Just for clarity’s sake … the point of my post was to point out the inanity of yours, which seems to be predicated upon the premise that similarities to the rise of Nazism are invalid because Jews are not the targeted other. Jews being the other of the moment or not is not the point of the comparisons to the rise of Nazism and the cult of Hitler.
The HuffPo link you offer is pathetic. I speak as one whose extended family included many who died in HaShoah and whose father was among the first American soldiers at the gates of Dachau. How fucking dare that writer use my dead relatives as a shield for the garbage that is Trump?
I’ve bemoaned the overuse of Hitler and Holocaust comparisons fairly often myself and very much appreciate that its excessive use devalues what HaShoah was.
This one is not Godwinizing. This is merely recognition of the essential recipe for the rise of the authoritarian thugocracy, that Hitler, and many other thugs have used throughout history, some to greater tragedies and horrors than others. No, I do not believe that Trump has a Final Solution in mind for any group, more along the lines of looking at the profits Putin has made and wanting to be like Vlad. He is a weak assed thug and given that America is not 1920 to 1930s Germany or even post Soviet collapse Russia he will not succeed.
But this IS where the never-again should be coming into action. The ingredients are in the pot and the heat is turned up to bring it to a boil. We do not wait for the scum to come to the top before recognize what is in progress. Calling it what is early is step one in fighting this disease.
My cite reported that there were hundreds of protesters inside the rally. The claim that there was no plan to disrupt the rally, when it was a stated goal to disrupt the rally, is pretty extraordinary.
And, all of this is moot. The mere attempt to silence someone’s speech, nomatter how doomed to fail it is, is in itself pathetic. Being bad at it doesn’t make it better somehow.
But, if you’re looking for proof that there was a plan to prevent Trump from speaking, it’s not hard to find.
Okay. That article contains something I hadn’t seen in the multiple articles I’d previously read: one of the organizers of the protest, ahead of the protest, called to “#SHUTITDOWN.” That’s the kind of smoking gun that, yeah, puts it into deplorable territory.
I will separate that from other forms of protest. ALTHOUGH TRUMP HAS EVERY RIGHT TO REMOVE PROTESTORS FROM HIS RALLIES, it’s perfectly legitimate for people to engage in protests that do NOT shut down the rallies, while inside the rallies. Indeed, a canny protest leader might yet emerge.
Imagine if the Chicago protestors had all brought armbands with gold stars and put them on as soon as Trump got on stage, kneeling for the remainder of his speech. What if they’d agreed that, instead of cheering, they’d silently offer the Nazi salute? What if they’d brought thousands of pictures of undocumented families being held at detention centers and held the pictures up during the speech? What if they’d simply agreed to turn their backs to him and bow their heads during his entire speech? What if, at the end of his speech, rather than applaud, they’d sung “This Land is Your Land” or “We Shall Overcome”?
I mean, I’m spitballing here, there are many different directions to go in. A nonviolent action with thousands of people in which you’re going to outnumber the opposition is a rare occasion with tremendous potential. I wish it had been used more cannily.
Y’know, I really don’t get this “threat” that Trump’s fans will now start protesting Sanders rallies. They weren’t already? Why not? Protesting at rallies, and chanting slogans, and so on, is an integral part of how our system works, and has happened at every single political rally in our nation’s history. Of course Trump’s supporters are allowed to come to Sanders rallies and chant. Why wouldn’t they be?
I read on FB that Sanders had responded to Trumps threat to send his supporters to Sanders rallies: “Please do. I would love to show them what a sane politician sounds like.”
That response, however perfect, appears to be apocryphal :(.
I would have no problem with any of those methods. And, if the protesters are silently protesting, and Trump supporters attack them (which I’m sure they would, by the way), I can go back to being 100% supportive of anti-Trump crowd.
That is YOUR interpretation. I happen to think the movement that Bernie is a figure head for is far far more dangerous.
They are the one with massive support in the media.
They are the ones with massive support and presence on college campuses, who have teachers calling for “muscle” from students towards journalists, and who come to the defense of those who do.
They are the ones who think they have the right to block streets and campuses and to occupy, and exclude others from, any building or park that they desire.
They are the ones running speakers off of campuses due to their disapproval of the message.
They are the ones demonizing biotechnology and energy technologies that are the best bet for materially improving the lives of humanity.
They advocate shutting down the political speech of anyone they deem too influential.
And of course they are the ones actually shutting down the political rallies of their opponents.
The last seven decades have been filled with anti-Nazi messages in the media. A big fat fraction of all enemies in film and TV have been Nazis of one variety or another. The message is very clear that violence towards Nazis is justified, heroic and admirable. One of Tarantino’s latest films was a big gore fest glorifying brutal violence towards Nazis.
In this context the Nazi accusations are hate speech, and quite clearly are likely to incite confrontation and violence.
Then people want to come along and call Trump supporters Nazis at Trump rallies. And they are just supposed to sit there and meekly take it. It’s quite the cycle: media accuses Trump supporters of being Nazis, which incites people to go and disrupt Trump rallies by going to them and calling the people around them Nazis. Then, when the people hurl insults back, their objection to being called Nazis is used as evidence that they are Nazis!
The problem with this whole concept is that very many of the people protesting are of the regressive variety that think they have the right to silence people that they disagree with. The hypothetical discussed here would not allow them to do this. They would be able to voice a counter-message, but that is not what they are there to do. Trump and his supporters would say mean things to them while they acted out, and they would be triggered into a white hot state of self-righteous rage.
No, I am talking about the Occupy/antifa/BLM/Bernie Bro coalition who actively and continuously campaign and organize in order to shut down the speech of people they disagree with.
Are Trumpers organizing attempts to get anti-Trump speakers’ events canceled?