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The same could be said for most wedge issues. In the US, gun rights and and abortion also become a focal point of US politics despite the existence of issues th

The same could be said for most wedge issues. In the US, gun rights and and abortion also become a focal point of US politics despite the existence of issues that deal with millions of preventable deaths (automobile safety, obesity epidemic, poverty), issues that deal with hundreds of thousands of displaced peoples and killed civilians (Afghanistan and Iraq war, war mongering over Syria, Libya, Iran, etc), and climate change, which our brightness minds continue to tell us could lead to not insubstantial percentages of all forms of life on our planet going extinct and billions or trillions of dollars of economic cost. But we just focus on emotional trigger point issues. See focus on and mass protests because of police brutality (hundreds of deaths a year) compared to zero widespread action on the injustice of the prison system (hundreds of thousands of lives ruined, literal slavery and imprisonment in cages over antiquated unequally applied drug laws).

edrxty 5y ago
There's truth here, feels-over-reals is very much a problem in US politics. That said, feelings/perceptions have consequences if left unchecked. A few hundred people being "made an example of" by the police each year can functionally oppress an entire ethnic group in a country. All that said, in light of the previous example, it makes the abortion fight seem particularly...whimsical...given the stakes. The evangelicals believe they themselves are going to heaven regardless of what the non-evangelicals do and those getting abortions don't care so it's rather hard to point to a group being oppressed by their beliefs here.
shigawire 5y ago
Difference is it is fairly clear cut to say that the state does not need to murder people already in custody. It is harder to get a clear consensus on how to handle crime and imprisonment in general. It's a problem without a single good solution. Whereas the solution to police brutality incidents like George Floyd should be pretty simple in comparison.

edrxty 5y ago

There's truth here, feels-over-reals is very much a problem in US politics. That said, feelings/perceptions have consequences if left unchecked. A few hundred people being "made an example of" by the police each year can functionally oppress an entire ethnic group in a country. All that said, in light of the previous example, it makes the abortion fight seem particularly...whimsical...given the stakes. The evangelicals believe they themselves are going to heaven regardless of what the non-evangelicals do and those getting abortions don't care so it's rather hard to point to a group being oppressed by their beliefs here.

shigawire 5y ago

Difference is it is fairly clear cut to say that the state does not need to murder people already in custody. It is harder to get a clear consensus on how to handle crime and imprisonment in general. It's a problem without a single good solution. Whereas the solution to police brutality incidents like George Floyd should be pretty simple in comparison.