Rules, consistency, fairness and respect. 4 principles that keep a society functioning. Expectations for what happens when you encounter other actors in the play of life set out how you respond in a situation. If those enacting the rules interpret their powers differently, confusion reigns and society breaks down.

Clearly, the death of George Floyd is a travesty and miscarriage of the responsibilities of those we trust to protect the serve. And, when you add that almost every person in the country has a high quality video camera in their pocket and access to a platform that can distribute content instantly, breaches of trust travel fast. So too must consequences because once expectations change, the interactions in society change. I, for one, expect the police to serve, and small businesses and citizens to be allowed to thrive without the fear of an arbitrary force putting their knee on the neck of some and not others. For all, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

When we have consistent and fair governance, we respect the rules and authority, and we assimilate. When we lose respect for our system and when the data supporting arbitrary rules are inconsistent across states, we start applying our own rules. And that’s when all hell breaks loose.