Monday, August 14, 2017

David French is exactly right

Writing at NRO, he makes - well, the point that is the basis behind the name of this blog:

America is at a dangerous crossroads. I know full well that I could have supplemented my list of violent white supremacist acts with a list of vicious killings and riots from left-wing extremists – including the recent act of lone-wolf progressive terror directed at GOP members of the House and Senate. There is a bloodlust at the political extremes. Now is the time for moral clarity, specific condemnations of vile American movements – no matter how many MAGA hats its members wear – and for actions that back up those appropriately strong words.

As things stand today, we face a darkening political future, potentially greater loss of life, and a degree of polarization that makes 2016 look like a time of national unity. Presidents aren’t all-powerful, but they can either help or hurt. Today, Trump’s words hurt the nation he leads.
I know I feel a deeper sense of responsibility than ever about what I decide to post on this blog. Every utterance from anyone chiming in on our current juncture, from anywhere along the socio-political spectrum, needs to be carefully considered. With feelings this raw, with identity politics so nearly completely having removed discussion of actual principles from our national conversation, with flamboyant personalities having assumed an outsized role, it doesn't take much for chaos to reign.

Examples from history (France from the late 1780s through 1815, Russia in 1917, Germany in the early 1930s, Cuba in the late 1950s) of how this works out ought to serve as a grim warning.

Pundits, public figures and ordinary citizens, take great care to bring prayer and wisdom to every sentence you craft. People talk a great deal these days about tolerance. How about our declaring recklessness intolerable?

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