke down a door before a store selling the Air Jordans opened.

...

Police also said they had to break a car window to get two toddlers out after a woman went in after the shoes. They said she was taken into custody when she returned to the car.

...

In Tukwila, Murphy said the crowd was on the verge of a riot and would have gotten even more out of hand if the police hadn't intervened.

...

About 25 officers from Tukwila, Renton, Kent, Seattle and King County responded. Murphy said they smelled marijuana and found alcohol containers at the scene.

The Southcenter mall's stores sold out of the Air Jordan 11 Retro Concords, and all but about 50 people got their Nikes, Murphy said.

Shoppers described the scene as chaotic and at times dangerous.

Urban culture is charming, isn't it?

[MSGT-R]

So.. who would kill over a shoe like this (?)
Inbread, immature, pea-brained wanna be gansta' trash.



This is why they want them so badly:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Air-Jordan-X...item4160af93aa

Money.

[Juker]

Good grief, I've rewritten my post five times.

Consider this - when the S really HTF, this is the mentality that will first strike electronics/liquor/shoe stores. I think mobs at food stores will be mild by comparison in the first stages.

So let's all remember these stories, and remember what we'll be dealing with. Coming soon enough to a neighborhood near you.

[Finster]

My Gosh this world is dropping into a **** hole fast!!

[MSGT-R]

I guess they're on a time table: 21 Dec 2012.

[Juker]

Originally Posted by MSGT-R

I guess they're on a time table: 21 Dec 2012.

I was surfing a couple of nights ago, couldn't sleep, and got sucked into a "2012" special on one of the cable news channels. My, my, there sure are a lot of folks cashing in on the idea that the world will end in a year! They showed the Mayan stone tablet, or rather a piece thereof, from which the entire 2012 doomsday prophesy is derived.

I was looking at this chunk of stone, and thinking, "Maybe they have it upside down? Maybe it actually says, 'We should have eaten more vegetables.' "

But the point WAS made that no matter what the great Mayans may have predicted, there are plenty of folks who THINK the world will end in a year. Something to consider when you're trying to decide whether to buy a Gameboy or more ammo.

Oh, by the way, I predict the end of the world will be caused by a giant comet named Xzughl 78b9, in the year 4283.

[MSGT-R]

Originally Posted by Juker

I was looking at this chunk of stone, and thinking, "Maybe they have it upside down? Maybe it actually says, 'We should have eaten more vegetables."

Yup, remember Y2K?

[Finster]

It may not be the end of the world but everyone feels that something is not right in this world right now and its getting worse faster and faster. Compare change from 1960 to 1999 and compare to 2000 to 2011. I see a lot of change for a small amount of time or is it just me.

[boatme99]

What a mentality. "I've got $150. I'm gonna buy some sneakers!"
The older I get, the less I can tolerate idiocy. And lest anyone accuse me of racisim, I feel exactly the same about anyone who would stand in line for the latest hemdroid phone or tickets for any event, just to be able to say "I'm the first!".

[Juker]

Originally Posted by Finster

It may not be the end of the world but everyone feels that something is not right in this world right now and its getting worse faster and faster. Compare change from 1960 to 1999 and compare to 2000 to 2011. I see a lot of change for a small amount of time or is it just me.

Oh, it's not just you - there are some rough times ahead, but probably not because of solar flares or global warming or a giant comet causing the Earth to reverse its rotation. It's a dozen things that are totally controllable, starting with immigration laws, telling the Chinese to suck it, and an American president.

[BETH]

i could think of better things to spend my money on--ANOTHER GUN

[Finster]

Originally Posted by BETH

i could think of better things to spend my money on--ANOTHER GUN

That may be one the most wisest decisions anybody could ever make.

[BETH]

There's always another firearm so many guns so little money

[Finster]

Originally Posted by Juker

Oh, it's not just you - there are some rough times ahead, but probably not because of solar flares or global warming or a giant comet causing the Earth to reverse its rotation. It's a dozen things that are totally controllable, starting with immigration laws, telling the Chinese to suck it, and an American president.

Yup its all controllable, we the people can change it and control it but there are to many lazy blind people that will let our government take away all your rights because they say "its for your safety".

[Gun Geezer]

Actually, the pair of new Nikes retails for $180 dollars. I just wonder how many pairs you and I are paying for? Remember, to those who have little or nothing these shoes represent the most expensive thing they will ever own and give a sort of status that you or I probably can't fathom. What bothers me most of all are the scenes where they trample each other like mindless cattle just to get to the shoes. When the SHTF, don't expect any compassion from the likes of them. Who says the average citizen doesn't need automatic weapons?

[Juker]

Amen.

My status symbol isn't found on my feet; it's locked and loaded and resting comfortably next to my keyboard.

Because my status is: ARMED - FED UP - AND NOT BACKING DOWN.

[raven818]

One of my ex supervisors and I got into a heated exchange over a picture on the front page of the paper, that showed an older female, and her five kids standing in front of their home. A total shack.

The paper here does "human interest " stories starting at the first of December about folks who are having it tough, and a PO Box where anybody can send them money.

I took the article to my ex, and asked him what was wrong with the picture. He looked it over a bit, then said " nothing ". I told him to look again, slowly.

After looking again, he said he still didn't see anything wrong, and asked me what I was talking about.

I pointed out that every kid in the picture was wearing Air Jordans, and their clothes were rags.

His freeking response to me was, well everybody has their priorities. I pointed out the trash in the yard, and on the porch, and their ragged clothes.

He said the priority word again, and said " you've got your priorities, what's wrong with them having theirs? At that point, I said, what the hell is the matter with you? That woman, or one of those kids has spent somewhere in the neighborhood of $800.00 dollars for shoes, and the kids didn't have a decent pair of pants or shirts on them.

I told him my priorities included paying my mortgage, buying food for us, and taking care of mandatory bills that keep us alive, NOT gangster shoes. He then said, well everybody has their own priorities. Our relationship was never the same after that little chat.

These folks, IMO, had nothing coming from anybody.

[raven818]

Just now watching this story on Fox. They are already selling on the street for $500.00. One person(?) licked the bottom sole of his new pair. Good grief.

[Bobitis]

That's a great post Raven.

We had our own to do here in Seattle this morning. Gun shots, fighting, etc.
It took police depts. from no less than 4 jurisdictions to control the estimated mob of 2,000. Pepper spray was finally used to subdue the fighters.

I heard an interview on the radio today from one in the crowd. He was obviously a young black man, who invoked the 'like' word 11 times in a 13 second spot.

$180.00 + tax for a pair of shoes? Nike Air Jordan Shoes?
Sneakers?

What's wrong with this picture indeed.

[MSGT-R]

Pea brains, indeed.

[hogger129]

It's probably because they can't afford them.

I remember getting a pair of Air Jordans back in 1993 when I was 6. They costed $65 back then. Now I usually buy New Balance (they're comfortable and I think US-made).