Gas prices

TwistedWicker77 said:

Oh please. George Floyd was anything but a martyr. Please do not paint him as such.

This is what white privilege looks like.

I see the EU passed its Russian oil ban, so buckle up, because it'll have a ripple effect on US gas prices. Again, global commodity.

It's never been a better time to be a smug EV driver.

But the riots that were not peaceful injured many people, caused millions of dollars' worth of damage, and how many of those persons were held accountable...none.

I like outdoor grilling also.

CoasterHawk said:

...how many of those persons were held accountable...none.

Imagine having vast, seemingly-endless information available at your fingertips, but refusing to engage in the bare minimum of critical thought to search something out before mindlessly regurgitating it.

There were more than 14,000 arrests made during the BLM protests, though to be fair some of these weren't BLM protesters... they were far right extremists. But the fact remains - a massive number of people were held accountable for the relatively tiny amount of violent behavior, which you could have discovered had you taken a few minutes to check your biases.

Can we change this topic to politics or let's start talking about the real reason why Cedar Point removed the antique cars in the back..... :)

Let's go Brandon!!

*implores group to stop political discussion*

*immediately recites political cult chant*

djDaemon said:

*immediately recites political cult chant*

Correction, NASCAR quote....Brandon Brown, drives the #68 car....

I don't believe there were any actual prosecutions. Here in Columbus, all charges were dismissed for all those arrested because we had just gotten a newly elected democratic prosecutor.

Oh FFS, it took all of ten seconds to disprove your unsubstantiated belief:

...court documents in more than 300 federal cases stemming from the protests sparked by George Floyd’s death last year shows that dozens of people charged have been convicted of serious crimes and sent to prison.

It would have taken you less time to find this information than it did to incorrectly assert the opposite. Of course, this would have required critical thought, so...

In Columbus I kind of understand that; there were an awful lot of arrests (and other incidents) that more than anything were for "contempt of cop". Given what appeared to be widespread abuses by both rioters and police, we had a situation that would have been rather difficult to sort out in a way that wouldn't just make everybody that much angrier.

I'm not saying it was the best thing to do, but it was the most expedient thing to do in an effort to put all of that unrest behind us.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Jeff said:

TwistedWicker77 said:

Oh please. George Floyd was anything but a martyr. Please do not paint him as such.

This is what white privilege looks like.

I really sat here and thought about replying to this beyond absurd reply. I thought about it longer than what I’d be proud to admit that I wasted time on. I really am baffled by that (wrong) assumption made by someone who I thought was to be a leader of a community.

Here in Columbus one of our respected Congresswomen was maced by police while marching and protesting peacefully. I have a friend who was maced while trying to operate a makeshift first aid and water station. The police apparently thought that stepping foot off of a crowded sidewalk onto the street was infraction enough to take protesters down.

If you're trying to shame me into something, good luck with that. My autistic brain holds little regard for that.

But you didn't really respond to what I actually said, and if you really spent any time being introspective and exercised empathy, you would conclude that I'm right. I'm sure it makes you deeply uncomfortable, and that's OK, I was there once too. I don't feel bad about being a white hetero, but at least I can see that I won the birth lottery as it has not impaired my journey in life at all, nor will it ever. I will never worry about my kid getting pulled over for his race, which is not a luxury that children of Black parents have. That is white privilege.

CoasterHawk said:

I don't believe...

The problem with beliefs and opinions is that they are not facts. At some point, our culture decided that they somehow have equal weight, but they objectively do not when it comes to finding truth. See also: Literally everything in the last six years.

Jeff, no. I’m just baffled that your autistic brain can go on a rant and assume someone’s privilege and not think the person you’re talking to is a minority and/or POC. Or assume the person you’re talking to has never experienced being “targeted” because they are different. Not only that, but think that someone’s “privilege is showing” because they don’t agree that a repeated offender is a martyr for all POC. It’s okay to disagree. I’m sure it makes you deeply uncomfortable now that you know your assumption was wrong. And if it doesn’t, it probably should and THAT is white privilege looks like.

djDaemon said:

*implores group to stop political discussion*

*immediately recites political cult chant*

Huh... Now when I read the thread *I* thought that BlueGemini was trying to pull things back on topic and was asking you (Brandon) to help take the lead on that as one of the folks who is more vocal in a lot of the pointbuzz threads. ;-)

TwistedWicker77 said:

...George Floyd was anything but a martyr.

...(I) don’t agree that a repeated offender is a martyr for all POC.

Scanning back through the conversation, I don't see where anyone made such a claim? Jeff only mentioned that Floyd was murdered, which is a basic statement of fact, and your reflexive reaction was to point out that Floyd is no martyr. Twice. Almost as if you have that very specific, canned response chambered to fire off anytime Floyd's name comes up, which is... odd.

As in, "I'm not saying he deserved to be murdered, but..." Which, in addition to being just an awful, inhumane point of view, sounds an awful lot like "I'm not racist, but..." (And yes, other minorities and "targeted" people can be racist too.)

Did George Floyd commit crimes previous to his murder? Yes.

Was he punished for those previous crimes? Yes.

Did he deserve to be punished again & subsequently murdered for those previous crimes? No.

Do those that committed crimes (vandalism, assault etc.) during BLM protests deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law? Yes

Consider this: black minorities account for roughly 13% of our population but are killed by police more than twice of those who are white. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/investigations/police-shootings-database/

Anyone who attempts to justify Floyd's death is speaking from white privilege.

I don't mind paying a little extra for gas. Paying a higher price gives me the illusion that I'm getting something of higher quality.
Just pretend the gas you're pumping was crafted at a micro refinery rather than mass-produced by some oil tycoon.

TwistedWicker77 said:

Jeff, no. I’m just baffled that your autistic brain can go on a rant and assume someone’s privilege and not think the person you’re talking to is a minority and/or POC.

So come out from behind your veil of anonymity and put a real name and face behind your opinion. I'm doing that, and always have. I believe I can express myself without consequence. If my assumption is incorrect, that would likely be a 1 in 100 chance, and I would gladly reclassify your white privilege as willful ignorance given the math that others have pointed out repeatedly. Though I suppose it's willful ignorance either way.

If you're still interested in the economics of oil, and specifically why presidents have little control over it, the Times has a solid article about it.