The " King Hit " Phenomenon !

The problem of over indulgence of alcohol and fighting has been with us since the days of the First Fleet.  Imported Rum was the favourite tipple of that time, and it was actually used as currency because of the lack of coinage in the new colony.

Now a new trend is emerging in the battle with alcohol and this is causing the authorities to take a long, hard look at the venues that serve it and the times that it is available to the public.   The term " King Hit " has entered the lexicon.    This describes a punch that is delivered without warning to a complete stranger and in many cases it will be of sufficient strength to render that person unconscious.  We have had a number of cases where that person has fallen and hit their head, causing skull fractures and brain bleeding - and sometimes death as a result.

This seems to be phenomenon of the twenty-first century.  In previous times fights between men who overindulged in alcohol were common, but both parties clearly signalled their intention and mostly the issue was satisfied if one or both sustained a bloody nose.   The big difference with the " King Hit " is that it is delivered at random to a perfect stranger - and there is the absence of any sort of previous altercation to provide a reason.

Clearly, excess alcohol plays a part in this growing phenomenon, but we need to look a lot deeper to determine what causes some people to deliberately stalk and attack perfect strangers with the intention of causing them severe bodily harm.    That is an action some would described as " psychopathic " !

We know that the drug " Ice " causes users to become very aggressive.   Could it be that the previous use of Ice leaves a residue in the body that reacts to alcohol in this way ?   At the same time, domestic drug labs are churning out an unknown mix of ingredients that are sold to the public - and this includes pseudo imitations of many drug combinations that skirt the law of legality.    We have no idea of what mind altering drugs are emerging to meet the constant demands of the party scene - and we need to know if this is the cause of the King Hit phenomenon.

Entertainment technology has advanced in the gaming field to the extent that war games now achieve a reality that entrances players.  This has been adopted by the world's military as a means of combat training and speeding the reflexes of troops on the battlefield.   Sitting at a console and killing vast numbers of a supposed  " enemy " can blur the edges of reality.   Could it be that these simulations affect the mind of some people when alcohol provides the trigger - and sends them on a frenzy of acting out the scenarios playing in their minds ?

Cleaning up the alcohol scene will certainly help, but we need to know why some people are now launching attacks that seem to be unpremeditated murder on perfect strangers.   When such a new trend emerges, there has to be a reason - and simply blaming it on excess alcohol misses the point !