Live By The Gun…
It's "too soon," I suppose, to state the obvious, but I'll do it anyway: Donald Trump, more than anyone else, is responsible for the normalization of political violence in America.
On countless occasions since January 6, 2021, Trump and his allies were asked -- exhorted, enjoined, beseeched and begged -- to renounce violence as a means of achieving political ends. By and large, they declined. Sometimes outright, sometimes through obfuscation and dissembling, but declination all the same. A stea
You are spot on! Thanks
Love how the Republicans are blitzing the media today flipping the blame to Biden and associating him with inflammatory rhetoric while the dems hide in their mansions
Seems like the kind of moment a president might want to lead….
As in “yu’re doing a great job Brownie” or handing out paper towel rolls and water bottles to flood victims?
Just today I was talking with a leftist who voiced an opinion that maybe we need a civil war to stem the power of the wealthy pursuing inequality. A dangerous voice indeed, if the poor decides to revolt ‘en masse’ then there is little anyone can do to stop this trend. I reminded him that even talking about inequality was taking power from the well to do.
The right should not pine for an action from which they cannot win, a revolt by the masses can result in an outcome that they will not wish for.
You weren’t talking to a “leftist.” There is no such thing. You were talking to a person, a fellow human being, with left leaning values. Part of the rise in political violence is the labeling of people as if their views define their entire existence. They don’t. If we can no longer see each other as people, but only as agents of political parties, we’re doomed to a divided and violent future.
Fair statement, however I was not focused on massaging intellects with a soft brush. I was simply making a different point. The point was consistent with the article, do be wary of what you wish for. The outcome can be dramatically different than anticipated by political pundits. The brown shirts found that out too late when Hitler and the SS turned on them.
Revolution coming? I was thinking, why not start a charity called Automatic Weapons For The Poor. Let’s get ready. I’m sure the NRA would contribute. LOL.
Revolution sounds crazy but I’m hearing more and more comments. Thinking back to negotiation days when win-win was the desired approach. We criticized win-lose positions as suboptimal claiming of value. Our computer models designed to determine best approach to get win-lose players to cooperate was tit-for-tat; sting defection then cooperate, keep repeating. That old thinking is dead., especially in a political context. Power or avoidance the alternatives, especially in a political context. Far right has already claimed the no flexibility position on this election. Most Democrats think this is an election. It’s very likely a tipping point in my opinion.
I hope you are wrong, we are on the precipice of a large economic boom caused by lowering solar energy costs. We are an energy intensive society and near zero cost of electricity from solar would have dramatic, far reaching positive impacts on our economy. Why we would give it up for a guaranteed horrible future.
Today I was talking with a spiritual leader and I made the following point. Look at countries after a turn to the right:
Germany after WWII
Idi Amin’s Uganda after his reign
Phillipines after Marcos
Italy after Moussolini
Spain after Franco
Virtually guaranteed to destroy the host nation.
H-Man, bold steps in this post. Not sure the timing is appropriate about framing the agenda. A 1/16th of an inch, Trump would be dead today or left in a vegetative state. We probably need to rethink why politics can drive people to kill candidates.
I’m terribly sorry you didn’t like the timing. I should’ve waited until the next Truth Social post where he intimates that his supporters should attack or kill his political rivals, or his next outburst warning of a national “blood bath” in the (now unlikely) event he doesn’t get enough votes.
Interestingly, the calls for Biden to step down have gone silent.
Well they can’t replace him now. It’ll turn the whole sad spectacle that is American politics into an even more tumultuous mess. Honesty, though, this might’ve been yet another reason for Biden to hand it over to someone else. Frame it as a “national reset.” Or something. I don’t know. But it’s not working. The whole thing’s not working. That much is obvious.
Sad, but true.
A case can be made, replacing him was never an option after the first debate. To do so would admit to a grievous error. However no grievous error was made. Body politic did not know the extent of aging that has occurred while in office. To run someone else before the debate could have been seen as a forced error.
The choice today is between a good man who has sacrificed his health for us or a man how would sacrifice us for this wealth and power. And that assessment is being gracious to Donnie.
I think the only thing that will sway people is to look into history what the fascist right has brought to it’s people. Everyone pays a price but the usual suspects: wealthy, journalists, politicians, educated and original supporters often pay the worst price. Surprisingly fascists need a constant supply of enemies therefore their opposition survive for awhile longer than the supporters. I would like to see a table of the various fascist regimes totaling the impact on various groups and the overall economy. It could convince people the folly of not paying attention this time around.
I like this line of thought. Unfortunately it would require a large number of people to read and comprehend the results of your suggested study. And we all know that is not going to happen.
Only need to sway less than 1%. Each person swayed will likely affect 3 others and the total only needs to be 1% or so to make a difference.
Butler, PA? Seriously? Stupid place for a rally.