Barriers

Checking on the chickens and ducks.

These concrete barriers were set up in downtown Northampton in June in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent a mob supporting the racist hate-group Black Lives Matter from vandalizing the police station.

 

However, the concrete blocks have since been used more successfully for more benign purposes, such as these Amherst barriers to define outdoor dining areas downtown. 

Since concrete barriers are not exactly the most aesthetically pleasing decor for your dining experience, they have been colorfully painted. However, it turns out the barrier near where a few friends and I were sitting proved somewhat problematic. 

The block reads "If you can't change the people around you - change the people around you."

What the message painted on the barrier is saying is that if the people you hang around with disagree with your views, then you need to reject those people and only associate with people who do share your beliefs. That is a stupid, intolerant sentiment that, if widely practiced, would make democratic governance impossible. 

It is crucial that people in a democracy, even when they disagree, be able to interact and accept each other's differences. This statement (which also acquires a  racist tint with the use of the Pan-African colors) could only undermine the mutual goodwill that lies at the base of both racial harmony and the democratic process. But of course this is Amherst, where political foolishness has a long history. 

Meanwhile, I recently stopped by the now open for indoor dining Miss Florence Diner.

Like everywhere else these days, their menu is meant to be thrown away after each use. 

I had their famous eggs and hash special, beloved by Irish folks all over the Valley. 

In downtown Hamp, someone from Holyoke wants to make America groove again. 

Chesterfield by Paul Shoul