WHO ARE THE DOMESTIC TERRORISTS?

BRYCE ON POLITICS

- Depends on your interpretation and political party.

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The term "terrorist" came into vogue during the 1970's as we experienced a spike in airline skyjackings. This, of course, led to the tightening of security measures at airports. I'm old enough to remember life before this, back when you just showed up at the airport, walked on the plane and handed your ticket to the stewardess. Yes, it was that easy, and flying was fun. Not anymore, TSA has seen to that.

Since then, use of the word "terrorist" became associated with atrocities in the Middle East, such as kidnappings, murders, bombings, extortion, and executions, such as cutting off heads. In this sense, terrorism has been around for hundreds of years, but more recently it came to the forefront in the latter part of the 20th century and is considered barbarous.

Please understand the purpose of terrorism, to wit; to use unlawful force or violence to intimidate people for political or social gain. It is a technique used to get one's way, particularly if the opposition is too large to fight one-on-one. Consequently, the terrorist turns to clandestine tactics to intimidate others.

Today, we are hearing a lot about "domestic terrorists," meaning a group of people in this country who are trying to use savage methods to get their way. Even President Biden, in his inaugural address, alluded to such a phenomenon, "And now, a rise in political extremism, white supremacy, domestic terrorism that we must confront and we will defeat."

Other prominent Democrats have been repeating this mantra as well, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Chuck Schumer. Much of this is designed to convict President Donald Trump after impeachment, but it goes after his supporters as well. Recently, a group of Senate Democrats introduced a resolution to review "domestic terrorist" threats by extremist groups. It has even been suggested that the Republican Party be placed on such a domestic terrorist watch list. Again, this is designed more to intimidate Trump supporters than anything else. Make no mistake though, their constant references to "White Supremacist" groups is a swipe at Republicans and not the KKK.

These same Democrats have remained stone silent on the violent actions of groups such as Antifa and Black Lives Matter (BLM) who actively participated in the 2020 "Summer of Hate" where buildings were invaded, burned, looted, and local citizens viciously attacked. They were certainly not "peaceful protesters." This means "domestic terrorism" has two different interpretations depending on the political party you embrace.

The use of the expression "white supremacy" is a clever attempt to label all Republicans as racists and should be punished accordingly, including the termination of their free-speech rights. The Democrats' lothsome characterization of Trump supporters is reminiscent of Hitler's persecution of the Jews, as evil parasites feeding on the Aryan master race. Yet, the Democrats seem to have no problem threatening Republicans:

"Let’s make sure we show up wherever we have to show up. And if you see anybody from that (Trump) Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them" - Rep. Maxine Waters - June 25, 2018.

This is much more threatening than anything spoken by President Trump at the "Stop the Steal" protest of January 6th, yet while the Democrats claim Waters was only kidding, they are Hell-bent on impeaching the former president.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) has even gone so far as to brand Congressional Republicans as white supremacists, "This term (2021) there are legitimate white supremacist sympathizers that sit at the heart and at the core of the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives" (as told to MSNBC, Jan 28, 2021).

By doing so, AOC is declaring them racists and, as such, unfit to serve in Congress. This, of course, is fallacious. I just wish AOC was aware of her own party's role in the preservation of slavery, the Civil War, the KKK, and Jim Crowe laws. She obviously doesn't remember the "Stand in the Schoolhouse Door" incident in the 1960's by Alabama Governor George Wallace (a prominent Southern Democrat). All of this is in sharp contrast to the Republicans who promoted freedom and reconstruction, which is all conveniently forgotten. AOC's sense of history is embarrassing.

Let us also understand this recent push to declare groups of people as "domestic terrorists"; by doing so, this means they can be treated like any other terrorist group and subject to prosecution under the Patriot Act, which is certainly not a misdemeanor. It also means the federal government can spy on you, as well as search and seize your belongings without a subpoena.

So, the question remains, who are the domestic terrorists? That depends on your political persuasion and the violence committed. If you are a Democrat, you point at your political opponents, the Republicans, for whom you brand as "white supremacists" a la Identity Politics. If you are a Republican, you point at those vandalizing and creating mayhem in our cities, such as Antifa, BLM, and those sponsoring these groups.

So, to be correctly labeled a terrorist, you have to ask which side commits true violence and for what purpose, specifically intimidation. If it doesn't pass this simple acid-test, they are not terrorists, but political pawns instead. All of this is aimed at changing our perspective and a part of a larger picture of de-programming the citizens of this country.

Keep the Faith!

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Tim Bryce is an author, freelance writer and the Managing Director of M&JB Investment Company (M&JB) of Palm Harbor, Florida and has over 40 years of experience in the management consulting field. He can be reached at timb1557@gmail.com

For Tim's columns, see:   timbryce.com

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