Re: Corona Virus: is it the beginning of the end?
A few key take-aways, Chris:
1. You addressed virtually none of my concerns or criticisms. Here's the big one: thousands of experts say that the election was legit. You say it's not. Why should I believe you? Who the hell do you think you are? What are the credentials you cite which permit you to override the informed opinion of thousands of well-educated individuals who know far more than we do about the inner workings of a federal election? Pro-tip: "I believe it in my heart" doesn't count. "Biden couldn't have won" doesn't count. "It was rigged" doesn't count. "They told me it was rigged" doesn't count. You have to do far better than that if you want to be taken seriously.
2. Your focus on the word "illegal alien" is very telling. Apparently you're a borderline racist too. The only people who go out of their way to use that sort of language in discourse like this are trying to prove how much they think immigrants are a threat. You and I have the privilege of living in well-developed countries, where we can reasonably expect not to be shot, bombed or otherwise turned into casualties of war. Many asylum-seekers are fleeing their country because of abject poverty and poor living conditions - conditions which, I might add, often came about as a direct or indirect result of U.S. foreign policy - but sure, call them aliens if you think that language does anything but display your bigotry. Let me know how that works for you.
Fun turnaround, while we're on the subject of border crossings: when Texas's power grid failed, Ted Cruise, facing difficult conditions at home, and flouting health guidelines not to travel to foreign countries, went to the Ritz Carlton in Cancun, Mexico. He blamed it on his kids, claimed he was going to come back the very next day when we know from his ticket reservation that this was a lie, then sorta half-heartedly apologized. So let me rephrase. When things got tough in his home country, Cruise crossed the border to stay in a country where conditions were far better. Does this sound familiar? Should a United States senator flee his own state, during a pandemic and a state-wide emergency, because the grass was greener in Cancun? I'd love to hear your justifications for that, largely because I will find it amusing to watch you twist yourself into a pretzel trying to make this okay. Remember what I said about AOC and O'Rourke in my last message, too, while you're at it.
3. Pursuant to asylum seekers, I have this source:
https://www.statesman.com/story/news/po … 388546001/
I'm sorry, but what was that you were saying about Biden letting infected people into the country without screening? Remember that I'm more than willing to go find a source to back up what I say. If your only source is hard-line right-wing media, you're going to lose this every single time. Badly.
I hear the Fox and Friends kool-aid has become especially toxic lately, so maybe you should stop drinking it.
Also, just to really slam a nail into this coffin for good:
Until you are willing to come straight out and disavow the Trump administration's punitive use of filthy cages to punish the children of immigrants, anything you say about immigration is tainted and can be pretty easily dismissed. Over six hundred children were ripped away from their parents or caregivers, and the Trump administration had no idea how to reunite them. I will admit that I think there needs to be massive immigration reform, and I think Biden's plan for this is too slow...but then again, I'm a progressive, and he's not. Never let it be said that I agree with everything Biden says or does. Are you equally willing to call out Trump's deplorable use of cages to separate innocent children from their parents as a punitive measure?
4. Okay, let's talk about riots. First of all, I can point you to dozens of times where the left has called out violence perpetuated by their own kind. I can also point you to moments where I have done the same thing. While I can understand and sympathize with the reasons why some people have gotten angry enough to engage in property damage, and while I don't put as much importance on breaking a window of a local business as, say, storming the nation's capital (for hopefully obvious reasons), I don't think violence is the answer, and it saddens me whenever and wherever it happens, no matter who is at fault. Loud protest? Sure. Do that all you like; it's your right to protest. But when things turn violent, something has gone wrong.
In other words, I'm willing to call out people who turned to violence, regardless of where they stand. I'm also willing to call out people who support policies and then don't actually follow them, regardless of their affiliation. Now, Chris, here's your chance to do the same. It's your chance to redeem yourself a little, by stating that the violence on January 6th, performed by overzealous Trump supporters, was unequivocally wrong and should not have happened. Bonus points if you can bring yourself to also condemn the use of tear gas on peaceful protestors in June when Trump wanted that photo in front of a church in DC. Even more bonus points if you can call out the violence that happened during the so-called "million MAGA marches" before the 6th. Yet more bonus points if you're willing to acknowledge publicly that the operational interference on January 6th was politically motivated. If you don't know what I'm talking about, I urge you to do a deep dive into the investigation currently going on into the events of January 6th.
Right now, all I see is you getting really, really angry at the left when they go too far, without being willing to get just as angry at the right when they, too, go too far. You'll have true extremists and bad apples on both sides here; I don't think they're proportionally equal, not by a longshot, but sure. Bad actors on the left? Yup. They're out there. So here's a really good chance for you to condemn them. No excuses, no bullshit. Come out and say it. And mean it. I double-dog-dare you.
5. Yes, Donald Trump did tell the rioters to go home. At about six p.m., hours after the shit hit the fan. He also famously said that this is what happens when an election is stolen from the rightful winner, and also said of the rioters that "we love you". I've watched the video, and I've read the tweets. He tweeted something before this, you might recall, about Mike Pence not having the courage to do what was right, while an angry mob was shrieking "Hang Mike Pence!" just outside. We have good reason to believe that Trump knew his VP was in danger, and we know from records that some of his base, who were attending the attempted insurrection, actually used this tweet to further inflame the situation. When Trump did begin to half-heartedly call out the rioters, he did so under great duress, after aides reputedly pleaded with him to do so. Prior to that, reports from those close to the ex-inciter-in-chief claim that he was "gleeful" and "delighted". Now, tell me something. Do those actions square with someone who is ready to truly criticize his own supporters for going too far? Remember, this is the guy who famously said of the Proud Boys, an alt-right white supremacist group, "stand back and stand by" when challenged to tell them to stand down. He had months, literally months, to fix the record, and didn't do it.
Because see, here's the thing. There were three types of people at that insurrection. The first group, and by far the largest, were people who were just there to yell and chant and maybe shake their fists a little. They're idiots, but they have every right to protest. The second group are folks who got caught up in the moment and became more involved than they intended; this can happen to nearly anyone, and while I think they bear some responsibility for what they did, flash mobs are a real thing, and mass hysteria is a legitimate problem when emotions run high. The third group was paramilitary in nature, and came to the capital with murder on its mind. They did so after being primed for months, not just by Trump but by most of Trump's supporters, due to the so-called big lie (which, by the way, you have yet to corroborate, because you can't).
Long story short: I'm willing to sift through the facts, and to call out the bad behaviour of people on my side of the aisle. You, apparently, are not. If I'm wrong about this, you have an excellent opportunity to correct the record on a whole host of issues.
6. You say that the left doesn't budge. First of all, this is rich coming from a guy who still claims the election was stolen, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. But the truth is perhaps even sharper than that. Simply put: I feel no need to "budge" when I'm right, and you're wrong, and it's obvious to even the most basic intellect. I tend to give the benefit of the doubt when it is earned, and to "play nice", as it were, with people who are set on doing the same. I have had many a civil discussion with conservatives in my day, and I'm sure I'll have many more. What precludes this from being nice and gentle is your continued insistence on a narrative that simply. didn't. happen. I feel no reason to treat you gently just because you're delusionally devoted to a whole smorgasbord of poisonous lies. I feel no reason to take your attempted deflection seriously, even, because you're currently asking me to hold myself to a standard to which you yourself refuse to be held accountable.
If you can demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that you are capable of changing your mind, of admitting that you were wrong (I've done this on many different occasions, so it's not exactly rare), then sure, I'll treat you like your opinions on this subject are valid. Until then, though? No, you don't get a seat at the table just because you try to pretend that you're being treated unfairly. There is no room in civil discussion for people who will not accept objective reality.
I am eager to hear the next hollow justification you might present for your intolerance. It is sad to see someone I once respected fall so far, but unfortunately, we live in a world that has become too polarized for its own good. I probably should've gotten a clue early last year, but sue me, I'm an optimist. If I can make someone think twice about the lies they've swallowed, then I feel like maybe I'm doing good work. What I have to remind myself of, from time to time, is that even when I fail to help someone see past the deceit and the self-serving rhetoric, I tried. Trying is important. We can't give up. I'm still fighting the good fight, and so are many, many others around me. Stay strong, folks. This sort of lunacy is on the downswing.
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