A crisis inevitably seems to draw out the worst traits in some people. Nothing illustrates that point better in the United States these past 12 months than the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the acidic aftermath of a U.S. presidential election on Nov. 3, 2020. From “anti-vaccine” conspiracy theorists and COVID-deniers to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6 of this year that was a direct result of toxic political rhetoric that ignited followers of the former president, along with militia and white nationalists, this time period has been an illustrated textbook on bad and inciteful behavior.
In a just-released whitepaper from G4S, the authors acknowledge how a pandemic and politics has created the perfect storm of misinformation, mayhem, violence and death, stating: “A number of opportunistic and predatory criminal behaviors and non-criminal activity involving both physical and cyberspace risks have been detected, with threat actors representing an array of individuals, political movements and organized or state-sponsored criminal groups.
Since early in the pandemic, demonstrations have occurred by individuals and groups opposed to COVID-19 related…
