At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? On Tuesdays I like to throw one out there and see what you make of it. Do with it as you please. If a for-instance is not specified, feel free to interpret that instance as you wish. And if you find this becomes a novel-length answer, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements ;)
Let's suppose that you just got involved with an organization whose ideals you wholeheartedly believe in. You've gone to their events. You've participated in their protests. You've touted them to all your friends and family...
What if this group is suddenly declared a terrorist organization by the government?
Yes, well I would still be with them so long as they were non violent, non racist, but still led marches etc...just like Martin Luther King did. I would not be frightened by the government who would decide that this group was labelled a terrorist organization. Hey, Nixon had Gregory Peck on his watch list and labelled him an enemy!
ReplyDeleteGood point.
DeleteI'd have to do some critical thinking about that. If they really were a terrorist organization, I would not continue to support them. If they weren't, and the government just saw them as a threat to whatever agenda they were trying to promote, I would probably continue involvement.
ReplyDeleteI didn't say they were promoting terrorism (although, I didn't specify...), just that they'd been labled a terrorist organization.
DeleteI would stop supporting them but I would also be afraid of me being under the government's radar! The next thing is I would try to figure out how to clear my name.
ReplyDeleteEven if you believed in their ideals? I didn't say they were a terrorist organization, only that they'd been labled as such.
DeleteThat's pretty much a real situation. Antifa is being called a terrorist organization. But not, you know, the frigging Nazis.
ReplyDeleteFight for what is right and what you believe in, no matter what other people tell you and as long as you're not hurting anyone. Terrorist organizations are intended to make people afraid, and to hurt people. As long as you're not doing any of that, I say f*ck what everyone else thinks
ReplyDeleteWell, if I already had connections in the group, I'd have an opportunity to bring them down from the inside. That might be dangerous, but you know, greater good and all that.
ReplyDeleteI would look at what I've learned from being in the group carefully. Next, I would consider the government's other actions. Governments can be evil, too. I would take all this into consideration.
ReplyDeleteI didn't say the government was right in this case ;)
DeleteI'd have to do some research about why they were labeled that by the government and then decide if it was valid enough for me to not be part of it anymore.
ReplyDeletebetty
I'd have to question why lol
ReplyDeleteWhy is a good first question to ask.
DeleteI lean toward leaving because most likely there is a reason.
ReplyDeleteFair point.
DeleteJust because the government has decreed this would not convince me that it was true, so if I had chosen to be there with 'em, I'd be staying with 'em
ReplyDeleteTrue. The question is, are you right or are they?
DeleteOops. Better change your name/identity/write a book about it. LOL:)
ReplyDeleteThat would work :)
DeleteI knew there was something in those Thin Mint cookies! Fess up, Girl Scouts.
ReplyDeleteSince I don't join much other than social media, hopefully I'm safe from this scenario. But it does sound like an excellent story maker.
I would more than likely re-examine my choices to see if I missed something. A lot of good decisions are based on one's ability to revisit things over and over, testing them over and over, to make sure that the principles are sound. It's essentially how science works. Keeping an open mind is something that I continuously strive to do, and that means allowing criticism to attack your beliefs.
ReplyDeleteUmm… awkward. If my family and friends approve of the company, I'd probably still support them. My belief in the government to know what's right and what's wrong has been severely weakened in the last year. (Of course, my family and friends currently approve of the government, so there's that…) Why do you have to ask such complicated questions?!? ;)
ReplyDeleteComplicated questions make the best stories ;)
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