A lot of people have demanded a lot of things of different communities when it comes to condemning acts of violence. When Ferguson happened, all black people were expected to condemn everyone who looted. When the Charlie Hebdo attack happened, all Muslim people were expected to condemn all extremists. And when Timothy McVeigh attacked Oklahoma City, all white people were expected to condemn him. No, wait, that last one never happened. Anyways, “The Daily Show” has a pretty profoundly witty system to determine who has to condemn what.
Here’s the thing though. Condemnation of terror and violence should be a given. Do you know anyone who applauds violence and terrorism? Have you ever met them? I have friends I’ve spoken with in every community (even some pretty radical ones), and not a single one has ever been like, “Yeah, ’bout time someone killed some people!”
The next time you see a person who has the same genetic or religious makeup as a perpetrator of horrific violence, I recommend assuming they are a normal human who has no connection to violence and who thinks murder is bad. Because that’s basically everyone. Unless you are in a terrorist meeting, then obviously, you aren’t reading this anyway because you hate freedom.
Terrorism — a thing only terrorists like.
