But this isn’t a math problem because we know that mass shootings, much like suicides, yawning, gender identity disorders, St. Vitus’ Dance, and insanely irresponsible political rhetoric are socially contagious. We live in an era where more and more people spew bulls***t so routinely they start to believe it. Worse, the more people—especially people in responsible positions who have a moral and civic obligation to talk responsibly—talk this way, it becomes a political litmus test to go along. I know polls say otherwise, but I think the surveys showing a huge share of Republicans believe the election was stolen exaggerate the prevalence and strength of the belief. But it has now gotten to the point where right-wing political correctness demands that you uphold the lie out of partisan loyalty. In some quarters, saying “the FBI isn’t the Gestapo” is RINO talk, even though that is a slanderous insult not just to the far-from-perfect FBI, but to the United States of America. America is too good a nation for anything like the Nazi Gestapo, which is why if the FBI was acting like the Gestapo, violence against the FBI would be defensible. But it’s not acting remotely anything like it, so saying otherwise is an indefensible and dangerous lie.
Just as it seems obvious to me that most Americans don’t buy all of this crazy talk, it seems equally obvious that the more such talk proliferates, the minority of people who believe it in one form or another will grow larger. If you don’t think that’s already happening, you haven’t been paying attention. I mean, when Chuck Grassley gets in on the crazy talk, you know the contagion has reached epidemic levels.
And again, where crazy talk goes, crazy deeds follow. So for God’s sake, shut up with this nonsense already.
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