Memes are powerful

Somebody mailed me a basket-load of memes. Normally I would not address them but these are unique times.

ONE
Strawman: Riots and violence never solved anything
Response: Riots and violence got you every right and privilege you now enjoy.

My take: The framers of the Bill of Rights did not compose and pen the document in the midst of a riot. Rights and privileges are defended by the threat of escalating violence upon those who would infringe upon them.

Some people use the analogy of a bicycle where the driving force (the back wheel) is raw emotion but the direction and final destination are determined by intellect and rationality (the front wheel). Unicycles are hard to ride because it attempts to accomplish everything with the equivalent of the back wheel. Personally, if I want to get somewhere in a hurry, I favor a bicycle.

TWO
Strawman: Why can't they be peaceful
Response: Being peaceful gets demonstrators nothing but targeting, ridicule, and memes.

My take: If "effectiveness" is the only metric that matters, then the KKK is an organization you will love. When you choose a set of rules, you must consider how it will feel when you are on the other end of the equation. The pendulum swings.

THREE
Strawman: If people are peaceful then cops will not shoot/murder/mace them
Response: Videos show cops killing peaceful people, including kids

My take: There are bad cops. No argument. There are also young cops and scared cops and cops who sometimes make really stupid decisions. And there are people who edit videos to tell their story. The best way to avoid falling backwards while protesting (and wearing flip-flops) after being pushed by a cop is to not be there. Remember Remus's cardinal rule: Stay away from crowds.

FOUR
Strawman: but looters!
Response: Agent provacateurs, white supremacist and cops.

My take: Your proof?

FIVE
Strawman: but businesses!
Response: They have insurance

My take: Insurance policies typically have riders buried on page 23 that do not insure in the case of riots and civil unrest. For those businesses, the losses will be totally borne by the business owners.

This meme was written by professionals and is finely-honed. First, get the reader to agree with every statement they made and then they bury the hand-grenade in the last point after the readers are conditioned to agreeing with the diatribe. Very clever. Very, very professional.

Suppose you and your boyfriend rode his classic Fat-boy Harley-Davidson with the custom paint job down to the "demonstrations". Further, suppose somebody immolated the bike while you were striking blows for justice.

You just tell your boy-friend "No problem. Its insured." and it is all good. Let me know how that works out.

A small business owner (who is likely from Jordan or Uzbekistan or Korea) has a hundred times more sweat and life-energy invested in his or her own business than your boyfriend has in his "bike".

Oh, and about insurance: Even if the policy does not have a rider, the insurance companies do not lose money in the long run. They adjust rates based on new data. Premiums go up. IF the business owners decide to rebuild and restart, those bananas that cost 29 cents a pound at Walmart in the suburbs will cost $2 or $3 a pound at the Food Cubby on the corner of MLK and Caesar Chavez Ave....if they have them.