If the city announced an new law that barred unaccompanied adult males from public parks I can see myself getting a tad riled up. The unfairness might even drive me to attend a protest at a nearby park, where I could air my grievance around like minded citizens. But once I arrived, were I to notice that the parking lot contained an unusual amount of sleeper vans with the window blacked out, and several greasy creeps were unfurling a king sized NAMBLA banner, I would quickly realize things had gone terribly wrong…and by the time the “The slides are made for ookie hugs, let us fuck your children” chants began, I would be ten blocks away and fully aware that I had momentarily been on the wrong side of history.

Now let’s suppose that my initial issue with an overstepping public ordinance is so important that I decide to overlook the unsavory nature of the mob around me, and continue marching : eventually there will be parents. And they will be angry. Because we want to fuck their kids. Not me, but some of us. A few of these parents, despite our lawfully obtained permits, may say  unkind things or spit a little, maybe throw a few punches. The parents might even direct abuse at me, a non child-molester, just because I happened to link arms a with weird uncle and over friendly softball coach, while they chanted catchy slogans. And I would deserve every bit of that parental scorn, as I am doing an insane, ugly, infuriating thing that any decent human being would be triggered by. I have completely surrendered the benefit of the doubt to my character or motivation.

And should one of the molesters, enraged at societies systemic encroachment of his right to spit game at toddlers, climb into his snatch van and plow into the crowd, I would hope that the post-mortem breakdown of culpability would be quick and devoid of nuance. I cannot imagine the broad stupidity and moral incompetence it would take to see it otherwise.

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Daily prompt: Grainy