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“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”

As much as you may want to avoid that which makes you feel bad, doing nothing enables injustice, division, hate, crime, violence, etc.
You become part of the problem.

What ugliness in this world do you take action against and how?

AMGT 8 Feb 5
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27 comments

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11

Right now and for the next 9 months the focus is entirely on beating back the Republican agenda and the Trump presidency. The rising violence and hatred has got to be faced down and crushed.This not a time to say "oh well" or "my vote doesn't matter." This is all hands on deck.

Not just YES, HELL YES!

8

Speaking out, for starters. Encourage those making a difference, and each other.

8

if i saw someone being mistreated in public i would go to their side

7

Evil triumphs when good people do nothing.

I like your comment, but that simple sentence says it all. Turning your back just allows the evil to multiply.

Thanks!@BettyColeman

7

True Truth🙂

6

I mostly agree with this approach, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. I take action against any I see, boycotting products and divesting myself of investments in perpetrators. I hassle companies, politicians, I get right into their facebook pages. I make lots of enemies. Our national broadband provider reported one of my posts as spam, they vet all posts but can't vet comments. Facebook actually looked at the post first and asked me if it was spam, I said no and they allowed it.

Fight fire with anything that will remove the conflagration. With you @Rugglesby

6

i'm a mama bear, I do call out a***oles when I see them. It doesn't happen often in places I go to but I know if I don't speak up then I can't expect anyone to speak up for me.

6

I don't think I have ever been able to remain neutral on anything in my life. It seems I have an opinion on everything, but I do not jump all over people about anything. If they ask for it. they will most likely get that opinion unless I consider them unhinged. Perhaps, I need to make myself clearer. I will voice my opinion and defend it until I meet a person who is out of their ever loving mind and no matter if you said the sun was yellow, you would be wrong. I like to exchange opinions, but in an evolved beyond the monkey conversation.

6

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

[en.m.wikiquote.org]

Those words remain etched in my mind.

Read these words for the first time when I was around 12, and they are etched in my psyche!

@Leutrelle From when and what?

@AnneWimsey How did you encounter them?

@FrayedBear I can't remember when I first read them. I know it was sometime ago.

@FrayedBear I was always a voracious reader...do not remember where I saw them, probably in a something of my dad's, he was a war history buff.

6

If I see a someone employed being mean to a customer, I stand up for the customer and complain about the bad service in a review or to the manager. I was mistreated at a Dominos 2x in a row from an idiot. I called and complained and described the man. She credited me a free large pizza of my choice. I went to get it and he was even more rude. I didn't complain a 2nd time though.

I would have...to his face.

You probably should have complained to the manager then and there during the second encounter. For myself, I don't like to allow or condone bad behavior. Especially by throwing money at it.

@Druthewriter Yeah, I asked for the manager, he pointed to her through the glass window. She was on the phone.Then he walked off. Some other woman came and gave me my pizza. He was up front though.

5

I try to be vocal, but still in that place. It’d be nice to get back to it, but idk how long it would be

5

I agree but I also agree with the point about priorities.

5

that is only true if the neutral person is fully aware of all the factors involved.
Hypothetical
You see one man murdering another (injustice)
IF you take prompt action and prevent the murder (without fully being informed)
AND you have an innocent victim, your a hero

IF you take prompt action and prevent the murder (without fully being informed)
and you have Hannibal lector being caught and resisting, you save the Monster and get killed for your effort

If you judge the neutral person because they are neutral, when they do not feel fully informed, you are becoming an oppressor in pursuit of your idea of justice.

What is there to be neutral about with Trump? What act or decision has he made or endorsed that you can agree with, or even be neutral about?

@Dick_Martin The Op said nothing about Trump

5

what are you if you take incorrect action based on perceived injustice?

Can you clarify with an example? I can't tell if you mean incorrect based on a perceived, but not actual injustice, or the wrong action that one should take to correct an actual injustice you perceived.

Ascertaining clarification. I am disabled but many choose not to see it. I choose not to ignore their ignorance.

wrong but benevolent

Bingo

So, the mob justice mentality is benevolent?

@JeffMurray Assuming someone is racist and shaming them when they are in fact not, but publicly shaming them anyway.

Assuming someone is abusive, and completely misreading the situation, but striking anyway in the name of altruism.

Assuming one side of an injured party is telling the truth about a crime because they are the right sex, or color. So you throw them in jail.

4

I whole heartedly agree with that statement, but it is beginning to wear me down. I sign partitions, I write letters, and several other specific things that I have witnessed and taken action about! There seems to be so much cruelty now, it gets hard to keep up!

I think the point you make illustrates why priorities are important. We can only do good if we take care of ourselves enough to prevent burnout.

4

It's gotten to the point that all I can do is give blood. it's a small part of me. I still give to the red cross and disabled veterans. I donate to care help and also buy merchandise from them. That's about it for me....

4

I am against the indiscriminate torture of livestock animals and the killing of animals for fur and the rampant killing of wildlife. I am against the polluting of our soil and food by Monsanto and their GMO's. I am against the killing of innocents by our racists in the police. I am against the ignorance concerning climate change and not taking actions to counteract it. I am against the ignorance that put Trump in the White House. I am against all his negativity. Etc...Etc..Etc.. That said, I am a very positive person and believe love is the uniting energy of this whole world. It's just that there are too many that don't get it.

LOL is that get over their stupidity or get love? Are you familiar with Professor Cipolla's thesis on the laws of human stupidity?
[qz.com]

@FrayedBear No. Sounds interesting. Love the title.

@think-beyond They are an interesting read and I have a suspicion were Hollywoodised into the film "A beautiful mind". Just press on the link. You will be interested to determine which quadrant you fall into.

@FrayedBear Yes. A very interesting read - moreover a way to view society. I fear the US has too many stupid people and there is a contest between the smart and the stupid. Who will win? We anxiously watch every day.

3

I agree, and I think this carries through to who you vote for and if you abstain from voting.

I have been abstinent for some time now.

2

“Never be a spectator of unfairness or stupidity. The grave will supply plenty of time for silence.”

? Christopher Hitchens

2

AMGT, what's the source of that quotation? Just wonderin'

I generally don't shy away from giving my opinion. I try to empower others whenever I see some way to do that, even in little ways. When someone broadcasts opinions that discount the worth of whole groups of people, I generally can't let that go unchallenged.

There are SO many examples of injustice...and just plain selfish destructiveness...that I think we have to pick our battles or risk burning out or feeling spread too thin.

I am always concerned about the tortured state of our planet...you know? that thing that we all need in order to exist? Yeah, that. I am trying to keep educating myself about environmental damage and responsible sollutions and to share what I learn with anyone showing the slightest interest.

I also cannot seem to cross paths with racist or sexist or anti-LGBT hateful statements without challenging them. Specifically because I'm gay and realize that not everyone feels safe enough to be out themselves, I want to, as much as I can, be an example that you don't have to hide in shame. I LUUUUV the "It Gets Better Project" model of making a difference for people struggling for self-acceptance. Dan Savage is a bit of a hero to me.

1

very true

1

My post 'So This Happened' .

1

Veterans For Peace over 3 decades are educating people how wrong war criminal Presidents and weapons profiteers land stealers and racist polluters all are so ugly inside and out....I work with Catholic Workers Quakers anyone who resist death destruction zionism pollution rapist priests 2 living gangster popes ....on the positive side out of 7+ billion people only a few hundred million are dedicated to All the crimes....as you say we need to move the immobile to stop the violence

1

I believe in capital punishment for the rapist. I may had been 6 at the time when a rapist would be attempted rape the help of the house... a 16 year old girl. My grandmother, my sister and I fought the individual... forcing him to flee the house and he got executed within a couple blocks by a policeman in self defense since he had a knife. I still believe that was justice prevailing. That is my take about rape in this world. Capital Punishment for those who rape a woman. 58 years later I still feel the same way. I will never going to show any compassion to a rapist. So if I ever going to run into a rape situation. This is how I will act. Capital Punishment via Street Justice.

0

Yes, to the degree that silence is consent. However, oppression can be intimidating causing more timid folks to be quiet. Then it may be considered coerced consent.

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