Posted on 10/10/2004 10:53:15 PM PDT by SeenTheLight
* Thugs storm campaign headquarters, intimidating staffers and refusing to leave.
* Campaign signs are vandalized, stolen, and set on fire in front of peoples' homes.
* The word "Nazi" is spray painted on the sidewalk in front of a home, along with swastikas.
* Shots are fired through the window of campaign headquarters.
* An 8-foot swastika is burned into a home’s front lawn.
If these incidents sound reminiscent of Nazi Germany or the Klu Klux Klan's early rampages, then you're in for a surprise, because they all took place in modern day America, during the run-up to the 2004 presidential election. And instead of Nazis and the KKK, it's Democrats and their leftist minions who are the perpetrators this time around. In a classic case of projection, they use swastikas to smear their political adversaries, when it is in fact they who have become today's Nazis.
Like so much of America's leftist "cultural heritage," this Nazi-obsession can be traced back to the 1960s. An Australian relative of mine who arrived in America during the so-called Summer of Love, was shocked to hear people using the term "Nazi" on a daily basis. The government, the police, and even parents were labeled "fascists" and "Nazis" by hippie youth rebelling against any and all authority.
Years later, not much has changed. Today it's hip on the left to label Republicans and in particular President Bush "Nazis" at every turn. Bush is routinely compared to Adolph Hitler, most famously in an ad put out by Democratic 527 MoveOn.org earlier this year. Hitler mustaches superimposed on Bush photos are popular at anti-war rallies, as are cute little Bush/Hitler dolls. Al Gore's notorious "digital Brown Shirts" comment during a speech at the Georgetown University Law Center, implied that the Bush administration exerted some kind of diabolical control over online journalism. Indeed, such allusions are so widespread that numerous articles and websites have been devoted to chronicling them.
Trying to explain the "logic" behind this bizarre association, one of the teenagers arrested for spray painting swastikas on a Bush/Cheney supporter's property in Duluth, Minnesota said, "The connection between the Nazi party was Hitler used nationalism as a way to motivate his cause and we feel that Bush is doing the same thing." Having been brainwashed by years of moral relativism, such youth are apparently unable to distinguish between patriotism and fascism. They also have a distorted view of their own behavior. As the same young man put it, "We're anti-fascist."
Leftist Jew-haters joined the crowd when they decided to start smearing Israel with the stain of Nazism. Despite the cruel irony of affixing the symbol of Jewish annihilation to a Jewish state, leftists have taken to this tactic with enthusiasm. Swastikas are now featured prominently at anti-war rallies, usually in combination with a Star of David. Along these lines, Israeli flags are routinely defiled by replacing the Star of David with a swastika. And now that these rallies have been infiltrated by various Islamist groups – with their Palestinian flags, Hamas-style chants, and subtle signs saying "Kill the Jews" among others – the sea of swastikas fits perfectly.
Similarly over the top are the accusations leveled against political foes in general these days. It is now common to label opponents "hateful" or "filled with hate." Apparently, "hate" now describes anyone who holds a political viewpoint contrary to one's own. All this hysteria has the unfortunate effect of trivializing history and depleting language of meaning.
At the end of the day, the simple fact is that the only people in America today (aside from a few neo-Nazis) running around spray painting, burning, and affixing swastikas are leftists. In an effort to point out what they see as the fascistic impulses of the right, they have in effect become the Nazis they claim to oppose. Faced with a popular president, the momentum of history, and their own lust for power, the left has resorted to the tactics of fascism: harassment, intimidation, and violence. Lord only knows what they'll do if Bush wins the presidency come November, but you can be sure it will involve swastikas.
Ping
Every campaign office should at least be equipped with a video camera to capture all this Krystallnacht activity.
oh please. you are nazis! no, you are nazis!, NO YOU GUYS ARE TOTALLY NAZIS!
some extremist idiots paint some swastikas and perform some low acts and so someone tries to redress the balance by calling them nazis in an article? im pretty sure that the swastika isnt representative of most leftists any more then is of those on the right. calling people nazis, from either side, is lazy and stupid.
if you think your opponents tactics are wrong, why use them yourself?
The only people using fascistic tactics and spray painting swastikas everywhere are Dems and leftists. If you hadn't noticed, this isn't happening en masse to Kerry supporters. Somehow I doubt that's just a coincidence...
Bump for read about Dem Nazi Brownshirt acts.
In my neck of the woods, I'm surprised by the number of Kerry signs and bumper stickers.
I've asked Bush supporters, and they agree with my fear of having our cars defaced by these angry and unruly people.
Here in the belly of the beast (San Francisco), we like to combine our Bush/Cheney bumper stickers with an NRA sticker. That usually does the trick :-)
feel free to condemn these acts, then... just dont join in on the nazi calling, cause its stupid no matter who does it. im just SO sick of hearing nazi references. i dont see why we should be making these idiotic comparisons any more than the other guys.
and do you really think your average democrat is sneaking around at night spraypainting swastikas everywhere? no, this is a stupid article which does nothing but prop up a leftist strawman and paint it with the extremist views. theres a lot to disagree with, especially the rather lunatic fringe of the anti-war crowd who do tend to use these clumsy over-the-top references.
but to take this fringe and then somehow paint the whole left with that brush? im not that stupid, thanks. i know the difference between the moderate majority of leftists and the idiot fringe.
since i started reading free republic ive seen many of these generalising articles... and i just think they are stupid. i know lots of people who opposed the iraq war while i supported it. some of the lefties i know supported afghanistan but not iraq. in hindsight, some of what they said about iraq turned out to be true. i wouldnt go back and make a different decision about my support, i made that decision based on the best information at the time, but i can also respect that these people hold honest views and they have their own reasons. democracy sorts out these differences.
the majority of people arent out defacing signs or going to rallies, right AND left. to paint the whole left with the actions of their extremists is as much an insult to my intelligence as it is to them. i see a lot of hate for the left here, even as freepers call them 'hate-filled' (something i read from both sides, btw) and i just DONT GET IT. for every pro-war argument there should be an anti-war argument. pro-war shouldnt be a general stance, we need to evaluate each occasion and make the best decision. im glad to live in a western society where the pro and anti crowds can argue and debate. im glad both sides in this process have a say.
but see, then theres the hate. i condemn the actions of these leftists who paint swastikas, but that doesnt mean im ok with labelling the whole left as nazis as well. this whole thing is stupid and petty, and this article drags us down to the same level as those idiots who sneak around with paint.
thats my point.
Thanks! My daughter bought a sign like that one (4x8) and it cost $170! What a friggen waste for the people who put that one up. And how disgusting that people have so little respect and tolerance of others.
One thing I noticed on that link was there were people who chastised those who thought the destruction was funny. Seems that they are upset because their signs are being messed up too. Looks like there are jerks on both sides who make it tough for those of us who are decent. I have actually convinced the little socialists next door to help me guard my signs! LOL!
You type as though you are.
thanks for that witty reposte. i just dont like wanton generalizations. the implication: "some leftists painted swastikas THEREFORE all leftists are nazis" is what annoys me.
The article merely points out that SOME leftists and Dems are using fascistic tactics in order (as they see it) to win the upcoming election, and that they are the main purveyors of swastikas today in America.
Doesn't that strike you as just a tad bit ironic, considering that they're running around calling Republicans "Nazis" all the time?
That's the point of the article.
both sides need to stop with the nazi references. stupidity doesnt stop being stupidity because we do it back to them.
Great article, Cinnamon! Actually I think it's the best I've read on the subject. Concise and clear.
As for calling the other side "Nazi" - certainly the tactics these people have using merit the name. I don't like to hear about 'our' people destroying signs or attacking people -- but I have not heard any such stories.
I do, however, hear about the other side calling us Nazi all the time.
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