Talking to Strangers Written by Malcolm Gladwell

This book commences with an introduction to the tragic confrontation between Officer Brian Encinia and Sandra Bland

 The traffic stop that resulted in involuntary resignation for Brian and suicide for Sandra 3-days later while in remand

 Brian’s actions were challenged in court and excuses and conjecture undoubtedly ensued

 Trying to cover up inept behavior and inappropriate practices that lead citizens and the media to imbue

 A sense of horror; to feel incredulous and appalled at the injustice that has transpired

 How similar experiences could be reenacted across many states in such a highly esteemed empire

 Gladwell inspires confidence through personal recollections, historical anecdotes, and scientific based evidence galore

 To bring clarity to a disturbing but increasing phenomenon that even the most ardent Pollyanna abhors

 He helps us to see that simple outrage does not suffice

 Our response to such abuse of power must be more precise

 Perusing the particulars of Sandusky and Senior Ana Montes the Queen of Cuba and Bernie Madoff  Ponzi scheme royalty

 One realizes there is so much more to first impressions and much more at stake when taking such liberties

 We might be wise to withhold arbitrary declarations

 That will hep deter future frustrations

 That allow counteragents to go undetected

 Spurned intuition causes basic deduction to be rejected

 People who met Bernie and Ana on numerous occasions

 Could not seem to reject their primitive means of persuasion

 The clues are there but our slow brain instincts are minimized

 To the point that trust and national security are jeopardized

 Gladwell asserts that we are often a slave to our desire to trust

 Persuading us to discount the many signals available to us

 When we meet someone face-to-face what do we truly know?

 We venture to take them at their word just because they told us so

 Consider the police officer, lawyer and judge sworn to uphold the law

 Why should we expect so much more from them when all our judgments are flawed

 In hindsight it all seems clear but that is well after the fact

 No single human on this earth can be totally certain of one's character; when asked to be exact

 Yes, a mother knows her child in the general sense of the word

 But to expect her to adequately predict her child's future actions is more than a bit absurd

 Evolution will never fully explain the complexity of the human brain

 Rest assured this is not my first Gladwell book; I am keenly aware of his scientific and conversational genius

 And his uncanny ability to disentangle complex theories that could cause the average person some inconvenience