Paris and hashtags: For each action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. In times of crisis, Newton's law offers a surprisingly powerful framework to explore how the world reacts.
After the explosions and shootings that rocked the French capital on Friday night, heads of state and politicians are posting their solidarity with the victims in Twitter.
But the most essential feelings are there if you look for it hashtag, #PortesOuvertes – as Parisians declare their doors open to people που αναζητούν ασφάλεια στην πόλη, καθώς η σύγχυση που επικρατεί μετά τις επιθέσεις είναι άνευ προηγουμένου.
But at the same time, another hashtag is quickly gaining ground. It is supposed to come from the supporters of the Islamic State and have adopted the hashtag, #باريس_تشتعل means 'paris burns or "Paris is burning". It was the same hashtag used during the attacks in its offices Charlie Hebdo earlier this year.
Of course, there have been many requests on Twitter to ban that hashtag, but so far the demands have fallen into a vacuum.
The negative climate also appeared in other ways. Some attribute responsibility to politicians and others to immigrants.
The internet is a perfect environment for competing ideas for offers surface to spread after a major world event. In psychology, there is a term that perfectly describes this tendency: vicarious rehearsal or representative essay.
This term states that as far as a person is from a threat, the more extreme the reaction takes place.
As confusion has begun to retreat to Paris, and people are slowly beginning to assemble events to understand what happened on Friday 13 in November, we thousands of others who are miles away should also try to find our own way to come to terms with what happened.
It would be futile with this post to look for who is right and who is wrong in this case. Joining groups that shout their "fair" opinion, and expect others to adopt it, will not help the grieving process.
No person or website can hold back the tide of the negative emotion that is currently swirling on the Web, not just by supporting the right and criticizing the unfair. What is right and what is wrong is completely objective and depends on the perspective you see it, religion, culture and much more.
One that we talk about Paris and France, however, is to talk about Michel Foucault, a French philosopher, sociologist and historian.
Foucault had stated in a few words that prisons need and are useful to society because it can determine its regularity.
What right?
All we can do right now, apart from analysis and online sharing of responsibilities, is try to offer a way to help others interpret their feelings and maybe, just maybe, learn to empathize with those who share hashtag…
The idea of the article is from TNW, our additions.
