Shark Jumping Convoy
Performative outrage is not outrage at all.
My friend Jason called from his car. Jason explained how he thought he was driving his wife to the local IKEA only to find out that she intended to visit the IKEA in Maryland. They live in Northern Virginia. Yes, it is a short drive. But given that it includes traveling The Beltway means it could take more time that driving across town in OKC.
Rather than calling for marital advice, Jason called to tell me that he had been caught up in the Convey Across America. I laughed.
Protesting Covid mandates and protocols while driving through States that have no mandates in force is . . . well . . . funny. The inspiration for the event was the Canadian standoff. Here in the United States is seems these drivers are at least a year late. Add that fuel prices per gallon spent to perform outrage against mandates not in force registers high on the silly scale. New York and New Jersey recently announced the end of their mandates, before the convoy made it east. Northern Virginia, where the convoy arrived today, has no mandate either.
At this point it is hard not to see the waste of time and fuel little more than performative outrage, which is really not outrage.
Thirty years ago the Dallas Cowboys won the Super Bowl. During the celebratory parade a riot broke out. A young man was interviewed. He asserted,
LA [Los Angeles] got theirs [riot]. Now we got ours [riot].
Performative outrage always risks jumping the shark.
Meanwhile, people are dying in Ukraine as Russia targets civilian population centers.
Dear Convoy, stop wasting your time and energy on an issue that has passed us and send your hard earned dollars to a place where one Country regularly practices performative outrage.