ALEC reminded me of the 7 elements of a drug scare. Notably, a corporation can put its thumb on the scale of justice by convincing politicians of a problem and offering a solution. The video says Walmart had a role in "Stand Your Ground " legislation being passed, then becoming the leading seller of long guns and bullets. This helps their pockets (and perhaps the politicians), while the same law can then negatively affect the public in cases like Trayvon Martin #so345

I drew a connection back to H&H about street crime versus suite crime and the difference being publicity (54). Typically, you would want to avoid public policing so that your area isn't designated as a hotspot for crime. However, the civil rights movement defies this operation by instead choosing to get arrested in an attempt to change what it means to be a criminal. It is then very hard to ignore the question: is a criminal just someone who has been arrested? #so345

If mundane acts are treated with increasingly aggressive behavior (286), how would this establish a standard for more extreme forms of delinquency? Zero-tolerance policies have not proven to be entirely effective, and a byproduct of these policies is a heavier emphasis on punishment for mundane acts (286). Do these punishments incentivize even more aggressive behavior towards extreme acts, or is there a possibility to consider only using aggressiveness for extreme acts #so345

Given that we have read other works by Anderson, I was interested in his take on "street wisdom." Notably, this is the process by which inadequate police protection can lead to residents anticipating different cues and signals to serve as their own protection (284). If residents themselves are responsible for their protection, can this foster hostility toward police who are seemingly not doing their job? #so345

The Klemko article talked about a vendor giving training from ex-military members who discussed "enemy combatants" versus the normal citizen (6). This is in line with the theme that police can tend to err on the side of aggression, especially in the early years of training. This is particularly prominent in smaller police departments, as they have inconvenient access to government services and must instead rely on the private sector vendors (3). #so345

The conclusion reinforced that there is a collective understanding of what it means to "deviate" to the average layperson. However, this can be incredibly enhanced when we zoom out to the different ways it can manifest itself. It made me question: does hegemony work so well because of the fear of deviating which has been socialized into us all? Is teaching deviance from a younger age valuable, and in what ways could this inspire change in social institutions that are seldom challenged? #so345