Normally, we use the phrase “_____ is SRS BZNS” facetiously around here and elsewhere online, as many of you probably do as well.

This, however, is not one of those times.

The headline says it all, really: “Chinese teenager beaten to death in internet addiction clinic.”

It’s difficult not to editorialize emotionally when someone dies, especially needlessly. Compounding that is what looks to be layer upon layer of questionable justification on top of sketchy statistics. As someone who has been moved to physical violence exactly once due to video games (Mortal Kombat II, Sega Genesis, 1990), this is still just appalling.

Mr. and Mrs. Deng paid 7,000 yuan (about a thousand dollars) to help their son overcome his addiction to being and gaming on the internet. This was not a case of them purchasing their son’s untimely demise, as in “We Can Get Them For You Wholesale.”

“[Deng Senshan] was placed in solitary confinement shortly after his arrival, and then beaten by his trainers, who scolded him for running too slowly when he was ordered to go jogging.”

The all-too-frequent death of young people at facilities ostensibly created to help, rehabilitate, or serve as correction for them ought to call into question whether they, and their methods, actually work or not. Whether or not you think that internet addiction is a legitimate diagnosis, the Chinese government’s statistics — more than one in ten young internet users is considered to be “addicted” according to a2008 survey conducted by the China Youth Internet Association.

Here in Florida, there was extensive coverage of the case of Martin Lee Anderson, which may be why this item, in addition to the obvious reasons, has gotten my back up. Some of the off-hand remarks in the Times article are pure head-shakers. For instance, “last month, the Health Ministry banned the use of electroshock therapy as a treatment.”

LAST MONTH? Can I get a Dubya Tee Eff from the audience?

We all generally recognize that moderation in our diversions and vices is preferable to total and constant immersion. Maybe a month-long, boot-camp style approach to helping break habits like this does, in fact, yield the 80% success rate Zhan Wenbin claims for his program.

I may be a demanding taskmaster when it comes to getting someone motivated, or performing their workout routine, but I think that it’s fairly obvious that there’s a fairly wide gulf between “scolding” and “beating.” However, there’s more than a slight difference between helping someone wean themselves off of their ISDN line or incessant raiding schedule and beating them to death.

[via HardOCP]

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