There Is No Understanding the Rage [OPINION]

When people say they understand the rage felt by rioters and looters, you have to wonder if they are truly as stupid as they sound. There is no understanding the rage. Those who are rioting and looting are doing so for a myriad of reasons but social justice generally isn't one of them.

For the record, rioting and looting are crimes. Period. Violent crimes. Violent crimes that are committed by a person experiencing rage usually buy that person a longterm ticket to jail, and as well it should. Rioters and looters should be among them.

I watched in horror last night for hours as rioters and looters destroyed Boston. The poor victims of oppression and police brutality just couldn't deal with their victimhood any longer so they lashed out and looted shoe stores and liquor stores and Walgreens. They threw glass bottles and bricks and pieces of concrete at police officers and set police vehicles on fire.

The "white knights" sit in their suburban homes, hating Trump and tweeting about how awful it is to carry the unfair burden of white privilege. Maybe they can adopt a Black family in Roxbury and their kids can become pen pals and stuff. They really feel sorry for these people and can understand their rage.

But wait, a careful scan of the TV screen and at least half of the kids trashing the Vans store are white kids. Perhaps even kids from the suburbs. I even saw what appeared to be a couple of Asian-American guys stealing skateboards. Are they outraged too?

The rioters and looters are subversives and anarchists looking simply to create chaos. The local kids are too stupid not to let themselves be used as frontline pawns or bait and so they join in. Looks pretty exciting and hell, maybe you can score a few cases of Red Bull if someone breaks a liquor store window.

Don't bore me with your idiocy about understanding the rage. Stand up and defend law and order and spend a few minutes to learn about what's going on around you. It might require you to put your cell phone and wine glass down for a few minutes but it would be worth it.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.