[the OlLine Rebel]

My mother-in-law died tonight. Yes, COVID, with pneumonia.

As if these last few months have not been bad enough (our whole family had COVID prior to Christmas) with personal issues and the uproar of the election, this day I despair even more.

I have gotten to see some of what has actually happened, rather than just words. Jury is still out but I’ve seen enough.

1). There may have been many who just plain walked into the Capitol. But there was TOO MUCH actual vandalism (breaking doors and windows) and other violent behavior to EXCUSE THIS. Granted, maybe some were fakirs from the left trying to sabotage, but I doubt all of it. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS DESTRUCTION. WE WERE BETTER THAN THEY. THIS IS JUST MORE FODDER FOR THE COMMIES.

2). While I saw what happened, the hypocrisy over handling this 1 actual incident vs all the NUMEROUS RIOTS continuous over the last 6 months as well as in the past - ALWAYS leftists breaking into riots - is obnoxious. No asking the “protest” side what they think, or showing them sympathetically, unlike BLM On the news. Our new mayor in Baltimore told us “THIS IS WHAT WHITE SUPREMACY LOOKS LIKE”...bastard. What about all your black racists rioting endlessly?

3). Trump is not the one. What I heard of his trying to calm it was weak, he wasn’t into it, it was insincere. He was not forceful on people obviously going too far. The man is not Reagan, at all. If he were, there would have been a true landslide (not the fantasy landslide some imagine) and there would be none of this in question. And he himself probably would be calling the dogs on them. Trump is not the end-all be-all, and not the hill to die on. I see far too much kingly devotion to him rather than the USA. Do not confuse them.

[RushCrush]

Those who generate anxiety in you and promise that they have the solution are grifters. See: politicians.

[Amberdawn]

Despair is a sin. I’m so sorry to hear of your MIL’s passing, I was praying for her. I don’t think people view Trump as a King, but as someone who loves his country as we do.

[familyop]

I’m sorry about your hard time and the loss of a relative.

Reagan had finesse, especially for us mesmerized Howdy Doody fans. But he also pushed us further down the import regime road to the Chinese Empire (just ahead) while calling our manufacturing jobs “dead end jobs” and trying to sell us on a service economy (slavery, see world tourist dump). Radical social liberals continued to run amok in all levels of education. The pork for breaking families and marriage continued to pour into states and counties.

We cannot go on with that. It’s a broken machine. Balance of payments deficits in trade lead to increasing piles of debt. When the bond collapse and vicious circle arrive, that’s going to hurt (see Venezuela, Argentina, others).

[LibFreeUSA]

I sympathize with your and your family’s loss. Prayers!

I also sympathize with your feelings about the events concerning our country. I tend to agree with basically what you express.

Trump was definitely no Reagan. He has a very combative style, which is good to have against your enemies, but must also be managed in order to build allies and coalitions to your side to achieve success at this level of play.

I’m reminded of the famous coaches, Woody Hayes and Bobby Knight, who despite their own greatness ultimately succumbed to their own weaknesses. Their greatest enemies turned out to be themselves.

Trumps heart has always been in the right direction, but I’m not sure his mind followed thru accordingly. Always seemingly getting distracted and off focus by injecting some meaningless slight when proper course called for maintaining momentum towards a more purposeful direction.

My biggest disappointment in Trump... two major things:

1. Focusing exclusively on the “Campaign“ and not the “Election”, while the Democrats did the reverse.

2. Not using the broad powers of the federal government by forcefully instructing the DOJ and DHS to prepare for election fraud and be ready to investigate, secure court warrants, and impound evidence. If we are to believe that we were subjected to foreign and domestic criminal interference in our national election, what good is it to have a federal DOJ and DHS agency and not use them?

[Ancesthntr]

I am sorry for the loss your family has suffered - sincere condolences to all of you.

But this was and is not about Trump. Oh, he DID win, and he WAS cheated. But it is really about us and our country. That’s why Trump ran in the first place, not for the job or ego (he knew it would be a nightmare from the start, just not how bad). He has been the ONLY person to run for President in my lifetime who actually CARED about the little guy, who in specifically ran against the Swamp, the Deep State one-worlder asshats. THAT is why they hated him - because he shielded us from them. He postponed their plans for at least 4 years.

Why didn’t he do better? Because he was utterly outnumbered. He had no political entourage or braintrust, he pretty much had to take the advice of the very RINO jerks that he ran against in the first place. Then he had to contend with BS conspiracies and coup attempt after coup attempt - and STILL he moved mountains.

We were lucky to have him leading for 4 years. He gave us that time which, had Hillary won we would never have enjoyed, as she would have finished off the Republic by now.

As fir today’s violence, most if it was a false flag operation designed specifically to obtain the reaction that we are seeing today - I at least have to give the evil bastards some credit for a good plan well executed. But we should be smart enough to not buy into it.

Go grieve, take the time needed to recover. But come back ready to fight the tyrants who would enslave you, your wife, kids and grandchildren (even if as yet unborn). This is an age old and honorable fight, don’t let these sad events derail you.

[familyop]

President Trump is a businessman. I’ve worked for business owners with his peculiar way with words before. There were also some noticeable speaking habits that he had probably learned from his television show. The good ones aren’t so bad, once you get accustomed to them. President Trump is one of our nation’s greatest two presidents, George Washington being the other one.

I don’t want to see or hear another smoothie president. We’ve had about all of the slick puppets of global plutocrats that we can stand.

[PerConPat]

I must tell you that I never thought I would see a day when a nation with a Constitution guaranteeing the right of free speech would have the words “mother” and “father’ banned on the floor of its House of Representatives. I spent over twenty years on active duty defending that Constitution. And I am not convinced the country is, in the majority, prepared to do anything about it. I don't know who is responsible for the damage in DC today, but I know many were there because they are fed up with politics that spits on our Constitution with a dazzling regularity.

[setter]

Sorry to hear about your MIL. My best friend since 1979 died of covid right before Christmas.

[The MAGA-Deplorian]

Sorry for your loss, but I think all the other crap is just piling up on you and you need a break, we all do. Trump may not be your magic man, but he has taken on far more than anyone has. He gave up everything and is on the cusp of loosing it all. So you won’t be banned, but Trump the POTUS has been banned. The most powerful man in the world silenced. Food for thought

[amorphous]

Facial recognition firm claims antifa infiltrated Trump protesters who stormed Capitol

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/jan/6/xrvision-firm-claims-antifa-infiltrated-protesters/

[L.A.Justice]

My mother-in-law died tonight. Yes, COVID, with pneumonia.

______________________________________________

I am very sorry for your loss.

Responding to your points...

(1) I agree with you...Vandalism was not acceptable...I thought that our side was better than the other side...

(2) Like you, I am annoyed by how some people were quick to condemn violence in this case but not in BLM protests...

(3) Like you, I am disappointed with President Trump...

Not for forcefully condemning violence in DC...No, I think he did condemn violence forcefully...

I am disappointed with President for other reasons...
I wanted him to stop his lawsuits once the Electoral College met in December...
Al Gore stopped contesting the 2000 election in December 2000...Same concept...

Joe Biden will be moving into White House in two weeks...President Trump is still talking about being President for four more years...I think that is wrong...I think that is undignified.

I do not believe in “winning at all costs”...

I am not denying that election system does not have any problems...For example, I don’t think a ballot should be sent to every voter...It should be mailed only if the voter makes the request.

I don’t think there is anything wrong with President pointing out problems in the election system...However, he should have stopped challenging the election result once the Electoral College met...

“Trump is not the end-all-be-all, and not the hill to die on. I see far too much kingly devotion to him rather than the USA. Do not confuse them.”

I think you made a good point...”Kingly devotion”...Good description indeed...I get the impression that some, not all, FR posters want Trump to be the “president for life”...
America should not have a “president for life”...Absolutely not...

[Prince of Space]

Please explain how Trump lost votes in the tabulation, in multiple states multiple times. Then we can talk about whether or not there was a landslide.

[tbw2]

What can I do? In the face of the coming storm, what constructive actions can we take to conserve what works and protect ourselves? Here are a few actionable solutions anyone can adopt at a personal or local level.

Find your tribe. Network, meet in person. Social media can’t censor what you say in private. This also helps you emotionally, since you’re meeting with people who support you instead of mistaking the digital lynch mobs for what matters.

Preserve conservative institutions like churches, schools and clubs. Fight social justice infiltration or pressure to submit to liberal political demands like, “you really need a BLM lecturer in here, you’ll be good if you throw up our political symbols”.
Educate. Teach your kids your values at an early age, by reading stories that share your values. Don’t let the kids go to drag queen story time or social justice story time. Protest if the school or daycare does this, or if you’re not able to do that, take your kid out and discuss the protest with other parents. Abilene Paradox – people wrongly think that the official dictate is what everyone agrees with because no one says anything against it.

Buy books that explain the conservative worldview and defend it like those by Dennis Prager. Buy books that explain why liberals and conservatives are different without demonizing them like Jonathan Haidt’s works. And start book clubs reading these books. Hello, tribe!

Fight any attempt to add social justice to codes of conduct. For example, the National Association of Realtors just implemented a policy where you can be fined or expelled for “hate speech”, public or private. Other organizations have weaker versions of this, but expect it to ramp up.

Law, medicine and social work already have rules regarding this, equating trust and respect and empathy to liberal values - so you can’t get licensed if you don’t agree. Fight this, if you don’t want to be kicked out of professional organizations if you don’t pass the liberal political litmus test.

Hire conservatives, because businesses are firing them. Assist those who have been fired for their beliefs.

2ndvote.com allows you to find conservative and neutral businesses that share your values.
You can even sort by category (restaurants, groceries, hardware, retail) or values (pro-life, 2nd amendment).

Do you like the local or national conservative talk show hosts? Buy the stuff they’re hawking, and especially use the reference or discount codes they provide. This will tell sponsors that this sponsorship is financially important to them. And that helps keep these shows on the air.

Clean your room. Sort yourself out. You can’t fix the world, but you can improve your own life and situation. Read Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University books. Get out of debt. Save up an emergency fund. If Biden’s cronies crash the economy, you’re in a much better situation. And you’re in a Christian group that can be the start of your tribe, or you can arrange classes at your church or with your networking groups to bring everyone closer together.

Encourage Sanctuary Cities/Sanctuary States on any issue you support. Second Amendment sanctuaries already exist. Pro-life Sanctuaries are far fewer but could spread. Support the groups that got these policies passed, and encourage such movements in your area. You may not be able to change federal tax and immigration policy, but you can try to preserve free speech if someone can implement a First Amendment Sanctuary law at a state level.

Use the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) college rankings on free speech to determine the least liberal schools in your area to send your kids to.