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all across the news spectrum, the cover job has begun. the smear campaigns against the democratic party and the liberal movements in America are ramping up. how dare we ask tough questions! how dare we report facts about the republican party! how dare we ask to not have our elected officials harassed, threatened, assaulted, their offices vandalized, and their lives threatened.
the false equivalency argument has immediately become the new tool to push back against the left. within a matter of hours it had already become the tool of the right, "look they do it too!!"
no, we do not. we do not all do it too. our leaders are not out placing bullseyes on people. our leaders are not paraphrasing white supremacists about using bullets instead of ballots. our leaders are not threatening to make people afraid to leave their homes.
nor are we out cutting gas lines to peoples home. we are not driving to places like the tides foundation to start a holy war by killing liberals. imagine if a liberal had done that to the heritage foundation? the GOP would be calling for gulags for liberals. and how dare we state the facts that conservatives have lied about health care, lied about bailouts, their entire platform is based on lies and bigotry.
we've seen this before these past 2 years. when the tea party was running around yelling racial slurs at members of congress, how dare we accuse them of being racists!
no matter what the final outcome of jared loughner's motivations, the message from the media is the same: you will be silenced, you will not be allowed to speak, because we will not provide the proof to defend you.
and the right? their stormtroopers continue to march on, emboldened by the lies that they are the persecuted ones. that a man fascinated with white supremacy and is anti government can walk up in this day and age and attempt to assassinate a jewish woman, a member of congress, and its our fault for daring to ask that we respect our leaders, even if we disagree with them, and act like adults. that we are to blame for seeking to protect them.
there is no equivalency. only false equivalency. and it is, once again, being used to stifle real debate, to silence voices who seek moderating and peace and a more adult dialogue, to simply provide cover for those who advocate racism, hatred, bigotry, and violence.
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