Guardian UK: When rightwing hate goes mainstream

When rightwing hate goes mainstream
The Republican party is indulging extremists, hoping they'll put down their guns long enough to vote for them this November

Dan Kennedy
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 7 April 2010


Late Monday afternoon I received an email from the American Patriot Foundation informing me that Terrence Lakin, a lieutenant colonel in the US army, needed my help. It seems that Lakin had refused to obey orders unless his commander-in-chief – that would be Barack Obama – produces evidence proving he was born in the United States and is thus constitutionally qualified to serve as president. Lakin now faces a court-martial and prison.

Well, good for Lakin. What struck me about the missive, though, was not the banality of his foolish quest. Rather, it was the atmospherics surrounding the group that has taken up his cause. The American Patriot Foundation has a nice office in Washington. Its spokeswoman, Margaret Hemenway, is a former government official who has written for the Washington Times, among other publications. Its founder is a former Republican senator, Bob Smith, who told Salon that he no longer controls the group, but who pointedly declined to criticise Lakin.

In other words, Lakin's outburst of birtherism should not be seen in isolation. Instead, it's further evidence that rightwing hate, aided and abetted by leading Republicans, has gone mainstream.

The first warning came a year ago, when the department of homeland security predicted a rise in rightwing extremism fuelled by economic calamity and the election of our first black president. News of the report, and especially about a warning contained therein that military veterans might be pulled into the movement, set off criticism among conservative bloggers. Yet it proved prescient. ...........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/apr/07/rightwing-extremism-republicans

and I've been watching this for too many years.

Obviously, this is running in the British Guardian and not the US version. Prescient, indeed.

I like this one: "With one exception most of the Americans I have ever met I have liked - obviously the nutters tend to stay in the US."

It's not fair of them to not equate our reasoned, logical and wholly justified opposition with what's going on with the teahadists and their threats of violence. It's the same exact thing. Faux, OxyRush, Hannity and Billo said so. :sarcasm:

From the comments:

"German Conservatives have thoroughly learnt from the lethal mistake they made toward the end of Weimar Republic - when they helped Hitler's movement to gain power - believing THEY, the Conservatives, can use the Nazis' energy for conservative purposes ..."