REVscene Automotive Forum - Protestors vs. The State: Right vs. Wrong

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I don't think I've seen so many divergent opinions here among my facebook friends regarding the "rightness" and the "wrongness" of the G20 protests. I would only hope both sides could see the issue with humility, empathy, and a small dose of trust.

Protestors: While you yourself may have been a decent and peaceful protestor, as a collective, you failed to contain the few rogue protestors, of which several assaulted police officers, vandalized the private property of the innocent, threatened the safety of civilians, and ran up an enormous tax bill. Not to mention, reduced the credibility of all of the good causes which should have gotten attention. As a collective you failed and it takes some humility to take responsibility for that failure.

You should also empathize with the enormity of the police's task in trying to balance the tradeoff between public safety and private rights. You have to see it from their dual objectives to promote freedom, but not at the expense of public safety. If they were to be so selective in only stopping some of the protesters, and allowing others, the tradeoff is they would need even more resources to be effective and they would increase the risk of rogue protestors being even more destructive. In pruning a tree, you will necessarily lose a few blossoms. Would you have had a vastly superior outcome when faced with this same tradeoff?

Anti-protestors: While you have been undoubtedly burdened, remember that it was the voice of the people, just like these people, who fought for your rights that we now share today. It was the people, uprising against establishment, whether the establishment was the government, the culture, or the ruling monarch, that gave us our rights that we take for granted. Remember that throughout your life, you too are going to fight head to head with the establishment. It is the only way you will ever make any impact on anybody. Do you think that anyone "successful" in this world has ever gotten there by playing by the established rules? Do you not think that lobbying, politicking, and fighting for media attention and not forms of protesting? If you have never truly challenged the establishment, I can only assume that you have not made your impact. But one day, you will have made a very positive impact, and when that day comes, remember you got to where you were because you too were necessarily a protestor.

When you criticize the few rogue protestors, remember that you too will be plagued by rogue colleagues one day, who will make you look like a fool, or detract from all of the good that you have done. You will also try and separate yourself from these idiots, but you will forever be associated. In that time, you will wish that you had given these protestors even an ounce of sympathy so that they could return a fraction of that compassion to heal your wounds.

I like how the Dalai Lama put it:

“For those who may not find happiness to exercise religious faith, it's okay to remain a radical atheist, it's absolutely an individual right, but the important thing is with a compassionate heart -- then no problem.”