Page:1954 Juvenile Delinquency Testimony.pdf/162

150 I am not honestly prepared to state, but I don't believe that we can make such a distinction.

Senator. Mr. Chairman, I thought I understood Mr. Friedman to say that he did not conceive this committee to have made a predetermination of this.

Mr. . That is right.

Senator. I just wanted to emphasize that again aud make tliat abundantly clear. We are tryiug to find out.

{ think this whole business is enormously complex. You being a lawyer will know whal I mean when I talk about proximate cause, not x6 an expert or a psychiatrist, but as ono who has been a district attorney, I have spent a creai many years in criminal courts on felony cases and matters of that kind.

I wonder to what extent this sort. of Hing, whether simply synony- mons on a. newsstand by a youngster or an older man or worman who may be upon the brink or verge of doing something or other of Jaw violation, whether this may not be just enough, seeing something lnrid, seeing something suggestive.

So seeing something which has implications, I wonder if in some cases, this or a television show or moving picture or any of the media, right nol be that straw that may lead to violation.

Mr. . Mr. Senator, 1 honestly am not qualified io state. I would conclude with those observations if J may, that it is surprising to me that in attempting to seek a conclusionary faet, some sayour nuthor of yesterday in his address in which he confounded all comic books sud in which he took Superman who has been a hero ta our boys and took thai. famous story Tarzru, and took that very interesting publicationthat is not a sexy publication, Wondermanand takes Howdy Doody and lumps them all together and says they are all bad.

Why? With this tremendous so-called accumulation, Senator, of perhaps not 40 million a month, 20 milion x month, there has not been one incident to which these people who are interested in the subjeet can point and sny this is a Juvenile delinqnent, caused by X medium in the comic book or television field,

I think it makes your work so exceedingly diflicult, And makes our rehashing just as diffienkt.

Mr. . You realize, Mr. Friedinan, of course, that the experts are also uutble to point to a particular child and say that he is a juvenile delinquent just beeanse of sadism: or just becanse of this. The single causative factor is not what the experts are saying.

Mr. . As a good jewyer you would have to come to the conelusion that you have no facts before you upon which you can make 2 reaction or a concluzion that the cause or the assisting cause to juvenile delinquency is the medium yeu might be attacking ot the moment. Your very witnesses before you all cxme to the eouclusion that eame to me, First, that there was no appreciable reaction on jnvenile delinquency as fav as they knew, including the author, They came to the second conclusion that there might be some reaction, there might be some impact, but they didn't know.

Mr. . Let me clarify one thing before you go. You men- tioned, and Mi. Gaines yesterday seized wpon the fact that in many newspapers there are stories of so many holdups, so many rebberies.