Orwell's 1984 Is a Warning, Not a Manual

Karin McQuillan has a very powerful post over at the American Thinker.  McQuillan's post derives as much power from the supporting links as it does from McQuillan's writing itself.  The post is entitled Those KKK Republicans. The title is supposed to be sarcastic, but sarcasm doesn't come across in writing. To understand sarcasm one needs to hear the voice of the person making a sarcastic remark. So, how do I know the title is intended to be sarcastic? Because there were no, or exceeding rare KKK Republicans. The KKK was, and remains, a project of the Democrat party, and the racism it represents is a project of the Left.  That the Left has managed to project onto the right, including Christians, conservatives, and Republicans the guilt for slavery, a guilt that the Left actually owns, is maddening,

How this has happened has been an interesting story in its own right, as told by Kevin Williamson of the National Review.  Williamson's article entitled The Party of Civil Rights gives the true history of civil rights in this country from Abraham Lincoln on down. Go read Williamson's article because if you don't know this material, some of what D. C. McAlister writes will not resonate with you. McAlister's article at the Federalist is entitled Conservatism's 'Racism' Isn't What You Think It Is. McAlister:

Conservative intellectuals are saying the Republican Party is doomed because the ideals of conservatism have been inextricably marred by “white nationalism.” Leaders of the conservative movement, they say, must therefore abandon the Republican Party to “cranky old white people” and create a “new conservatism—a political vision that adheres to limited government principles but genuinely appeals to a more diverse America.”

This argument is wrong on two points. It fails to appreciate (1) how the politics of race is not just about race itself but the changing nature of politics since the 1960s (to see race within the frame of the 1960s and not 2016 is a grave error) and (2) how the Left has effectively used social psychology strategies to label, stigmatize, and delegitimize conservatism, principles of liberty, and traditional American values.

McAlister goes on to note that many white Americans' frustration with minority groups is not because of racism, which is a belief in the supremacy of one race over another, but rather with the constant accusations of racism any time some group or another doesn't get their special basket of fee stuff from the Government goody bag.  An example is the recent finding by the 4th Circuit that North Carolina Voter Id law is Unconstitutional. Supposedly it burdens minorities unfairly. But anyone can see that a photo ID is needed for many transactions of considerably lesser importance than voting, but which a minority person is likely to engage.  As anyone who considers the issue even casually can see, minorities are being used a s a beard by the Democrat Left to make our voting laws less secure and allow the Left to more easily engage in voter fraud.  To constantly cry racism only makes people angry when they can see it is purely manufactured rage.

But, as McQuillan notes, the problems with the constant name calling and the use of the term "enemy" for people the Left has policy disagreements with is more dangerous, and has deeper implications that just winning the latest policy battle:

Now the unthinkable is happening. We are living in a period when Democrats are normalizing the demonizing of conservatives and Christians as evil people beyond the pale. We are all KKK. As predicted, violence follows vilification. Trump supporters have been punched, hit with a crowbar. robbed, spat upon, thrown to the ground, injured by a soda can thrown at the back of the head, and pelted with dog feces. In San Jose and Minneapolis, police have stood by and allowed the violence. A black Trump supporter who voiced his opinion in a bar was shot. Democrats think we deserve it.

Many of us know history, even if our liberal "friends" do not. If this continues, it is only a matter of time before we will see Brown Shirts coming after Christians, conservatives, Republicans, libertarians and anyone else the Left decides needs to become the subject of a 2 minute hate. I know the Left doesn't understand this, but until they stop with the demonizing and begin treating conservatives as normal Americans with important principles that should be listened to, not steamrolled over, I think I will keep my guns.