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People feel like it is happening to them all the time. Police stops for being 'suspicious looking', while walking on their own street. Friends who were shot by

People feel like it is happening to them all the time. Police stops for being 'suspicious looking', while walking on their own street. Friends who were shot by police, bad experiences, racist remarks spoken with impunity by policemen. The sound of car doors locking as you cross the street. Security guards following you around the shopping center. Security guards who reach for their mace when you try to talk to them. The list goes on. People are fed up and frustrated. Confirmation bias, absolutely. Every situation starts to take on racial connotations. Going through situations wondering if it is all in your head isn't fun either. The lockdowns absolutely have something to do with it. When you are young and rambunctious you absolutely want to engage in hooliganism. Get a group of people like that together and they feed off eachother. Throw in rationalizations about racial justice, add on heaps of frustration and combine that with unemployment, bordem caused by months of lockdown... Let's talk about the white guilt too. White saviors are out there projecting their own guilt onto others, blaming society etc. They can turn that guilt into heroism in their minds. Then there is the general political hatred and divisive atmosphere. The whole thing is basically a perfect storm. To assume that no one would manipulate these forces for political gain seems like a huge leap. Add all of these emotional factors together with a history of documented police abuse. Do protesters need a reason? Does it matter if it is entirely rational? This is the situation we find ourselves in. The proposed solution is more political bickering and blaming. Extra points if you can guess where that will lead.

hejja 6y ago
I really appreciate your response. It was thought provoking. in fact it all makes sense. but does rationality matter? in the context of society.. i think it has to. because what does its absence imply? chaos? blind idealism? aka radicalism... if we are starting at "silence is violence" i am afraid to see where it ends
- aww_dang 6y ago
  People sharing their emotions and looking to explore that in the public space could be rational. However not all of the conclusions and outcomes will be rational when there are powerful emotions at play. Political players seeking to benefit from these powerful emotions in election cycle doesn't seem irrational. To rephrase that question, is it reasonable to expect strictly rational outcomes in an emotionally charged scenario? Appeal to emotion is an informal logical fallacy. Perhaps the expectation of a strictly logical behavior is overly idealistic? If the larger society can empathize with these grievances and emotions, that is a benefit. Anytime we have more compassion we all benefit. In that regard it doesn't matter if the emotions follow a logical course. Naturally, I share your concerns on how this will pan out. That said, my impression is that the media consistently over sensationalizes anything with political implications. The loudest voices are often the most extreme. This makes for better content, more clicks and views.

hejja 6y ago

I really appreciate your response. It was thought provoking. in fact it all makes sense. but does rationality matter? in the context of society.. i think it has to. because what does its absence imply? chaos? blind idealism? aka radicalism... if we are starting at "silence is violence" i am afraid to see where it ends

aww_dang 6y ago
People sharing their emotions and looking to explore that in the public space could be rational. However not all of the conclusions and outcomes will be rational when there are powerful emotions at play. Political players seeking to benefit from these powerful emotions in election cycle doesn't seem irrational. To rephrase that question, is it reasonable to expect strictly rational outcomes in an emotionally charged scenario? Appeal to emotion is an informal logical fallacy. Perhaps the expectation of a strictly logical behavior is overly idealistic? If the larger society can empathize with these grievances and emotions, that is a benefit. Anytime we have more compassion we all benefit. In that regard it doesn't matter if the emotions follow a logical course. Naturally, I share your concerns on how this will pan out. That said, my impression is that the media consistently over sensationalizes anything with political implications. The loudest voices are often the most extreme. This makes for better content, more clicks and views.