# New Wave Lynch Mobs **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 29, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216 "2012-03-29T23:16:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/1 "2012-03-29T23:16:41Z")
When I ask questions in right-wing god-guns-and-guts forums, all I get is brainless hate-filled political-party worthless garbage. So I would like to ask SDMB what they think of current news events: Couple who don’t even know Zimmerman [forced to move out of their home by death threats](http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/28/justice/florida-teen-spike-lee/index.html) ``` The New Black Panther Party [offering $10,000](http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-black-panther-party-20120327,0,7849382.story) for Zimmerman's head. ``` Trayvon protesters [ransacking stores](http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/249567/4/Martin-Protesters-Ransacked-North-Miami-Beach-Walgreens) I would like to hear your personal thoughts about modern day lynch mobs; are they better, worse, or the same as old-timey lynch mobs? Bonus points for not threatening to ban me, kill my family, or shoot up my house. f ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/2 "2012-03-29T23:27:04Z")
Who was lynched? ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/3 "2012-03-29T23:27:10Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > When I ask questions in right-wing god-guns-and-guts forums, all I get is brainless hate-filled political-party worthless garbage. > > So I would like to ask SDMB what they think of current news events: > > Couple who don’t even know Zimmerman [forced to move out of their home by death threats](http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/28/justice/florida-teen-spike-lee/index.html) A classic case of why you should take what you hear with a large lump of halite. > [@](#): > > The New Black Panther Party [offering $10,000](http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-black-panther-party-20120327,0,7849382.story) for Zimmerman’s head. I hope to God it’s just hyperbole. > [@](#): > > Trayvon protesters [ransacking stores](http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/249567/4/Martin-Protesters-Ransacked-North-Miami-Beach-Walgreens) Sadly, looting in the context of protest/riot is nothing new. > [@](#): > > I would like to hear your personal thoughts about modern day lynch mobs; are they better, worse, or the same as old-timey lynch mobs? > > Bonus points for not threatening to ban me, kill my family, or shoot up my house. Hypothetical: a black man is accused on circumstantial evidence of raping and killing a white woman. The police say they don’t have probable cause to arrest him. A howling mob of whites calls for “justice”. What would the current protesters want the authorities to do in that situation? ---
**Author:** ![XaMcQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/f9ae1b/32.png) [@XaMcQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XaMcQ)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/4 "2012-03-30T03:50:24Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > I would like to hear your personal thoughts about modern day lynch mobs; are they better, worse, or the same as old-timey lynch mobs? > f Emotions are running high, and people are behaving like idiots, but unless people are actually being killed, I don’t think these are ‘lynch mobs’. Terroristic mobs, maybe, but not actually lynching people. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/5 "2012-03-30T03:57:26Z")
> [@](#): > > New Wave Lynch Mobs They’re going to hang **David Byrne**? C’mon, his later stuff isn’t quite \*that \*bad. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/6 "2012-03-30T05:11:39Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > I would like to hear your personal thoughts about modern day lynch mobs; are they better, worse, or the same as old-timey lynch mobs? No one is dead yet, so at this point they are somewhat better and not actually lynch mobs. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/7 "2012-03-30T07:32:52Z")
Whatever the answer to OP is, it is not a “Stand your ground” vigilante law like Florida’s. > [@Lumpy](#): > > Hypothetical: a black man is accused on circumstantial evidence of raping and killing a white woman. The police say they don’t have probable cause to arrest him. A howling mob of whites calls for “justice”. What would the current protesters want the authorities to do in that situation? 😕 😕 One wonders what the point of this “analogy” is. That Zimmerman shot Martin in the chest with a 9mm round is not in dispute. There may have been extenuation, but the facile comparison to “circumstantial evidence…” is absurd. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/8 "2012-03-30T07:50:08Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Whatever the answer to OP is, it is not a “Stand your ground” vigilante law like Florida’s. > > 😕 😕 > One wonders what the point of this “analogy” is. That Zimmerman shot Martin in the chest with a 9mm round is not in dispute. There may have been extenuation, but the facile comparison to “circumstantial evidence…” is absurd. Some people see the case as about race relations primarily, I’m guessing that explains the strange analogy. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/9 "2012-03-30T12:39:51Z")
> [@grude](#): > > Some people see the case as about race relations primarily, I’m guessing that explains the strange analogy. I got that much. I just wondered why he chose to compare a black accused with only circumstantial evidence to a non-black who has admitted to homicide. (But if you don’t see the oddity in the analogy, I won’t try to explain it further.) (ETA: To save a round, please note that “justifiable homicide” is a type of “homicide.”) ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/10 "2012-03-30T12:50:34Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > I would like to hear your personal thoughts about modern day lynch mobs; are they better, worse, or the same as old-timey lynch mobs? My personal thought is that I prefer the new-fangled “people say mean things on the interwebs” “lynch mobs” over the old-timey “people get _actually lynched_” lynch mobs. But I can see why you’d disagree. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/11 "2012-03-30T14:38:23Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > My personal thought is that I prefer the new-fangled “people say mean things on the interwebs” “lynch mobs” over the old-timey “people get _actually lynched_” lynch mobs. Yeah- given that nobody’s been lynched, it’s kind of hard to see what makes these “lynch mobs.” A better description would be “assholes.” If you threaten someone so much they have to move, you’re an asshole. If you put a bounty on someone’s head to encourage vigilantism, you’re an asshole. If your idea of a protest involves looting, you’re an asshole. I think that’s all very straightforward. By interesting coincidence, just about all of the ones mentioned in the OP are black. There are assholes out there of every description, so I wanted to make sure **Dufus** notices he’s highlighted some assholes with an arbitrary similarity. Doing so can make it look like he’s presenting that similarity as meaningful when it isn’t. So I call this to his attention so he can avoid that mistake in the future. ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/12 "2012-03-30T23:36:40Z")
Many thanks to all for telling me your thoughts on the subject. > [@](#): > > By interesting coincidence, just about all of the ones mentioned in the OP are black. There are assholes out there of every description, so I wanted to make sure Dufus notices he’s highlighted some assholes with an arbitrary similarity. Doing so can make it look like he’s presenting that similarity as meaningful when it isn’t. So I call this to his attention so he can avoid that mistake in the future. Darn, I was hoping to have a discussion about current news events without anyone threatening to ban me, kill my family, or shoot up my house. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/13 "2012-03-31T00:16:06Z")
I liked the B-52’s version of “Lynch Mob” much better than The Motels’. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/14 "2012-03-31T00:22:15Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > Darn, I was hoping to have a discussion about current news events without anyone threatening to ban me, kill my family, or shoot up my house. :dubious: I’m intrigued to see where you found any of those threats in my post. Maybe it’s related to your misperception of the lynch mobs. ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/15 "2012-03-31T00:36:14Z")
Yes. God knows I don’t want to make “any future mistakes”, like asking about any current news events. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/16 "2012-03-31T00:37:03Z")
> [@Dufus](#): > > Yes. God knows I don’t want to make “any future mistakes”, like asking about any current news events. Did anyone say you shouldn’t ask about current news events? ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/17 "2012-03-31T00:48:24Z")
No, just so long as there are no “interesting coincidences”, “arbitrary similarities” or “look like I’m presenting any similarity as meaningful when it isn’t”. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/18 "2012-03-31T00:49:52Z")
Next you’ll say you are being set upon by a new wave lynch mob. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/19 "2012-03-31T00:54:27Z")
It’s your forum. I came here asking for people’s thoughts. You told me to not make any “future mistakes”. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Dufus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c77e96/32.png) [@Dufus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dufus)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216/20 "2012-03-31T01:58:47Z")
The old science fiction thrillers are coming true. No one is allowed to have any thought that is not aligned with a political affiliation. Planet Earth is the prison planet. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-wave-lynch-mobs/617216.md?page=2)