The Violence Virus

Right now, the Overton Window on political violence wide open and there’s a healthy breeze blowing through it. Someone tries to burn down the Pennsylvania Governor’s Mansion. Tesla dealerships are getting trashed. An active shooter kills two and wounds others at FSU. 

You’ll note that I didn’t mention the political motivations of those attacks. There’s a reason for that. I don’t care what reasons a person uses to justify their actions if those actions are a potential threat to me and mine. The wind blows both ways through the Overton window, and each “side” uses a real or perceived threat of violence as an excuse to ramp up their energy and what they might do.

We are at one of those points in our history when everything is up for grabs. The Blue Model of government is on its last legs, and we don’t know what is going to replace it. The king is about to die, and the pretenders to the throne are jockeying for position. This is the sort of time when civil wars (at worst), widespread societal upheaval or something (hopefully) less painful.

Violence begats violence. I’m fairly decent at dealing with violence, but I want those skills to go unused, in much the same way I want my CPR certification to go unused. But that decision isn’t up to me. I have to accept that fact, and plan accordingly. 

What am I planning for? Well, in increasing order of concern, I’d say we’re in for something like  our flirtation with radical revolution in the late 60’s/early 70s, the Baader-Meinhof era in West Germany, Italy’s “Years of Lead” or the ongoing mess that is Mexico. Will it get better? Of course. Nothing bad (or good) lasts forever. But there’s more than a whiff of anger and hatred in the air right now, and the smell is getting stronger. Resist the temptation to spread the smell, and keep yourself safe from harm as much as possible.