Growing discontent with the status quo, or one’s perception of it, is a driver of the radicalization process. Feelings of being left behind, not being understood, not having a champion, or “taking what’s mine and giving it to someone else” all seem to factor into the cult-like following of CONVICTED CRIMINAL Donald J. Trump.
Using his skills (if you could call it that) as a showman and entertainer, his sarcastic attacks on anyone and anything that could possibly stand in the way of regaining the presidency in the upcoming election seem to appeal to those who have a grievance against American society. Add the “us against them” argument to the equation and we are faced with a vocal phalanx of Trump adherents who are willing to resort to physical violence to achieve their goals - regardless if the end result is the total destruction of the United States of America as a functioning democracy.
Having read Terry McDermott’s chilling 2006 book, “Perfect Soldiers,” (ISBN: 9780060584702), the parallels behind the radicalization of terrorists like Mohamed Atta, Hani Hanjour, Ziad Jarrah, Marwan a-Shehhi, and their accomplices and the current subcurrents of our political stage are frightening. None of the perpetrators of September 11 were exceptional men in their own right. They became zealots for a fanatic cause and were willing to die for it while inflicting mass calamity and casualty on a perceived enemy. I won’t name the American groups who fall into the “zealot” category… I think you can fill in those blanks on your own.
Usama Bin Laden was a capable spokesman for al-Qaeda. He espoused theocratic government (Sharia law), the immorality of non-cis and extramarital sexual activity, drinking, gambling, and usury (predatory lending). He also called democracy an example of deceit and fraudulence of Western political systems and American law that of “the rich and wealthy.” The list can go on and on from there.
Tomorrow, we remember the nearly 3,000 people who were killed in a single day, thanks to the rhetoric of Usama Bin Laden. Blind adherence to such rhetoric, no matter how faulty, is staring us in the face once again. Regardless of who wins the general election on November 5, the United States is staring into the abyss of possibilities for domestic terrorism. Trump loses? We get violent civil unrest. Trump wins? We will lose the rule of law, the right of due process, mass incarcerations and deportations, and a loss of our government “by the people, for the people.” The 990 pages of the “Project 2025” manifesto lay out in mind-numbing detail how a second presidency of CONVICTED CRIMINAL Donald J. Trump will make it all happen.
How many people will die as a result of Trump’s continued incitement? My guess is that it will be much, much more than 3,000. As Abraham Lincoln said in his Gettysburg Address 161 years ago, “now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure.”