Crisis Alert: Teen Radicalization on the Rise, Society Incapable of Dealing with Disaffected Youth
Hammer-the-Chud groomed the adolescent boy accused, then found “not-guilty,” of attempting to plan a school shooting in South Portland. The mom of the acquitted teen is now running for school board.
In early August, an anti-fascist researcher monitoring Hammer and the Blood Tribe cult sent me a folder of screenshots collected during an eight-month period in 2023. The images were from the Blood Tribe’s vetting chat for wannabe and fledgling New England members of the neo-Nazi boys-and-men’s club. My colleague (codename: “Chuddletime”) had been keeping an eye on the chat while tracking Hammer’s movements last summer. In the process, the researcher was also able to identify one of the chat participants as the South Portland teen who’d been accused of “criminal solicitation for murder” last year — and since found not-guilty by Judge Peter Darvin — after cops and the DA alleged he tried to recruit another student to help target South Portland High School.
This Crash Report is NOT a retelling of the alleged incident, which is far too complicated and rife with hyperbole, incompetence, secrecy and sadness to discuss here and now. That being said, it’s pretty friggin’ obvious that the cops and the DA screwed up, royally. Instead of trying to investigate and de-escalate an alleged threat, the regional SWAT and FBI kicked kicked in the door of the South Portland family’s home in April 2023, arresting the then-16-year-old boy and shooting his dad with a “non-lethal” projectile that broke a couple of his ribs and injured his spleen. And then the dad was arrested and charged with “refusal to submit to arrest.” In July 2024, the dad plead no contest and paid $160 in fines and fees to the court.
The South Portland raid wasn’t an isolated incident, but a local example of an under-discussed global crisis: the radicalization of male juveniles on-line by adults with nefarious intent. Unfortunately, we have no clue how to deal with the world of cyber-grooming, where disaffected youth are targeted and exploited by racists and other scumbuckets. There’s no real plan on how to handle teenage boys gone bad after being exposed to extremist garbage, easily found via chat apps and social media. All sorts of digital assholes thrive on manipulating susceptible kids, trying to indoctrinate the hate-warriors of the future. Or worse. And it’s obvious that cops — school resource officers especially — don’t have the skills or training to deal with teens dabbling in bad shit on the internet, neurodivergent or otherwise.
I highly recommend reading the recent piece called “The Kids Are Not Alright,” by the writer and extremism researcher Seamus Hughes for the “Lawfare” journal. The essay examines the crisis though a macro lens and portends a bleak outlook, unless there’s a giant policy change.
“In the age of a larger and larger caldron of extremist threats, authorities say aspiring terrorists are getting younger and younger. The simple fact is that law enforcement agencies don’t have a policy answer for it,” Hughes explains. “Interviews with FBI agents around the country reveal a recurring theme: They feel they can’t arrest their way out of this problem, and, even if they could, they didn’t join the counterterrorism section of the FBI to lock up confused kids for decades.”
Hughes does offer possible, but not easy, solutions to what he calls the current “scattershot” approach. Starting with some federal guidelines on how to investigate minors connected to alleged terrorist operations. Also, he recommends the use of “non-governmental resources” and diversion programs that might help de-radicalize kids, instead of ruining their lives forever with criminal convictions because they fell prey to on-line zealots.
The problem is bigger than just federal law enforcement, though. A solution would require local cops, courts, schools, social services and families being on the same page, working together to de-radicalize youth headed to the dark side. However, considering all the other pressing societal needs, it seems unlikely that funding de-rad programs would be a priority, even though it needs to be.
Because the radicalization of teens just keeps happening.
Last week, in Arizona, a 17-year-old was arrested and charged with “terrorism and conspiracy to commit terrorism” — both felony counts — for allegedly planning to use a drone bomb during the Phoenix Pride parade. (Due to Arizona’s extreme heat in June, Pride is held during October.)
“This is an individual who does indicate that he does have some very radical ideas,” Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell told reporters. “He is homophobic in his philosophy. He definitely took steps in the process of putting together something that would act as an explosive.” The teen, she said, will be tried on felony charges as an adult and will stay behind bars until he posts $1 million cash-only bond.
According to court docs, the teen is also alleged to have provided “advice, assistance, direction or management of an act of terrorism to further the goals, desires, aims, public pronouncements, manifestos or political objective of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and al-Sham (ISIS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a terrorist organization and/or al-Qa'ida (AQ), a terrorist organization, in violation of ARS §§ 13-2308 01, 13-2301, 13-701, 13-702, and 13-801.”
Obviously, every case is different, but a common thread is how adolescents are being digitally influenced by the worst of the worst. It’s a complicated problem. Especially when minors are accused of “planning” a major crime that doesn’t include an actual murder or other violent act.
In South Portland, instead of a more subtle intervention (starting with reaching out to the teen’s parents with concerns about allegations) the paramilitary response by the cops created a ton of unnecessary trauma for everyone involved. And panic, thanks to irresponsible media coverage and fear-mongering.
In the aftermath, students, staff and parents were needlessly terrorized, for over a year-and-a-half, until the adolescent’s acquittal. Terror not caused by a teenage boy, but by cops and DAs fueled by questionable tactics and motives, while operating in an information vacuum.
School administrators also erred many times, resulting in rumors that further traumatized an already distressed school population. Which meant that even though a violent act hadn’t been actually committed in South Portland, it generated lots of fear and trauma nonetheless.
The admin’s mistakes and terrible communication skills made it extra tough for South Portland High teachers and staff. Especially during emergency lockdowns, like the one in September 2023. Another teenager, allegedly spotted with a “toy” Airsoft rifle, was apprehended by the school cop. Imagine trying to calm terrified students while worrying about an unknown danger, possibly lurking in the hall outside your classroom. And then it takes over an hour to get an “all clear” from an incompetent administrator. Sounds like a nightmarish responsibility never taught in teacher college.
There’s a long list of official folks to blame. From the school resource officer to the South Portland police chief to the Cumberland County DA and the FBI, law enforcement failed miserably. As the not-guilty verdict shows, prosecutors and investigators just didn’t have the evidence to back up their allegations. Gotta wonder how much time and resources were devoted to a case that ended up in an acquittal and ruined a juvenile’s name.
Not to mention the uncountable expense, both fiscal and psychological, suffered by the school community.
The Maine media also acted irresponsibly during this whole ordeal. Starting with the SWAT home invasion and arrest and continuing until the teen’s eventual acquittal, the media coverage is a literal “how-not-to” report on alleged teen crimes. Also, it’s pretty embarrassing how reporters credulously amplify the cops’ POV without any corroboration. Such as South Portland Police Chief Dan Ahern's initial claims that “the [raid] averted a very likely tragedy here in the community” and “several threats to cause serious harm to individuals and groups using specific weapons were verified” were repeated dutifully and never challenged.
More importantly, though, is how the local media violated a basic journalistic tenet by publishing the teen’s name a gazillion times. Especially since the arrest happened when the kid was only 16. After all, it wasn’t like he was accused of an actual murder, with a dead body and a crime scene full blood splatter and fingerprints. The prosecutor’s case was based mostly on allegations made by another teen that some describe as “unreliable.” And yet the media repeated the accused’s name constantly, like he was a convicted serial killer, not a juvenile awaiting trial.
Despite the judge finding the teen not-guilty, the news stories identifying the kid are still out there, sitting in the cyber-ether, easily discovered with a quick google. And the vast majority are about his arrest, not his acquittal. Which is bullshit. Our juvenile justice system is supposed to operate with anonymity to protect kids from their own stupid actions and prevent their lives from being ruined because of mistakes made while under the influence of an immature and undeveloped brain.
Unless there’s a digital miracle, though, the teen will be forevermore be the villain in an alleged crime of which he was acquitted. As the judge’s verdict showed, the teen wasn’t guilty of planning any sort of mass violence. He was, it appears, just a teenager with some neurodivergent issues, hanging out in hateful on-line spaces, posting terrible stuff while acting like he was a tough-bro edgelord. He was being a jerk, for sure, but in the judge’s opinion, he wasn’t planning to be the next Columbine shooter.
As a society, we are supposed to recognize how modern adolescence is fraught with danger and remember that teen-brains aren’t fully developed. If adult-brained humans can’t navigate the digital morass that passes for modern society, than how can we expect the teen-brained among us to do any better? Especially when there are so many creeps creeping on the ‘net, looking to poison the minds and souls of disaffected youth.
***
Chuddletime sent me the screenshots of the Blood Tribe chat because of my extensive coverage of Hammer, aka Chris Pohlhaus, aka the steroid-addicted Hitler-and-Odin worshiping neo-pagan-Nazi tattooist who tried and FAILED to set up a tiny house compound for his cult on ten acres in the rural Penobscot County town of Springfield, Maine. (Pod-episodes, Hammer 1, 2, 3, 4 and the “No Hugs for Chuds” Crash Report.)
I was busy with other reporting projects when the images showed up in my inbox, so it was awhile before I could closely examine the stuff. And I’m not gonna go into much detail about the screenshots, here, other than to say, the chat’s content was NOT GOOD.
I’ve monitored other chats like this, consisting of lots of misogynistic and racist speech that normal people would look at, aghast. And while the teenager from South Portland was acting like an asshole on-line, being a garbage-talking cyber-racist isn’t against the law. And the chat images show that he was interacting with Hammer himself, meaning the cult leader had his eyes on the kid.
Chuddletime has seen evidence that the So Po teen was one of “two or three gatekeepers hand-picked and added to the Blood Tribe vetting chat. Hammer was well aware of [the teen’s] age and he wasn’t the youngest in the chat,” Chuddletime explained. “There was at least another self-identified 15-year-old and a 14-year-old kid. And those were just the ones that owned up to their age.”
The 37-year-old Hammer, it’s safe to say, is a weirdo and serial groomer of youth. He’s been relentlessly targeting young men with his Nazi ideology for the last six years. Before that, he claims to have been in a “1 percent” biker gang, serving as master-of-arms in two states. However, I haven’t seen any actual proof his membership in any moto-gangs. In fact, during the time he claims to have been a biker, Hammer was actually a practicing and flamboyant Libertarian, while tattooing in shops out west, using the alias “Kriss Rage.”
It’s also safe to say that Hammer is a grifter. Over the last year or so, he was able to convince supporters to donate more than ten thousand bucks to his recent fund-raising campaign on Give-Send-Go, the far-right equivalent to GoFundMe. Until last month, that is, when his page was removed. According to Hammer, one of the payment processors didn’t want to launder cash for a juiced-up weirdo begging for money under a swastika banner, so the site dropped him like a hot Reichsmark.
Perhaps that’s why he recently introduced a line of Blood Tribe coffee mugs for sale. (Blutstamm is “Blood Tribe” in German and the hieroglyphics spell his cult’s name in runes, because he’s a larper.)
The meaty-and-musclebound freak has been making cash off the fash for awhile, thanks to his involvement with an on-line store (not gonna name ‘em) specializing in all sorts of hate paraphernalia where Hammer himself sells the worst sort of merch, flags and books. One of his more popular items is the “Hammer Shades and Skull Mask” combo that he sells to followers for only $25.95. As you can see below, the rip-off Oakley-style multi-colored sunglasses have the double lightning bolts, aka the logo for the SS, Hitler’s special police force of psychopathic thugs.
We’re gonna return to the sunglasses in a bit.
The collection of screenshots from the Blood Tribe’s vetting chat created a conundrum for me. In light of the “not guilty” verdict, what should I do with the info that Hammer had been grooming the kid who’d been accused and acquitted of an alleged major crime?
I mentioned the reportorial dilemma to a journalist pal, who introduced me to a person who worked at So Po High who knew a lot about the teen in question. That’s when I learned the boy’s mother was running for School Board. And that’s why I ended up watching — several times — the video replay of the League of Women Voters’ “South Portland’s District 3 Board of Education Candidate Forum.”
***
The roundtable wasn’t a debate. Instead, it was an opportunity for voters to learn about the candidates’ background, work experience and priorities if elected to the board. At first glance, there didn’t seem like a dramatic difference between the two candidates, Rosemarie De Angelis and Georgette (Gigi) Stone. Both have been involved in education their entire adult lives. De Angelis, the incumbent, worked as a longtime teacher in South Portland then as a professor at SMCC. Stone has been a speech language pathologist for two-and-a-half decades and is the mother of four kids, three of whom graduated from South Portland High.
The event was congenial and respectful, which was refreshing, since some school board situations in Maine are pretty nuts. (Check out the “TransPanic In Maine” miniseries here — Part 1, 2, 3 — from my Disinfomaniacs podcast with Andy O’Brien to learn about whackjobs trying to monkey-wrench public education on the local level.)
Listening to the candidates explain their positions, it’s obvious that both care about schools and the state of local education. The conversation ranged broadly, including questions about diversity, immigration, the use of AI in schools, budget issues, neighborhood schools and security. The candidates also gave their perspective on the upcoming referendum asking So Po voters for $12.3 million for a sports complex, which includes a new astro-turf field, an upgraded track, permanent rest rooms and a new snack shack.
Most interestingly, the candidates’ stated priorities were similar, with students’ mental and emotional health on the top of both their lists. South Portland is still reeling from a trio of suicides last year at the high school, plus the aforementioned arrest of the acquitted teen that scared and scarred a lot of people. Obviously, free access to “Health Care For All” would go a long way in dealing with the psychological and other issues plaguing today's youth. Not only in South Portland, but in every school district in America.
Despite the lack of anti-trans rhetoric, I found the forum to be a pretty straightforward conversation for a modern school board race in Maine. Except that one of the candidates was the mom of the teen arrested by a SWAT team, then acquitted by a judge.
Which wasn’t mentioned at all.
***
When Gigi Stone agreed to a phone interview, she had no idea I’d be asking about her son being groomed by Hammer and the Blood Tribe. Nor did she know I had the cache of screenshots of her son acting like a real asshole in the on-line chats. At the start of our conversation, to contextualize the point of the call, I told her about watching the roundtable (and I summarized my takeaways), then explained my focus as a reporter on chuds, Nazis and other bad actors like Hammer.
“Have you heard of him?” I asked.
“Yes,” she answered, “And I hear they’re trying to recruit youth. It’s quite dangerous.”
I agreed, then told her about the screenshot collection involving her son and how it was my view that Hammer had been trying to groom the boy. And how I had some questions.
(A brief aside: In journalism, my “surprise” line of unexpected questions would be considered a “sandbag,” which is not the best interview technique, due to the real chance the interviewee will terminate the convo. While most reporters don’t use this strategy, I find that sometimes sandbagging is the only path to getting answers.)
So I asked, in light of all that’s happened with her son and the cops and the school admin, why run for School Board now?
“Because my stepson was looking at extraordinarily negative things that was brought to the public's attention. I have to say I'm very familiar with the case. I sat in court. I have seen every ounce of evidence. I have heard every testimony, and I have seen everything that was presented in this case,” Stone said, slowly, carefully choosing her words. “Everything that he was accused of was found to be not true. There was no physical evidence of any kind of threat at all for ‘solicitation of murder.’ ”
Another flaw with sandbagging is how a surprise query can catch even the most seasoned professional politician off-guard. And here I was, sandbagging the mom of a troubled kid and a person with zero political experience. And while her answer didn’t exactly explain her motivation for running, it began a conversation that went on for over an hour.
We discussed lots of stuff, most of which doesn’t have a bearing on this story, but gave me insight on how the last year-and-a-half was super tough for her husband and son. And for her. I could hear the mix of sadness, anger and frustration in her voice, the result of remembering her family’s dealing with the courts, cops and school admin.
(The teen is actually her stepson, btw, but after hearing her discuss his plight and her love for him, and how she “chose” to be his mom, I think the “step-“ prefix is unnecessary.)
All of this leads to the next question: why didn’t she reveal her connection to the teen during the candidate roundtable? Seems like a pertinent detail for voters to know. And acknowledging the familial bond could’ve added interesting and meaningful depth to the conversation about the problems impacting modern kids.
“Lawyers,” she said. “I consulted with lawyers and they said ‘it will come up’ and ‘let it come up, naturally.’”
***
About halfway through this phone call, our conversation returned to the collection of screenshots that Chuddletime sent me. I was most interested in learning if she ever saw a Nazi flag hanging on his bedroom wall or the kid wearing the “Hammer Shades and Mask.”
At first, Stone expressed disbelief, and to a certain degree, denial and skepticism when I talked about the images I received, notably a specifically chuddish pair of sunglasses. (She also said she and her husband were unaware of the Nazi flag their son owned and never saw it on his bedroom wall.) Then I sent her the link to Hammer’s store and the photo below, that her son had posted to the Blood Tribe chat. Almost instantly, her tone softened. Because she’d never seen the picture nor the mask and glasses the teen is wearing in the selfie.
I’m sharing this image not to elicit shock or disapproval, but rather as a quick lesson in some gear worn by a certain type of extremist. Also, since the skull mask is covering the teen’s face, it’s not like I’m further contributing to the media’s demonization of the lad.
First of all, the kid is wearing Hammer’s regalia, which means he bought the garbage from the Blood King himself, since Hammer is the only one who sells this specific combo. And while the teen’s parents had been monitoring his spending and on-line activity (more on that in sec), they had no idea, Stone insisted, that he’d spent money on this shit.
Let’s look at another detail in this image that is a helpful clue in determining the chudishness-level of the picture. The Iron Cross medallion. If someone in your life is wearing one of these around their neck, or has a tattoo of Iron Cross, or a giant sticker plastered on their vehicle, you might wanna have a talk with them to learn WHY they’re a fan of the symbol appropriated by Nazis and white supremacists.
Some Iron Cross-ers might claim they’re German-American, showing pride in their heritage. After all, the Iron Cross was the highest German military decoration, presented only to the bravest soldiers since the early 1800s. Which means the Iron Cross is basically akin to the Congressional Medal of Honor, which shouldn’t be worn by ANYONE who didn’t earn it. Germans stopped using the Iron Cross, though, after the Nazi defeat in World War 2. So unless an Iron Cross-er is an actual WW1-era German soldier, sporting the cross is a very weird sort of stolen valor. And usually means the person admires Nazis.
An unfortunate reality is how symbols can have multiple meanings and complicated histories. The swastika, for instance, was used by various ancient cultures before the Nazis ruined it. But when a psychopath like Hitler appropriates a symbol, the previous permutations get superseded by the new context.
Speaking of the swastika. Look at the close-up, below, of the reflection in the teen’s Hammer Shades from another selfie he posted. See the flag on the opposite wall? Intentional angle, I’m sure, by the teenager, to make the photo look like he was a real tough Nazi.
For context, he posted this photo at a little after midnight, about a week before SWAT kicked in the door and hauled him and his dad off in cuffs.
Hammer-the-cult-leader had commented on this selfie, pissed that the flag hanging on the wall wasn’t from his store. “Why not the Battle Flag?” the steroid-addled man asked the teenager. The battle flag, which Hammer sells for $34, is a white swastika on black. In the selfie, it’s the red “Blood Flag” hanging on the wall, which probably pissed Hammer off, knowing the kid was buying the competition’s swag.
And here, in this final selfie, below, there’s another flag tacked to the wall behind him. Some would call the image on that flag a “Celtic Cross.” More accurately, though, it’s a “Sun Cross,” a favored icon for white supremacists and other haters. Also called the “Wheel Cross,” it’s a pagan symbol that sort of looks like the Celtic Cross (which is a Christian symbol) but without the elongated vertical axis. Also, in this photo, note the creases on the Sun Cross flag. That’s a sign that the kid just unfolded it from the shipping bag and hung on the wall. To a chud, such flag creases are evidence of the flag owner being a possible poseur, since a good chud would iron the polyester flag before displaying.
It’s always tempting to point the finger at parents for kids’ extremist ideas. Stone told me, though, she’s wicked liberal and supported Bernie Sanders over Joe Biden. While her husband is a Republican, she insists he’s not a nutty far-right extremist type. In the chats, the teen calls his dad, “a conservacuck.” And Stone made a point to disavow her son’s racist rants and posts.
It’s also tempting to blame parents for not actively keeping an eye their kids’ on-line activities. But Stone insists that wasn’t the case. She (with help from her daughters) were constantly trying to monitor her son’s Internet activities.
“I thought I was on top of things, but I was still flawed in my process. Going through the phone a million times. Going through Snapchat. I was looking through all kinds of weird stuff. But I didn't know how to dig any deeper,” she explained. “And sometimes, I didn’t think I needed to, although part of my brain probably knew better.” She paused. “I was paralyzed with, ‘I don't know how to do this.’ But I just wasn't capturing [what he was doing on-line.] I wouldn’t have guessed in a million years.”
And to be clear, Stone is referring to extremist content, not talking about the alleged crimes the cops had claimed her son had committed. She said she’d been monitoring his electronics for awhile, like she did with her three older kids. But after realizing how much stuff she missed, Stone admitted that her efforts failed. Especially since she wasn’t aware of Telegram, the messaging platform where her son was chatting with Hammer.
“I didn’t know what to look for,” she said, her voice breaking in frustration.
That level of helplessness must feel lousy. Historically, teens have always been able to hide stuff from their parents. In my case, little stashes of weed and the Hustler magazine I stole from an older brother were never discovered in my bedroom as a teen. In fact, teens NOT hiding stuff from the ‘rents has always been the exception, not the norm.
The 21st century stakes, though, are much higher, with the dangers more multifariously nefarious. It’s crazy how many different racist groups are vying for the attention of nihilistic teenage boys. Blood Tribe. Goyim Defense League. NSC-131. Proud Boys. Patriot Front. White Lives Matter. Order of the Black Sun. 171 Crew (aka Bullion State Nationalists). Asatru Folk Assembly. Raven Folk United. Creativity Alliance. Hammerskins. Groypers. KKK. And that’s just some of the white supremacists.
There’s a seemingly unlimited number of doomer accelerationists, prowling the ‘net, looking for prey. The rest of the man-o-sphere is equally bad, dirty with misogyny and toxic masculinity made popular by dickheads like Andrew Tate and western Maine podcaster Tucker Carlson. Incels. Men’s Rights Movement. Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW). PUA. And we’re not even going into Q-anon, Flat Earthers and Sovereigns. Lots of sour people out there, looking to turn others bad. And all of them want young males, still in adolescence, who are especially susceptible to conmen love-bombing them with dank memes and funny vids.
Gotta say, I wouldn’t want to be a kid these days, that’s for sure. Or a parent. Or a grandparent. Or concerned auntie or uncle, worried that their favorite ‘lil boy is turning into a ‘lil fascist.
When my conversation with Stone ended, I had a lot to think about. But first, I watched the roundtable again. This time, her answers, viewed through the lens of better knowing her POV, had a different meaning. For instance, when answering the moderator’s question about the $3 million bond to add new cameras and “secure vestibules” to improve security at South Portland’s three middle schools, her answer, it seemed, was based more about her son’s experience, rather than the school security system updates.
“When it comes to safety, for anything we can do for our children to ensure their safety is of utmost importance. Security includes ensuring that the adults who encounter our students at the school are trained in typical and atypical child development through adolescence. This needs to be a higher standard expectation for the school resource officer and any law enforcement officer that encounters our children if they're on our school property, we need to make sure they're trained to identify neurodivergence. Education should be particularly focused on identifying those students who have learning differences and how that can impact the process.”
Also interesting was Stone’s answer to the moderator asking her view of the board’s relationship with Timothy Matheney, South Portland’s Superintendent of Schools. Especially considering she has a very negative view of the administrator and his dealings in connection to her son.
“I've had a lot of interactions with the current superintendent over the past year and a half. I hope that working with a superintendent can be a collaborative effort, where we can identify areas where we might have made mistakes and ways that we can improve,” she said. “To make sure that we maintain the integrity and the dignity for all students within our schools, and not just those that we choose to decide who's worthy of being dignified and not.”
***
A couple days later, Stone and I had another almost hour-long phone call during which I asked again about her motivation for running for school board.
She told me that she was “a fierce advocate for kids… and a squeaky wheel.” And, for sure, she would bring a unique perspective to the board, due to her son’s recent history. She’d like to see improvements in communications with parents, especially when dealing with the school cop and other staff when it comes to potentially troubled kids.
Also, in light of her family’s experience, she sees the need for more awareness of the dangers and pitfalls of the ‘net. “It’s important, probably from fourth grade and up,” she said, “for teachers, parents and students to have more education as how to navigate the cyber community.”
Professional development days for staff, she said, would be an appropriate time to do deep dives on identifying danger signs connected to radicalization. And she’d like to see similar programs for parents and other community members who have no clue what to look for.
“There are so many important, relevant things that are happening to our children, of all cultures, of all identification, all genders and cultural backgrounds… and that is through their cell phone use and who they can access,” Stone said. “We as adults, the educators, the parents, the aunts, the uncles, the big sisters, need to know how to protect our kids better… Because I thought I had it figured out and still stuff slipped through.”
A major problem, unfortunately, is that our society is divided on what’s right and wrong. These days, one person’s hate group is another’s Christian-Nationalist church.
It’s easy for me to second-guess Stone’s campaign strategy of not revealing her connection to the notorious local school incident. Granted, it’s a difficult topic to address. And she’s not a seasoned politician. However, like I said earlier, it’s an important detail voters should’ve known. Such a reveal would’ve given Stone the platform to publicly explain how her family’s problems were society's problems. And to warn others that her teen isn’t the only one doing hateful stuff on the Internet. And to bring awareness of the dangers and various types of cyber-grooming that can turn malcontents into monsters.
All those points would’ve hit home harder if voters knew that Stone was mom to the accused-and-then-acquitted teen. Not only to share her many frustrations dealing with this serious topic, but also because she’s in a unique position to explain how digital disaster can strike any household. As much as most people hate to admit it, there’s a weirdo in every family. Usually harmless, but at the same time, just a couple posts away from getting widespread attention for doing something hateful online. Heaven forbid the media jackals bite their chompers into ‘em.
And while I find it admirable that Stone is seeking a seat on the school board, I’ve come to the conclusion that winning the race isn’t in the best interest for her or the school board. Her run feels like a reactionary response to the trauma felt by her family in the wake of the SWAT home invasion. Her bid for the District 3 seat was motivated by a need to take action and stave off the stress, worry and bitterness that come with the territory of being a parent of a kid at the center of a very public crisis. Which, to some, might seem like a sad impetus for seeking office.
More importantly, though, I feel Stone’s experience as a mom and witness to the real life drama that engulfed her family would be wasted on the school board. The issue is so much bigger than South Portland. And solving the problem is way above the school board’s skill set and pay grade. Within Stone’s unique story and perspective — and the POV of other parents involved in similar debacles — are details and history that would be a super-valuable start to understanding the radicalization crisis. Policy makers and extremism researchers would gain a ton from listening to the families of boys gone bad.
Also, I think Stone would get bored with the school board gig. The sausage-making, number-wrangling and politicking necessary to be an effective member can be tedious and time-consuming. Stone is already super-busy and, I predict, would not be happy with the slow pace of change and the seemingly never-ending schedule of meetings and workshops.
Luckily, Stone’s opponent, Rosemarie De Angelis, is also a squeaky-wheel type. De Angelis, a former city councilor who served a year as So Po’s ceremonial mayor, is known to be a thorn in the superintendent’s side and has a rep of being dissatisfied with the status quo. Perhaps she’ll be motivated to further investigate the crisis of teen radicalization and the role of cops-in-schools and poorly communicating administrators.
While policy decisions, coupled with new methodologies and programs are necessary, it also take lots of time to develop systems in a thoughtful manner. So it’ll probably be years before any actual change is felt IRL. Which means, sadly, more teens are destined to fall down digital holes of hate, ending up with their life in ruins. Or worse.
There is a temporary and immediate solution, though. When affected parents sound an alarm about a crisis, other concerned adults often hear the warning. Which gives parents the opportunity to avert possible doom by ensuring their teen isn’t hiding a secret on-line life. In other words, the only stopgap to fixing adolescent radicalization can come from parents taking action.
***
I’m not a parent and don’t know anything about child-rearing. Here on our farmstead in the foothills of western Maine, we raise pigs, goats, hens and broiler chickens. And our technique of controlling the critters’ (via electric and other types of fencing) probably wouldn’t work well with most modern human children. But there are steps that parents can take to encircle their kids, digitally, without the use of a low-impedance fence charger.
Monitoring kids’ Internet usage, it goes without saying, is essential to prevent teen radicalization. And, as Stone’s situation showed, simply looking at their browsing history and app usage is not enough. There’s a gazillion parental control apps on the market, allowing moms and dads to install firewalls, mandatory down-time periods and app blockers. There are also AI-assisted apps that can track browsing, chats and calls to detect questionable content, then alert parents when something potentially bad is discovered.
And if this seems invasive of a child’s privacy, or unnecessarily draconian, let me introduce you to a pervy, blood-oath-obsessed chud named Hammer.
Of course the best deterrent to teenage radicalization would be a wholesale ban on phone usage by kids until they turn 21. After all, we limit legal booze and weed consumption to so-called “adults.” And there’s plenty of proof that digital addictions can be even more dangerous than getting drunk and high.
However, the corporate telephonic overlords are unlikely to allow any sort of legislative “no cells for kids” bill be made into law. Perhaps a more realistic tactic would be a nightly “family ban” on electronica, with parents confiscating all phones each evening at suppertime to be returned the next morn, just in time for school.
Which brings us to the topic of burner phones. The secret purchase of a second telecommunications device is not an uncommon way for rebellious youth to access the web in light of parental monitoring. Often, they use the home Wifi to avoid the cost of data. Not to get all spy-tech, but there are apps, called “network scanners,” that can display a list of all devices connected to your Wifi network. Which would be helpful in determining the use of a burner phone, by a teen, under the cover of darkness.
The number one safeguard against radicalization, though, doesn’t require an app. The best defense against the lurking evil comes from parents building trust and maintaining an open line of communication with their kid, from early on, in order to deal with the distractions and drama of modern life.
But, like I said, I don’t know anything about child-rearing.
***
There are constant reminders of the raid/arrest and last’s years trio of suicides surrounding South Portland High. And stress and grief loom like fog, untouchable and impenetrable.
“It’s tough enough to get kids to talk about regular stuff,” my high school staffer-source told me, “let alone any existential fears of school shootings…But I hate to think they’re getting used to this shit.”
Due to the lack of true communication, we really don’t know how their young noggins are reacting to the mad mad world around them. I especially wonder about the educational impact on the So Po students distracted and scared by the raid and arrest of their classmate. Not good, for sure.
Teens are resilient, though. That’s why I expect, for most, the trauma and memory will eventually fade. As time progresses, newer tragedies, pain and suffering will replace the worry, fear and other emotions felt during the year-and-a-half of their teenaged careers spent wondering about their classmate, who the cops said wanted to kill them.
As years pass, the story of the 2023 raid will either be mythologized or forgotten by the student population of South Portland. Or, conversely, some other horrible future problem will replace this incident in the collective consciousness.
What about the long-term impact on school staff? The harsh lesson of the alleged threat is the reality that South Portland schools, like schools everywhere, are a potential target for terror. And actual remedies for that problem are hard to find.
For the teachers, who mourn the loss of innocence, the perceived danger will linger the longest. The demise of the classroom as sanctuary, for them and their students, is evident with the sudden understanding that their safe space could be destroyed, in an instant, by a murderous rampage. Thanks to their perceived close brush with the potential for violence, peril seems even more likely of a possibility. And new vestibule locks, high tech cameras and re-enforced jambs can’t erase that fear every time they walk through the door to South Portland High. And taking a macro look isn’t easy when lockdowns have become just another part of the school experience.
***
According to Stone, her son graduated in May from the high school, after being tutored remotely for his senior year. He’s taking a “gap year while trying to figure out his future,” she said, without explaining who he was, during the candidate forum.
At the same time he was acquitted of “criminal solicitation for murder,” the teenager was found guilty of arson in connection to a fiery incident. Judge Peter Darvin sentenced him to a year probation for the incident. However, Stone said that decision is being appealed.
As this Crash Report shows, this entire situation is extremely complicated. Even though it’s clear the cops and the DA over-reacted, it’s also apparent that the teenager (and some of his pals) were acting like racist assholes on-line and in person.
According to the screenshots of the Blood Tribe chat, the kid has some seriously flawed perspectives and racial views that need fixing. He also seems to hold some pretty bad homophobic and trans-phobic opinions that make him appear rabidly anti-social and hostile towards modern standards. And, undoubtedly, his embrace of the swastika-flag and other bad shit is proof the teen needs a major re-alignment in his thinking.
However, despite all his ignorant and hateful posts, combined with his bad acts that led to his legal troubles in the first place, I’m not convinced we should kick this kid to the curb. Remember, he was only 16-years-old at the time of his arrest. Which means that his teen-brain was barely developed. And that also means he is still capable of changing, provided he receives some serious therapy, re-education and de-radicalization.
Continuing to villainize him, though, will only push him further to the dark side. There, isolated and ashamed, his anger and resentment, coupled with his hateful thoughts and words, could transform him into another savage beast. Just like his groomer, Hammer, the weirdo who likes hanging out with young boys on-line.
Being a Nazi asshole doesn’t have to be HIS future, though. According to his mom (and school staff), despite all the problems and his neurodivergent issues, he is bright and personable. Meaning savable and worthy of a shot at redemption.
I’d love to interview the kid, but he and his dad have a bad opinion of journalists and are reticent to speak with me. Which sucks, because I’ve got a million questions for the teen. I want to know how he discovered the Blood Tribe and their despicable mission. I want to know why he was attracted to such nasty thoughts and ideas. I’m curious about his apparent need to be a tough guy, flaunting guns and the threat of violence. I want to know what went wrong in his life that made him embrace hate. And I’d love to know his thoughts on what could have prevented his descent into the dark world of bigotry, chauvinism and anti-Semitism.
In other words, I’m willing to pay attention to this young man. To listen to his rhetoric and hear what he views as his truth. And then discuss. Perhaps, after such a dialogue, there’s a chance we can gain insight into the radicalization plague targeting disaffected young white males. Then, we take action to eliminate the menace.
Before it’s too late.
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