All right, I just offered a version of an argument I hate hearing from the left, which is "[Maniac/hated figure X] believes this idea, thus every adherent of this idea, despite all evidence, appearances and past behavior, shares all of the worst traits of that maniac/hated figure X." It's as if Hitler's defining characteristic was his vegetarianism.
I am sure that of the 20some to 30some percent of Americans who support the construction of the mosque, that there are probably . . . dozens and dozens of folks who are not ticking time bombs waiting to explode in a rage. Maybe even a hundred!
We live in an era where prominent figures on both sides of the aisle spend a lot of time demonizing the rank-and-file of the other side. (Er, like I just did for the sake of a cheap laugh.) If you start to believe that the other side has no scruples, that they lie, cheat, and steal every day in the pursuit of power, that their motives are malicious and they seek to impose a vision of this country that would tear apart the national characteristics that you love best and transform it into some twisted, ideological dystopia . . . well then, the idea that some of their grassroots might blow off steam by hacking away at a hack doesn't seem so farfetched. I'm not saying you should have these cynical thoughts about the other side; I'm just saying I understand where they come from. We're gradually being conditioned to expect the worst from the opposition; when a few facts point to a preconceived narrative, we fill in the blanks ourselves. It's bad enough when you or I do it. But when that mentality becomes standard operating procedure for large swaths of the mainstream media, nobody's inclined to give the opposition the benefit of the doubt.
I am sure that of the 20some to 30some percent of Americans who support the construction of the mosque, that there are probably . . . dozens and dozens of folks who are not ticking time bombs waiting to explode in a rage. Maybe even a hundred!
We live in an era where prominent figures on both sides of the aisle spend a lot of time demonizing the rank-and-file of the other side. (Er, like I just did for the sake of a cheap laugh.) If you start to believe that the other side has no scruples, that they lie, cheat, and steal every day in the pursuit of power, that their motives are malicious and they seek to impose a vision of this country that would tear apart the national characteristics that you love best and transform it into some twisted, ideological dystopia . . . well then, the idea that some of their grassroots might blow off steam by hacking away at a hack doesn't seem so farfetched. I'm not saying you should have these cynical thoughts about the other side; I'm just saying I understand where they come from. We're gradually being conditioned to expect the worst from the opposition; when a few facts point to a preconceived narrative, we fill in the blanks ourselves. It's bad enough when you or I do it. But when that mentality becomes standard operating procedure for large swaths of the mainstream media, nobody's inclined to give the opposition the benefit of the doubt.
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