counterpoint! ;)

Your concerns are legitimate and deserve a thoughtful response. I think these are concerns that most of us are feeling. This is basically a real-life version of the ‘do you use a time machine to kill baby hitler?’ debate.

No. You seem to want that to be what we’re hoping for. I think what we’re hoping for is the established point that Nazis are not tolerated. I mean sure, we could go back to when Nazis were regularly trotted out on talk shows to draw ire (and pity); or we could just say that punching Nazis is an acceptable way of…

Eh, a lot of historical conflicts where the right side prevailed were won by force. The American Revolution. The War of 1812 (which was basically the American Revolution, Part II, where we told Britain, “No, REALLY, this is ours now, step the fuck off”). The Civil War. The French Revolution. World War II. Sometimes…

Actually, he did tweet that he is now afraid to go out to even a simple dinner because ‘those people’ are everywhere and may strike at any time.

Please don’t speak for the entire left. I don’t feel better at all. I just feel glad that someone punched a nazi BEING INTERVIEWED ON NETWORK TELEVISION in the face to show it is not okay to INTERVIEW A NAZI on network television.

you can’t defeat something that’s not tangible so your argument is useless. You can defeat a person. And that’s what happened.

I’m getting real fucking sick of the white-washing MLK’s legacy into push-over non-violence. It’s a false narrative so white folks can feel better about themselves. King was for direct action and people need to read the non-edited versions of his letter from Birmingham Jail:

Yeah a lot of Nazis were won over by hugs in 1930s Germany.

Nope. Now his narrative includes “don’t be in public spurting Nazi nonsense when Americans are still alive that gave their all to defeat his brand of racist bullshit” . That’s what those punches to the head meant. Who you gonna sue? Live in fear. Get used to it.

MLK still got assassinated.

First off, we tried once to use passive resistance against Nazis. It didn’t end well.

I agree with your last sentence. And personally, I’m very conflicted about whether the punch was okay/morally defensible. It’s not okay to hit people unless necessary to defend yourself or others. And the guy who punched him is almost certainly certainly a despicable prick. But I think it’s important to note that…

“He got punched because he is actively working to cause harm and death to innocent people.”

Richard Spencer needs to understand that this nation is full of free-willed individuals who despise his hateful, genocidal ideas. He needs to make sure they stay just ideas. This time, it was just a punch. He knows that fist could have held a knife.

I’m mad about this because it totally justifies Fucking Richard Spencer continuing to drive this “white man victim” narrative.

TURNS OUT ITS PRETTY EFFECTIVE.

I disagree. The reason why these assholes are quick to bring up “snowflakes” and “safe spaces” and “triggered” is because it’s true. And if people on the left (im left) want our ideas heard and Trump brought down, they need to get tougher. It’s going to be a battle and people can’t cry in a corner when shit doesn’t go…

I can’t for the life of me understand why you, and so many others, find physical violence so much more reprehensible then rhetorical violence. Especially when rhetorical violence often causes far more harm then physical violence.

It is so easy to forget that most people do not support this man or the culture surrounding him. Yesterday was a great reminder of that and made me feel connected to other people in a way I haven’t felt since before the campaigning began.