Death only matters if it's unexpected and why that's a problem.

Inequality goes beyond the grave.

The world is filled with daily tragedies and horrors that are somehow both indescribable, but entirely predictable. We confront the demise of others while happily ignoring the inevitability of our own. We rationalize every death with data, unless the death is one we couldn’t predict. 

Not to paraphrase the Joker, but if I were to tell you a gangster was going to be killed in East Oakland, would you even care a little? Probably not. Because you have replaced his or her humanity with a label - allowing you to rationalize their death. However, when Bob Lee, a tech executive behind CashApp, was stabbed to death in San Francisco, the city stood still. 

Why? Because his death didn’t fit into our plans. If the same type of murder would have occurred in Hunter’s Point or Visitacion Valley, and the victim was someone we placed the burden of acceptably murderable upon, it is not only possible, but entirely likely that no one would have said anything about it other than the initial news report announcing a nameless homicide victim in a part of the city that society accepts murders to occur in. 

It’s not only unfair, but it’s the core of what is wrong with us as a species. The invulnerable, or more accurately - the significantly less vulnerable, don’t seem to think there is anything wrong with the death of millions, as long as they’re not inconvenienced. I used to think money was the root of all evil, but that’s not true. Money, and the security it provides, is the root of all indifference which allows evil to resume unchecked. 

Growing up in the Bay Area has taught me this lesson numerous times. Even today, I saw a post on X that highlighted the tone deaf indifference that has come to define the invulnerable. 

https://twitter.com/jeremybernier/status/1782272865569771924

Since October 7th, Gaza has endured what the UN has described as a “plausible genocide.” This plausible genocide is being funded by the United States. Our tax dollars that aren’t used on us, are being used to murder children against our will. As a result of this, people have organized and begun disrupting in a multitude of ways. 

Most recently, Pro-Palestinian protesters showed up at the Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco’s Japantown. Which is what Jeremy Bernier was complaining about in his tweet. Jeremy didn’t want to be inconvenienced by the public’s reaction to a genocide funded against their own will with our tax money. Jeremy is a software engineer and a relatively successful entrepreneur. Which is fine, I’m honestly not mad at him for doing well. I’m mad that his money has turned him into a whiny bitch. 

The citizens of the United States are essentially powerless and unheard when it comes to America’s foreign policy decisions. The only options left are disruption. If it was your family, how would you feel? If this system hasn’t allowed you to thrive, and you saw yourself as expendable the way the world sees Palestinians, the last thing you’d be complaining about is the fucking Cherry Blossom Festival. 

To all the rich people, please stop weaponizing politeness. You don’t have to participate, but at the very least you can stop complaining and get the fuck out of the way. You're not the one indifference allows to die. Be thankful for that.