The Right-Wing Media Has Unleashed a Race War that Threatens Our Democracy and Our Personal Safety
BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG
by Mark Karlin
In more than 9 years of editing BuzzFlash, nothing has been as profoundly wounding to me since 9/11 as yesterday's act of domestic terrorism at the Holocaust Museum -- its location so tragically symbolic.
Like all BuzzFlash readers, we welcomed the election of Barack Obama as a return to America's Constitutional, pro-democracy roots -- and as a step into a future filled with promise and opportunity, not the destruction, tyranny and lies of the Bush Administration.
But what none of us expected is that the right-wing media shills and their corporate owners would unleash what is becoming an armed rebellion of white males against our governnment: the likes of FOX, Limbaugh, Savage and the whole treasonous crew has lit the match -- with a wink and a nod -- of the long, historic White Power movement, while inciting the displaced and confused anger of the more casually involved white male who sees the economy and his "entitlement of race and gender" slipping away from him.
Make no mistake about it, these are perhaps the first skirmishes in a right-wing media convergence with the White Power movement and the official military ordinance lobby for both of them -- the NRA.
Yesterday's domestic terrorism act was not just another murder in America's shooting gallery; it was the clearest sign in a series of recent shooting deaths that the right wing is going to use the White Power movement as its foot soldiers in leading this nation into bloody attacks, assassinations, and chaos -- out of which the white Christian nation will "triumph." If all of this sounds a bit familiar, it's because the notion of racial purity and power is a horror that we have lived through before.
How quickly our euphoria has faded. We thought that we would be facing vibrant public policy debates over healthcare and civil liberties, and now we have to prepare for a war on the "lone wolves," the militia movement, and the pernicious, treason-inciting talk show hosts of the right wing.
If you are wondering what you can do at this moment of helplessness, you can read "Blood and Politics: The History of the White Nationalist Movement from the Margins to the Mainstream," by White Power specialist Leonard Zeskind. Just published this spring, it exhaustively and compellingly reveals (672 pages) what we are up against -- and it may be a challenge far more daunting than dealing with al Qaeda, because the right wing of the Republican Party is unleashing this movement through their media puppets.
On Twitter, a BuzzFlash follower recently wrote: "And thank you BuzzFlash for never backing down from a story." This is not a story; it is a grave danger that threatens the very foundations of democracy, our lives, and the future of a D.C. establishment that cannot stand up to the enemy within, including the hate talkers in the media.
BuzzFlash has a unique impassioned voice among the progressive news sites. We are fearless and uncompromising. We have watched the White Power movement and the emergence of the propaganda arm of right-wing media for some years -- and we have been following the goals and tactics of the NRA for at least two decades.
These people are serious; deadly serious.
BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG
Must read, just published this Spring: Blood and Politics: The History of the White Nationalist Movement from the Margins to the Mainstream
With your financial support, we won't back down. We never have.
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I Beg to Differ
A killing by a crazy guy? In our country it is a point of pride that any crazy guy can buy a gun; it's no surprise that a crazy guy goes off and kills someone now and again. It's too bad it has to happen, but this is simply the consequence of a bargain we struck by having guns readily available to anyone who wants one.
Even since 9/11 there have been events that I find more profoundly wounding. Domestic spying, torture, phosphor bombs, a million killed in Iraq - each is more profoundly wounding to me than one shooting by some deranged guy. Still, what I find most profoundly wounding remains the Bush v Gore decision.
In Bush v Gore, our Supreme Court abandoned our traditions, our Constitution and all sense of common decency. This was not the act of one crazy guy. Rather it showed that our Supreme Court was now composed of a majority of crazy guys. I found and still find that more profoundly wounding than anything that has happened since.
Take A Look At This
It's a story AND a danger warning...
This is how you hold the Press Whores accountable!
Here's how:
1) Amend the Communications Act of 1996 to:
2) Reinstate the Fairness Doctrine
3) Force divestiture
4) No entity may own more than a total of 5 media properties in the US. Period (Media properties include: newspapers, wire services, magazines, TV stations, Radio stations, Broadcasting companies, computer companies, motion picture studios, talent agencies, software companies, entertainment production companies, cable systems, web pages, advertising agencies, publishing companies, stores that sell books, DVDs, music, broad and narrowband companies, web hosting sites and webpages)
5) Media companies may not have interlocking directorates. Screwpert Murdoch has NO business sitting on the board of directors of the ASSociated Press!
6) No media company may own more than one media property in a market
7) Advertisers are held responsible for the content of media they purchase advertising for
8) Newspapers, and broadcasting companies are responsible for their content
9) All Media companies are taxed at 25% of their gross income, the funds derived will finance real public broadcasting with no corporate ties.
10) The airwaves belong to the American people, not to Murdoch, GE, Redstone or any other billionaire.
11) Enact a Three Strikes Rule in the media. Three lies and you're out. Freedom of Speech does NOT include the freedom to lie!
The power of Hate must be neutralized
Spot on
George Carlin has had it spot on for years......about the American Dream. The elites get to decide the rules of who gets to decide who can steal from whom and they keep us entertained and stupid with sports, video games and TV.
They create binary pigeon holes for right and left wing and liberal and conservative to make it easy for the media and so we can self identify with as blue or red or D or R.
Most of us who analyze and think analogue (not binary) don't buy into the spin and vote candidates and not Parties.
Hey Mark!!!!
License everyone on the airwaves
Solution: Clean up the FCC so it is a reputable organization. ANYONE in the media (radio, tv) whose voice is heard over the airwaves must be licensed to get on the air. The license would require them to fact-check everything they say. If they are caught lying or misrepresenting information, it's "3 strikes and your out!" together with a hefty fine. If they are caught lying over something that can endanger the lives of others, spreading hate or racism, hefty prison time would do the trick.
Racism never left America. It has been simmering in a pot that is now boiling over with ignorant, uneducated, middle class whites feeling threatened as they lose jobs, homes and hope. Blacks, Native Americans and hispanics have been dealing with this from day one. This is the perfect environment for the resurgence of "us vs. them".
Not one white person is entitled more than the next person in this country. Whites are all immigrants like the rest of us. They stole this land from Native Americans and now they want lay claim to what they believe is due them. They need to get over it, get educated and get in gear. It's been welfare for whites since they landed on Plymouth Rock. The party is now over and they are mad because the elites have left them in the soup with the minorities. Welcome to the club!
What I find most interesting is that the blinders are now off. We see exactly what the thieving, war-mongering, greedy, racist right-wing party is about. If they don't get their way to enslave us all, they simply take it.
We need to stop this mess now or this country is doomed. Crimes promoting racism in any form must be met with severe penalties and enforced to the max.
Excellent piece, Mark, but I take exception to...
WARNING: Be wary of tragedies
We see the same racist hatred in the Middle East by Israelis and Palestinians. Thousands of mostly innocent women and children are killed and oddly the US media never covers it, because if they are Palestinians they aren't considered important.
It is tragic that this museum guard was killed but why does the media saturate us with every possible nuance, reason and rationale in only this case? The same thing happened by the media during the supposed intended synagogue bombing in Connecticut, until we found out it was an FBI setup of some less than intelligent ex-cons.
WARNING: Be wary of tragedies as they will be used by those with agendas to strip away the rights granted by our Constitution. We saw it in 9-11.
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It's Always About Power
Ever since the nation was founded, there has been some group who bore the brunt of our society's hatred. It began with the native American tribes, but quickly became an imported issue through slavery.
Obama represents the loss of power and status of the white community to racists. As such, it provides the basis to mobilize the slope-headed bigots who only live for the opportunity to fight, destroy, and kill. Those elite elements who gained unrestrained power under Reagan are in the process of losing that power, and to paraphrase what Barry Goldwater once espoused, extremism in defense of white power is no vice to these folks.
As much as I don't want to see the nation break out into civil war, I no longer doubt that it is possible. The hatred is too great, and tolerance has been ground into the dust. All it will take now is a large enough attack by almost anyone, and we're off to the race wars.
Alas, America. We hardly knew ye!Right wing fascism
Good point.
Civil war
Consider this
stereotyped bias
Rural Progressives
What's the Vegas odds of an accidental shooting in that church?
What happens during a church service with a bunch of paint chip eating, loaded pistol packing, itchy trigger finger, angry Barney Fifes?
I don't know, and I don't want to go there to find out because I don't have a death wish. But if I was a reporter and had to go, I would wear a bullet proof vest.
Want to get them all riled up? Go to that church and wear a tee shirt that says:
WHAT IS IT ABOUT
"WELL REGULATED MILITIA"
YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND?
GUN CONTROL IS
CONSTITUTIONAL!
I would suggest wearing the tee shirt over your bullet proof vest!
That Is Too Funny
Below are the videos I shot of White Supremacist and links to the articles I wrote.
Jordan Gruver (Southern Poverty Law Center) vs Imperial Klans of America
Jury Awards Jordan Gruver (Southern Poverty Law Center) vs Imperial Klans of America $2.5 Million
Republican-sanctioned violence
The modern GOP is a direct descendant of the post-Civil War misanthropic haters who, at the time, were southern Democrats. What we are seeing now is in a direct line from the Klan violence that erupted in the south during Reconstruction in order to terrorize blacks and their supporters.
This growing violence is analogous to the late mid to late 80s when farmers were losing their land and the government was being painted as a villain instead of the banks and financial institutions that were bleeding the nation's heartland dry and bankrupting small farmers. The militias were in the news all the time in addition to nut jobs like Gordon Kohl who advocated citizens' arrests of government officials along the line of what von Brunn says he wanted to do at the Federal Reserve.
Make no mistake about it. This is a war; THIS is the cultural war we should be concerned about, not the debates over tax and spend or other nonsensical issues.
When the media broadcast the statement from Dr. Tiller's murderer saying that more violence was coming the first thing I thought was that this was a message he was sending to others on the far right. Remember when 9/11 happened and bin Laden was sending videos around and the news media was being told not to play them because they could contain coded messages to terrorists? Well, this is what that monster's message was, a message to all the sleeper assassins on the far right that the fuse has been lit and the time to strike is now.
If Obama refuses to nullify the executive orders that Bush put in place to imprison Americans as terrorists and remove the protections of habeas corpus from people, this would be a good place to start applying them. Let the "patriots" who supported Bush's plans to imprison terrorists see where such actions lead. If nothing is done to stop the violations of the FACE Act which are occurring daily at abortion clinics around the country and the hate speech issuing from FOX and Limbaugh and Glenn Beck and other Nazis in this country then we are going to be confronted with unspeakable violence and we will be a nation rushing towards fascism. Why hasn't the Department of Justice ordered federal marshals stationed outside every clinic that has been threatened as a strong message that the intimidation and outright violations of federal law will not be tolerated?
These are the tactics that the brown shirts used in pre-Nazi Germany to intimidate and silence critics of Hitler and his programs, this violence against groups with whom the Nazis disagreed. Interestingly it began with the trade unions and the Social Democrats who Hitler equated with communists.
Unless there is a forceful response from the government, specifically from the first black president, to bring this wave of violence to a screeching halt, we will be fighting another civil war in this country before too long. And when that happens the people who created Blackwater, CACI, Titan, DynCorp and the other paramilitary groups will be brought out to support the forces of intolerance and hate.
It would be a sin if the forces who contributed to the deaths of Medgar Evers, JFK, Malcolm X, Dr. King, and Bobby Kennedy are finally allowed to destroy this country. The deaths of all those men and those of the three young white men in the south along with four little black girls in a church will have been in vain if we allow these treasonous actions to go unpunished and undeterred.
Matt Carmody
Cornwall, NY
You are right
A collective act of Domestic Terrorism
The radical far right wing, in collusion with the plutocracy, is waging a war of domestic terrorism against law abiding citizens of the United States.
These people need to be immediately arrested and held without bail until their trials, hopefully, many years from now.
How ironic they were instrumental in the passing of the unconstitutional U.S. Patriot Act that can now be used against them!
This sort of hate
longer then that