Originally posted by Masherbrum
I'd have stepped in. 20people w/o knives vs. 3 pansies w/ knives. Majority rules.
Around 1900 a study in London, England was initiated. The basis was that say a Murder took place in an Apartment Complex. All of the residents would pass the urge to "call the law (per se)". Thinking "my neighbor will call the police on this, so I don't have to". But to witness this, and just stand there looking stupid?! Naw, that's just BS.
Karaya
The problem is that each individual in the crowd is thinking "right now it's 3 armed men vs that pregant woman. If I step in, and no one else does, it's three armed men vs. myself and that pregnant woman." Absent some leadership from someone in the crowd, or an ingrown ethic of group values that seems to have gone away in recent decades, each individual will do that particular math, and hope someone else steps in.
If, OTOH, these three guys with knives are trying to take over an airliner and crash it into the White House, each of the airline passengers will know the choice is "kill, or die", and proceed to bash these losers faces in with laptop computers or anything else with the necessary mass.
My own theory is that this all began when people started squatting in front of their television sets [and now, computers] for hours, instead of sitting on front porch or front steps and passing the time with their neighbors. Just my two cents.
