Post Class

We talked in Class Today about the negatives behind the idea of being in a place where we can't think for ourselves. You had talked about how that could be a negative thing, as people around us can skew the ways that we think. I think that there are two parts to the story. There is definitely a negative aspect to that. We can see that in riots and mobs, as they say that the people feed off the energy of the others. I can relate to this when the Phillies won the world series, the town of Philadelphia got so out of control. People were throwing bottles, looting, and the mob mentality was getting out of hand. A combination of Alcohol and Rioting led to out of control behavior. They were doing things such as flipping police cars on the streets, fires burning everywhere, aggressive fans got into fightings with innocent bystanders. Riot control with the Philadelphia Police went into action where it began as a joyous occasion for the win of the Phillies in 28 years, to a out of control riot where police were getting attacked, tear gas was used, and the city got out of control.

There is also another side to this theory. There is the part that mobs and being in a social setting with those around you with the same interest, led to a great amount of communication and civility. For example, when people gather around a Concert, they all can relate on that similar idea of the music. When i saw the Dead in 2009 at the Spectrum in Philly, i tailgated and it was great that there was a instant communication or a "bridge" that we could all relate on. I had nothing in common with most of the people there, except for a passion for the dead. I think that the mob mentality when i was at the concert made it more enjoyable. I felt like me a 20,000 others could all be happy, and talk about something that we loved.