By Daniel Nardini
As the saying goes, “enough is enough.” U.S. Attorney General William Barr is increasingly having to use federal law to charge rioters for arson, assault against federal officers, and staging violent protests that damage or destroy property. Normally, local and state officials and prosecutors would do this, but many in Democratic-controlled areas seem to be reluctant to do this. As much as I do not want to defend Barr, I see the necessity why he must do this. The summer of discontent was anything but peaceful, and there was no doubt that leftist agitators had infiltrated and used the protests to turn them violent and cause not only serious property damage but also bodily harm.
Those Democrats at the local and state level have called Barr’s moves “fascist” and “the acts of a dictatorship.” No, Barr only brought up charges against those who committed what can only be defined as crimes under civil law. Arson and property damage are definitely crimes. Violent attacks against counter-protesters is a crime. Attacking federal officers and officials with bottles, sticks and firecrackers is a crime. We have to keep in mind that a protester is someone who peacefully demonstrates against a wrong or an injustice. A rioter is someone who uses violence, coercion and threats for a cause. For any Democrat official in the U.S. Congress who believes that leftist umbrella groups like Antifa are a myth, they should review the hundreds of video recordings and victims’ testimonies of these riots to know what happened.
That any official would allow this kind of violence to surge out of control in their areas is to put it mildly outrageous. The federal government should not be devoting its time, resources and personnel to do what local and state officials should be doing. What we saw during the summer of discontent are violent riots and severe bloodshed by people in the streets. We did NOT see peaceful protesters being gunned down by federal troops, and people disappearing into secret prisons. All one has to do is search American history to see where federal troops were called out and did fire into peaceful crowds. The Railroad Strike of 1877 comes to mind. When railroad workers went on strike, they were shot at by local militias called out by local and state governments. When that did not work, federal troops were called out to completely suppress the railroad workers and their. The railroad workers were simply trying to get better pay and working conditions, and were met with force.
The opposite has happened in 2020. Violent demonstrations and riots have been met with little or no force at all. We have seen these riots and violent acts go unanswered in local and state Democratic-controlled areas, and this has forced the federal government to do something. As much as I do not support the use of force, in this instant I think it was necessary.
Going After the Rioters
By Daniel Nardini
Those Democrats at the local and state level have called Barr’s moves “fascist” and “the acts of a dictatorship.” No, Barr only brought up charges against those who committed what can only be defined as crimes under civil law. Arson and property damage are definitely crimes. Violent attacks against counter-protesters is a crime. Attacking federal officers and officials with bottles, sticks and firecrackers is a crime. We have to keep in mind that a protester is someone who peacefully demonstrates against a wrong or an injustice. A rioter is someone who uses violence, coercion and threats for a cause. For any Democrat official in the U.S. Congress who believes that leftist umbrella groups like Antifa are a myth, they should review the hundreds of video recordings and victims’ testimonies of these riots to know what happened.
That any official would allow this kind of violence to surge out of control in their areas is to put it mildly outrageous. The federal government should not be devoting its time, resources and personnel to do what local and state officials should be doing. What we saw during the summer of discontent are violent riots and severe bloodshed by people in the streets. We did NOT see peaceful protesters being gunned down by federal troops, and people disappearing into secret prisons. All one has to do is search American history to see where federal troops were called out and did fire into peaceful crowds. The Railroad Strike of 1877 comes to mind. When railroad workers went on strike, they were shot at by local militias called out by local and state governments. When that did not work, federal troops were called out to completely suppress the railroad workers and their. The railroad workers were simply trying to get better pay and working conditions, and were met with force.
The opposite has happened in 2020. Violent demonstrations and riots have been met with little or no force at all. We have seen these riots and violent acts go unanswered in local and state Democratic-controlled areas, and this has forced the federal government to do something. As much as I do not support the use of force, in this instant I think it was necessary.