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Kidnap Victim Visible Via Xbox Community Site
Via Joystiq comes the confusing tale of Shawn Hornbeck. Shawn was kidnapped more than four years ago, and his absence has made his parents worry and left a hole in his friends' lives. He's been returned safely home, so there's a happy ending to this tale. Strangely, though, he has been publicly visible for over a year now - via Xbox Live. From the Joystiq post: "The GamerTagPics profile for Xbox Live user 'DevilDevlin' shows the kidnapped Hornbeck outside what appear to be [alleged kidnapper Michael] Devlin's apartment. The profile was created Sept. 4, 2005 but hasn't been accessed since early 2006. DevilDevlin's Gamertag reveals that someone played Saints Row on the account as recently as Friday. It seems likely that Hornbeck used the account -- a Washington Post story reveals Devlin's neighbors 'often spotted Shawn out and about, visiting friends on his bicycle or playing video games with the apartment door open.'"
He was possibly playing Saint's Row and he is only 15! That game has an M rating! One can only imagine what this has done to that poor child's psyche.
I keep telling myself I'm not the desperate type.
Doesn't sound like kidnapping to me. "Hey kid, you wanna come play video games for a few years." "Sure, thanks mister"
I'm gonna need a spec.
gonna start looking through Xbox live users. You know for all the terrorist suspects and pedofiles (well you might find some of these type but) I can see it now
bush -------- "halo is being used as a training device for the terrorists, we need access to the user database. NukeDukeum1987 has been posting terrorist threats -
You are so Ded you think your 1337? bring it im gonna blow up your whole city than kidnap your son and make him my bitch-
If we cant monitor these people, they have already won."
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
"Shawn was kidnapped more than four years ago, and his absence has made his parents worry..."
It's only January, and we already have a solid nomination for understatement of the year!
This sounds like something a third-grader would say while giving a book report.
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This is more common then you would think.
It has to od with how a child determins whats safe and whats not. In the beginnibg, he was probably afraid and wishing to be rescued. After a while the attacker becomes the protector and it seems somewhat normal. also, the attacker does things to remind the victom they are the provider and protector, maybe slipping in some things about how his real parrent gave him away durring a poker game or something. After time this will lead to the kid/victom not thinking anything is wrong.
Don't believe me, just look at all these teen mothers who get stuck with some looser who refuses to get a job and provide for the family, they often get abused in the process too. They know it sucks yet they refuse to leave. It is the same thing. It happens quit often! and it usualy isn't because of the guy having a big dick either.
Of course i could be wrong and the kid wanted to stay for other reasons. Maybe a sexual relationship or something. I doubt it though. Even that would require some sort of conditioning simular to the previous to get the kid to stay. Especialy when another kid was introduced.
I guess you were out hunting crocodiles and working as a mercenary in the Civil War of Congo when you were eleven?
No, just fish, rabbits, and game birds, and only within a few miles (ie hiking distance) of my parents' house. From your question, I suppose Nintendo's "Duck Hunt", from the living-room floor, about did it for you, then?
Every response to me so far has take the stance that 11YO kids count as completely helpless idiots. They don't. They have the presense of mind to get help when they direly need it. They don't consider "bad men" omnipotent evil deities that can kill them and their parents. They understand the difference between "Wierd uncle Joe" and "Some guy that dragged me into his car at the mall one afternoon".
Hell, I don't think most of the responses so far would have applied to me at six. By eleven, I truly believe that if I couldn't have outright escaped, I would have killed the guy in his sleep.
So yeah, if it makes me an "asshole", I have trouble believing this as a simple kidnapping.
For one, how about a motive???
(from wikipedia)
Elephant traps
A method of confining elephants practiced in the Indian Subcontinent is far less physical and brutal, and more psychological, than earlier means. It is called the "elephant trap". The following is taken from a newsletter:
From when an elephant is a baby they tie him for certain periods with a rope to a tree. The young elephant tries his hardest to escape, he pulls and wriggles and jumps and crawls yet the rope just tightens and to the tree it remains tied. Learning that, the elephant doesn't try to escape and accepts his confinement. A couple of years pass and the elephant is now an adult weighing several tons. Yet the trainer continues to tie the elephant to the tree with the same rope he's always used, for the simple reason that the elephant has the concept in his mind that the rope is stronger than him. Abiding to this conditioning the elephant is trapped for life. To break free all the elephant has to do is erase that limiting thought for in fact he is free to go.
I completely agree with you.
I once met this kid, couldn't have been more than eleven at the time, that was accidentally left home alone when his parents and brothers took a trip to France. During the first days the kid managed to do the cooking, cleaning and shopping all by himself, no problem. But then, he found out that some burglars had targeted the house assuming it was empty for the holidays, so this brilliant kid first tried to make the house appear occupied by a full family through some clever tactics and minor inventions (like cardboard cut-outs which he animated with ropes and then projected through the curtains).
Eventually the burglars found out the house was just occupied by a very small kid and did the same as the GP here, and assumed 11 year olds are helpless morons. They found they were wrong the hard way, when the kid rigged the whole house making it a lethal burglar trap by using the coolest rube goldberg contraptions you can imagine.
I could also tell you about very young kids who found a pirate's gold while exploring some sewers... but I think I made my point.
As a Slashdot discussion grows longer, the probability of an analogy involving cars approaches one.