Police arrest teenager over Tom Daley Twitter abuse

[Eric Mc]

Maybe people need a few lessons in reining themselves in a bit - especially youngsters.

Self control as an art seems to have been lost on a lot of people.

[Eric Mc]

rohrl said:

Eric Mc said:

rohrl said:

Tom Daley gets adulation left, right and centre.

Is he really such a delicate flower that he can't ignore one idiot?

Maybe he is ignoring him. That's not the point.

Daley retweeted the comment.

Well, he is part of the Tweeting generation I suppose. I'll stick to PH.

[Adrian W]

Give him ten years, celebrities are to accessible, but that is no excuse,

[Deva Link]

Eric Mc said:

Maybe people need a few lessons in reining themselves in a bit - especially youngsters.

If the lad is sentenced to death by stoning that'll learn 'em.

[tinman0]

Eric Mc said:

Maybe people need a few lessons in reining themselves in a bit - especially youngsters.

Self control as an art seems to have been lost on a lot of people.

Freedom of Speech 'innit'?

Woman on some comments forum yesterday who was upset that some chap had made violent threats against a US university and apparently his arrest violated his 'freedom of speech'. wtf??

[Puggit]

Eric Mc said:

Maybe people need a few lessons in reining themselves in a bit - especially youngsters.

Self control as an art seems to have been lost on a lot of people.

This. Twitter is a bit like having a few pints down the pub, you learn what is really going on in people's heads. One of the main features of Twitter is everything is pretty much undeletable. Once you've said it, it's out there for ever.

[s3fella]

rohrl said:

The kid was a dhead but this is just getting ridiculous with arresting people for saying things on Twitter.

Course he was a dhead, he's on twitter.
It's a pre requisite.

[rohrl]

s3fella said:

Course he was a dhead, he's on twitter.
It's a pre requisite.

Pack your bag sonny-Jim and I hope you like porridge, it's off to the big house for you. Tom Daley's on Twitter and you've just called him a dhead.

[0000]

Eric Mc said:

Maybe people need a few lessons in reining themselves in a bit - especially youngsters.

Self control as an art seems to have been lost on a lot of people.

Youngsters always have and always will have to learn those lessons and they'll all make mistakes and learn at different rates until we starting drugging them from birth. Very few seem not to learn some degree of self control, but at least they'll enjoy short careers as celebrities.

I'm not sure it needs a supposedly overstretched police force to teach children not to be abusive on twitter.

[Mr_B]

His arrest makes news and stops some other idiots doing the same. The fact he probably won't get charged won't get so much coverage. It's pretty much policing by PR.

[Parabola]

Has anyone been on this kids profile and read his tweets?

I don't think it's just about the couple of tweets mentioned above.
He's threatened murder and sexual violence in other tweets. He's also spreading cartoon pedophile porn.

[johnfm]

Quite a bit more than just the 'dad, tweet:

http://imgur.com/a/aHDr0

This police action is EXACTLY what I want them to do.

Stamp out this sort of behaviour sooner rather than later.

[ukwill]

Parabola said:

Has anyone been on this kids profile and read his tweets?

I don't think it's about the couple of tweets mentioned above.
He's threatened murder and sexual violence in other tweets. He's also spreading cartoon pedophile porn.

...from his bedroom in the 'burbs, whilst his mum is downstaires making his fish fingers.

But he's a lovely kid, 'onest.

[Parabola]

johnfm said:

Quite a bit more than just the 'dad, tweet:

http://imgur.com/a/aHDr0

This police action is EXACTLY what I want them to do.

Stamp out this sort of behaviour sooner rather than later.

Agree completely.

[iphonedyou]

I'm happy enough to be honest. People need to realise that speaking to people like that is just wrong. In my day - well, I'm 25 - I was brought up by my parents to be respectful and respectable. If the police need to step in to force the issue, then so be it - though I concur it's a sad state of affairs.

What the hell do people like this think when they type out such bile? It's really, really not on. I'd urge anyone who hasn't read Johnfm's link, above, and is advocating police inaction, to actually go and read the fella's tweets. It's disgusting; particularly the one about the pregnant lady.

ETA: Why is the BBC mentioning none of the above in its radio coverage? They're literally saying 'he was arrested for telling Tom Daley he'd let his dad down'. Presumably the other tweets came into it, too.

Edited by iphonedyou on Tuesday 31st July 09:35

[Fittster]

iphonedyou said:

I'm happy enough to be honest. People need to realise that speaking to people like that is just wrong. In my day - well, I'm 25 - I was brought up by my parents to be respectful and respectable. If the police need to step in to force the issue, then so be it - though I concur it's a sad state of affairs.

You want being disrespectful to be illegal?

[anonymous-user]

Use Psychology said:

so what he tweeted was:

"You let your dad down i hope you know that."

is that really a 'menacing communication' (which is what he's been arrested for sending)?

I wouldn't say so. where is the menace?

I think it was the later tweets threatening to drown him (and to stab various other people on twitter) that did it.

[Fittster]

What 'crime' would the teenage be arrested for?

[robmlufc]

He said some nasty things, not the first or last to say such things on the internet.. are any of his threats credible? If he said these things to a non-celeb would anything have happened?

[Eric Mc]

It does make a diference because when someone in the public eye is targetted it magnifies the offence massively. If you insulted me on PH only myself and a few other would notice - or care.

If you go on a VERY public forum like Twitter and make derogatory comments against someone who is well known and followed by the general public, then that is a different matter.

It is especially magnified when that person is representing the country and should be being supported by the nation, rather than being lambasted.