In a court of law, yes, presumed innocence is the neutral state. In the court of public opinion, though, presuming innocence flips an “out-group = enemy” switch in their heads. Everything you say from that point is heard through their lizard brain telling them that you are a threat.
We do not have the luxury of holding the people currently in power to the rules. We don’t have the luxury of ignoring the crazy person in the room, either. We have to engage on their terms, else they flip the table and walk away still in power, still on the war path.
They do, however, have the capacity for rational thought. The calmer you can keep them, the sooner their rationality will tell them that human rights apply to everyone or none at all.
In a court of law, yes, presumed innocence is the neutral state. In the court of public opinion, though, presuming innocence flips an “out-group = enemy” switch in their heads. Everything you say from that point is heard through their lizard brain telling them that you are a threat.
We do not have the luxury of holding the people currently in power to the rules. We don’t have the luxury of ignoring the crazy person in the room, either. We have to engage on their terms, else they flip the table and walk away still in power, still on the war path.
They do, however, have the capacity for rational thought. The calmer you can keep them, the sooner their rationality will tell them that human rights apply to everyone or none at all.