Flash mobs don’t hit the news as often as mass shootings. The flash mobs that do get reported speak of thousands of dollars worth of stolen property and/or vandalism.
Mass shootings have hit a new high water mark of 251 incidents in 216 days.
Wiretaps have to be signed by a judge to perform. Police cannot set up a wire tap, then go to the judge and ask for permission to do so. Even if they did, recording prior to the signed writ is inadmissible. When it comes to online surveillance, the argument against using the acquired information is that it often precedes the writ’s time of execution, thus it is akin to listening to a wiretap prior to its authorization.
Flash mobs typically have used web-sites, social media, “viral” e-mails, etc to coordinate/execute a planned event.
Combining flash mobs with mass shootings, as of this writing, is a what-if scenario. Whether performed at a single large event, such as an outdoor concert, or synchronized to take place at high noon, the data generated, unless anticipated in advance, currently has legal barriers to accessing, unless performed such that it is a publicly open record.
Individual rights are not identified during moments of crisis, but during moments of crisis, the strength of a free society is determined by the rigor and discipline needed to uphold them. If a culture reaches a point where abulia is the vanguard protecting those individual rights, sea-changes in legal precedence become cultural division issues, such a Roe v. Wade.
Yesterday, the software to which numerous quotes have been added to pick one by algorithm, presented the following from The Objectivist — June 1970 / The New Left: The Chickens’ Homecoming:
Quote
The task of philosophy requires the total best of a mind’s capacity; the responsibility is commensurate. Most men are unable to form a comprehensive view of life: some, because their ability is devoted to other professions; a great many, because they lack the ability. But all need that view and, consciously or subconsciously, directly or indirectly, they accept what philosophy offers them.
It is philosophy which provides the foundation for the vanguard. A forum, such as this, is riddled with individuals that have varying levels of interest, but likely their abilities are also devoted to other professions. Valuable insights provided allow greater insight. On the flip side of that coin are obfuscations that cast shadows rather than illumination.
Thomas Edison discovered a way to reorient the shadows based on where he wanted to place the illumination. For philosophy to be the light of the world, it needs to be plugged into the generators of reason. Until the secret of converting static energy into kinetic power is actualized, the fuel and fuel levels need to be checked periodically.