It’s just that simple. There is right and there is wrong. No matter the political spin, discussion, debate or even protest, there is right and wrong. Most people know that difference.
People on the right, people on the left and those who find a political home hard to define know this simple truth. Yet, when it comes to politics, perception and passion, that truth is lost.
Does the end justify the means? Rioters using whatever event or excuse they find to bring damage to their own communities know this. Yet, they ignore it and allow those passions to inflame their actions. They become crusaders.
Those who perpetrate such acts can be categorized as criminals, crazies, people in crisis or crusaders. There is often cross pollination of these groups. And of them, the crusaders can be the most difficult with which to reason. It’s hard to reason with someone’s fervent beliefs even with evidence those beliefs are based in a fallacy.
What we are left with is what our structured society has determined we do when people cross the line from right to wrong. If they do not respond to reason, civil enforcement of our laws is the only reasonable response.
A person’s belief or passions is no excuse for assaulting another, destroying property, endangering lives or disrupting the lawful activities of others. The only response is the arrest and prosecution of the violator.
In the places where this violence is prevalent and ongoing government has failed us. We have elected leaders who justify their belief in the cause of the criminal to limit or stop the reasonable actions of law enforcement or thwart the prosecution of the wrongdoer. The result is mass violence, mayhem and death.
It falls to us, to we the people, and our actions in response. We must elect those who know and act on an understanding of right and wrong above all else. And we must demand that lawful authorities quell any such riotous behavior at its first appearance. Only then are the rights of all protected and the safety of our communities preserved.
It all comes back to that simple notion of right and wrong.