We Talk Friday
(WTF)
This is a semi-regular series that I will run on Fridays to hold discussions on a current topic from the week gone. The aim is to keep them light and conversational, though some might be heavier - regardless of the content topic itself though, just have some fun engaging and discussing with whoever happens to put in the effort in the comments section below.
So a guy was assassinated in the US. Which is terrible, but speaks to the state of the US and the world in general. While these events have been rare, they are likely going to increase in frequency given the decline in economic and social conditions. Not only that, they are also going to be driven further by the polarisation of society.
You shouldn't celebrate assassination, no matter what you think of the person murdered.
Right?
People are being doxed and losing their jobs based on their various social media posts, some of which seem to be more in dark humour or stating fact and opinion, or commenting on general impressions. Is that right? Yes, I believe in freedom of speech and responsibility of speech, so I know there are consequences to actions and believe there should be. Yet...
Osama Bin Laden.
He was assassinated.
Did any Americans celebrate? Here is a wiki list of the known assassinations by the US with many of them just grouped together as a single entry, because there are so many. Now, you can call these different, but other than being sanctioned by the government, are they different?
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed"
That is the Second Amendment and a lot of people who believe it should be protected, and who also believe that one of the reasons that people should have guns, is to be able to respond to an oppressive government. But the problem of course is, only half the people at any point might consider the US government oppressive, right? So, while some will take up arms to push back against their oppression (which is the position people defend), the other half will be outraged at the pushback.
A bit of a problem.
By the way...
The second Amendment is not unlimited, there are potential exceptions.
"the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill"
"the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons"
Now, as we can see, there are lots of questions to be considered here, because firstly, where are the lines? The assassination of Osama Bin Laden can be celebrated openly, but the assassination of Charlie Kirk may not - where is the line on when celebration is acceptable and when it is not, and who judges which? If it is okay to celebrate the assassination of an enemy, who defines who an "enemy" is? Are enemies only able to be designated by the government? If so, isn't that an oppressive regime?
Hmmm.
And in terms of the dicta exceptions like no guns for the mentally ill, who defines mentally ill? Couldn't anyone willing to kill for ideological reasons be considered mentally ill? And aren't all weapons dangerous by definition? And unusual weapons - is that like a morning star or a shuriken? Who decides upon all of the edges?
Celebrating intentional death of any kind is in very poor taste in my opinion, even if the person murdered is a terrible person. This goes for those killed on death row also. And it is in especially poor taste when the people celebrating don't actually know the person at all, as is the case for all of the assassinations the US (and other countries) have performed as governments. It is all in poor taste.
Humour is largely an exception here, because it is never too soon. But, the outrage based on the side the humour falls, is pathetic. Funny is funny - no matter what side you are on, or what problems you face. Humour is our way to deal with difficulty. Embrace it.
But we don't live in a funny world, we live in a cruel world, and much of the humour is intentionally cruel. Which I would argue, excludes it from being funny. We live in a world of point scoring, where people want to inflict maximum pain on whomever they see as their enemy. And inevitably, in a world of increasingly mentally ill humans, some are going to take it to the extremes. And the more that do, the more extreme it all gets.
We are actively escalating the worst of human nature.
A race to the bottom.
Let's celebrate?
Taraz
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