This appalling story of a woman MoveOn activist in KY being grabbed, pushed down to the cement, and having her head kicked by a Rand Paul supporter, as terrible as it is, only becomes the latest in a long line of political violence in the past few years. From relatively isolated incidents to ones even more violent and troubling, there's a growing pattern here, and as someone who reveres American democracy, I find it quite frightening. Here's just a few examples from the current era:
These are just the actual acts of violence. In the meantime, we have people coming to town hall meetings and Presidential rallies with assault weapons, Republican Senate candidates talking openly of having to use "Second Amendment means" in case regular politics doesn't work, Republican Governors (both Rick Perry and Sarah Palin) meeting with secessionist groups with ties to racist leaders. Rand Paul's wimpy statement about civility is only the latest in Republicans' utter unwillingness to clearly condemn violent acts or rhetoric on the part of way too many of their supporters.
The sad thing is that all this violent talk and action, along with the cowardly acceptance of it by the political party benefiting, is a terrible reliving of American history too many times over. When lynchings and church bombings and the brutal murders and beatings of civil rights activists were going on in the South during the civil rights movement era, politicians in the South rarely said a word to condemn or even restrain their citizens. When an abolitionist Senator, Charles Sumner, was caned by a Senator Preston Brooks from South Carolina, he was cheered and congratulated throughout the South. When the staff at abortion clinics have been murdered several times over the years, "pro-life" politicians have fallen strangely silent way too often.
If Republican politicians don't strongly condemn the thuggery of way too many of their followers, they share in the blame. When they ratchet up their own rhetoric, and talk about second amendment solutions and the President being friends with terrorists, they share in the blame. Democracy is premised on us being able to freely and vigorously debate the issues, and on those who win elections governing the way they believe, but our entire democracy is at risk if violence becomes just another standard operating procedure and isn't swiftly and strongly condemned. Republicans who welcome paramilitary militia members and people with ties to violent racist organizations do so at not only their own peril, but our entire way of government.
Aug 2009
http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/2009083205/fascist-america-are-we-there-yet
."..casual violence against immigrants, gays, and progressives may escalate as the Tea Party brownshirts become bolder, confident that at least some authorities will either back them up or look the other way.
In this scenario, the fail-safe point -- the point beyond which no country has ever turned back from the full fascist nightmare -- may well be behind us when we wake up on November 3. From there, the rest will play out in agonizing slow motion; and the character of the rest of this decade will hinge almost entirely on whether the corporatists, the militarists, or the theocrats ultimately get the upper hand in the emerging regime."
follow up the other day on AlterNet:
Fascist America: Is This Election the Next Turn?
It's not fascism yet; but if the Tea Party manages to get its hands on the levers of power, it will be.
http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/148588/fascist_america%3A_is_this_election_the_next_turn_/?page=1
you may also want to go back and listen to Naomi Wolfe's video from back in the Bush/Cheney years.
the answer to the question in the titles of the linked articles is YES!
These are the crazies that we need to be very worried about.
Read The Family andC Street by Jeff Sharlet and be worried - be very worried because the violence that is occurring is a direct result of their efforts to undermine our democracy with their christian empire.
If I sound paranoid, I am - even paranoids have something to worry about!
If this fella is the toughest they can serve up........ a 240 lb. / 6 foot american male - standing on a woman's head, then us lefties who really can fight will have no probs.
Lookout righty bullies - we;re comung!
There is someone, somewhere who really wants all the uproar, turmoil and violence.
Violence in the streets, intimidation in political discussion. The more the better.
Then 'The Leader' appears to save us from this outrage...
The Republicans instigate this. I believe what we're seeing can be traced to the McCain campaign when Sarah Palin mainstreamed hate speech and from that point on the Republicans have been ....unhinged. They aren't just risking, I believe they want, for something to happen. What kind of people play with this sort of thing? What kind of people go along with it?
And I'm scared.
Yes. the followers are pretty unhinged. The leaders certainly aren't.
Social Dominator Right Wing Authoritarians play with this sort of thing. Right Wing Authoritarian followers go along with it (and participate). Check it out.
They were thuggish, to be sure, but I didn't see any parachutes.
I didn't much think it was the Salvation Army.
This has to be the end of Palin's political influence and career. Good article on Palin and her ties to secessionist and Alaskan militia at the Anchorage Daily News:
http://community.adn.com/adn/node/153911#ixzz13Qv4bFKT
Sarah Palin: We conservatives are mama grizzly bears, and we will attack anything that threatens us'.
Rick Perry: "Texans are an independent lot, and we can seceed from this Union by any means necessary'.
"Numerous Tea Baggers who have had photos of Democrats in the middle of a rifle crosshair.
They don't literally tell their people to do violence- but it is strongly implied!
Read: "The Coming of the Third Reich" by Richard Evans and weep.
Don't let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya, Ricky.
I think we should give the 'Baggers their own state -- Texas or Alaska seem likely candidates -- wall it off and let them run it according to their own bizarre theories. They can make Princess Winky Blinky their empress for life, cut taxes to zero, whatever. But they wouldn't get ONE THIN DIME of money from the rest of us.