Current Events > Your opinion of protests shutting down major traffic ways

(+) Yeah! (+)

What do you think about protests in regards to shutting down traffic?

I don't understand the point of some protests though... recently a bunch of high school kids skipped school to protest climate change and block the roads. I really don't get what they achieved or hoped to achieve, claiming they would not step aside for climate change....

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gloBal enemy posted...

I don't understand the point of some protests though... recently a bunch of high school kids skipped school to protest climate change and block the roads. I really don't get what they achieved or hoped to achieve, claiming they would not step aside for climate change....

So what did you vote in my poll?

darkphoenix181 posted...

So what did you vote in my poll?

smaller roads is ok as long as it doesn't really inconvenience many. but when they block a main road requiring everyone to come to work earlier or get home later as a result, i don't see how that's really helping acheive any kind of tangible outcome besides people getting annoyed.

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don;t block major roads or freeways. and fuck anyone who won;t let an emergency vehicle through

All it does it make me side with whatever those people are protesting unless it's against human rights violations of some sort.
Hong Kongers protesting against being tortured? Shut down the country. I'd support that.
People protesting for/against abortion? Fuck off. I have places to go to.
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Protests are meaningless if they aren't an inconvenience to somebody.
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

All it does it make me side with whatever those people are protesting unless it's against human rights violations of some sort.
Hong Kongers protesting against being tortured? Shut down the country. I'd support that.
People protesting for/against abortion? Fuck off. I have places to go to.

That was an extremely good example. Whilst I don't know if it will really change the long term outcome for HK, at least they had clear demands and objectives, and a cause which dare I say is worthy of the broader population getting behind.

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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

All it does it make me side with whatever those people are protesting unless it's against human rights violations of some sort.
Hong Kongers protesting against being tortured? Shut down the country. I'd support that.
People protesting for/against abortion? Fuck off. I have places to go to.

What about climate change?

Tmaster148 posted...

Protests are meaningless if they aren't an inconvenience to somebody.

Maybe, but there are various ways to raise awareness (if that's the objective) which don't result in those inconvenienced hating your cause. eg people who wait outside our office and hand out flyers every morning on banning coal mining or not supporting banks which support unenvironmental practices.

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GregShmedley posted...

you are literally holding up running vehicles for a period of time and thus adding to the pollution.

That... is a good point.

gloBal enemy posted...

Maybe, but there are various ways to raise awareness (if that's the objective) which don't result in those inconvenienced hating your cause. eg people who wait outside our office and hand out flyers every morning on banning coal mining or not supporting banks which support unenvironmental practices.

Be honest, how many people throw those pamphlets away? Need to make a scene to get attention. Marches, sit ins, picket lines, etc.

I'm actually down for blocking major traffic ways if it's consistent. Force people to take public transit =P

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FrozenXylophone posted...

That... is a good point.

No it isn't. It's like mocking a poor person for spending money on bus fare to get to a job interview.

The problem is that people don't understand the difference between "disrupting the lives of the people who matter" and "being disruptive"

You wanna protest against abortion for example? Go to the clinics. Go to the government buildings.
You stopping me from walking down the street to shove a piece of paper in my hand that I will literally throw into the nearest garbage can is just making me not care.
It won't make me vote for or against your cause but it will make me vote to get you not ot be allowed to protest and be disruptive
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GregShmedley posted...

They should not block major roadways.

Especially with climate change protests considering you are literally holding up running vehicles for a period of time and thus adding to the pollution.

How high is your IQ? (I'll only accept numbers over 500)
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knutjob posted...

FrozenXylophone posted...

That... is a good point.

No it isn't. It's like mocking a poor person for spending money on bus fare to get to a job interview.

Er...what? That's not a good comparison at all.
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Blue_Dream87 posted...

Be honest, how many people throw those pamphlets away? Need to make a scene to get attention. Marches, sit ins, picket lines, etc.

I'm actually down for blocking major traffic ways if it's consistent. Force people to take public transit =P

Lol... I get the need to get attention, but why should everyone else be inconvenienced for a group of people who have a different view/belief?

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Banjo2553 posted...

Er...what? That's not a good comparison at all.

Both the bus fare and the extra pollution from a few cars having to go slowly are completely irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.

NinjaWarrior455 posted...

Imagine blaming protesters for gridlock and not the decades of lobbying by the automotive and fossil fuel industries to make America a car based society that has divested away from rail and other public transportation options.

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knutjob posted...

Banjo2553 posted...

Er...what? That's not a good comparison at all.

Both the bus fare and the extra pollution from a few cars having to go slowly are completely irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.

bitch wut
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I think that's a bad move to make. It only makes the general public apathetic to what your cause is. Your protest is negatively affecting their ability to make a living when their ability to make a living generally has nothing to with what you're protesting.
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It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.
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This kind of protest succeeds in only pissing off regular people.

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Tmaster148 posted...

Protests are meaningless if they aren't an inconvenience to somebody.

Pretty much
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Tmaster148 posted...

Protests are meaningless if they aren't an inconvenience to somebody.

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Roads are for cars, not people.
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there are effective means of protest that do not involve shutting down major traffic ways, so I'm not going to outright say that it's "necessary" to do so.

but it is absolutely effective
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SpudForce posted...

This kind of protest succeeds in only pissing off regular people.

people who are against progress when it inconveniences them have been saying this forever. it's no more true now than it was when it was levied against Martin Luther King
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AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

strikes, protests, etc all work best when they inconvenience as many people as possible. if they're easy to ignore, then they're pointless
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Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US
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averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

Must be nice to handwave away literally any criticism of your unrelated protest with "well what about Martin Luther King, huh?!"
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I can't say I care much personally. I'd still look into the cause and see how I feel about it.

I think it's bad that the inconvenience of a protest would be though to cause someone to automatically be against a cause... But I understand that's just how some people think.


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ThePrinceFish posted...

averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

Must be nice to handwave away literally any criticism of your unrelated protest with "well what about Martin Luther King, huh?!"

do you know how disruptive the civil rights movement was to people's lives?
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Protests are supposed to be inconvenient.
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ThePrinceFish posted...

averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

Must be nice to handwave away literally any criticism of your unrelated protest with "well what about Martin Luther King, huh?!"

I wouldn't put much stock in the opinions of someone who is cool with killing kids as long as they're the right kids.
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averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

If you want to get people on your side, maybe you shouldn't tell them that not being able to see their dying father was all in the name of "the greater good"

Im torn. I understand that its unfair to those who arent part of the problem, but also...

ThyCorndog posted...

strikes, protests, etc all work best when they inconvenience as many people as possible. if they're easy to ignore, then they're pointless

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depends? I'm not against it in principle though

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ThyCorndog posted...

strikes, protests, etc all work best when they inconvenience as many people as possible. if they're easy to ignore, then they're pointless

I wouldn't call blocking traffic an inconvenience. Blocking traffic on a freeway without the approval of the proper authorities could possibly be considered false imprisonment as the only methods available for the occupants of a vehicle to leave the scene is to break the law whether it be attempting to slowly drive vehicle through the crowd blocking traffic risking vehicular assault charges or abandoning vehicle in the middle of the road.
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Whatever triggers conservatives
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Unless I already agree with your protest, then I'm just gonna get pissed off and be even more opposed to you. Get outta the damn road.

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I mean, isn't this the same thing as bridgegate?

Suppose someone is having a medical emergency and they can't get anywhere because of a protest blocking the road?
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Depends but mostly anti. Potentially fucking people over in an emergency, getting someone fired, someone missing an exam, so many ways that are just going to fuck over and push people away
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Trelve posted...

averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

If you want to get people on your side, maybe you shouldn't tell them that not being able to see their dying father was all in the name of "the greater good"

tell me what you think of the civil rights movement blocking traffic.
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ThePrinceFish posted...

averagejoel posted...

Trelve posted...

AlephZero posted...

It's a great way to hamper emergency services. If someone dies or a house burns down because an ambulance or fire truck couldn't get to where they needed to go that's entirely on the people who blocked the highway.

In the UK, someone couldn't make it to their dying father's hospital to say goodbye because of these Extinction Rebellion protests. In response, the leader of the protest just said basically "well, that is bad, but we think that our goal is more important so not sorry".

I would love to hear your thoughts on the Civil Rights movement in the US

Must be nice to handwave away literally any criticism of your unrelated protest with "well what about Martin Luther King, huh?!"

it would be, but that's not what I'm doing. please do not characterize it as such.
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averagejoel posted...

tell me what you think of the civil rights movement blocking traffic.

Enlighten us about it.

Somehow, I doubt a freeway on 1965 is comparable to a major one in 2019.

My city for example has literally millions of people commuting hours from home to work.
Idk if in 1965, people did that so much. Cars were more of a luxury than today.
Jobs were often just down the road in a town.

Now? Not so much.
Cities have grown exponentially.

Infact, just blocking 1 freeway would affect all the freeways in a city.

https://www.quora.com/What-percentage-of-U-S-households-owned-a-car-in-the-1960%E2%80%B2s-1970%E2%80%B2s-and-1980%E2%80%B2s

1960, 1 car for every 3 ppl.

2008, less than 1 car for every 2 people.

https://www.csis.org/blogs/energy-headlines-versus-trendlines/slowly-changing-us-commute

First, it was only by 1980 that car travel reached its current position, accounting for about 84 percent of all commuting trips. Car travel was dominant in 1960, but not overwhelmingly so. More people walked to work or used public transport, but these modes have declined over time. Relative to 1960, the share of people commuting through public transportation in 2017 was down 59 percent; those who are commuting on foot down 72 percent. Most of that shift happened from 1960 to 1990, with far less change thereafter.

the protests also disrupt public transit (i.e., bus)

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Paragon21XX posted...

ThyCorndog posted...

strikes, protests, etc all work best when they inconvenience as many people as possible. if they're easy to ignore, then they're pointless

I wouldn't call blocking traffic an inconvenience. Blocking traffic on a freeway without the approval of the proper authorities could possibly be considered false imprisonment as the only methods available for the occupants of a vehicle to leave the scene is to break the law whether it be attempting to slowly drive vehicle through the crowd blocking traffic risking vehicular assault charges or abandoning vehicle in the middle of the road.

Lmao

Muh authorities didn't give yuh purhmisshun to do day

That point tends to be that those with authority are the problem and need to be challenged

Going by what they dictate defeats the purpose of protest
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