> Once that threshold is jumped, things can move very quickly You can see the same dynamic in how scandals unfold in small towns. Everybody knows that married

> Once that threshold is jumped, things can move very quickly You can see the same dynamic in how scandals unfold in small towns. Everybody knows that married person X is having an affair with married person Y, everybody knows that everybody knows that X is having an affair with Y, but nothing happens until a social consensus is reached that X and Y are going to be shamed for it. It can go on indefinitely with people only whispering about it. And then everything happens seemingly all at once. X loses their job, Y has to resign from the school board, X's marriage breaks up, Y's children get shunned at school. Before the threshold is reached, people whisper about it, but anyone who speaks too loudly or disapproves too publicly is seen as acting in bad taste. People cringe and turn away from them. Nobody wants to be that person. But as soon as the dam breaks, condemning X and Y becomes the town sport, pursued recreationally by all and competitively by many.