As sickening as that whole situation is, that guy better get murder + 19 attempted and hopefully all of those torch carrying shots are naked and shamed, Let's not pretend antifa doesn't have a recent history of violence at protests. Both sides wanted violence and that's what they got to the extreme detriment of humanity.
This sickening masterbatory reaction from the left has made me extra sad. The hate filled monsters at this rally no more represent the conservative philosophy than the guy that ran down six soldiers in Paris this week represents his faith... so zip it up, stop retweeting, and have some fucking perspective.
( not u in particular GH )
"The fatal flaw of all revolutionaries is that they know how to tear things down but don't have a f**king clue about how to build anything."
These hate-filled monsters absolutely represent a growing (and vocal) faction in conservatism who feel their way of life is being threatened. It's pretty easy to see the hate and racism that fuels a large segment of the right these days and the race-baiting that goes on in conservative talk-radio is astonishing.
Yeah, it's absolutely true that the people who came out to counterprotest were expecting (and some were even enjoying) the minor scuffles and spit throwing. And there's always a little undercurrent of "if we bait them enough, then we can get them to show the world what they really are," which is not a great idea just at a personal safety level. It's a disruptive and conflict-drawn quality that isn't to be ignored.
But it's such a million miles from torch carrying, nazi flag waving, "go back to Africa" and "faggot" chanting rage. And protester-baiting is a pretty basic part of any counter protest. Counterprotestors at anti-Trump rallies do the same thing. It's not a philosophy or worldview-driven action. White nationalism IS.
I deeply appreciate that conservatism as a political philosophy is not inherently tied to this subculture. Plenty of conservative intellectuals decry it as vehemently as any liberal, and nobody failed to notice the passion of many Republican responses yesterday.
But it's also true that conservativism has allowed a tenuous bond to exist with this trash, because it could gain by it. And from time to time that connection becomes a little less tenuous and a little more open. For crying out loud, Jeff Sessions is every Republicans favorite Republican. Major conservatism messaging infrastructure is aimed AT JUST THESE PEOPLE. Donald Trump basically owns their souls at this point, exactly because he (Bannon) understood that messaging and brought it out of the shadows. And when Republican senators are hesitant to stand up to Donald Trump, make no mistake that these people's votes are part of what's holding them back.
These people don't define the Republican Party, but the willingness to silently carry them along has been a growing cyst, seeping and ugly. If the party doesn't want to be seen as the party that accepts them, then they have to stop accepting of them. Period. And I suspect that's just too costly for them to really do.
McParadigm wrote:Yeah, it's absolutely true that the people who came out to counterprotest were expecting (and some were even enjoying) the minor scuffles and spit throwing. And there's always a little undercurrent of "if we bait them enough, then we can get them to show the world what they really are," which is not a great idea just at a personal safety level. It's a disruptive and conflict-drawn quality that isn't to be ignored.
But it's such a million miles from torch carrying, nazi flag waving, "go back to Africa" and "faggot" chanting rage. And protester-baiting is a pretty basic part of any counter protest. Counterprotestors at anti-Trump rallies do the same thing. It's not a philosophy or worldview-driven action. White nationalism IS.
I deeply appreciate that conservatism as a political philosophy is not inherently tied to this subculture. Plenty of conservative intellectuals decry it as vehemently as any liberal, and nobody failed to notice the passion of many Republican responses yesterday.
But it's also true that conservativism has allowed a tenuous bond to exist with this trash, because it could gain by it. And from time to time that connection becomes a little less tenuous and a little more open. For crying out loud, Jeff Sessions is every Republicans favorite Republican. Major conservatism messaging infrastructure is aimed AT JUST THESE PEOPLE. Donald Trump basically owns their souls at this point, exactly because he (Bannon) understood that messaging and brought it out of the shadows. And when Republican senators are hesitant to stand up to Donald Trump, make no mistake that these people's votes are part of what's holding them back.
These people don't define the Republican Party, but the willingness to silently carry them along has been a growing cyst, seeping and ugly. If the party doesn't want to be seen as the party that accepts them, then they have to stop accepting of them. Period. And I suspect that's just too costly for them to really do.
I agree with you here (and heart you when you take the time to post). Trumps refusal to name the ideology of the killer is despicable, even for him, and the media must take him to task until he does. (Fox News needs to take the lead here.) This was domestic terrorism. This was white supremacism. And no one should let this slide. My point was that we shouldn't be celebrating a murder because it confirms our prejudices.
"The fatal flaw of all revolutionaries is that they know how to tear things down but don't have a f**king clue about how to build anything."
But seriously, does anyone see anything on the horizon that suggests that the two halves of this country are going to move toward each other? I can't see anything, but I see mountains of evidence that they will continue to separate.
