4 ms·

Normally I'd agree, but I'll point you to comments elsewhere in this thread as to why this is misleading. The amount of damage is huge, and this was excused al

Normally I'd agree, but I'll point you to comments elsewhere in this thread as to why this is misleading. The amount of damage is huge, and this was excused all the while by the group's leaders and other "peaceful" supporters with "people > property" and similar logic. Using this same logic, I'm sure 99+% of Nazis were peaceful during the holocaust as well.

nobody9999 6y ago
>this was excused all the while by the group's leaders and other "peaceful" supporters Who? Specifically. This is important. AFAIK, no reasonable, law-abiding people advocated for or excused violence and destruction. In fact, such violence was roundly criticized and there were calls from all quarters for the apprehension and prosecution of anyone committing violent acts. I've heard the same refrain over and over again. But no one ever actually names names. So. Who are these people who actually advocated for violence and destruction during the protests last summer? That isn't a rhetorical question, friend.
- wl 6y ago
  I posted a status update the morning after a major riot happened in my neighborhood that consisted of a short summary of what happened, a statement that I was ok, and essentially "fuck the rioters." I could name names of friends who, in response, insisted on "people > property", "fuck the racist capitalist system", "rioting is language of the unheard", "looting is reparations," and "don't tell black people how to protest." I'm sure you can find examples of this on twitter and reddit if you look—it was unavoidable for a time. Since I'm not willing to out my friends or comb through old social media, have an example from local media instead: https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolts-a-black-lives-matter-activist-on-why-she-supports-looting/398d0f3f-73d0-4f2e-ae32-04cceba0d322 https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolt... Also, an image macro posted to my wall, representative of the kinds of stuff I was seeing at the time: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EnCI4_9W4AAAxDf.jpg https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EnCI4_9W4AAAxDf.jpg
  - nobody9999 6y ago
    >I could name names of friends who, in response, insisted on "people > property", "fuck the racist capitalist system" How many of those friends are elected or appointed public officials? And what political power/social clout does Ariel Atkins[0] have? Especially given that over 100 arrests were made and as the mayor of Chicago said[0]: "This is not legitimate First Amendment-protected speech. … This was straight-up felony, criminal conduct" So some of your friends and an "activist" made incendiary comments. No one with any real power or media reach condoned or encouraged violence during the BLM protests. Not one. If a bunch of randos mouthing off is a huge problem, how much of a problem do you consider the statements encouraging violence by some folks with real power and media reach[1][2][3][4]? [0] https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolts-a-black-lives-matter-activist-on-why-she-supports-looting/398d0f3f-73d0-4f2e-ae32-04cceba0d322 https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolt... [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz-zWeqtVo8&feature=youtu.be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz-zWeqtVo8&feature=youtu.be [2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/01/02/gop-rep-gohmert-says-violence-is-only-recourse-after-election-lawsuit-dismissal/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/01/02/gop-r... [3] https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/die-for-something-arizona-gop-incites-violence-11518730 https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/die-for-something-arizo... [4] https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/461498-why-are-we-turning-a-blind-eye-to-right-wing-incitement-of-violence https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/461498-why-are-we-t...
    - wl 6y ago
      You asked someone to explain their comment about the "group's leaders and other 'peaceful' supporters." I gave you an example of both. If you want more, they're not hard to find by searching for the slogans I recited. I am thankful that government officials and more respectable media outlets with significant reach have tended to condemn the BLM rioting. Outright endorsements probably would have made the situation worse. And even tacit support can have disastrous consequences, as we saw at the Capitol. But they're not activists and they don't speak for the movement (although who can?).
      - nobody9999 6y ago

nobody9999 6y ago

>this was excused all the while by the group's leaders and other "peaceful" supporters Who? Specifically. This is important. AFAIK, no reasonable, law-abiding people advocated for or excused violence and destruction. In fact, such violence was roundly criticized and there were calls from all quarters for the apprehension and prosecution of anyone committing violent acts. I've heard the same refrain over and over again. But no one ever actually names names. So. Who are these people who actually advocated for violence and destruction during the protests last summer? That isn't a rhetorical question, friend.

wl 6y ago
I posted a status update the morning after a major riot happened in my neighborhood that consisted of a short summary of what happened, a statement that I was ok, and essentially "fuck the rioters." I could name names of friends who, in response, insisted on "people > property", "fuck the racist capitalist system", "rioting is language of the unheard", "looting is reparations," and "don't tell black people how to protest." I'm sure you can find examples of this on twitter and reddit if you look—it was unavoidable for a time. Since I'm not willing to out my friends or comb through old social media, have an example from local media instead: https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolts-a-black-lives-matter-activist-on-why-she-supports-looting/398d0f3f-73d0-4f2e-ae32-04cceba0d322 https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolt... Also, an image macro posted to my wall, representative of the kinds of stuff I was seeing at the time: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EnCI4_9W4AAAxDf.jpg https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EnCI4_9W4AAAxDf.jpg
- nobody9999 6y ago
  >I could name names of friends who, in response, insisted on "people > property", "fuck the racist capitalist system" How many of those friends are elected or appointed public officials? And what political power/social clout does Ariel Atkins[0] have? Especially given that over 100 arrests were made and as the mayor of Chicago said[0]: "This is not legitimate First Amendment-protected speech. … This was straight-up felony, criminal conduct" So some of your friends and an "activist" made incendiary comments. No one with any real power or media reach condoned or encouraged violence during the BLM protests. Not one. If a bunch of randos mouthing off is a huge problem, how much of a problem do you consider the statements encouraging violence by some folks with real power and media reach[1][2][3][4]? [0] https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolts-a-black-lives-matter-activist-on-why-she-supports-looting/398d0f3f-73d0-4f2e-ae32-04cceba0d322 https://www.wbez.org/stories/winning-has-come-through-revolt... [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz-zWeqtVo8&feature=youtu.be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz-zWeqtVo8&feature=youtu.be [2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/01/02/gop-rep-gohmert-says-violence-is-only-recourse-after-election-lawsuit-dismissal/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/01/02/gop-r... [3] https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/die-for-something-arizona-gop-incites-violence-11518730 https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/die-for-something-arizo... [4] https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/461498-why-are-we-turning-a-blind-eye-to-right-wing-incitement-of-violence https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/461498-why-are-we-t...
  - wl 6y ago
    You asked someone to explain their comment about the "group's leaders and other 'peaceful' supporters." I gave you an example of both. If you want more, they're not hard to find by searching for the slogans I recited. I am thankful that government officials and more respectable media outlets with significant reach have tended to condemn the BLM rioting. Outright endorsements probably would have made the situation worse. And even tacit support can have disastrous consequences, as we saw at the Capitol. But they're not activists and they don't speak for the movement (although who can?).
    - nobody9999 6y ago