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The last chapter begins a lot like the first, with an examination of the Sandra Bland case. However, this time we are armed with knowledge of truth-default, as well as how American police are trained to catch criminals. Reading the exchange between Encinia and Bland felt different this time - it felt sad. The first time I read it in Chapter One I simply felt confused and frustrated for Bland, and I still maintain those feelings, but now I also understand why Encinia acted the way he did too.

In a New York Times Article published about the case last year, cell phone video taken by Sandra Bland herself was released capturing the encounter between her and Encinia. Interestingly, in this video you can watch a bit more of the exchange between Bland and Encinia than what the book reveals. Watching it, you can see how aggressive Encinia is, both verbally and physically as he pulls his stun gun on her. The article goes on to reveal that Encinia can never work in law enforcement again, and that all police must receive de-escalation training as part of the Sandra Bland Act of 2017. However, while it is a step in the right direction it still does not address the issue of profiling and misusing the Kansas City policing method.

The book ends with the warning that when things go awry with strangers, we tend to blame the stranger. I can think of a number of instances working at Tim Hortons when� but anyways, the moral is to be more thoughtful of our tendencies and open in our interactions with strangers.

Does Gladwell tell the whole story in his case studies? What’s missing? Are the missing parts relevant?

Do you have any final thoughts on the book that you'd like to share?

NY Times Article and Video: