aubiefifty 16,898 Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 washingtonmonthly.com White Supremacists Are Invading American Cities To Incite a Civil War by David Atkins 7-9 minutes August 30, 2020 | 4:06 PM Wikimedia Commons In his 2004 Democratic National Convention speech, Barack Obama said: “There is not a liberal America and a conservative America — there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of America.” If it was true then, it certainly isn’t true now. We are a nation on the edge of an increasingly hot civil war, one in which white supremacists are invading American cities, fomenting violence, and the overtly racist president they support sees the violence as benefiting him politically. For the last two decades at least, Democrats have labored under the notion that if they were just reasonable enough, they could heal sharpening political divides in America. Meanwhile, Republicans spent the same time period inflaming every cultural resentment they could, maximizing racist, sexist and homophobic resentments among primarily white men. Republicans worked overtime to try to set urban and exurban populations against one another, disempowering and disenfranchising city dwellers through gerrymandering and voter suppression. Donald Trump added kerosene onto the flaming bonfire built by Newt Gingrich, Karl Rove, Rush Limbaugh and Roger Ailes. He won the GOP primary not be being something radically different, but by accurately reflecting the existing dispositions of the Republican base. He embodies their ethos heart and soul, and they reward him with intense loyalty even as the economy begins to collapse and 180,000 Americans die in a pandemic he has ignored. Many like David Neiwert have long predicted this would end in violence, but were largely dismissed. Conservatives are now both more desperate and more cocksure than ever before. As more Americans started living in cities, as the racial complexion of the nation diversified, as young people locked out of housing, trapped in debt and forced into dead-end jobs realized the need for a radical rethinking of the social and economic contract, and as a larger percentage of white people went to college and by extension became increasingly inoculated from the very worst forms of bigotry, the hold of conservative elements over the country has weakened. The Right has lost the culture war. American corporations, solicitous of the economic patronage of younger trendsetters and growing families, have established ever more left-leaning branding (at least on social and environmental matters.) At the same time, however, political structures designed to empower the minority of conservatives in America to rule over its liberal majority are maintaining an apartheid-style government. The electoral college has put a conservative in the White House twice in the last two decades despite losing the popular vote, and threatens to do so again. The Senate majority belongs to conservatives who nonetheless control mostly rural states with a minority of the U.S. population, and the presence of the filibuster makes real change all but impossible even if Democrats were to retake the chamber. Gerrymandering ensures that the House of Representatives and state legislatures are stacked in favor of exurban dwellers and conservatives, with the result that even when Democrats do attain victory, those legislators are perforce more moderate than the majority of the Democratic base. And, of course, widespread voter suppression maximizes the disenfranchisement of urban progressives. Protected by these structures and with Donald Trump as president, conservatives feel that they are empowered to rule regardless of what majoritarian democracy would suggest. The protests against police violence are reflective of this broader trend. Most police do not live in the cities they serve. They tend to be extremely culturally conservative and out of the touch with the values of the taxpayers who fund them. In New York City, one of the nation’s most progressive enclaves where the president no longer dares to tread, the police union defiantly endorsed Donald Trump. Police violence against racial minorities has been a longstanding problem for decades, and one that has started to receive national attention through the diligent efforts of activists and through the presence of ubiquitous video technology to capture actions that in years past would have been sanitized in one-sided police reports. But it’s also the reality that in the age of rightwing radicalization, a large segment of the police have come more than ever to see themselves as occupying warrior forces in cities whose culture is threatening and alien to them. And the citizens of those cities know it and feel it– as psychological torment, legal harassment, financial hardship from court costs, and as scars on their bodies. Protests in this context are inevitable. And why not? The people of America’s cities have a right to demand action from their city leaders. It’s a problem for America’s cities to sort out, as citizens demand that their representatives fear their political power as much as they do that of the police organizations. But the conservative white supremacist extremists are not content to allow that to play out. An empowered urban citizenry is a direct threat to their power, an acceleration of their loss of control. The “Boogaloo” movement wants to instigate a civil war along largely racial lines precisely to settle accounts before they suffer any further cultural or demographic declines. So a few days ago a radicalized white supremacist teenager drove across state lines with the specific intent of killing protesters against racist police violence, and murdered two people and injured a third. He did so after being welcome by local police, given water, and ignored when he attempted to surrender. He is being celebrated in right-wing circles for doing so, and so-called “Christian” groups are funding his legal defense. Yesterday, convoys of out-of-town trucks and SUVs bearing Trump flags stormed into Portland with the intent of creating confrontation. They allegedly rolled through groups of protesters in their vehicles, shooting projectiles and pepper spray into the crowds. In the ensuing violence, one of the far-right Trump supporters was shot and killed. The Portland murderer should, of course, be brought to justice. There is no excuse for deadly violence. But all of this is happening because white supremacists are invading American cities with the express intent of starting a civil war. President Trump sees them as “very fine people” who are on his side. He sees the violence as politically beneficial, a useful cudgel against Democratic nominee Joe Biden–even though the violence is happening while Trump himself is president, not Biden. Trump’s election theme is that Americans won’t be safe in a Biden presidency. The opposite is true. Americans won’t be safe as long as a white supremacist president is leading a movement of bigots to incite a civil war, and attempting to ensure that the majority of Americans with cosmopolitan, egalitarian values remain politically disenfranchised and under the thumb of those who fear and despise them. David Atkins David Atkins is a writer, activist and research professional living in Santa Barbara. He is a contributor to the Washington Monthly's Political Animal and president of The Pollux Group, a qualitative research firm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August 30, 2020 | 4:06 PM Wikimedia Commons In his 2004 Democratic National Convention speech, Barack Obama said: “There is not a liberal America and a conservative America — there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of America.” If it was true then, it certainly isn’t true now. We are a nation on the edge of an increasingly hot civil war, one in which white supremacists are invading American cities, fomenting violence, and the overtly racist president they support sees the violence as benefiting him politically. For the last two decades at least, Democrats have labored under the notion that if they were just reasonable enough, they could heal sharpening political divides in America. Meanwhile, Republicans spent the same time period inflaming every cultural resentment they could, maximizing racist, sexist and homophobic resentments among primarily white men. Republicans worked overtime to try to set urban and exurban populations against one another, disempowering and disenfranchising city dwellers through gerrymandering and voter suppression. Donald Trump added kerosene onto the flaming bonfire built by Newt Gingrich, Karl Rove, Rush Limbaugh and Roger Ailes. He won the GOP primary not be being something radically different, but by accurately reflecting the existing dispositions of the Republican base. He embodies their ethos heart and soul, and they reward him with intense loyalty even as the economy begins to collapse and 180,000 Americans die in a pandemic he has ignored. Many like David Neiwert have long predicted this would end in violence, but were largely dismissed. Conservatives are now both more desperate and more cocksure than ever before. As more Americans started living in cities, as the racial complexion of the nation diversified, as young people locked out of housing, trapped in debt and forced into dead-end jobs realized the need for a radical rethinking of the social and economic contract, and as a larger percentage of white people went to college and by extension became increasingly inoculated from the very worst forms of bigotry, the hold of conservative elements over the country has weakened. The Right has lost the culture war. American corporations, solicitous of the economic patronage of younger trendsetters and growing families, have established ever more left-leaning branding (at least on social and environmental matters.) At the same time, however, political structures designed to empower the minority of conservatives in America to rule over its liberal majority are maintaining an apartheid-style government. The electoral college has put a conservative in the White House twice in the last two decades despite losing the popular vote, and threatens to do so again. The Senate majority belongs to conservatives who nonetheless control mostly rural states with a minority of the U.S. population, and the presence of the filibuster makes real change all but impossible even if Democrats were to retake the chamber. Gerrymandering ensures that the House of Representatives and state legislatures are stacked in favor of exurban dwellers and conservatives, with the result that even when Democrats do attain victory, those legislators are perforce more moderate than the majority of the Democratic base. And, of course, widespread voter suppression maximizes the disenfranchisement of urban progressives. Protected by these structures and with Donald Trump as president, conservatives feel that they are empowered to rule regardless of what majoritarian democracy would suggest. The protests against police violence are reflective of this broader trend. Most police do not live in the cities they serve. They tend to be extremely culturally conservative and out of the touch with the values of the taxpayers who fund them. In New York City, one of the nation’s most progressive enclaves where the president no longer dares to tread, the police union defiantly endorsed Donald Trump. Police violence against racial minorities has been a longstanding problem for decades, and one that has started to receive national attention through the diligent efforts of activists and through the presence of ubiquitous video technology to capture actions that in years past would have been sanitized in one-sided police reports. But it’s also the reality that in the age of rightwing radicalization, a large segment of the police have come more than ever to see themselves as occupying warrior forces in cities whose culture is threatening and alien to them. And the citizens of those cities know it and feel it– as psychological torment, legal harassment, financial hardship from court costs, and as scars on their bodies. Protests in this context are inevitable. And why not? The people of America’s cities have a right to demand action from their city leaders. It’s a problem for America’s cities to sort out, as citizens demand that their representatives fear their political power as much as they do that of the police organizations. But the conservative white supremacist extremists are not content to allow that to play out. An empowered urban citizenry is a direct threat to their power, an acceleration of their loss of control. The “Boogaloo” movement wants to instigate a civil war along largely racial lines precisely to settle accounts before they suffer any further cultural or demographic declines. So a few days ago a radicalized white supremacist teenager drove across state lines with the specific intent of killing protesters against racist police violence, and murdered two people and injured a third. He did so after being welcome by local police, given water, and ignored when he attempted to surrender. He is being celebrated in right-wing circles for doing so, and so-called “Christian” groups are funding his legal defense. Yesterday, convoys of out-of-town trucks and SUVs bearing Trump flags stormed into Portland with the intent of creating confrontation. They allegedly rolled through groups of protesters in their vehicles, shooting projectiles and pepper spray into the crowds. In the ensuing violence, one of the far-right Trump supporters was shot and killed. The Portland murderer should, of course, be brought to justice. There is no excuse for deadly violence. But all of this is happening because white supremacists are invading American cities with the express intent of starting a civil war. President Trump sees them as “very fine people” who are on his side. He sees the violence as politically beneficial, a useful cudgel against Democratic nominee Joe Biden–even though the violence is happening while Trump himself is president, not Biden. Trump’s election theme is that Americans won’t be safe in a Biden presidency. The opposite is true. Americans won’t be safe as long as a white supremacist president is leading a movement of bigots to incite a civil war, and attempting to ensure that the majority of Americans with cosmopolitan, egalitarian values remain politically disenfranchised and under the thumb of those who fear and despise them. David Atkins David Atkins is a writer, activist and research professional living in Santa Barbara. He is a contributor to the Washington Monthly's Political Animal and president of The Pollux Group, a qualitative research firm.
homersapien 11,431 Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 "The Base" (ironically enough). One among many. https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounders/the-base This are the sort of people Trump has been calling "great patriots". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 16,898 Posted September 1, 2020 Author Share Posted September 1, 2020 19 hours ago, homersapien said: "The Base" (ironically enough). One among many. https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounders/the-base This are the sort of people Trump has been calling "great patriots". i watched two trump trucks try to run down some folks on the news last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SocialCircle 570 Posted September 1, 2020 Share Posted September 1, 2020 Yes, I saw them take over 6 blocks in Seattle too. One even shot Dorn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Let’s totally turn a blind eye to the violence, killing and destruction created by ANTIFA and BLM in some cities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKW 86 7,440 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 9 hours ago, autigeremt said: Let’s totally turn a blind eye to the violence, killing and destruction created by ANTIFA and BLM in some cities. Again, you just dont understand...You are now a Trumpster. You cannot call out the DNC-Corporatist-Neo-Libs in America. They are are armed with 35,000' of denial and cannot be questioned. They are ALL, 1000% GOOD, no matter what, and anyone that merely points out their obvious hypocrisy is by their definition EVIL.There is no exception to that rule. Afterall, they are the American Uber-Menschen. No really, they are...They are the very thing they SAY they hate. EX: Antifa and BLM. Protesters are fine, no one disputes a peaceful Protest. It is a continuation of MLK & and Gandhi. But that wasnt getting enough headlines according to the Neo-Libs @ the DNC, so they let America be run by CHOP, Antifa, and BLM, and now, we have Riots going 80+ days, burning of buildings, businesses, lives, careers, families, etc. Corporatist Neo-Lib DNC Ruling Class: "See, that's Trump's America!" Trump moves to shut it down. Corporatist Neo-Lib DNC Ruling Class: "Trump is a fascist." Now like everything else in last four years, they beat this crazy, obviously partisan s*** show 24-7 for months thinking that actually running a campaign of nothing but "Orange-Man-Bad" was all they needed to do to win. I mean, didnt we all get the message with: RUSSIANS!!!! Collusion!!! Impeachment!!! and now, O-M-B!!!!! They dont need policies or reasons to be elected. All they need is "For the dumbasses in the flyover country to just wake up and admit their Obvious Superiority, you know, admit and recognize that they are the American Ruling Class, the American Uber-Menschen, they are superior to the rest of us simply by membership in a party. Suddenly reality hits them in the face that the total dumpster fire that truly is the Trump Campaign is now within the margin of error in most states BECAUSE AMERICA HAS HAD IT WITH LAWLESSNESS. Biden finally goes on tv and makes a "Complete Demented Ass" of himself because his whole campaign has really been about Hidin With Biden, in the Basement, in the "Das Bunker," and nothing but OMB 24-7 until November. He has no real policies that matter to America. He has no credibility with what his handlers NEED HIM TO SAY because it mostly goes against the 40+ years of Neo-Lib History of Republican Lite Joe Biden. And now it is becoming more and more obvious that he can barely string words together in an interview that dont make him look like a bumbling ass. With Trump mishandling the Corona Virus so poorly, you think he would be behind by miles, but no...The DNC and its minions had to go spike the damn ball about a 1000 times such that they HAM-HANDEDLY hand Trump the one Issue he can kick their asses with, Law & Order, and suddenly it looks almost exactly like 2016 AGAIN. But instead of trying to pivot to a more traditional campaign, the Neo-Libs seem intent on NOT LISTENING TO AMERICA, JUST LIKE IN 2016 and making this a far tougher campaign than it ever had to be. Does the DNC show it cares about the average citizen in Portland, Kenosha, wherever? Nope. More rioting, looting, careers ended, businesses gone, families destroyed, mostly Black businesses gone and the Dems sit back and smile and say "See, this is Trump's America." But the American Public seems to be seeing it differently and saying: "No, this is Neo-Libs-Out-of-Power America" and America seems to want no part of it. So, if Biden Loses, it will be time to blame the American People yet again for not recognizing that the Ruling Class Elites, the American Uber-Menschen, are obviously better than all of America simply because of party affiliation and we should all thank our lucky stars that these wonderful So-called Enlightened People spend their time ruling, and lording, and getting filthy stinking rich while talking down to the rest of us. We should just realize that they are the American Uber-Menschen and just fall in line and do whatever they want....I mean that is what this seems to be all about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homersapien 11,431 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 12 hours ago, autigeremt said: Let’s totally turn a blind eye to the violence, killing and destruction created by ANTIFA and BLM in some cities. Is anyone actually doing that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homersapien 11,431 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 On 9/1/2020 at 9:58 AM, SocialCircle said: Yes, I saw them take over 6 blocks in Seattle too. One even shot Dorn. Let's compare body counts between protestors and the white nationalists. Hell, let's compare body counts between the rioters and the white nationalists. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McLoofus 35,182 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 12 hours ago, autigeremt said: Let’s totally turn a blind eye to the violence, killing and destruction created by ANTIFA and BLM in some cities. Actually, I'm pretty sure Fifty, Homie and I would all love to see your numbers and where you came up with them. Let's talk about it. What ya got? Also, can you please elaborate on who you mean by "ANTIFA"? Please be as detailed as possible- actual organizational details, specific beliefs, crimes attributed to specific groups, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey 16,716 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 On 8/31/2020 at 9:23 AM, aubiefifty said: White Supremacists Are Invading American Cities To Incite a Civil War The endless riots were bound to bring out a group that intends to stop them. Calling them white supremacists is silly. I'd call them ordinary Americans who have had a belly full of failures by Democrat governors and mayors and are on the verge of replying to the rioters in kind. It's local and state government's job to provide security for the populace. They can call on the Feds if necessary, but they won't do that. When government fails, honest people will step up. It's sad that things have come to this, but blame the situation on inaction by state and local authorities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 5 hours ago, McLoofus said: Actually, I'm pretty sure Fifty, Homie and I would all love to see your numbers and where you came up with them. Let's talk about it. What ya got? Also, can you please elaborate on who you mean by "ANTIFA"? Please be as detailed as possible- actual organizational details, specific beliefs, crimes attributed to specific groups, etc. Like I said turning a bling eye because you have to be BLIND not to see it. A lot of videos out there....are you sure you want me to start posting them? OK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 I could go on and on and on and on and on.......... BLM is a political organization that began and an LGBTQ group started by three lesbian women of color. Black men were once a target for them....my how that has changed. And ANTIFA....HA! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McLoofus 35,182 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Just now, autigeremt said: Like I said turning a bling eye because you have to be BLIND not to see it. A lot of videos out there....are you sure you want me to start posting them? OK I didn't say violence isn't happening. What I asked for is direct links between violence and the specific "groups" you mentioned. For example, here you will find a report detailing how white supremacist groups have infiltrated police departments across the country. A brief excerpt: Quote In 2017, the FBI reported that white supremacists posed a “persistent threat of lethal violence” that has produced more fatalities than any other category of domestic terrorists since 2000. Can you point to anything similar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Just now, McLoofus said: I didn't say violence isn't happening. What I asked for is direct links between violence and the specific "groups" you mentioned. For example, here you will find a report detailing how white supremacist groups have infiltrated police departments across the country. A brief excerpt: Can you point to anything similar? I don't need reports when examples are all around us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homersapien 11,431 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, autigeremt said: I could go on and on and on and on and on.......... BLM is a political organization that began and an LGBTQ group started by three lesbian women of color. Black men were once a target for them....my how that has changed. And ANTIFA....HA! I am sure you could. It's all so simple, huh? It's all right there in the videos. BTW, are they the "shadow people" Trump referred to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McLoofus 35,182 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 3 minutes ago, autigeremt said: I could go on and on and on and on and on.......... BLM is a political organization that began and an LGBTQ group started by three lesbian women of color. Black men were once a target for them....my how that has changed. You did go on and on and on. I'm glad you're done. Yes, BLM is an organization. But exactly which violent crimes can you attribute specifically to them? Which violent crimes can you point to that were perpetrated in support of their cause? 5 minutes ago, autigeremt said: And ANTIFA....HA! You're going to have to do much, much better than that if you want to accomplish anything beyond proving my point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homersapien 11,431 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, autigeremt said: I don't need reports when examples are all around us. Videos galore! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McLoofus 35,182 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, autigeremt said: I don't need reports when examples are all around us. Yes, you do, if you plan to enter a conversation and be taken seriously. So far, you've failed to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homersapien 11,431 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 4 minutes ago, McLoofus said: I didn't say violence isn't happening. What I asked for is direct links between violence and the specific "groups" you mentioned. For example, here you will find a report detailing how white supremacist groups have infiltrated police departments across the country. A brief excerpt: Can you point to anything similar? Depends. How similar are Fox and the FBI? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 Just now, homersapien said: Videos galore! Along with mission statements, words from their leaders and actions. When will they start trying to help black people in areas where death rates are out of the roof due to gang violence? The statistics have been horrible for decades. Crickets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, McLoofus said: Yes, you do, if you plan to enter a conversation and be taken seriously. So far, you've failed to do that. No....being taken seriously first starts with serious people who want to objectively have a conversation about the truth. Until then........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autigeremt 6,668 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 2 minutes ago, homersapien said: Depends. How similar are Fox and the FBI? As similar as CNN and Facebook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McLoofus 35,182 Posted September 2, 2020 Share Posted September 2, 2020 1 minute ago, autigeremt said: No....being taken seriously first starts with serious people who want to objectively have a conversation about the truth. Until then........... Sigh. You've got nothing, except things that you want to be true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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