Sack tapping
{{short description|Slang for a specific violent game or prank}}
Sack tapping is a slang term for a game where a participant attacks, by slapping, tapping, punching, kicking, elbowing, twisting, or backhanding a victim's testicles. The term derived from 'sack', slang that refers to the scrotum,{{cite news |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/sack-tapping-boys-punch-testicles-game/story?id=10762563 |title='Sack Tapping': Boys Punch Groin, Testicles in Dangerous Game, Post Video Online |first=Timothy |last=Johnson |authorlink=Timothy Johnson (medical journalist) |date=May 28, 2010|publisher=ABC News |access-date=1 June 2010}} and the activity is a form of groin attack. This sociological manifestation of bullying can result in severe testicular injury that may require amputation as the only form of treatment.{{cite web |url=http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Non-food/Miscellaneous/sack_tapping_becoming_a_problem_0531100935.html |title=Sack Tapping Becoming a Problem |last=Stockton |first=Rachel |date=May 31, 2010 |work=Foodconsumer |publisher=foodconsumer.org |access-date=1 June 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100603211128/http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Non-food/Miscellaneous/sack_tapping_becoming_a_problem_0531100935.html |archive-date=3 June 2010 }}{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/health/2010/05/28/2010-05-28_sack_tapping__boys_punching_classmates_in_the_groin__leads_to_serious_injury_sur.html |title='Sack tapping' - boys punching classmates in the groin - leads to serious injury, amputation |last=Black |first=Rosemary |date=May 28, 2010 |work=Daily News|access-date=1 June 2010}} A reported increased popularity of sack tapping, fueled in part by YouTube videos, and the subsequent increase in hospitalization has concerned parents and urologists.[https://www.foxnews.com/health/teenager-has-testicle-amputated-after-tapping-game/ Teenager Has Testicle Amputated After 'Tapping' Game], Fox News, May 28, 2010[https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/sack-tapping-boys-punch-testicles-game/story?id=10762563 'Sack Tapping' -- A Schoolyard Game Turned Ugly], ABC News, May 28, 2010 It is also called "nut tag", "bag tag", "sack whack", "bell flicking" and "roshambo", the last name coming from an episode of South Park that featured the practice.{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/37455920 |title=Groin-punch 'game' harms more boys |last=Aleccia |first=JoNel |date=3 June 2010 |work=NBC News |access-date=29 June 2010}}{{dead link|date=August 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
Sociological impact
In 2010, a participant lost a testicle caused by physical trauma that resulted from a sack tapping assault at school.[http://news.discovery.com/human/sack-tapping-parents-threat-du-jour.html Sack Tapping: Parents’ Threat Du Jour], discovery.com, May 31, 2010 ABC News' chief medical correspondent Dr. Tim Johnson commented, "the trend isn't restricted to Minnesota", and has "gotten out of control" as per Dr. Scott Wheeler. Dr. Wheeler, a urologist in Minnesota, has seen an increase of hospitalization caused by "sack tapping" incidents, and commented that criminal charges could be filed against the attacker as a result of the one instance.{{cite web|url=http://www.themoneytimes.com/featured/20100529/schoolboy-loses-testicle-after-039sack-tapping039-attack-id-10115366.html|title=Schoolboy loses testicle after 'sack tapping' attack|last=Natalie|first=James|date=May 29, 2010|work=The Money Times|publisher=themoneytimes.com|access-date=2 June 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100602121405/http://www.themoneytimes.com/featured/20100529/schoolboy-loses-testicle-after-039sack-tapping039-attack-id-10115366.html|archive-date=2 June 2010}} The casualty survived the surgery and can function normally with one testicle. The casualty's mother saw "what he went through every day" and withdrew his enrollment from school. "Sack tapping" has grown into a more dangerous game that can result in greater injuries. Dr. Wheeler recommend that parents warn their children of the dangers of "sack tapping".
Jack Shafer, writing in Slate magazine in 2010, commented that despite the media describing sack tapping as "the latest dangerous craze", the practice was not new and had existed for some time, and the recent focus was simply "sensationalist journalism". He claimed to have been "taking shots to my crown jewels when I was a 1960s teenager", adding that the term had been listed in the Urban Dictionary since February 2003. He noted that urologists were not polled regarding an increase in such injuries, and were only asked to confirm that such injured were common.{{cite news|url=https://www.slate.com/id/2255927/|title=Bogus trend smorgasbord: sack-tapping, vodka eyeballing, and "little girl" parties|last=Shafer|first=Jack|date=3 June 2010|work=Slate|access-date=4 June 2010}}