Post #1829105

@stephen Disappointed, but not exactly surprised here. We're all vulnerable to us-versus-them motivated reasoning. It's an effective mental shortcut to deal with the inconceivable complexity of the world by assuming that what your side does is generally good, and bad things are most likely done by the other side. Even people who pride themselves on being objective regularly fall into this trap, assigning extra credibility to anyone who mouths centrist platitudes before delivering their unfounded opinions. When I hear about a shooting, I have to admit that there's a part of me that immediately thinks “I hope the shooter wasn't someone I agree with”. It's a short step from “I hope” to “I bet”, and I could easily take it if I'm not careful.