Re: Re: Minnesota Meltdown
I wasn't sure how my previous post would be received. I tried to be neutral, but in today's world, neutrality is a side... and a side that seems adversarial to both the other sides. My intent was to use this event as a data point in the list of a growing trend, not as a standalone. And so my analysis of the event was meant to point out that, to me, picking a side here isn't the purpose of analysing the news, but rather to see what caused this and how it might be an indication of things to come/how they will proceed.
I don't intend on going point by point and writing a response to the response⤻. I just don't think it would be effective. Points were raised around my description of the event (and my lack of side picking) and not about what I was hoping the main takeaway from my post would be: the tactics I tried to identify that surround this and other events. I think it's obvious that emotions and tensions are running high (I'll admit, my heart rate was up seeing the response). But regardless, I appreciate the response and felt that I shouldn't just leave it hanging.
So I guess I'll just reiterate my main points: The death of this woman is a tragedy. But it seems like the tactics (dubbed 'kick the dog until it bites, then shoot it') that I pointed out in my post around this event are being used more and more, which will only lead to more confrontations of this nature. I wanted to step back and, while still recognising the tragedy of the situation, acknowledge that this isn't an isolated incident. What I was hoping to do was 1) help point out this tactic so that other people can identify it when it's happening and 2) thereby avoid contributing to both sides doubling down, either trivialising the violence by dehumanising the protesters or escalating calls for violence against the officers by labelling them Nazis.
My point wasn't 'do nothing', it was 'be careful what you do'. Avoid doing things that make matters worse for your own side. Tensions are high (and climbing) so be mindful that traps are everywhere, waiting to be sprung on both sides.
Sidenote: While the response does call out plenty of other bad things that the current and past US administrations have been up to, my post isn't about that. It's about this event, the tactics, and the responses.
Yours Truly,
[Redacted]