so far beyond "compassionate" conservatism it has gotten scary...

[acroyear]

Rand Paul Supporter Stomps on MoveOn Activist's Head (Video) | Focal Point | Big Think:

The Paul campaign is equivocating about something as basic as a curb stomping caught on video, issuing this smarmy statement:

We understand that there was an altercation outside of the debate between supporters of both sides and that is incredibly unfortunate. Violence of any kind has no place in our civil discourse and we urge supporters on all sides to be civil to one another as tensions rise heading toward this very important election.

The campaign is blaming the victim. The head stomp wasn't an altercation, i.e., a two-sided conflict. This was an attack. It wasn't just uncivil, it was criminal.

A candidate with a shred of integrity would denounce the attackers and apologize sincerely to the victim. Instead, Rand Paul is covering for his thugs.

Any campaign event can attract loose cannons. It's not necessarily the candidate's fault if someone wearing a campaign button gets violent. However, if this happens, it's the candidate's responsibility to unequivocally denounce the violent supporter and make it absolutely clear that his twisted values do not reflect those of the campaign. Paul isn't willing to do that. So, if they weren't his thugs before, they're his thugs now.

So, Rand Paul thinks that curb stomping is on par with street theater. Good to know.

As Mike The Mad noted, if this had been a Democratic party supporter being violent, it would have been the lead news item for a week (and probably killed the election for that candidate).  But this has barely gotten a footnote in the news...

The media had given the "real americans" who are violent, abusive, ignorant, hypocritical, and utterly self-righteous beyond any sense of normality a total free ride for the last 10 years, and because of that, they've merely gotten MORE violent, abusive, ignorant, hypocritical, and utterly self-righteous.

And quite frankly, I'm f'in' sick of it.

I just hope this free ride they've gotten ends sometime in my lifetime.

Comments

[acroyear70.livejournal.com]

slippery slope on my part? perhaps, but the message was still clear: if you want to be violent but on MY side, that's just fine. i've seen nothing from the Paul campaign to say otherwise.

it is anarchy when people can get violent against those they disagree with (politically) and not become immediate subjects to the law. it is the encouragement of anarchy when the (potential) leader to whom the violent allegedly support does not condemn that violence.

i don't care if one side intentionally provoked it from the other.

i really don't.

i actually don't even care if the entire thing was a fake by Paul-haters.

I really don't.

this is all about Paul's statement, his effective condoning of the situation. He basically said, by his non-statement, that violence in HIS society is now acceptable.

and THAT is what I (and others) are really complaining about.

the media, by their non-attention to this, has basically said now violence in political discourse, to silence your opponents, is now acceptable

and THAT is what I (and others) are really complaining about.

[jaythebarbarian.livejournal.com]

Where in the upright fuck did you see him advocating violence by his supporters?

"We understand that there was an altercation outside of the debate between supporters of both sides and that is incredibly unfortunate. Violence of any kind has no place in our civil discourse and we urge supporters on all sides to be civil to one another as tensions rise heading toward this very important election."

Funny, cause it looks like he said the same thing you're claiming. Maybe you and others just want to see him condoning violence.

Because he didn't jump to conclusions about what happened (probably because he didn't have enough evidence to say for sure what happened) and instead broadly said "Hey, being violent isn't the thing to do here."

And you and others complaining wanted him to fall over himself with apologies.

Lemme be blunt: tough shit.

Children and animals look at the first thing they see and react.

Adults take a closer look and weigh their options before acting or speaking.

The Paul campaign acted like adults over this. I wish the clowns at MoveOn had done the same.

[acroyear70.livejournal.com]

What would have been better accepted by, well, me would have been a statement much more firm, such as what he issued later today:

"The Paul for Senate campaign is extremely disappointed in, and condemns the actions of a supporter last night outside the KET debate. Whatever the perceived provocation, any level of aggression or violence is deplorable, and will not be tolerated by our campaign. The Paul campaign has disassociated itself from the volunteer who took part in this incident, and once again urges all activists -- on both sides -- to remember that their political passions should never manifest themselves in physical altercations of any kind."

Merely saying "please be nice to each other" really was a very weak attempt at staying out of it, and by staying out of it, it implies that it can and will likely continue and he was merely trying to side-step the blame game. Stepping in and saying violence will not be tolerated is showing leadership.

That is what he should have said in the first place, regardless of waiting for the investigation to determine who started what.