this post was submitted on 22 Aug 2023
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It is, it's really bad. I just don't see how locking up a child for doing something that didn't directly harm anyone really lines up. He intimidated people in a disgusting way, but what he did seems more like outrageous acts of a rebellious child than malicious hateful acts of a racist and terrorist. Like, I could see him going down that route as he grows up, but that doesn't mean he's there yet.
The purpose of the judicial system should be to prevent further harm to society and reform people, not merely punish them by locking them up, smacking them down, and all but ensuring they're on a route to becoming the terrible person you accuse them of being. Is locking him up really going to push him away from neo-Nazi ideology?
Intimidating people is real harm, though. Racism is harm. Not knowing which of your neighbours is a fucking Nazi and what they might do next is a harm.
It's all very well to say "ooh it's just a bit of spraypaint and nobody got hurt" until you're the one wondering if it's going to be a brick through your window next or a boot to your spine. The effect of shit like this is to make people live in fear.
It is harm. However, it is a different level of harm.
Ultimately I think he's just a kid stuck in Wales who's lurked the internet too much, and putting him in prison potentially with Nazis is not going to deter him from his budding Nazi ideology. Instead, it would be better to direct him away from that and encourage him to develop his computer skills for good.