When the systems of a ‘law and order’ society find no intention, benefit or reasonable expectation of safety from their established construct of government -generally driven by an intentional willingness to ignore the demands of the citizens those officials are expected to represent- eventually people take matters into their own hands.
It is fair to call this the end of the “first follower” phase.
It began when a singular voice stood boldly in righteous opposition to the violence. This person was watched by many.
Then, when that person, the original opponent to the violence is met with brutal isolation and retaliation, a first follower surfaces.
The first follower is the individual who stands up in anger against the retaliation they have witnessed against the singular voice.
This is the key moment when you can guarantee something is about to change.
The crowd watches the first follower, only at this very consequential inflection point -having watched the previous retaliation- the crowd are now invested emotionally in the outcome of what happens to the ‘first follower.’
The crowd will not accept the same outcome for the first follower. They are in a different mindset, a different frame of mind. Perspectives are completely different in this phase.
Events in Europe are at the extreme side of the first follower phase. However, events in the United States are not far behind. In fact, the reason we are watching events in Europe with such deliberate attention is entirely because our proximity to the violence at hand is not determined by miles; rather, it is determined by mindset.
WARNING of the “do not look away” image below.






