If you thought that political violence was something that happened in other countries but that could never happen here, you’re wrong. We’re already seeing leftist mobs using political violence to stamp out those who oppose them. And an increasing number of conservatives are realizing that unless they’re prepared to counter that violence, they’ll be wiped out.
The Antifa-instigated protests have awakened many conservatives to the reality that there’s a civil war going on in this country, and that if conservatives don’t show up, the left will win by default. Time after time we see Antifa behaving badly, looting, destroying businesses, and pulling down statues, and governments fall over themselves to placate them. Yet when conservatives descend upon state capitols by the thousands, even when armed, they’re ignored. Legislators think that conservatives are too nice and law-abiding to do anything when their rights are being infringed, and for the most part they’re right.
That may be changing now that Antifa has been going on the offensive. People are scared of what’s coming, which is why gun sales are hitting record highs, and ammo is flying off the shelves. And even on social media, conservatives are beginning to get edgy. Memes about right wing death squads are becoming more prevalent, as many are warning that as Antifa pushes harder and harder, there will eventually be a violent counter-reaction.
The question that now arises is, where does the US stand right now on the continuum of political violence? Are we like the late 1960s and early 1970s US, with civil unrest in the cities and low-scale terrorism occurring in the background that will eventually fizzle out? Are we like 1920s Germany, with left-wing and right-wing armed groups ready to duke it out in the streets, mirroring the political struggles in Berlin, and about a decade or two away from a dictatorship? Or are we like 1930s Spain, on the cusp of a civil war that will pit neighbor against neighbor and see vast amounts of senseless bloodshed?
One thing is for certain, we’re living in interesting times. In any other year, the protests and riots we’ve seen might have been expected to fizzle out. But with millions of Americans out of work and facing severe financial difficulty, with an important Presidential election coming up in November, and with Americans more divided than ever on basic issues of life and death, 2020 could end up being the year that makes or breaks our republic.