What atrocities should we remember and how often and with what intensity should we remember them?

[loinburger]

From this thread

Ideally I'm looking for a mathematical formula, for example the severity of an atrocity equals the number of deaths divided by the logarithm of the number of years that have passed. Also should we place an upper limit on the number of atrocities we should remember or place an upper limit on the number of years that have passed because otherwise every single day we'll have to remember a dozen atrocities and that would get annoying. Also, how sinful is it to remember the wrong atrocities.

[giblets]

1. Take the natural log of the number of dead humans, round down, add that many points. Add a point if any cute animals died.
2. Add 10 points if the atrocity happened in the USA
3. Add 10 * (50-(percentage of people involved in committing the atrocity who were Americans))
4. Add 20 points if it happened in your lifetime. Things you personally remember must never be forgotten by future generations.

Ideally the top 12 atrocities would each get one annual holiday (hopefully spread out evenly throughout the year with time off to "mourn")

[loinburger]

Nationality does seem to be a factor, both the nationalities of the perpetrators and of the victims. For example, in the thread in question the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were presented as counter-atrocities presumably meant to shame anybody who mourned the September 11 atrocity, this despite the fact that e.g. the Rwandan genocide was both more recent and more horrific than the Hiroshima/Nagasaki bombings; however the Rwandan genocide had Rwandans (not Americans) as the perpetrators and had Rwandans as the primary victims and so it wasn't presented as a counter-atrocity. This is likely a combination of "Americans " and "Africans "

[OneFootInTheGrave]

If it is Rwanda, or Africa in general, take your formula and multiply with 0.

[OneFootInTheGrave]

Here is a list of Generally Accepted Mourning Multipliers:

Country; Factor
Israel; 1,000,000,000
USA; 309,349,689
UK; 1,000,000
Canada, Australia, NZ; 101,010
Germany, Nordics, Austria, Switzerland; 100,000
Benelux; 66,666
Saudi Arabia; 50,000
France; 25,000
Italy, Spain; 10,000
Baltics; 5,000
Poland; 2,500
Czech Republic, Eastern Europe; 1,000
Columbia; 50
Mexico; 43
South America; 42
Western part of Ukraine; 25
Balkans (without Greece); 1
Japan; South Korea 0.5
Eastern Part of Ukraine; 0.25
Greece;Turkey 0.125
China; East Asia 0.1
India; South Africa 0.01
Pakistan, Central Asia, Middle East/North Africa in general; 0.001
Afghanistan, Iraq, Russia; 0.000,000,003,232,587
Syria, Libya; 0.000,000,000,1
Mid/Central Africa; 0
Iran; North Korea; Palestine; √(-1)

[loinburger]

That is also the likelihood in descending order that any tragedy befalling the country's citizens is met by "they deserved it "

Those near the bottom instead get a "meh, **** 'em"

[Kidlicious]

9-11
It changed everything.

[Lorizael]

What I'm curious about is the empirical effect of mourning a particular atrocity. If, for example, atrocity A is 10 times as bad as atrocity B, then does that mean my emotions toward it are 10 times as intense? Should I release 1/10 as much dopamine when thinking about A as B? Should I punch myself with 10 times as much force when I forget atrocity A (as compared to forgetting B)?

[loinburger]

What effect does your mourning or lack thereof have on a. the damned souls of those killed in the atrocity, b. the Kardashians, and c. the gibbering chaos at the center of the universe

[giblets]

It's propaganda meant to instill moral values in the population so they will behave

[Lorizael]

What effect does your mourning or lack thereof have on a. the damned souls of those killed in the atrocity, b. the Kardashians, and c. the gibbering chaos at the center of the universe

Was gonna make a Kim Kierkegaardashian joke but then remembered you were the person I found that from (or at least the person who showed it to Apolyton).

[Aeson]

I don't know about real life atrocities, but I think we should promptly forget the recent DLs ...

[loinburger]

How much work would it be to find the culprit through IP checking or whatever and give them a suitable punishment, e.g. a post count reduction (I don't think we've had one of those handed out in, what, five years? I think we're due for one)

[The Mad Monk]

I am not in favor of collective punishment.

[jsorense]

Oh dear! Not the dreaded nuclear post count reduction! Anything but that!