In last week’s Dispatch, I gave examples of three “elites” warning of a financial crisis and potential for a domestic conflict. Steve Bannon (a former Goldman Sachs banker), who predicted younger generations will be impoverished; millionaire investor Nick Hanauer, who warned of ‘mobs with pitch forks’ rising up against financial elites; and hedge fund founder Ray Dalio, who expressed his concern about the next financial crisis/recession and the potential for civil strife. There are others who have similarly warned of civil unrest or wars.
A short time ago, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) gave a speech where he boiled down America’s future to a stark choice between “federalism or violence”. (I wrote about that in last week’s National Intelligence Bulletin.)
Since I led with Bannon last week, I was interested in what left wing politicians and commentators had to say about the future. Here’s some of what I found:
First up, here’s Charles Blow, writing for the New York Times about the potential for instability regarding the Mueller report and a possible Trump impeachment. Blow believes that America’s darkest days are just ahead:
“In short, I don’t believe we are reaching the end of a nightmare, but rather we are entering one. This will not get easier, but harder. The country is about to enter the crucible. This test [Trump impeachment] of our republic is without a true comparison. And we do not have a clear picture of how the test will resolve. But, I believe damage is certain.” [source]
A couple months ago, we had actor James Cromwell warn of revolution and “blood in the streets” if the Democrats didn’t stop Trump. One wonders if this quote wouldn’t still be in play for a 2020 re-election:
“This is nascent fascism. We always had a turnkey, totalitarian state — all we needed was an excuse, and all the institutions were in place to turn this into pure fascism,” he said. “If we don’t stop [President Trump] now, then we will have a revolution for real. Then there will be blood in the streets.” [source]
Just before that, outgoing Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) warned that America seemed to resemble Rwanda, before that country’s genocide in which 800,000 were murdered.
“When a place gets so tribal that the two tribes won’t have anything to do with each other … that jealousy turns into hate,” Nelson said. “And we saw what happened to the Hutus and the Tutsis in Rwanda, it turned into a genocide. A million-people hacked to death within a few months. And we have got to watch what’s happening here.” [source]
More recently, Washington Post columnist Anne Applebaum warns that the turmoil happening in Paris could also threaten other Western countries.
Most of the rest of the democratic world is or will face the same kinds of [political revolts against elites]. If presidents, parliaments, existing parties and existing institutions can find ways to listen to [the people], to incorporate them and change with them, then democracy will survive in the 21st century. If they don’t, it might not. [source]
Sure, these are just words so far. But they do show that at least some on the Left are considering the possibility of a tumultuous future. And we can look at similar words — like the comments of Rep. Swalwell (D-CA) on the government having nukes in response to a question about gun confiscation [source], or a Democratic Illinois state representative’s expressed desire to see a Republican colleague’s family die [source] — and lots of other words to see that maybe both sides are considering the potential for a conflict.
I’ll finish up with this. We’ve lived through Republicans arming and organizing themselves for eight years of Obama, and we’ve seen the beginnings of Left wing groups arming themselves during the Trump era. The pictures below are of members of the left wing Puget Sound John Brown Gun Club, taken during a protest this past weekend in Seattle. For now, don’t focus on how well armed or capable they look — just recognize that steps continue being taken by left wing groups to arm and train. That’s significant.
Via Facebook
Via Andy Ngo
Always Out Front,
Samuel Culper
Director of Intelligence
Forward Observer
P.S. – These tectonic shifts in culture and politics are leading to an earthquake. You can maintain visibility on these structural risks, accelerators, and triggers of instability and violence through our Intelligence service. Try us out with a 7-Day Money Back Guarantee here.
I wonder if arming up so much has changed the lefts opinion on the second amendment?
Probably not too much.
Who is paying these people?
Rick – never assume people on the Left are “getting paid” in order to do this or that. Never under-estimate the determination and motivation of other groups.
Great reporting SC! The GWOT has trained plenty of folks, on both sides. It would be foolish to underestimate the capability of the potential enemy. Thanks for keeping this on the radar. The press doesn’t always cover this type of thing, certainly not from an educated perspective.
Never assume there aren’t veterans and others who are liberals. The left does have people who know how to fight. Whether they are strong enough or have enough numbers to make a difference is anyone’s guess.
Glenn – the Right almost always under-estimates the capabilities of the Left, and vice-versa. Also, do not confuse veteran status with right/left wing ideology. While it is true that the most propensed region of the country to join military service is from the South/South East, a large percentage of veterans also come from blue states as well, to include a large percentage of senior leaders in the officer corps.
On another point – Blue States are far more wealthier than Red States (with the notable exception of Texas). Money means power, influence, resources, etc etc etc.
Carrying around a weapon and having the skills to use it are two different things. Wonder how many of those masked ass holes have had any military or other training. My guess is the good guys will chew them up and spit them out if push comes to shove.
Ltpar, it’s no doubt. Those people moastly children have no idea in those smog coverd city’s. Who know how to shoot from 12 years up I wouldn’t give them much of a chance!
Glad to see you’re finally getting some comments on these excellent articles. Keep up the good work.
Sure, there are veterans in Antifa, John Brown, the various Red Guards, and other lower profile organizations. But, were they combat arms? I’m pretty sure if you were combat arms, you tend to lean right. The left may have people that LOOK like trigger pullers but, were they? Probably not. Probably clerks n’ jerks.
You still want to be careful. There might be some actual good shots. And, you should never underestimate zealots. Someone compelled by righteous fury can be pretty dangerous.
Being a good shot has nothing to do with ideology. Zealotry, and like wise good judgement can also be found on all sides.
“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” Sun Tzu
Samuel, thanks for being “Out Front” on this important dog-leg in our culture. I especially appreciate you’re publishing sources and where possible, methods. This is not a matter to be taken lightly; the fundamentals on both sides of the question have deep roots, a broad divide and are less and less willing to discuss areas of commonality. While I don’t want to “hit a tar baby” here, consider all the hue and cry about President Trump. He was elected under the same rules as Obama and is no less legitimate. Yet, the left would embrace Obama despite his incompetence on many issues but neglect to recognize any sort of accomplishment attributed to President Trump. They may go so far as to try and impeach Trump all the while ignoring that he is a populist and was put into office by a broad base of the electorate.
I would suggest that the straw that would break the camels back could come in the form of a serious attempt to remove Trump from office. That spark could ignite on hell of a fire.