Urban Legends isn't just the name of a couple of crappy movies
You know whenever you get a forwarded email that reads "Forward this to EVERYONE you know," that the contents are of dubious veracity and that it's time to check out the situation at Snopes. In the wake of a number of random freeway shootings in Los Angeles in May 2005, an email started circulating that the violence was the result of some kind of gang war. The email specifically stated that the Mexican Mafia was retaliating against the Rolling 60's for stealing a large amount of cocaine. The story further adds that these shootings were perpetrated against random people wearing white t-shirts.
Snopes asserts that police officials denounce this tale, saying there is no evidence that the freeway shootings conform to any such pattern. Furthermore, the Rolling 60's are a subdivision of the Crips gang and since their colors are blue, not white, it would be unlikely that the Mexican Mafia would not only perpetrate these crimes against innocent bystanders, but also those wearing colors that have nothing to do with the gang itself.
The human brain is programmed to look for patterns, it's why we're so susceptable to stories of alien abductions and other conspiracy theories. In the face of something so random and terrifiying, it's easy to see how this story would rise in the tide of fear.
Though the panic over freeway shootings has largely come to a halt, people still get shot on freeways, and the police are asserting that the incidents, though suspected to be a result of gang violence, are unrelated.
posted by kuaptic. @ 9:15 AM
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