Author Topic: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?  (Read 1412 times)

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Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #45 on: August 30, 2017, 07:52:15 am »
I think that things have escalated.  Not to the point of violence yet.

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #46 on: August 30, 2017, 08:16:10 am »
Driving a car through the protesters seems violent. Shooting a gun at them was a little violent too.

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #47 on: August 30, 2017, 08:45:28 am »
Yes, a little.  How much worse than that could it be?

Offline SirJohn

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #48 on: August 30, 2017, 03:26:20 pm »
Sure, these sort of things are always difficult to de-escalate. I think a more important question is why hasn't it escalated? What is stopping the various white nationalist/nationalist/patriot groups from taking up the arms they are proudly equipped with? They haven't opened up on the alt-left fascists when they could very well have. Somethings holding them back.  Fear perhaps?

Possibly the lack of a real leader. Give them a savvy, charismatic leader with no principles and God knows what could happen.

And please, don't say that's Trump. He's not charismatic, he's not savvy, and while he has almost no principles, I don't see him leading a group into murderous violence. He has no motive to, for one thing. All he cares about is people praising him and living in a pimped up house.
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Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #49 on: August 30, 2017, 04:11:37 pm »
....aaaaand the off topic conversation also tells me that people will pick sides when the time comes....
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Offline Queefer Sutherland

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #50 on: August 31, 2017, 06:22:32 pm »
The rest of the thread is more left/right sniping mostly over left/right morality and identity politics.  Really deserves its own thread.  But it shows that people WILL take sides when the shooting starts.

Pages of:  No my side didn't start this, your side did!

Very helpful  ::)
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Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #51 on: August 31, 2017, 06:23:39 pm »
Pages of:  No my side didn't start this, your side did!

Very helpful  ::)

Maybe it won't happen... but maybe it will... I hope it doesn't.

Offline JMT

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #52 on: August 31, 2017, 07:00:26 pm »
Moderator - can we have a new thread for the other stuff ?  Or should I start a new one on topic ?

I will do my best to split it - it'll take time.

Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #53 on: August 31, 2017, 07:08:18 pm »
I don't want to cause work... I will just make a new one ok ?

Offline JMT

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #54 on: August 31, 2017, 07:12:36 pm »
I don't want to cause work... I will just make a new one ok ?

I had almost finished when it wouldn't let me split anymore - most of the off topic is in a new thread in the General Forum.

Offline JBG

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #55 on: September 05, 2017, 01:30:42 pm »
Police presence.

And what's not stopping it ?

Mutual animosity.
Dehumanization and delegitimization of the other side.
Growing culture gap with no common culture.
No leadership to bring peace once escalation starts.

Thoughts ?
This is my first forum post. I think that most Americans, like most people in advanced countries, are more concerned about the day to day than fomenting wars, rebellions or riots. Groups like antifa and the KKK are the real lunatic fringe.

That being said the first Civil War was created by southern fear that Abraham Lincoln would either promote the abolition of slavery or so restrict it as to make slavery untenable for any length of time. More to the point they were a fearful, isolated feudal culture clashing with a rapidly modernize culture in the rest of the country. Parts of the south still have an antebellum, pre-Civil War feel.
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Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #56 on: September 05, 2017, 02:59:50 pm »
Yes, sounds like today. 

I had a friend assure me that the centre would assert itself if violence escalated.  We'll see.

Offline JBG

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #57 on: September 05, 2017, 03:05:41 pm »
Yes, sounds like today. 

I had a friend assure me that the centre would assert itself if violence escalated.  We'll see.
Remember,the violence in the 1960's and early 1970's was far worse. Charlottesville was a walk in the park compared to those.
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Offline Michael Hardner

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #58 on: September 05, 2017, 03:37:14 pm »
Remember,the violence in the 1960's and early 1970's was far worse. Charlottesville was a walk in the park compared to those.

Sure.  The response was the election of Nixon, who then got America out of Vietnam.  He was a kind of peacemaker in the end.

Offline JBG

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Re: What's Stopping the 2nd US Civil War ?
« Reply #59 on: September 05, 2017, 04:14:39 pm »
Sure.  The response was the election of Nixon, who then got America out of Vietnam.  He was a kind of peacemaker in the end.
While Woodstock was not violent most similar gatherings in 1969 and early 1970 were. The Kent State killings really snapped the violence in the bud. I recall that prior to Kent State the usual round of campus takeovers, which had become annual spring events since 1967, were well under way. Then the killings and a spasm of demonstrations. And then they suddenly came to an end. I recall reading, but could not find, an open letter from a father to her daughter advising that while he loved his daughter, if she was involved in a violent demonstration he would serve dinner to a Guardsman who killed her.

While those sentiments are beyond horrible, I believe that when people realized that their lives might be on the line they sobered up and sobered up fast. With some help from concerned parents.

In no way was Nixon a healer or peacemaker. And this is from someone who was about the only person in favor of the Nixon pardon in my high school.
Trump - Watch what he does, not how he says it.

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