This is the reality in America today: Anyone who opposes Trump - politicians, judges, election officials, anyone - faces an avalanche of violent threat. We saw glimpses of this during his presidency, but nothing of this quality. Imagine what it would be like with Trump back in power.
The immediate effects of this pervasive violent intimidation are hard to measure. But it should be self-evident that this is deeply corrosive and dangerous. If people must expect that practicing democracy and the rule of law will put them in acute danger, democracy will perish.
Habermas's public sphere, problematic as it is, cannot work if the threat of violence looms over it.
Fascism is a strategy for minority control by concentrated capital through intimidation and oppression. bsky.app/profile/thom...
As it turns out, people respond to incentives: bsky.app/profile/mcop...
If we win, law enforcement needs to aggressively pursue a number of these people, make a huge deal out of it, and prosecute them harshly and publicly. After hundreds of J6ers went to jail, Trumpists stopped answering his calls to "protest;" similarly, let them be afraid to threaten people.
Yes Trump will golf, while informing threat providers that they won't be prosecuted.
Hope everyone has a plan to vote for Kamala because if Trump wins, we are all screwed.