Don’t (Poli)Tick Her Off

(We’re studying social psychology and the internet, and how events can be organized through the internet. We’re role-playing a rebellion to overthrow a corrupt dictator, and how we would organize our plan to bring a democracy to the country. I’m in the final group. The first and second groups decide to use peaceful protests in an attempt to convince the government to change.)

Tutor: “Group three, you’re up.”

Group Three Speaker: “We would stage a hunger strike.”

(There is a considering silence, until I interrupt.)

Me: “I’m thinking an evil dictator who’s already letting his people stay poor, wouldn’t be too affected by his people dying from starvation.”

Tutor: “Okay then, what’s your idea?”

Me: “We’re going to rally and underground rebellion with support coming in from all of the oppressed through the country. In the dead of night we’re going to storm his compound, break in and cut off his head before ejecting the rest of his government and replacing it with a democratic and fair system, or as fair as democracy can be in this corrupt world.”

(There is a prolonged silence.)

Tutor: “Right, so group one is going to stage peaceful protests that will eventually cripple the government and force them to turn to democracy; group two is going to stage peaceful protests that will eventually cripple the government and force them to turn to democracy; group three is going to stage a hunger strike that will cause them all to die which will in turn cripple the government and force them to turn to democracy. And group four is going to become an organized militia and create bloody mayhem resulting in the instatement of democracy. So… what’s today’s lesson?”

Classmate: “That [My Name] is a raging psychopath, and if we ever want to rebel we know where to look.”