If you think about the reasons that people get punched in the face, it’s usually about something they said. Maybe it’s just a gesture. But, either way, it’s usually because of disrespect. So, it seems to me that it should be obvious that disrespectful speech can incite terrorism. It can get someone off the couch and motivated to do you harm.
This isn’t rocket science.
Unfortunately the crusaders against “political correctness” think that means we’re all morally obliged to be as disrespectful as possible to anybody who might be tempted. Authoritarian types like to have a sense that everybody is wholly either bad or good, with no grays, so they decide who’s bad and then look for evidence to confirm the judgment. Inciting terrorism in that way is to prove you were right to judge them.
To say Muslims hate us has the flavor of hate speech.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/john-mcgraw-arrest-north-carolina-trump-protester-punched
John McGraw, 78, was charged Thursday with assault and battery and disorderly conduct after he allegedly punched a black protester at Donald Trump’s rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina, according to local TV station WNCN.
The charged offense is a misdemeanor, the local sheriff’s office told the Fayetteville Observer.
McGraw was caught on video apparently sucker-punching Rakeem Jones as Jones was being escorted out of the rally by officers with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office. Jones was walking up the stairs when McGraw walked up to the aisle and punched him.
Jones then appeared to be handcuffed by authorities
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Trying to imagine how the ’08 election would have turned out if DEMs were consumed with what was happening on the GOP side during the primary season and give passing glances to the DEM primary. Like the 80:20 ratio this time, and most of the 20% used up to dismiss the competitors of the inevitable one and exalt HRC. Could have ended up with HRC/Edwards (the Enquirer wouldn’t have pursued the Edwards’ story) vs. McCain/any GOP Senator or Gov that wasn’t nutso.
I’m not sure it’s a fair comparison, though. The situation is reversed in that they have the incendiary, charismatic candidate this time. Obama was like Trump in that he prompted those “No way, no how” emotions on the other side, while the voters he attracted were thinking about near-revolutionary change (as is the case right now with Trump’s mob).
To be fair, the lack of attention to the DEM primary race is top-down driven. And I’m not even sure that those that promote it are conscious of that.
Rewind ’08 with six scheduled debates that begin in Oct ’07, no big money (Wall St/corporate/Hollywood) split, DNC in the tank for HRC, and limited local DEM institutional split (mostly between HRC and Edwards) would have resulted in little coverage of Obama (and much of it negative). He probably wouldn’t have survived IA. While denied, there was a misogynist component to much of the younger male internet support for Obama over Clinton.
I actually checked up on what Rielle Hunter was up to these days. Apparently she and Edwards were still together until last year.
Almost everything that the USA, esp the GOP, has done since 9/11 is wrong-headed and leads to inciting and inviting more terrorism. Of course, cooler heads on the left have been pointing this out since 9/11/01, but to what avail?
The Southern Strategy combined with BE AFRAID all the time has been the ruling theme of the GOP, including all of the M$M since 9/11.
Fearful people are usually authoritarians looking for Big Daddy to save and protect them. Donald Trump is a savvy dude with a lot of rat cunning. He’s using the FEAR card to his advantage. I don’t think it’s an accident or that he’s really all that concerned about ISIS or Islam. They are just the convenient boogeyman for Trump to rally up the votes.
Disgusting? Certainly. Patriotic? Not. At. All. Dangerous? Absolutely. Effective in terms of what Trump wants? Probably.
Why start with 9/11/01? It’s hardly ever been absent since 1945. And it’s mostly been bipartisan.