Literally within minutes of the 2016 election of Donald J. Trump, his opponents took to the streets, declaring themselves “The Resistance.”
Some of us, myself included, considered that an act of what the “woke” like to call “cultural appropriation,” indeed an extreme—I would even say obscene—one.
Cultural appropriation is a term, many will recall, applied to those insensitive souls who allegedly steal from another group for their own gain or amusement, as in fraternity boys donning sombreros and drinking margaritas for Cinco de Mayo.
What was appropriated in 2016 was something quite serious—“La Résistance”—the clandestine and highly dangerous underground movement to subvert Nazi Germany’s control of France during World War II.
Comparing that to the election of Trump really is obscene, and also wildly anti-Semitic, unless, of course, you think saying nasty things about your opponents on Twitter is the equivalent of Auschwitz.
Many of our supposedly “progressive” friends evidently did, overwhelmed by a delusional case of moral narcissism all out of proportion to reality, allowing them to “act out” in the most self-aggrandizing manner, identifying with the true heroes of “La Résistance,” when there was no discernible threat to them whatsoever.
Indeed, what actually happened to the daily lives of our liberal friends during the Trump administration was next to nothing.
Until COVID-19 came along, they got to enjoy the lowest unemployment virtually ever, including minorities, with actual wages going up for the lower classes for the first time in years, a booming stock market, lower gas prices through energy independence, peace in the Middle East, and peace in general.
They weren’t censored in any way and maintained control of most of the media, entertainment, and the schools throughout.
Yet, still, they raged.
The now-victorious left is attempting to erase the right, to drive it out of existence forever.
We see signs of this everywhere, from the clearly fascistic actions of Big Tech in destroying upstart Parler on grounds of hosting some violent posts (something they themselves have been doing for years), to ridiculous virtue-signaling such as Macaulay Culkin signing on for having Trump’s cameo removed from “Home Alone 2.”
Communist Chinese-style “social credit” controls are being instituted across our economy, with the likes of Mastercard, PayPal, and Stripe canceling conservative groups that protested the election and automated business email systems doing the same.
In many ways, this is more effective and dangerous than the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, because we are so reliant on technology now and because it’s so sub rosa. No need for prancing around in dunce caps. An individual’s access to his or her daily needs can be turned off with the click of an invisible mouse.
American versions of “Good Germans” are coming out of the woodwork, as many are beginning to live in fear of what this could do to their lives. Others have been asked to recant or soon will be.
The traditional Republican Party politicians have been of little help, disconnected, as many—maybe most—are from their rank-and-file.
So is this time for a new, and more justified, “Resistance”?
Possibly.
But to be in any way successful, it must be thought through, totally nonviolent, and have the best intentions for our democratic republic at heart.
It shouldn’t be about Trump or any other single person, nor should it be about any particular political party, old or new. They come and go.
It should be about our country. Us.
Above all, it must have the support of millions in order to succeed.
Do that, and change can be effectuated.
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