Hi back! Well I suppose the real uncertainty in my reply is the concept of “too readily”, because I agree considerations have to be thought through but I’m also curious as to what kind of evidence would be sufficient? What does “led by evidence” mean in this context? And to what extent are we all aware of the social and societal influences which dictate all of our actions, violent or not?

So many racial questions are dismissed due to “lack of proof” and it is definitely concerning that a situation like this has the potential to be explained away like so many other things. The answer of course could be that it’s all of those things or it could be none of those things. But I think, in the contemporary context of the increase of anti-asian rhetoric, the typical demographic of the people working at the targeted places (one was literally called “Youngs Asian Massage Parlour”), combined with the fact that the majority of the victims were of asian descent, doesn’t feel as much of an example of jumping to conclusions as it may seem. I don’t think it’s an assumption, I think it’s a conclusion based on evidence and context. It could, of course, be wrong, but that’s true of any conclusion. And then there’s the question of why it’s better practice to assume no racial motivation.

While I don’t disagree with you that it’s wrong to claim that we do (or even can ever really) know 100% what the true motivation was, I’m not sure I agree that’s what’s happening here for the majority of people. And, granted, I’m not American so I could be missing some of this unquestioning certainty (and I don’t doubt it exists in some pockets, because it always does!) but arguing against that position in particular feels perilously close to strawmaning to me.