The primaries are winding down and it would appear that we're headed for a Trump v. Cankles showdown, unless the Republican establishment throws the convention into turmoil with brokering. Obviously, for any American who loves his country this is not an optimal situation.
In the meantime, it's quite interesting watching people rail against Mr. Trump. Make no mistake: Mr. Trump revels in making intemperate and injudicious comments that only serve to offend a lot of people. Still, unless his speech is seditious or otherwise inflammatory to the point that imminent bodily injury may occur, Mr. Trump's speech is protected. Keep in mind: His right is protected only from government infringement by the First Amendment. Those who wish to silence him by obstructing him know this and are trying to use this loophole to their advantage.
In the first place, I believe this is backfiring. By using such tactics are shouting at him, obstructing people from attending his rallies and branding him a racist, the dissenters are encouraging more people to align themselves with Mr. Trump simply because not to be with him means that one agrees with the dissenters, and there's a sizeable portion of the population that finds these tactics un-American. The dissenters probably see themselves as heirs of dissenters in pre-war Nazi Germany who, they believe, didn't do enough to stop the dictator from unleashing his brand of terror on their country and the world which, in turn, justifies their actions.
Leaving aside for a moment the question of whether Mr. Trump is this century's Hitler, the tactics being employed are interesting for a couple of different reasons. First, shouting down a speaker and trying to disrupt a political event because one disagrees with the speaker isn't exactly emblematic of tolerance. Intolerant behavior is not the same as dissent. The glue that holds together the Republic is the free and robust exchange of opposing ideas to distil which idea is best for the country and her citizens. Ironically, these liberal zealots who want free everything deny the very same thing to Mr. Trump because they disagree with him and in so doing liken themselves more to the Islamofascists who would sooner cut off their heads than allow them to continue with their antics.
Civil disobedience has a long and treasured history in this country. What the likes of Martin Luther King, Jr., did in opposing discrimination is unlike what these political wannabes are doing. Storming the dais, taking the microphone, blocking access to an event, engaging in violence with members of the opposing group -- how does this show that the opposing viewpoint is superior to that which is being aired? This is especially telling when compared to what isn't happening on the other side.
When Cankles or Bernie Sanders talks, there may be a boo here and a hiss there. Unlikely, but possible. When's the last time people have stormed the stage a la the Black Lives Matter sect, or prevented people from entering a venue, or stormed into the crowd to engage in fisticuffs with their opponents? Conservatives have their younger members, yet the behavior is markedly better than that of young liberals. Conservatives are noted for being gunowners, yet no liberal's been threatened by a gun, much less shot. Imagine what would happen if liberals owned guns like conservatives do...
...The point is very clear: Liberals don't dissent in a responsible, mature fashion. They act like petulant children who are told they have to go to bed and don't want to go to bed. That the majority of them support Mr. Sanders is to be expected. Just this week, the darling of the Left, Lena Dunham, complained that she's been treated more harshly by Sanders' supporters than by right-wingers for her support for Cankles. That's quite telling, when someone who is virulently anti-conservative actually calls out someone for being ruder than a conservative.
Again, this is unlikely to change anytime soon. The only hope is that both sides show little tolerance for this immature, sophomoric behavior. Anyone who's had child knows that at times the child has to be left to cry or that child will always cry to get whatever it wants instead of growing up and learning how to deal with reverses. That grown adults still tolerate such behavior is unacceptable. That the MSM rewards such behavior under the guise of journalism is to be expected.
The election can't happen fast enough. Then again, should Mr. Trump win, it'll be interesting to see how these protesters deal with the Secret Service and myriad law enforcement agencies when they try to rush the stage or block access to a venue for the President's motorcade.
(c) 2016 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
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