'Subway chicken': The dangerous game teens are playing

The video: An anonymous straphanger posted a video this week of at least five teenagers leaping down onto the tracks at a Brooklyn subway station with a train barreling towards them, then hopping out as late as their nerves will allow. (Watch below) This apparent game, dubbed "subway chicken," infuriated fellow passengers who frantically implored the youths to get back on the platform — the last one climbed to safety with less than 10 seconds to spare. The New York Police Department is now investigating, and the MTA is not amused. "You can't outlaw stupidity," the transit agency said, but "you have to remember that 146 people were struck by subway trains last year and 47 of them died as a result.... The individuals depicted in this video should be taken into custody and then they should have their heads examined."

The reaction: Alright, we can all agree that these kids aren't "our best and brightest," says Neetzan Zimmerman at Gawker. None of the fools died, so they don't qualify for Darwin Awards this time, but they "just placed themselves on the shortlist." Give these "boisterous adolescents" a break, says John Del Signore at Gothamist. This particular game may be new, but "such sensationally stupid behavior is timeless." Are we really pining for the good old days "when the youths would surf on the train roof"? Judge the precise level of idiocy yourself:

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