Saturday's Teenie Weenie Peenie Parade
There was a light turn-out, but don't let that fool you.
With a head count that hovered between 400 and 450, Saturday’s Justice for J6 D.C. rally was a bust.
The rally was organized by a Trump operative not known for his organizational skills, and it was meant to draw attention to defendants who are being held in detention for their roles in the Jan. 6th insurrection. Nearly 650 people have been arrested for their role in the insurrection, and roughly 40 are being held in jail awaiting court dates. So that’s 10 people at the rally for every one person held. Let’s let the memes say the rest.
It’s all fun and games until someone gets an eye put out, so before we relax in the notion that Saturday’s small crowd means a waning of this stolen-election-nonsense, remember that the insurrection was heavily funded by people who are still alive, off-camera, and still writing checks. For a little more on the topic, this WBUR story is a 46-minute listen, and it’s worth it. For any in-depth look at political donations, you can’t do better than OpenSecrets.org, and this August report is stunning.
These protests — while they make for great photos — aren’t the point, say extremism experts quoted in this Mother Jones article. According to Michael E. Hayden, a senior investigative reporter at the Southern Poverty Law Center:
“We absolutely have to take the ‘political prisoners’ rhetoric seriously,” Hayden said, referring to the popular notion on the far-right that insurrectionists have been wrongly imprisoned for political reasons. “Same for the propaganda painting Ashli Babbit as a martyr.” he said, noting that this type of rhetoric can spur on violence. “What you don’t want,” he qualified, “is the media willing to exacerbate a date like this by adding hype or repeatedly amplifying the grievances of would-be terrorists.
But I am an immensely shallow person, so while we keep a wary eye on the horizon (and on dark money in politics):
Of course they stayed away in droves. There's a new sheriff in town, and they knew they weren't going to get a free pass like last time. Also there was no one around to give them a free tour of where to find Nancy Pelosi's office.
How about a real riot?
Call ANTIFA, they’re still trying to blow up the world.
Someday they will be real terrorists, not the fake ones. Sarcasm
Unless you live in Portland, it’s old news.
Let’s not forget the actual riots in DC. Back when they used arson to send up smoke signals.
How many police cars were torched since the riots against President Trump and the USA began?
Any police stations or businesses burned to the ground?
That’s a few events attended by actual terrorists, yet the news only remembers the orchestrated riot that stuck to a peaceful protest like a leech.
Why were no defenses erected if the intelligence predicted the outcome?
Who refused to support the Capitol Police?
Who called off the back up?
Those are open questions.