SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Two innocent men have been burned alive by a massive lynch mob after WhatsApp rumours branded them child abductors.
A large crowd gathered outside the police station after rumours spread about the two men.
A mob dragged two men out of a police station, savagely beat them and then set them on fire, killing them, after a false rumour was spread on WhatsApp about the pair being child kidnappers.
The mother of one of the men made a desperate plea for the crowd to stop as she watched the lynching unfold on a Facebook livestream.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-46145986
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
Burned to Death Because of a Rumour on WhatsApp
|
Log In/Create an Account
| Top
| 104 comments
| Search Discussion
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
In Tulsa, Oklahoma, it is against the law to open a soda bottle without
the supervision of a licensed engineer.
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Wednesday November 14 2018, @05:42PM
I agree it should ideally be deterrents fired, at least to start.
However, I don't see how killing would-be murderers to save innocent men is in any way comparable to the trolley problem. Maybe some of them just showed up for a peaceful protest, but they chose to remain as things devolved into a violent mob. I don't see how joining a mob should absolve you of responsibility for your crimes any more than getting drunk should. *You* are still the one who willingly chose to compromise your good judgement. If you're not willing to own up to the results, don't do it in the first place.
Now perhaps some leniency is justified for the murderers after the fact, as most people have a lot less personal experience with mobs than with getting drunk, and may underestimate just how badly it can compromise their judgement. But that's after the fact, when there's nothing left to be done for the innocent.
As it is, I hope at the very least the guilty are all plagued by nightmares for years to come, and learn a lesson from being forced to confront the monster that dwells within them. Far too many people grossly underestimate their own capacity for evil.