Which Scenario, if Either, Would Make You Feel More Threatened or Unsafe?

[Debater Slayer]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

 

[Debater Slayer]

The purpose of this thread is to explore people's general impressions of the supporters of each of the two abovementioned ideologies in a random scenario where all other circumstances are practically the same and where they have no information about said supporters other than that given by those supporters' ideologically influenced appearance.

What gave me the idea for this thread was reading a post elsewhere online asking why supporting communism was, on average globally, more socially acceptable than supporting Nazism.

 

[Revoltingest]

Neither.

 

[danieldemol]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

The Nazi style swastikas, whether the Commies actually managed to help the poor or not their intentions were with us, far right Nazis seem to hate the poor in general in my view.

 

[RestlessSoul]

I used to wear a Che Guevara T-shirt myself during my naive youth, and I was never a threat to anyone (except possibly myself). Whereas in England in the 1980s, if you saw a bunch of skinheads coming towards you, swastikas or not, you'd have been wise to take evasive action. So on the basis of personal experience, I have no hesitation in selecting the first scenario.

 

[Secret Chief]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

The former threatening, the latter not at all. I have a T-shirt with Karl Marx on it and the quote "I warned you this would happen" and a Fire Brigades Union T-shirt signed by Jeremy Corbyn (won in a raffle!). I don't feel a threat to myself.

 

[chinu]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

You missed to tell are those people girls or boys ? and are they wearing pants, or not ?

 

[Secret Chief]

if you saw a bunch of skinheads coming towards you, swastikas or not, you'd have been wise to take evasive action.

Especially if, like me, you were a long-haired rocker.

 

[danieldemol]

You missed to tell are those people girls or boys ? and are they wearing pants, or not ?

You made me laugh but what the heck?

 

[RestlessSoul]

Especially if, like me, you were a long-haired rocker.

Wolfie Smith was based on me, I think.

 

[Debater Slayer]

You missed to tell are those people girls or boys ? and are they wearing pants, or not ?

Neither of these details is relevant to the hypothetical, although I would wonder why someone was not wearing pants in public. Maybe the communists gave them away to pantless people because they didn't need them?

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." — Karl Marx.

 

[chinu]

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." — Karl Marx.

 

[Debater Slayer]

I'll answer the OP too: I would feel far more threatened or unsafe in the first scenario, for two reasons:

1) I'm visibly not of European ethnicity, so I know the Nazis would almost certainly see me in a hostile light by default.

2) There are some communists who subscribe to varieties of communism that support democracy, peace, and individual rights and don't support the USSR, purges, the Gulag, etc., whereas racial supremacism, genocide, and violence are essential elements of all forms of Nazism. While I would still disagree with the basis of the communists' views (regardless of the specific variety) and find their ideology too idealistic and impractical, it wouldn't be a sure bet that their views were inherently dehumanizing or in favor of brutality, unlike the Nazis' views—although it would still be possible, of course (e.g., if they were Maoists or Stalinists).

 

[Twilight Hue]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

About as safe as three well groomed people in business suits associated with the Gambino Crime Family waltzing in.

I learned in life not everything is as it seems.

 

[chinu]

I would wonder why someone was not wearing pants in public.

I hope you NOT misread it panties.

 

[McBell]

Suppose you are alone or almost alone in a store, on a street, or on public transport, perhaps late at night. You then see two or three people enter the same place, all wearing similar T-shirts.

In the first scenario, their T-shirts bear swastikas, and they have shaved heads and perhaps one or two Nazi tattoos.

In the second scenario, their T-shirts bear the communist symbol of the hammer and sickle or Che Guevara's visage, and perhaps they have one or two tattoos of communist symbols.

Which scenario, if either, would make you feel more threatened or unsafe?

To be completely honest, unless they were doing something other than their clothes to draw attention, I seriously doubt I would even notice either group.

 

[Debater Slayer]

To be completely honest, unless they were doing something other than their clothes to draw attention, I seriously doubt I would even notice either group.

If you noticed them, what would be your reaction in either scenario?

 

[McBell]

If you noticed them, what would be your reaction in either scenario?

I would react like I would to anyone else in the same given situation.

If I inadvertently got in their way, which happens quite often cause I get single track minded, I would apologize and move out of the way like I would do with anyone else.

now, thirty-forty years ago I would most likely have kept a close eye on what they were doing, where they are going, etc. all whilst doing my best to keep it discreet.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

The purpose of this thread is to explore people's general impressions of the supporters of each of the two abovementioned ideologies in a random scenario where all other circumstances are practically the same and where they have no information about said supporters other than that given by those supporters' ideologically influenced appearance.

What gave me the idea for this thread was reading a post elsewhere online asking why supporting communism was, on average globally, more socially acceptable than supporting Nazism.

It's not just about ideology, though.

As a kid in Toronto in the late 80s, there were plenty of stories on the news about swarmings by skinheads. When he was a teenager, one of my friends had to run from a gang of skinheads trying to steal his shoes.

I've never heard of anything similar with roving gangs of communists.

 

[SalixIncendium]

Neither scenario would make me feel unsafe unless they began showing signs of aggression.

My answer may have not been the same had you presented a third scenario where their white button-down shirt was overlaid with a green sash adorned in badges and they were bearing cookies.