October 6, 2004

Bush Hate Spirals Ever Upward

At the beginning of last December, after hearing Emimem rap out "I'd rather see the president dead," I wrote a short commentary, Where Bush Hate is Heading, which observed:

As Americans, we assume that the terrorist enemies of our country would like nothing better than to assassinate the President of the United States. We can only hope that the Secret Service and all those entrusted with his protection have taken extraordinary precautions to protect him and prevent such an event from ever taking place.

Even so, as we have learned several times in my lifetime, no security arrangements are flawless, and while you can protect rationally against rational threats, the game can fall apart when you are dealing with people who are manifestly insane and do not need to live.

We expect our enemies to hate the President and to seek to do him harm. We do not expect members of the loyal opposition to allow their rhetoric and their "cultural standard bearers" such as Eminem ("I set precedents and the standards...") to poison the political system to the level that some of their misguided ilk take it upon themselves to take a shot at Bush "for the sake of the greater good."

Yet Bush hate is leading is to that point. It may be that we get through the next year without seeing the headline: BUSH KILLED. I pray that it is so. At the same time, would you be surprised?

In the last week or so, attacks on Republican offices have increased with shootings starting to take place with a certain amount of frequency. Chain sawing of signs goes on apace and other acts of major and minor violence increase.

The small article linked above drew more than its share of comments at the time but then, as these things do, the comments trailed off. Until this morning when I was greeted by these sentiments in the comments section:

bush deserves to die, he's personally responsable for the deaths of over 1000 americans, countless civilian iraqies, all for what, a reason that makes no sense, so we should just let him live out the rest of his life while familys suffer from death , the destruction of there homes, billions of dollars wasted on a war we should of never had, he's an idiot and is responsable for the murder of thousands...he deserves at least to die himself
That pretty much speaks for itself, in as much as it can speak at all. But it seems to me to be a bit of a harbinger of things to come.

To wit, if there are people among us so sodden with the hate of the Republican President that they are willing to wish death upon him -- here and on our stage and in our books and elsewhere in the culture -- what will they be willing to do on the day after their certain defeat at the polls next month?

As in so many things, the proof of the strength of our Republic and our democratic system will be shown not on the day of the election, but on the days that come after.

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Posted by Vanderleun at October 6, 2004 11:01 AM | TrackBack
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AMERICAN DIGEST HOME
"It is impossible to speak in such a way that you cannot be misunderstood." -- Karl Popper N.B.: Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately. Comments that exceed the obscenity or stupidity limits will be either edited or expunged.

I have had a nightmare than has run through my mind for many weeks, that of History repeating itself. The last President to be hated as much as Bush was Abrahamn Lincoln.

I fear that I may wake one day to the message, whether in print, broadcast or on the internet:

"PRESIDENT SHOT...more info as it comes in..."

Posted by: FH at October 6, 2004 11:55 AM

Also, I think that you are correct in observing that that such an attempt will not come right now, but later. I think it will come after a Bush victory, when the rush of anger, hatred and denial reach their peak.

Posted by: FH at October 6, 2004 11:58 AM

An "attempt" would slam this country hard-right for a decade. A "successful" attempt would move it there for two generations.

Posted by: Van der Leun at October 6, 2004 12:19 PM

Please don't even mention it! I hate for people to even hear it, some of them are so insane.

Posted by: pbird at October 6, 2004 12:25 PM

They're already shooting at Bush/Cheney HQ's, and one was attacked in Florida by (gasp!) union goons.

Posted by: Brain o Power at October 6, 2004 12:32 PM

I figured stuff like this was going to happen. We'll see where it goes.

Posted by: Eric Blair at October 6, 2004 1:11 PM

The incidents of violence reported here and on other blogs have led me to think that love of this country and its President has become "the love that dare not speak its name."

Once again, thank you for hosting this blog, Gerard. It's on my daily must-read list.

Posted by: Connecticut Yankee at October 6, 2004 5:02 PM

The Democrat lefties are so desperate they're starting to show their true colors: Red. It's going to reach the point where we all have to admit who the real enemy is, the liberal traitors inside our borders.

Posted by: Floyd Jackson at October 7, 2004 10:19 AM

Perhaps we need to remind them that the consequence of "Bush K*****" would be "President Cheney."

Do they really WANT that?

Posted by: Bill Peschel at October 7, 2004 3:12 PM

Bush needs to go, but it would be better if he were defeated at the ballot box. As some have pointed out, to kill him would only bring on Cheney. I would prefer Cheney to Bush, as he is not a religious fundy and in this sense is probably more rational at heart, but we'd be much better off with John Kerry now. I cant emphasize how critical it is for us Americans to vote for Kerry now, if for no other reason than to get rid of Bush. I haven't voted in a long time, but am definitely voting Kerry in November. I would urge all Americans who care about America and the world we live in to do the same. Bush is a danger that we cannot put up with for another four years. Please, get the vote out for Kerry, spread the word, and help send the smirking chimp back to texas!!

Posted by: my pet goat at October 8, 2004 8:37 AM

THIS is why I don't have a sign on my yard. It's not that I'm afraid of violence now. I'm afraid of a firebomb through my window the day after the election. And I don't think I'm alone.

Posted by: crazycats at October 8, 2004 9:19 AM

There have been all kinds of stories about this. Here in Sacramento, somebody had his SUV keyed and a swastica drawn on his Bush bumpersticker and on his american flag! These American insurgents want the same candidate that the Iraqui insugrents do: Kerry. They can be voted down this time, but other methods may be needed to stop them in the future and our democracy depends on it.

Posted by: Floyd Jackson at October 8, 2004 11:40 AM

As for Goat Boy up there, you sir are not an American because our country absolutely needs to stay the course that our president has set for us and Iraq is about our own freedom.

What's your guy Kerry going to do? Well we don't know because he's all flip-flopped about whether he supports our troops or not. As if he really has any choice, clue for you Mr. Bigface Phony Purple Heart: MY COUNTRY RIGHT OR WRONG. And that pansy trial lawyer with all his bogus hot tub lawsuits that just punish honest people trying to make a living, how's a guy like that going to go up against a man like Osama Bin Laden? You can't just serve those camel-screwers with a lawsuit, my friend.

Posted by: Floyd Jackson at October 8, 2004 11:46 AM

All the violence directed at Republicans and all the hatred aimed at President Bush are symptoms of a grave sickness in one half of the body politic. I devoutly pray that they do not allow their rage and hatred to spill over into murder of this president after Nov. 3rd.

The shameful thing, IMO, is that both Kerry and Edwards are silent on the matter. Neither of them has said a word to stem the hatred, and I'm inclined to think that that is because that is how Kerry himself feels about President Bush. If not hatred, at least contempt. If Kerry really had the country's well being at heart, he would demand his side cool down the angry rhetoric and actions.

In the meantime, I'll pray for President Bush and his family, and for America, that she may remain whole.

Posted by: Helen at October 10, 2004 10:17 AM

Bush will likely not get assassinated, although some idiot may try it. The protection we have for the president these days is extraordinary as compared to when Lincoln was in office (strangely enough, Lincoln was assassinated by an actor). If anyone tries to assassinate the president, it will likely be some idiot college kid or a union worker or another member of the hate crowd who simply doesn't have the skills to breach presidential security. Even so, a part of me remains concerned about it.

As for why Kedwards doesn't speak out against all of this hate (as Bush has spoken out against the Swift Boat Veterans), I think the Dems are in a bit of a quandry. There is a significant number of their base that hates Bush with an unreasonable passion. By speaking against them, they risk alienating their base. They have no choice but to remain silent, otherwise they risk not getting elected. To me, this is just further evidence that the Kedwards campaign will do what they have to in order to get elected.

Personally, I'm taking the first three days of November off from work. Given what happened in Madrid, I'm avoiding major metropolitan areas before the election. And I'm taking the day after off because I know there will be protests against the election in downtown. I live in Denver, and the Auraria Campus is in downtown. Those college kids convinced that the sky is falling will definitely get out and protest, and that may very well blossom into a full-fledged riot. Come to think of it, I may dial in to work that Thursday (the wonders of working in the IT industry...).

Paranoid? Maybe, but as Dr. Johnny Fever said, "Paranoia is clear thinking when people are after you."

Posted by: Cool Tester at October 10, 2004 9:23 PM

Would you have a problem if I said that I hated Hitler? Probably not, right? So taking thousands of innocent lives because you think that you are right, is different HOW???? That's why Bush is hated so much. He has added to the fact, once again, that we are total war-mongers. The world hates us, and apparently you're ok with that, if you support Bush. Read this:

I am a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. Ever since Bush was elected I have stood by him. That is until I did some research and found that I had been blinded. I truly thought that my brothers and sisters over in Iraq were doing a good deed and protecting our country from terrorists. I was always proud to wear my uniform and what it stood for. I always heard people say things about Bush and how we were over there to line his pockets with money from the oil. I always just thought that was absurd. Now I know that it is true. We have no business over there anymore. Hell, we had no business over there in the first place. I am still proud to be an American, I am still proud to wear my uniform, and I am still proud to serve the people in this country.
BUT......... I DO NOT trust President Bush or our Government Officials and their campain over there. It is WRONG and UNJUSTIFIED!
I think I owe the public some information that you as citizens might not know.........
I have a friend that is in a division of the Marines called the Raiders. He told me that while he was over there, he and his company had orders to break into CIVILIAN houses and KILL the men of the housholds if they did not cooperate.
WTF?
Another friend of mine was over there doing security for convoys. He seen lots of CHILDREN run over by U.S. tanks because they wouldn't move out of the way. That's right.....innocent children.
Finally, I have a friend over there now who says that he is ashamed to be over there doing what he is doing because he knows it is wrong. He believes as well do I, that these people are only defending their homes and families. Anyone of us would do the same thing if another country tried to kick us out of our homes.
I would like to add that My wife is also stationed here where I am. We are both Security Forces. We are the only career field in the Air Force that sees combat over there besides the pilots. We both leave here for Iraq in March. I am scared to death. Fighting for a great cause to keep our country safe is okay with me. But taking a chance to see my wife killed in combat fighting so my President and his friends can get richer? I hope this man gets what he deserves. He gets richer, while my wife and I get shot at every day for 6 months for a few measley dollars. Where is the justice? He is the MURDERER! (K.M.)

Posted by: Al K at November 3, 2004 6:16 AM

The MEEK shall inherit the Earth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: Al K at November 3, 2004 6:30 AM
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