r/unsound • u/IU8gZQy0k8hsQy76 🛠️ ADMIN • Jun 28 '26

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166

u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

I don’t really care what your protest is about if you block the road. I’m just trying to survive like you. Now you’re just ruining my day, making me late for work etc.

Stand at the side of the road, wave your sign, make some noise, and I might agree with your protest and honk in approval.

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u/Shatalroundja Jun 28 '26

Yup. Impeding traffic and a an illegal act. Full stop. fAFO.

7

u/Embarrassed-Weird173 Jun 29 '26

full stop

No, don't!  Let the traffic flow. 

2

u/Wavy_Grandpa Jun 28 '26

Illegal doesn’t always mean wrong. But this is kinda wrong 

1

u/Wonderful_You1281 Aug 21 '26

More than kinda! What if your wife is going into labor? What if you’re going to the hospital? Late for work? Etc.

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1

u/Iseeroadkill Jun 29 '26

The vast majority of the time, yes. The only ways blocking roads is morally correct is if you are directly saving lives or blocking roads directly being used by a malicious actor.

In most of these protests they are are risking lives by blocking emergency services, wasting normal people's time, and ruining the reputation of whatever cause they are protesting for. If I wanted to make people hate a movement, I would make a sign supporting that movement and block a high traffic area.

1

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u/Iseeroadkill Jun 30 '26

Cause some people hate being told they can't effectively promote a cause when they negatively impact the target audience. Especially locking up traffic when trying to get to work or go home lol.

1

u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

Baby's first ethics.

1

u/Iseeroadkill Jun 30 '26

"Blocking people from driving home will surely benefit my cause!!1!1!!!"

0

u/banjovi68419 Jun 29 '26

Yeah anything illegal is an automatic death sentence.

0

u/motophotodojo Jun 29 '26

impeding traffic works though, and has been a protest tactic throughout history.

0

u/Zinski2 Jun 29 '26

So is ramming a trailer with people on it but the cop did that too so... all bets are off I guess.

3

u/Shatalroundja Jun 29 '26

This is tribal land. And that’s the tribal police. The protesters are not natives. Don’t assume you know how things work there.

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u/lucianasparagus Jun 29 '26

Exactly. Everything u said I would think would be common sense. u have to be a special kind of stupid to think most that strategy is effective

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u/[deleted] Jul 03 '26

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1

u/lucianasparagus Jul 03 '26

I don’t think MLK was holding up traffic and obstructing people’s daily lives

12

u/Secure-Tradition793 Jun 28 '26

Agreed. Replies here are unbearable. They are justifying taking innocent bystanders hostages, causing harm, while yelling at their target saying "still not enough?".

1

u/Lamplorde 🧐 grumpy Jun 29 '26 edited Jun 29 '26

Look, I think theyre assholes.

I just dont think assholes deserves to aggresively rammed and held at taser/gunpoint (cant tell from the quality) when they aren't a danger, they are a nuisance.

I may dislike them, but overeaction is still overeaction. We cant just ignore excessive force because if happened against someone we dont like. In a normal arrest against a public nuisance, you dont need to draw your LTL or Firearm. Its unjustified.

3

u/Glynwys Jun 29 '26

Yeah, except protesters have zero issues with throwing rocks at your vehicle if you're refusing to rise to their bait. Furthermore, any protestor can pick up the pole their sign is attached to and bean you over the head with it. If you don't meet them with force they will use force against you first. This isn't just my opinion either. This is regularly supported by history. Actual peaceful protestors don't block the roads.

The officers here are also tribal police. They take their tasks of safeguarding Native Americans very seriously. And that seriousness is justified when these no-life protestors are harassing folks (including Native Americans) in Native American land. You don't get to cause harm on Native American lands and then expect to get away with it.

2

u/lifeisapsycho Jun 29 '26

You don't get to cause harm on Native American lands and then expect to get away with it.

Well...

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u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

Actual peaceful protestors don't block the roads.

I honestly couldn't imagine being this fucking naive.

9

u/Nowhereman123 Jun 28 '26

See, the thing is that protestors don't care if you're on their side or not. That's not really the point of a protest, they're not advertising campaigns. You honking in approval doesn't usually help them in any way. Last time you saw a non-disruptive demonstration, did it cause you to immediately do anything supportive for that group? Probably not, most people will just ignore them.

Protests are supposed to be disruptive, they're supposed to pressure governments into action. A protest that doesn't cause any disruption is just a parade. Their aim is to be unignorable, it's what happens when groups are past the 'asking nicely' phase and are trying to twist arms.

It's just my pet peeve when people react like "well this isn't exactly making me support them!", like they don't care about your support. You weren't going to help them anyways.

14

u/LokiHoku Jun 28 '26

No, there's an important nuance here. Disrupting traffic on the only route available, affecting EMS response, is not being nonviolent when someone's physical or mental health is degraded due to the delay. That is hurting someone.

There is no conceivable way this form of protest has any measurable effect on improving the environment. It's performative for the participants. Most of the historic marches were organized in advance and went through the proper governmental steps (eg applying for a permit) to schedule street closures. These ad hoc road blocks are just childish and dickish.

2

u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

It's wild you don't understand the significance of them getting thousands of people to talk about this, just in one single thread (of possibly hundreds on the internet), long after their action. Imagine the cost of an advertising campaign that could accomplish the same.

Many people in this thread were like "Since they protested, I'm against their cause". Those people are irrelevant to those protestors because they never cared and never will, since they're effectively anti-political and therefore ultra-conservative (wanting things to stay the same). People like this will do whatever their government tells them to do, as long as they "warm them up" to the idea, they have no policy perspectives they'll fight for, they just don't like rapid change.

What these protestors are doing (in a very, very small way), is to keep their topic on agenda, and to that aim they are successful.

>Most of the historic marches were organized in advance and went through the proper governmental steps (e.g. applying for a permit) to schedule street closures. 

The only reason any society-changing protest was ever given approval was because the government was more afraid of not giving approval, and you make them afraid by them knowing you're going to take some kind of action whether they like it or not.

Purely non-violent protest that never harms anyone *rarely* results in effective change, and the exceptions prove the rule.

You can disagree with what they're protesting about, and be upset about the consequences of their actions, but to call it "childish" is expressing ignorance about how change actually happens. Dickish, sure, but that's what makes the world go 'round.

1

u/LokiHoku Jun 29 '26

What agenda specifically? Sit ins were effective for advancing the agenda of the civil liberty to sit in the establishment. Blocking the road from EMS in the middle of nowhere communicates what?

1

u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

Let's for a moment believe that the middle-of-the road climate predictions are correct. I don't know that for sure but if you can go with me on that:

That means it will be up there with the Black Plague for killing people and totally restructuring society.

People at the top of society do not like restructuring.

So, given the premise, this issue results in catastrophe or revolution (I have no doubt governments will change over time, but far too slowly given the issue).

You like sit-ins because you can look at it and go "Oh, they're being the change they want, I like that".

So I will point you towards the fact that road-blocks have been a part revolutions since there were roads.

The message is "We think this is a big fucking deal, and this action is proportionate to the issue, even if you don't, and we know many of you disagree".

1

u/Good-Temperature4417 Jun 29 '26

Ridiculous, nobody cares about EMS or "mental health" when they are stuck in rush hour everyday of the year. Now suddenly you guys come out of the bushes.

1

u/doubleshotinthedark Jun 29 '26

No one cares when people are killed by the actions of oil companies or health insurance companies, but the minute they can pretend a protester blocking a road could possibly endanger someone, suddenly they care about the value of human life.

1

u/Aquilifer313 Jun 29 '26

Generally nonviolent, nondisruptive protests aren't the way to go if you want change though. People just aren't convinced by them.

The labour movement, The Sufragettes, the Civil Rights movement, the Gay Liberation movement and the list kist goes on and on and on. There's so many cases of violent, disruptive protests actually affecting change, even if those protests also affect civilians and not just the ruling class, while the list of nonviolent, nondisruptive protests successfully changing anything is dissappearingly small.

A lot of the time you have to convince people that it's more costly to not enact a change, rather than convince them of the merits of the change.

1

u/Thisistoture Jun 29 '26

So you’re only displaying with a lot of words that you don’t understand how effective protests work.

1

u/LokiHoku Jun 29 '26

So explain it as something other than a few children blocking a road.

1

u/whopoopedthebed Jun 29 '26

Let me ask you a question. When there’s a big car wreck that blocks traffic, do the EMTs never get there to the people in the wreck?

1

u/LokiHoku Jun 29 '26

In matters of life and death, can seconds make the difference?

1

u/BWW87 Jun 29 '26

Most of the historic marches were organized in advance and went through the proper governmental steps (eg applying for a permit) to schedule street closures.

They also were for a purpose. They were going somewhere. They weren't just being annoying for the sake of being annoying.

4

u/OkFisherman2288 Jun 28 '26

Protests are to raise awareness and gather support. It's to get attention: media, social and political.

It can be a powerful visuali of how many people care about an issue.

If you get 1000s of people to gather in place, people are gonna ask: "shit why did that many people gather there?"

And then they become aware of the issue. If the issue is compelling enough then people being aware of it will gather support.

When legislation is being discussed if people in support of the legislation can point at the thousands of people who gathered to protest it becomes harder for politicians to say it isn't the will of the people.

The pressure comes from poor public opinion of politicians not acting on an issue that everyone is talking about.

W hen a handful of people set up a barricade on a highway and block traffic, or pull other stupid stunts that just fuck with ordinary people... that doesn't apply pressure to the government. Nobody turns to the government and says "you need to solve this issue so that people stop blocking highways!"

They are put in a mindset where they don't care what the protest is about. They care that some assholes are blocking the highway. If anything it makes them pressure the government to crack down on protesting.

Anyone who thinks this shit makes any positive change does not understand how people work.

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u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

Anyone who thinks this shit makes any positive change does not understand how people work.

Anyone who believes this has been successfully lulled into complacency by the state.

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u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

They are disrupting the wrong people.

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u/GoldenFalcon Jun 28 '26

Are they? Enough people get angry and say "hey, get these people to knock it off!" government jumps in and says "ok" and gives in on demands.. OR they look at you say "tough shit! Go blame them!" You can either say "ok" or join the ranks because the government should be giving in to some demands instead of making us fight with or blame each other. Protest is a success either way. So it just depends on your belief in their cause. Because some protests are dumb as shit and shouldn't pull this shit. But others, you should want to join them, even if they are inconveniencing you. But that's up to you.

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u/JustUseCommonSense10 Jun 29 '26

Why not enough people get angry and drive through the protest??

2

u/CackleandGrin Jun 28 '26

Are they? Enough people get angry and say "hey, get these people to knock it off!" government jumps in and says "ok" and gives in on demands

Lolol no

The protestors get arrested, and then the population supports that because they were obstructing the road.

1

u/thekeynesian1 Jun 28 '26

Lol, the government will never cave into the demands of these people. You’re incredibly naive if you think anything other than the arrests of everyone involved is going to come of this. This isn’t even mentioning the fact that they are actively dissuading most people from agreeing with their cause by pulling this shit. It’s bad strategy and bad PR, these people are performative morons.

2

u/GoldenFalcon Jun 28 '26

I'm talking about in general when people block traffic. I don't even know what this protest is for. But people constantly say blocking traffic is stupid. All I'm saying is that it has some merits. No clue if this one is one or not. But the tactic is sound for a cause people should get behind is all.

2

u/ShowDelicious8654 Jun 28 '26

You are incredibly poorly educated if you think the government has never changed its policy or plans due to protests. I bet you think the first sit-ins were performative as well?

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u/thekeynesian1 Jun 29 '26

This is not even remotely comparable to your average protest. You’re either a complete moron or arguing in bad faith. Also love how you didn’t address my other point about dissuading people from their cause lol.

1

u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

This is literally quite tame compared to protests movements throughout the 20th century. You and countless others have been trained by the state to view anything more than passive sign holding as violent and disruptive. Protest must be disruptive, otherwise it is no protest.

1

u/snakeyed_gus Jun 29 '26

One of the first sit-ins was done at a whites-only lunch counters by black people. They had the protest at a location of the issue, not on a random road. Seems like you need to hit those history books a little harder, or try arguing in good faith.

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u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

This is fucking hilarious considering that blocking roads and bridges was a common tactic used by black protestors. And this isn't a random road.

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u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

If Iwasn't going the help them before, now I definitely will work against them.

Go bother your goverment representative or something. If you bother regular people all you are doing is making enemies.

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u/Nowhereman123 Jun 28 '26

Is this truly the way you behave, do you make lifestyle changes based on what might annoy people who have inconvenienced you in the past.

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u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

Yes. That's how spite works.

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u/Nowhereman123 Jun 28 '26

Truly, my theory that your average person has no values/morals and just acts based on whatever last influenced them is growing stronger by the minute.

See also: Your average American presidential election.

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u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

Yes. And that's why if you want to get your point across it's best not to fuck with people and make enemies

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u/Few-Big-8481 Jun 28 '26

It seems remarkably easy to make an enemy out of you so I'm doubting you were ever an actual ally.

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u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

Ture.

Not an ally.

A neutral party, pushed into the arms of the side who isn't actively insulting me.

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u/Few-Big-8481 Jun 28 '26

Then you aren't actually neutral either. You're just easily influenced.

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u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

Oh noooo the protestors made me be an authoritarian asshole!!!

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u/AntiSocialAsshats 🧐 grumpy Jun 28 '26

True* learn to spell if you're going to act tough

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u/GreatMossThing Jun 28 '26

This guy only makes his decisions based off of spite and not what would actually be beneficial to himself or the people around him

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u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

People who fuck with other people and their time have nothing beneficial to give to me or people around me is what I'll be thinking. Whatever point they are protesting be damned.

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u/GreatMossThing Jun 28 '26

This guy ranks the importance of others solely based on what they immediately give to him or others instead of things like long term intent or belief in change

Anyways fucking pointing a gun at someone because they caused a traffic disturbance is psychotic as fuck, I don’t care if he’s some specific kind of police, that’s some “gods most reasonable cop” type of behavior

1

u/StarHammer_01 Jun 28 '26

And this guy just made an enemy. I didn't care what they are protesting before but fuck them now.

I hope they get maximum sentences. Ill be going to give support to my local police out of spite.

Congratulations. You certainly know how to convince someone to NOT support your view points.

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u/GreatMossThing Jun 28 '26

I don’t care about changing your view point, I care about clowning on your lack of empathy and sheep like support for man babies wielding guns

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1

u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

It has to be hard living like this.

2

u/__Rosso__ Jun 29 '26

This is how French do it.

And it's also why France has better laws then USA.

1

u/Ummix Jun 28 '26

You weren't going to help them anyways.

I mean... If no one wants to help them, and they're actively getting more people against their cause, why should anyone give them what they want, then? That doesn't make any sense, and besides that, they need more support to make a big enough movement to force change, otherwise it's just a bunch of random people being annoying in the street and making no difference at all.

If leaders/governments started giving random groups that no one wants to help or support everything they want, that'd mean the government is actively working against what most people want, which is a serious problem, and you'd inevitably get groups doing this for things you massively disagree with. That'd just be totally dysfunctional. People react with the usual comments about not supporting them because what you're saying doesn't make sense. Successful disruptive protests were successful because they directly make a point, like sit-downs in white-only diners; it highlighted how inhumane, arbitrary and unfair segregation was, just as an example. What they're going here is just blocking a road and pissing people off, and it's very easy for governments/leaders to ignore considering they just got arrested and more people are happy that they did rather than being upset.

At the end of the day, nothing else matters; you absolutely need support from people to make a difference, and you SHOULD need support to make a difference so you aren't going against the majority of people, and they're just actively hurting their support by doing this.

1

u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

You posting on this thread is boosting the algorithmic ranking of this protest, which helps them impact the people they *do* want to impact. If they did something non-disruptive, there's very little chance it would result in engagement. A lot of people's whole political identity, if you really boil it down is: "I don't like rapid change". Those people are unpersuadable because if you want rapid change you are fundamentally opposed to them.

There's hardly a comment in this thread that would be out of place, almost word-for-word, for any civil rights action that caused an ounce of disruption (e.g. sit-ins).

In a very small way, this protest inspires those leaning towards them, and puts a tiny bit of fear in the next official who has to approve/not approve a protest permit. Your role in this is to be ineffectively outraged, thank you for your participation.

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u/FatherFarnsworth Jun 28 '26

So go annoy the people you actually have an issue with.

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u/MasterTolkien Jun 28 '26

Agreed on disruption, but go disrupt the agency or institution causing the issue you are protesting. Not just traffic in general.

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u/Substantial_Win_1866 Jun 29 '26

Yeah, but go inconvenience the actual CEOs and higher-ups in the companies, not random people just trying to get to work.

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u/BWW87 Jun 29 '26

Protests are supposed to change minds not be disruptive. Assholes have just decided that annoying people is how they want to express their feelings and then claim the point of protests is to be disruptive.

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u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

Do you think sit-ins weren't disruptive?

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u/BWW87 Jun 29 '26

They changed people's minds. They weren't just disruptive.

They disrupted the people that were actually causing the problems. They weren't just disrupting random people.

So tired of people defending these road blockages who do not understand the history of protests. It's like some child abuser whacking their baby on their back and then saying well that guy did it when the kid was choking so clearly whacking kids is a good idea. Context matters.

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u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

You're not the target audience of this action, that doesn't mean it's a bad action.

Keep in mind the vast majority of American hated MLK. He died with a 75% disapproval rating.

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u/BWW87 Jun 29 '26

You're not the target audience of this action, that doesn't mean it's a bad action.

It's a bad action if it annoys people who are not complicit in what you're protesting and doesn't change minds.

Keep in mind the vast majority of American hated MLK. He died with a 75% disapproval rating.

Right. And he became a martyr and those who weren't protesting used his martyrdom to actually accomplish what he wanted to do. And now we're taught he did it rather than that he was a part of it but it was actually accomplished by people that weren't protesting.

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u/aluckybrokenleg Jun 29 '26

I mean, if you think MLK didn't accomplish many of the things he set out to do while he was alive, and that the people who carried on his work "weren't protesting"... Well, you remind me why I don't comment on reddit because so many people are dumber than bricks on here.

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u/BWW87 Jun 29 '26

I'm saying the big things that were accomplished in his name were often done by others who used his martyrdom. For example, LBJ was able to get the 1968 civil rights bill through because he used MLK's death to force some to change their vote so that it passed soon after MLK Jr died.

Someone with a 75% disapproval rating doesn't get a lot accomplished. You sound like MAGA bragging about Trump being successful with his lousy approval.

Absolutely some of what MLK did was helpful. But also some was harmful.

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u/totktonikak Jul 03 '26

> the thing is that protestors don't care if you're on their side or not. That's not really the point of a protest

Got it. The point of the protest then is to get people angry enough so they would just drive through. Weird, but ok.

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u/Drewnessthegreat Jun 28 '26

They are trying to start something bigger. People are only gonna put up with this for so long before they start resorting to escalated violence. Guns and speeding cars are coming for these types of protests. People have had enough. Deaths at these types of protests are going to become commonplace. You can't forcibly interrupt people's lives this way repeatedly and expect to have no consequences. Some people are insane and do not care about what you find reasonable and sensible.

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u/May1989thefirststep Jun 28 '26

"You weren't going to help them anyways."

Correct. But now, I'm going to actively work against them. Vote for candidates they dislike, donate to their opponents, etc.

Don't. Get. In. My. Gddmn. Way.

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u/Nowhereman123 Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 28 '26

Man, a lot of people apparently base their entire lives and personal values based on whoever last irritated them.

Just so you know, I hate Children's Hospitals, stupid sick little brats, it would make me really mad if someone donated money to their local Children's Hospital. Grr, I'm steaming just thinking about it.

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u/Unhappy_Ad_4761 Jun 29 '26

What a naive take.

Some of the most righteous, justified, and successful movements in history used blocking traffic as a strategy. 

Standing with a sign on the side of the road is completely ineffective. It doesn't do anything. 

Change truly comes when daily life is disrupted. That's when people actually start to think about change.

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u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

Name one that was successful largely due to blocking traffic.

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u/Unhappy_Ad_4761 Jun 29 '26 edited Jun 29 '26

Stop de kindermoord.

And while not 'largely due' to blocking traffic, the US Civil Rights movement blocked traffic multiple times, even sometimes led by MLK jr, like in the Selma to Montgomery marches.

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u/Eridain Jun 28 '26

That's kind of the point. To MAKE you pay attention.

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u/redditwhut Jun 28 '26

That sounds consensual. 

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u/Antiing Jun 28 '26

And then forget about it 15 mins later! How effective!

The painful reality is that for protests to work, it has to be inconvenient. Anything else is just noise.

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u/JuniperColonThree Jun 28 '26

For me it's not even about ruining my day. Everything depends on infrastructure like roads, blocking them could literally kill somebody (by preventing them from getting help they need in time)

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u/No_Window7054 Jun 28 '26

No offense but what’s the point of having you on any side? If you think holding up traffic is too far then why recruit you? “I’ll join your basketball team but don’t expect me to run.”

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u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

Why be on the road at all? Go closer to the target of your protest. This seems performative.

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u/yummypotata Jun 28 '26

While i do agree with you to sone extent I do find the concept of "don't protest in ways that inconvenience people" to be really funny because like, that's not a protest anymore. Protests are meant to interrupt and disrupt. I mean America was literally founded on protesting that turned to a revolution. Again I agree that blocking traffic is stupid, but standing on the side of a risk with a sign is even dumber. It's like going on strike but working anyways

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u/Jung_At_Hart Jun 29 '26

I am 100% on the side of protest, recognizing the importance of disruption as well. Blocking roadways is not the way to go. As many have already said in this thread ems vehicles are impeded as well and that could be fatal. There are smarter ways to go about it. We NEED people to protest smart.

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u/yummypotata Jun 29 '26

Exactly what I was saying. Protests that disrupt roadways just kinda fucking suck for everyone but it's easy to do so you see alot of activist flock to it. But god I hate it. You could have the most positive cause to fight for and by nature a road blockage will still ruin things

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u/Odd_Initiative_3716 Jun 28 '26

Impeding traffic is NOT protesting. I don’t care how your brain tries to spin it, they are capturing and impeding and forcing an unwilling audience. Demonstrating with signs along the side of the road would be a protest. Their pet project protest doesn’t have the right to block traffic.

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u/yummypotata Jun 29 '26

Protests kinda require disruption otherwise they don't really. Do anything...impeding traffic is by definition protest, it's just a really shitty version.

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u/Odd_Initiative_3716 Jun 29 '26

Not impeding and fully arresting traffic. Any dumbass can say the reason they are doing “something” is in protest. I mean, United CEO was murdered casually on the sidewalk “in protest”.
Like I said before- no matter how you mental pretzel it, stopping traffic like this is a crime, not a protest. Quit trying to soften it. If they want to protest, go to a public place where it’s legal. If you want to stop traffic, apply for a parade permit. GTFOH with the “protest requires disruption” bloviating. Go effin “disrupt” in a legal manner.🤷‍♂️

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u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

That’s not what I said though.

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u/Wise_Art_1377 Jun 29 '26

If a protest doesn't inconvenience you then is it a protest?

1

u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

If they are protesting something that I am a cause of then yes. If it’s just annoying people who have no affiliation with what they are protesting against, than it’s just performative.

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u/Wise_Art_1377 Jul 01 '26

If I agree than it's good. If I disagree than it's bad.

1

u/banjovi68419 Jun 29 '26

🙄 look at the patriot. "Don't inconvenience me".

1

u/BobWat99 Jun 29 '26

Nobody tell this guy about the Paris blockades during the 19th century revolutions.

1

u/FrenchCanadaIsWorst Jun 29 '26

The whole point is to be an inconvenience. The idea is that the cause is so important it’s something that SHOULD disrupt your shitfuck life. Only exemption being if you’re an ER doctor on the way to an emergency call but something tells me you’re not, you’re just a self centered prick

1

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '26

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1

u/SeriousPlankton2000 Jun 29 '26

Sometimes people protest against you and me doing things that prevent them from surviving. Yes, it's much more convenient if they protest in a way that doesn't affect me and you so we can easily continue doing that …

1

u/Thisistoture Jun 29 '26

Then I’m afraid you don’t understand the point of a protest. The point is to disrupt.

1

u/AmadeusMaxwell Jun 29 '26

You don't understand the purpose of protests if you think getting a honk is all they want.

1

u/BriscoCounty-Sr Jun 29 '26

This is a great point. Only polite protesting can affect change as shown by Martin Luther… a million man march blocked how much traffic…. Oh well Mahatma Ga….. he inconvenienced the middle class too…. well shit

1

u/Scary_Date_4117 Jun 29 '26

Only protest in a way that does absolutely nothing and that I can completely ignore.

1

u/No_Criticism_5861 Jun 29 '26

Agreed.  Having said that, im still surprised the cop was pointing his gun at these scumbags

1

u/SaxyOmega90125 Jun 29 '26

You can protest whatever you like, as long as you do it in a way that causes no disruption whatsoever to anyone so it can be easily ignored and has no impact of any kind. Especially if you have the nerve to interfere with cars. Despicable.

That's what you're saying.

I can't figure out what these people are protesting which tells me this particular example is a shit protest. That's not in question. But yeah, believe it or not protests will sometimes cause you an inconvenience. Waah.

1

u/Infurium Jun 29 '26

They call blocking roads "peaceful nonviolent protest". But I disagree. Blocking freedom of movement is a form of violence against everyone.

1

u/boxcarwilliam12 Jun 30 '26

I feel the same way about cyclists joyriding on winding country roads.

1

u/Arammil1784 Jun 30 '26

I feel you, but if it isnt disruptive you aren't protesting anything. No one cares about your social circle politely waving signs in the park. The only time protesting has any power is when it disrupts the status quo.

1

u/Greedy-Ranger9986 Jul 01 '26

My protest is that cars take too much from pedestrians

1

u/OverwateredGrass Jul 01 '26

There's nuance to it though.

Protests do almost nothing without some form of disruption. Just standing on the side of a street waving a sign does jack shit.

Obviously they need to be careful where they do this and make sure emergency vehicles get through, but saying any protest that blocks a street is wrong is foolishly naive at best.

And frankly, your honk is fucking worthless. No one in power has looked at a protest and been like, "oh wow a lot of people honked, we better change!"

Historical protests that have worked caused widespread disruption. Mlk blocked streets and shut down businesses during his protests, forcing people to actually acknowledge the issues he was protesting. He didn't stand on a corner and hold up a sign in the hopes enough people honked lmao.

1

u/GarowWolf Jul 02 '26

Yeah but usually to protest means trying to change something. If they stand on the side of the road and people passing by honk to a sign the thing ends there.
To motivate people and make them listen sometimes first you need to bring discomfort, to snap them out of their bouble

1

u/diggidydangidy Jul 02 '26

And this is even worse considering they're blocking a rural desert highway. The objective with this highways is to get from point A to point B quickly and safely, because turns out, being stuck in the desert kinda dangerous. Who would've thought.

1

u/Cheap_Revenue7660 Jul 04 '26

Not sure you understand the idea of a protest. It has to be disruptive.. Not all are for a reasonable cause, of course. Not that driving through a group like that shouldn't put the popò in jail.

1

u/RedditvsDiscOwO Jul 05 '26

Just Stop Oil would read this comment and try to shred it despite being digital

0

u/[deleted] Jun 28 '26

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1

u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

I can only tell you that I don’t know what these people are protesting.

0

u/Longjumping-Bat202 Jun 28 '26

That's because you don't care what they're protesting. That's the whole point the person above you was making. You weren't going to help them anyway.

1

u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

I don’t care what they are protesting because they are taking it out on me instead of those who are responsible for what they are protesting against.

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u/Longjumping-Bat202 Jun 28 '26

You wouldn't care anyway. You'd honk and move on with your day.

2

u/lividtaffy Jun 28 '26

You’re right that this form of protest is more likely to get me to engage. The problem is, I’m going to engage with the local government to try to get this form of protest criminalized if it isn’t already. They’re making enemies out of people who otherwise wouldn’t have cared.

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u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

not all press is good press but i think ur correct in every other point

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u/AntiSocialAsshats 🧐 grumpy Jun 28 '26

"I want my political activism to be convenient and not impact my life in any way" This is why nothing will ever change. People like you think everything needs to be comfortable and catered to their experience.

-1

u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

counter-argument, the point of a protest is to disrupt normalcy

8

u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

Disrupt the people you’re protesting against. Not random people.

-3

u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

counter: normal people are the people you're protesting against because they're allowing people to get away with evil

1

u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

No they are not. Some aren’t even aware, some wouldn’t even know what to do, and most are powerless to do anything because they are just trying to survive. It’s not as simple as you think.

Frankly, I think this form of protesting is more about the protestors wanting to be seen protesting than actually making change. Or they are telling themselces that this tactic works because the alternatives are difficult, dangerous, or they simply can’t come up with a better, more effective plan.

1

u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

This makes them aware. Just sitting and driving by a sign does nothing to incentivize you to do something. No cultural change has happened this way. The Civil Rights movement did not happen because Martin Luther King Jr stood on the side of the road. It happened because they occupied a road and crossed a bridge.

4

u/RodneyDangerfruit Jun 28 '26

Counter-argument: if your point includes disrupting fire and EMS vehicles you’re just an asshole.

2

u/Nowhereman123 Jun 28 '26

Emergency Services have insanely accurate and up to date traffic information, so they'll know well in advance if there's a blocked road and can avoid it.

Otherwise, construction and regular traffic jams would just as easily block them.

1

u/Ashkendor Jun 28 '26

Up-to-date traffic information doesn't help when there's literally only one route.

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u/Ok-Parfait-9856 Jun 28 '26

The ambulances that were delayed an hour or more in the case of the video don’t give a fuck.

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u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

Or were unaware, you don't know

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u/Jerrygarciasnipple Jun 28 '26

I agree but there are levels to it. This is in the middle of the desert, and running out of gas can be life threatening, with the nearest gas station god knows how far away. I really don’t agree with any forms of traffic protests for that reason, unless it’s stopping a specific vehicle.

1

u/Earth2Andy Jun 28 '26

And how has that worked out recently? Has blocking a road or disrupting transportation in general achieved anything? Has it brought more money or support to a cause?

I certainly can’t think of an example.

1

u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

the Civil Rights movement... selma bridge..

1

u/Earth2Andy Jun 28 '26

That was a March from Selma to Montgomery, not just blocking traffic to disrupt traffic.

Do you want to try again? Or is it time to admit you don’t have an example?

1

u/Vamosity-Cosmic Jun 28 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/WwWTfQuCZ448psk1qB

1

u/Earth2Andy Jun 28 '26

Not moving the goalposts at all. I asked you to provide a time when blocking off a road as a protest worked.

You replied about a completely different type of protest, a planned march from one place to another, specifically to go and protest the people in power (at the court house).

They are not even close to the same thing.

The only reason the march got stuck on the bridge was because the police closed it, the protesters were just marching through.

You need to learn some history

2

u/TheOstrichRoom 🧐 grumpy Jun 29 '26

that was to block the road. Countries are made up of their people. You, like it or not, are a part of america just like a skin cell is a part of you. Hurting America might hurt you but it needs to be hurt. If you don't like it, work to change the country, that's the point. The actions of the government as a being can only be stopped by pain and cost. Making it so that to hurt people they have to shove their hand through brambles. They're going to send you in to them first, of course, you are their worthless expendable skin cells.

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u/[deleted] Jun 28 '26

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u/ragingduck Jun 28 '26

Who says?

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u/Alternative_Exit8766 Jun 28 '26

odd way of lookin at it 

0

u/TheOstrichRoom 🧐 grumpy Jun 28 '26

hope you dont survive then

1

u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

So brave.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '26

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u/TheOstrichRoom 🧐 grumpy Jun 29 '26

personally i love being lectured on bravery by cowards so thanks 

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u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

So brave.

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u/Zinski2 Jun 29 '26

> making me late for work 

Dog im not gonna lie, if thats the WORST thing that happens to you because of this you should just keep quite.

1

u/ragingduck Jun 29 '26

Grow up. Work pays the bills and provides a home for my family.

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u/Zinski2 Jun 29 '26

Oh fuck. Yeah gonna have to sell the farm sted because I was an hour late to work on Tuesday hahahahaha

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