A slow day. Went for a walk and visited Deb at a distance in the park.
It seems odd to strictly obey rules that appear to be widely flouted. The Black Lives Matter protests continue worldwide and seem strange, like an explosion of pent-up frustration rather than anything about racism. I seem to be the only person who, when hearing about the death of George Floyd and seeing the footage on Twitter, didn't for one moment consider it a race issue, but one of simple police brutality. My opinion was quickly usurped by the media. The police officers involved have no realistic chance of a fair trial. We are in a new era of mob rule on a scale without any historical precedent.
All lives matter; it can only divide races by focusing on one, or on any differences between us. Everyone, I expect, feels marginalised, ignored, oppressed, unfairly treated. The measure of civilised life is tolerating our misfortunes and being aware of the misfortunes of others. Judging from afar, it would seem that posh people, 'rich' others, are the most picked on (or democratic leaders - authoritarian dictators tend to crush critics). I doubt a 'Posh Lives Matter' protest will emerge. It seems that some who feel oppressed can gang together and jointly feel jointly oppressed, so perhaps individuals who feel marginalised and oppressed don't protest for this reason, these things are social events rather than philosophical statements or arguments. The speeches made at such rallies are like rock hits before fans, generally cheered irrespective of content as an act communal self-affirmation.
Of course, some lives matter more than others. Bacteria are considered enemies, even though 99% or more of species are harmless to humans, yet all are killed by bleaches, soaps, and other chemicals casually and without guilt. The smaller an animal is and the more alien it looks, the less its life seems to matter. The only life everyone wants to exterminate at the moment seems to be the Covid-19 virus; it is colourless, although the computer models on television are grey with red spots, which itself makes it looks rather like a space-alien. Of course, as it can't self-replicate, a virus is not a life-form by some definitions.
