The delusion of political violence
substack.com
The delusion of political violence
Political violence is always immoral and always counterproductive for a healthy democracy. It solves nothing. It only leads to further violence and ultimately enables scapegoating of vulnerable communities. Committing acts of violence against those who disagree with us helps no one.
Charlotte Clymersubstack.comSo when their chosen heroes — the freedom fighters in whom they invested so much moral cachet — showed up at a concert and started beheading raver kids and Asian workers and abducting grandmas and God knows what else, what were Western leftists supposed to do? In situations like that there are really only two things you can do, without switching... See more
Noah Smith • Western Leftists Have Lost the Plot
I used to feel sympathy for the way Lee Kuan Yew treated the communists back in the 1960s during Singapore's early days after the British granted independence.
Back then, political norms were nascent and the leadership of Singapore was hotly contested.
By now it should be obvious if you've... See more
Provoking the enemy to action without eliminating any of his weapons or options is an act of desperation, taken only when there is no other option. Whenever it is possible to inflict serious material damage, nobody gives that up in favor of mere terrorism. If in December 1941 the Japanese torpedoed a civilian passenger ship in order to provoke the
... See moreYuval Noah Harari • 21 Lessons for the 21st Century
yearn for a world in which competing ideologies are kept in balance, systems of accountability keep us all from getting away with too much, and fewer people believe that righteous ends justify violent means.