Tuesday, July 3, 2018

History as Nothing Much at All

Victor Davis Hanson

If everything is like the Nazis, then the Nazis of history are no different from an ICE officer, a White House staffer, or . . . you and me.  

Demagoguery
"Former CIA director Michael Hayden recently tweeted a picture of a Nazi extermination camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau, with his commentary: “Other governments have separated mothers from children.” The suggestion was that industrialized death on an unprecedented scale was somehow similar to the temporary detention of children once their parents have been detained for violating federal law.

"Actor Peter Fonda recently advised the following about Trump policy adviser Stephen Miller: “Don’t let the pedophile Stephen Goebbels Miller near those girls separated from their parents.” Comedian Kathy Griffin has asserted that the Trump administration is “quite pro-Nazi.”

"Fonda perhaps lacks the subtlety of a Bill Kristol, who implies rather than sledgehammers the Nazi comparisons. When Michael Anton, a writer whose articles often appeared in The Weekly Standard, went to work for the Trump administration, Kristol reduced Anton to the status of an infamous Nazi lawyer: “Carl Schmitt to Mike Anton: First time tragedy, second time farce.”

"Sounds slick, but Anton was working for an elected government in general and in particular for a National Security Council under Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster that was trying to reestablish U.S. deterrence. Stranger still, it is hard to understand how Carl Schmitt’s Nazi-party membership and advocacy (begun formally as early as 1933) were in any sense “tragic” rather than vile. And if the subordinate is supposedly Carl Schmitt, what then would Kristol call his boss, the iconic McMaster? Goebbels? Heydrich?" . . .
History is now following a sort of Gresham’s law: Lots of cheap, bad history drives out what is left of good history.In other words, when almost everything and everyone is analogous to Belzec, Sobibór, and Treblinka and their architects, then Belzec, Sobibór, and Treblinka become almost nothing at all.

Quick looks at some things

Kylie Jenner Gets Trashed For Wishing Caitlyn Jenner A Happy Father's Day  "My dad is my dad, but he’s not there physically anymore. But she lets me call her dad — that’s the last little piece of dad I’ve got," she said.
"Talk about heartbreaking. Clearly, the transition has deeply affected the entire family, especially Kylie and Kendall"

Sidwell Friends Teacher Harasses Scott Pruitt At A Restaurant  . . . “I just wanted to urge you to resign, because of what you’re doing to the environment in our country,” Mink said, holding her two-year-old son and a notepad, as her husband recorded the encounter." . . . We'll watch for her on a late-night talk show; you know: the kind where the host has an applause sign.


Vandals Throw Brick Through Nebraska GOP Office, Scrawl “Abolish ICE” In Front  . . . "Prominent Democrats across the country have been whipping up support for abolishing U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE), in an appeal to the party’s left-wing base." . . .


Man Who Threatened Rand Paul And His Family Identified  . . . "While [Nathanial Blaine] Luffman’s alleged victim is not named in court records describing the threats, U.S. Capitol Police describe him as an Oregon elected official with an office at a federal building in Portland. The court records also say the suspect has been associated with “other known threatening communications to members of Congress." . . .




Of course, some blame July.

Then again, maybe it's Israel's fault: 
Iran Blames Israel For Stealing CloudsIsrael lives rent-free inside the heads of the ayatollahs and Obama

Surely you've heard of the #WalkAway movement?

As of this posting.
Even in the face of dealing with the evil of North Korea and the Ayatollahs of Iran, the left is willing to tolerate ending Trump's efforts in these matters to spite him. The left would rather have murderous, threatening dictators and Obama rather than Trump or any - any - Republican. If we dare think President Trump's absence would bring civility back, then we are too naive to possess a Republic such as this. TD



Straka
Viral ‘Walk Away’ Videos Highlight Growing Movement of Democrats Leaving the Party  . . . "Meet Brandon Straka, the unlikely liberator and new faceof the “silent minority” of Americans who’ve been cast out by family and friends, fired from jobs, and forced into silent social ghettos for their failure to “get it” about how hateful and dangerous Donald Trump is, and why he and all his supporters should be subjected to an ever-expanding social and professional fatwah." . . .
When actor James Woods tweeted out the hashtag “#WalkAway” in late June, even the alt-right missed the enormity of what lay beneath it. The Democratic Party had, in fact, struck an iceberg.
Some 5 million people on Facebook and YouTube have seen the video by now. A very handsome gay man, who you just assume is about to scold you on progressive talking points, instead says this:
“Once upon a time, I was a liberal. Well, to be honest, less than a year ago, I was still a liberal.
“I reject a system which allows an ambitious, misinformed and dogmatic mob to suppress free speech, create false narratives, and apathetically steamroll over the truth.”
And then this devastating line—the Rosa Parks moment of the video:
“I reject hate.”
If Democratic strategists were still able to watch the rest of the video without suffering a nervous breakdown, they’d see that it quickly got worse.
“These are the reasons why I became a liberal. And these are the same reasons why I am now walking away.”
The #Walkaway Facebook page



Why I joined #WalkAway  "I recently joined the #WalkAway Facebook group and was moved reading a number of posts from former lifelong Democrats by members of just about every minority group imaginable (LGBT, black, Latino, Jewish, Muslim, etc.).  They are done with the Democratic Party, figuratively walking away from it.  They have finally woken up to the fact that the party has veered too far left and suffers from a bad case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. " . . .
" . . . A couple of years later, many delegates at the national convention booed when G-d and Israel were mentioned.  I will never vote for a Democrat in a national race again. "   Also here.



PJ Media: #WalkAway Campaign Urges Fed-Up Democrats to Leave the Party
. . . "He said the reason he was so devastated was because he believed all of the media lies about Trump being a "racist, bigot, sexist, homophobe, sexual predator.""He said his evolution away from the lies began when he saw a video that exposed the lie that Trump had made fun of a reporter's disability."It's a compilation of footage going back to like the nineties," Straka told Harris. "It's him doing that exact same voice, and that exact same gesture numerous times when he's talking about numerous people in numerous situations," he explained." . . .

Breitbart claims the movement "goes viral"  "The #Walkaway movement that began with a popular Facebook video featuring a gay hairdresser in New York City explaining why he was leaving the Democratic Party has quickly morphed into a major force on social media and beyond. ' . . .
"The movement has been especially successful because its spokespersons have not been the sort typically associated with conservativism. Young and old, black and white, men and women, gay and straight—the campaign seems to elude stereotypes and pigeonholing.
"The popular young conservative commentator C.J. Pearson, for instance, has given the movement a significant push by highlighting the Democratic Party’s racist past. “The Democratic Party is the party of slavery. The party of Jim Crow. The party of segregation. The party of the KKK,” Pearson tweeted Saturday.“  " 'Democrats walked away from black folks long ago. Now, it’s our time to #WalkAway,” he added." . . .


Pompeo to head to North Korea as doubts mount about its intentions



Reuters  "U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will leave for North Korea on Thursday seeking agreement on a plan for the country’s denuclearization, despite mounting doubts about Pyongyang’s willingness to abandon a weapons program that threatens the United States and its allies.

"North Korea has consistently refused in past rounds of failed negotiations to provide an inventory of its weapons program, and U.S. intelligence remains uncertain of how many nuclear warheads North Korea has.

"The Defense Intelligence Agency has a high end estimate of about 50 nuclear warheads. But U.S. intelligence agencies believe Pyongyang is concealing an unknown number, including smaller tactical nuclear weapons, in caves and other underground facilities around the country." . . .

Trump has sought to make Waters, one of the fiercest critics of his administration, the face of the Democratic Party

Miguel Guanipa
UK Daily Mail  . . . "But he hit Democrats heavily, particularly Waters, who he has repeatedly gone after ever since she called on the public to assail his administration officials when they see them.
. . . 
"One Democrat on that committee told The Hill that a few members of the panel are worried that Waters' recent remarks about confronting administration officials are a sign that she's itching to lead a crusade against Trump.
" 'We've got a division because some people are very concerned that she's going to be pushing an ideological agenda,' said the lawmaker. 'We can have disagreements on the substance, and that's fine. I just want to make sure it doesn't become like a show.'  
"And Waters has acknowledged her enhance public role as a Trump critic and the dangers that come with it.
"Over the weekend she warned would-be assassins that if they intend to target her, they 'better shoot straight.' 
" 'I know that there are those who are talking about censuring me, talking about kicking me out of Congress, talking about shooting me, talking about hanging me,' Waters during a rally on Saturday.

" 'All I have to say is this, if you shoot me you better shoot straight, there's nothing like a wounded animal.' "

Maxine Waters is done with 'nice guy politics'  
. . . From the perspective of some House Democrats, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) has the right message. She’s just not always the best messenger.
"The Los Angeles lawmaker’s early calls for President Trump’s impeachment and viral showdowns with administration officials have endeared Waters to the party’s young, liberal base. And those stances have also garnered the respect of many House Democrats, who admire how Waters, 79, sticks to her political convictions.
. . . 
"Yet her most recent remarks — encouraging public confrontation with Cabinet members — rankled some of those colleagues and raised concerns about how Waters would handle increased authority if Democrats regain control of the House in November." . . .

The Rodney King riots taught us not to make her voters angry. Just ask truck driver Reginald Denny  TD

Ocasio-Cortez may be a phony, but is still leftist enough for the northeast

Monica Showalter: Vaunted Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is damaged goods now  . . . "This is a dramatic turnaround.  Ocasio's youth, hipsterly pert campaign literature, and fresh-faced good looks had, up until a few days ago, been hailed as sign that Democrats' fortunes were turning upward, socialism was alive, and a blue wave was building after all.  Ocasio used her ethnicity to draw ethnic voters, and while her ethnicity itself is not in question, her supposed common shared experience with those voters is.  She's not going to serve the Bronx and Queens as Jenny from the block, shoveling pork as the locals like.  She's more likely to serve as their disdainful college professor, spouting snowflake-friendly admonitions and going green, as befits her real background."

Is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a racist? Good grief, are conservatives using that accusation too?

. . . "Instead of being truthful, the progressive politician, raised in Yorktown Heights, portrayed herself as a Marxist "from the block," so to speak." . . .