Neil DeGrasse Tyson apologizes for his mass shootings tweet

[True Dough]

Yesterday, a Tweet I posted in reaction to the horrific mass shootings in America over the previous 48 hours, killing 34 people, spawned mixed and highly critical responses.

If you missed it, I offered a short list of largely preventable causes of death, along with their average two-day death toll in the United States. They significantly exceeded the death toll from the two days of mass shootings, including the number of people (40) who on average die from handgun homicides every two days.

I then noted that we tend to react emotionally to spectacular incidences of death, with the implication that more common causes of death trigger milder responses within us.

My intent was to offer objectively true information that might help shape conversations and reactions to preventable ways we die. Where I miscalculated was that I genuinely believed the Tweet would be helpful to anyone trying to save lives in America. What I learned from the range of reactions is that for many people, some information –-my Tweet in particular -- can be true but unhelpful, especially at a time when many people are either still in shock, or trying to heal – or both.

So if you are one of those people, I apologize for not knowing in advance what effect my Tweet could have on you. I am therefore thankful for the candor and depth of critical reactions shared in my Twitter feed. As an educator, I personally value knowing with precision and accuracy what reaction anything that I say (or write) will instill in my audience, and I got this one wrong.

Respectfully Submitted
Neil deGrasse Tyson

https://www.facebook.com/notes/neil-degrasse-tyson/tweetstorm/10157492889446613/

[Downtown Hound]

1. I'm glad he apologized

It's not that he was wrong in what he said, it's just that he said it at the wrong time, wrong place, and in the wrong context, and it had the effect of minimizing the emotions that people were going through. I'm glad he realized that and has apologized.

[unblock]

2. Oh no. This reads like a "sorry if you feel I need to apologize" apology

[More_Cowbell]

4. I agree

Apologizing for not knowing in advance how people would feel..... weak sauce.

[4now]

3. I'm sorry that you are so stupid is hardly an apology

It is scientists like him that give the others a bad name.
I hope that his 15 minutes is almost up.

[madaboutharry]

5. He keeps disappointing.

I found him and his writing so interesting and loved his documentaries. But lately I find him difficult to like. The accusations about his personal conduct was very upsetting. This apology seems really arrogant. I don’t know what to think anymore.

[Blecht]

6. Disgusting nonapology apology

"I'm sorry if you are so stupid that you were offended by my brilliance."

Fuck him.

[StarfishSaver]

7. "I'm sorry you were too traumatized and emotional to get what I was saying" isn't an apology

[Music Man]

8. As others have noted, this apology is very close, but not quite it.

I'm glad he apologizes for the Tweet being unhelpful. He gets that much.

But I wish he had included a sentence like, "The public is rightfully outraged about mass shootings, not just because it's a spectacle, but because many people are deliberately standing in the way of changing this problem. This makes it different from some of the other problems I'd listed."

[dalton99a]

9. "Sorry if you're too dumb to get what I'm saying"

[dlk]

10. Was There a Condescending Undertone in This Rationalization?

[VOX]

11. "I apologize for not knowing in advance." Stack self-righteousness on top of zero empathy.

I used to respect NdeGT, but I read his tweet and was flabbergasted at the lack of empathy and plain common sense.

And now this? An “apology” that’s more like, “You mortals don’t appreciate the cool, objective information I bring to you from Mount Olympus.”

“Respectfully submitted”— I half-expected him to complete that sign-off with, “Douglas C. Niedermeier, Sergeant-at-Arms.”