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Don't rule out violence against Donald Trump, says one of UW's brightest
The Wisconsin State Journal ^ | June 19, 2016 | Chris Rickert

Posted on 06/19/2016 4:08:35 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

An essay by an incoming UW-Madison doctoral student suggesting that violence might be the proper response to Donald Trump is drawing concern within the university’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Because apparently these days we’re a nation that is ready to nominate a buffoonish reality TV star for president and deem a “journalist” who excuses violence against that nominee as one of the “best-qualified applicants” at a world-renowned university.

It all began with an essay self-described “smarmy liberal writer” Jesse Benn published on the Huffington Post earlier this month titled “Sorry liberals, a violent response to Trump is as logical as any.”

Benn argues that Trump may well personify modern fascism and that his supporters, some of whom are actual fascists, have used violence, and that violent resistance to fascism can be understandable and lead to positive change. Among the examples he cites are America’s fight against the Nazis in World War II and rioting in the wake of Freddie Gray’s death in Baltimore.

In a June 8 email to faculty, staff and students, journalism school director Hemant Shah says the piece “has a lot of people riled up, including white supremacists who are hurling anti-Semitic comments at Benn on Twitter.”

At least one person also contacted the school to wonder “if he could attend a program that accepted a student (Benn) who advocated violence,” Shah writes, and Benn received a phone message full of “Nazi propaganda speeches” that “was sent from the SJMC front office phone number,” suggesting the school’s phone system might have been hacked.

Long story short, Benn and Shah called UW Police, who advised Benn, who lives out of state, to call his local police if he felt threatened, police spokesman Marc Lovicott said.

The calls to the journalism school “were more so ‘complaints’ about Mr. Benn’s article” but “not threatening in nature,” Lovicott said, and “There is no active investigation here at UWPD regarding these incidents at this time.”

Shah told me Wednesday that there’s been no other trouble since, and he had no other concerns about Benn’s affiliation with the university. Benn, as one of “a subset of the best-qualified applicants” to the school’s graduate program, will earn a $14,000 stipend as a teaching assistant, tuition remission and health benefits “at the established rate,” Shah said.

Shah said he doesn’t think “that violence is necessarily a ‘logical’ reaction to Trump’s demagoguery” but agreed that “Trump has condoned violence and xenophobia, and resisting Trump is more than just resisting his candidacy for president; it’s resisting a potential social shift toward becoming an intolerant society.”

Benn told me his point wasn’t to condone violence, but that “it’s not fair for me to sit here from a position of privilege and uniformly declare it morally abhorrent or illogical — which a lot of liberals immediately did.”

It seems to me it would be pretty hard for Trump to get his more extreme proposals enacted. Ours is a federal government that can’t seem to get important things done even when there’s an ostensibly sane person in the Oval Office.

There’s also little sign that local, state and federal officials and judges would help Trump, say, round up millions of productive, otherwise law-abiding undocumented workers and ship them back to wherever they came from.

Benn agreed it’s not “terribly likely” Trump would be able to pull off his crazier ideas, but then “my loved ones aren’t facing the implications of his successfully pulling them off.”

He said he’s gotten 20 to 30 threatening phone calls in response to the Huffington Post piece, as well as death threats and other backlash, and had to change his phone number. He said he received similar flak for a piece he wrote for the Huffington Post called “Towards a concept of white wounding.”

Although he said he’s fearful, he hasn’t called his local police because he doesn’t think they’d be much help. “I’m strongly opposed to our structure of policing as it currently exists,” he said, adding, “I don’t want them driving around my neighborhood putting my neighbors who are already on the margins more at risk of unwanted police contact.”

It all got me wondering if maybe there wasn’t a local municipal issue Benn could sink his formidable intellect into, or a foreign news bureau he could staff. God knows in these days of declining “mainstream,” if-your-mother-says-she-loves-you-check-it-out news coverage, local officials have been known to practically cry out for attention (at least for the good stuff) and certain foreign people could use a little more exposure of their travails.

I’m not sure those are the kinds of skills they value in grad students anymore, though.


TOPICS: Conspiracy; Education; Government; Politics
KEYWORDS: 2016election; chrisrickert; demagogicparty; election2016; hemantshah; huffingtonpost; huffpo; jessebenn; lasvegas; memebuilding; michaelsandford; nevada; newyork; partisanmediashill; partisanmediashills; puffho; puffingtonhost; trump; violence; wisconsin
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I’m sure he’ll be right on the front line of brick throwers leading the way....along with his BFF Pajama Boy.


21 posted on 06/19/2016 5:13:41 PM PDT by TADSLOS
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Dear Jesse Benn,

If you hear the sound of a dozen or more Harlies you better run...


22 posted on 06/19/2016 5:19:59 PM PDT by darkwing104 (Forgive but don't forget)
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To: HarleyLady27

These articles don’t make the OP barf. He may well agree, if not he at least understands the sentiment. Hence, no alert.


23 posted on 06/19/2016 5:25:50 PM PDT by Defiant (After 8 years of Chump Change, it's time for Trump Change.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

No, Trump is buffoonish?

What is the proper modifier for a grifting lying low IQ (yes, she is not smart at all) wench who had to boink a true bubba to keep eating and has failed miserably at every real job she has had?

As for violence, what is given can be returned.

In spades.


24 posted on 06/19/2016 5:27:53 PM PDT by Da Coyote
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To: NFHale

Yeah.... a dynamic entry to this POS’s graduation party is just the gift that says...

“I care”


25 posted on 06/19/2016 5:29:49 PM PDT by Squantos ( Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet ...)
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To: From The Deer Stand

“Elect a buffoonish reality TV star? “

These idiots haven’t the vaguest clue about Trump! A Reality TV star? That’s all he’s ever been? Sheesh!


26 posted on 06/19/2016 5:39:16 PM PDT by Dr. Bogus Pachysandra (Don't touch that thing Don't let anybody touch that thing!I'm a Doctor and I won't touch that thing!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

No surprise at the promotion of violence from the Marxist left.


27 posted on 06/19/2016 6:51:37 PM PDT by Lopeover (2016 Election is about allegiance to the United States!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

One of the Left’s “best and brightest” no doubt....


28 posted on 06/20/2016 3:10:48 AM PDT by trebb (Where in the the hell has my country gone?)
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To: All

What’s good for the goose....


29 posted on 06/20/2016 5:11:52 AM PDT by Maverick68
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To: All

Reality star?
How many time have the Obumbles family been on Ellen or some other talk show, Twerking or acting like fools?


30 posted on 06/20/2016 5:13:01 AM PDT by Maverick68
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To: Lopeover
>>No surprise at the promotion of violence from the Marxist left.

 

Would that be the same "Marxist left" / Usful Idiots who've been facilitating the strategic demoralization of American culture - whose craftsmanship is associated with the rainbow flag?

 

"According to my opinion, and the opinions of many defectors of my caliber, only about 15% of time, money, and manpower is spent on espionage as such. The other 85% is a slow process which we call either ideological subversion, active measures, or psychological warfare. What it basically means is: to change the perception of reality of every American that despite of the abundance of information no one is able to come to sensible conclusions in the interest of defending themselves, their families, their community, and their country.
 
It's a great brainwashing process which goes very slow and is divided into four basic stages.
 
The first stage being "demoralization".
 
It takes from 15 to 20 years to demoralize a nation. Why that many years? Because this is the minimum number of years required to educate one generation of students in the country of your enemy exposed to the ideology of [their] enemy. In other words, Marxism-Leninism ideology is being pumped into the soft heads of at least 3 generation of American students without being challenged or counterbalanced by the basic values of Americanism; American patriotism.
 
Most of the activity of the department [KGB] was to compile huge amount / volume of information, on individuals who were instrumental in creating public opinion.  Publisher, editors, journalists, uh actors, educationalists, professors of political science.  Members of parliament, representatives of business circles. 
 
Most of these people were divided roughly into two groups:  those who would tow the Soviet foreign policy, they would be promoted to positions of power through media and public manipulation;  [and] those who refuse the Soviet influence in their own country would be character assassinated OR executed physically, come Revolution.  "
--KGB Defector Yuri Bezmenov
--Soviet Subversion of the Free Press (Ideological subversion, Destabilization, CRISIS - and the KGB)
 
 

31 posted on 06/21/2016 12:25:28 PM PDT by HLPhat (It takes a Republic TO SECURE THESE RIGHTS - not a populist Tyranny of the Majority)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

“Benn told me his point wasn’t to condone violence, but that “it’s not fair for me to sit here from a position of privilege and uniformly declare it morally abhorrent or illogical — which a lot of liberals immediately did.””

But he will uniformly declare Trump morally abhorrent. This clown (Benn) is a dangerous hypocrite.


32 posted on 06/21/2016 4:43:39 PM PDT by Henry Hnyellar
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