Liberal Rage Syndrome
October 21, 2008 | filed in: Politics
For years, conservatives have noted a phenomenon
they've called "Bush Derangement Syndrome." There are
a wide variety of symptoms for the disease, but they
include an irrational hatred of President Bush,
illogical thinking, blaming any and all problems,
whether domestic or foreign, on him, and using words
like "Bushitler". BDS comes from a lack of clear
cognitive functioning in combination with the
frustration of losing the last two elections and the
subconscious realization that most of the country
just doesn't care for liberalism.
I am seeing signs that BDS has morphed into a more generalized hatred that includes violence. I've never liked the term "Bush Derangement Syndrome" since it isn't Bush who is deranged, but those on the loonie left. So, I'll call this new variation "Liberal Rage Syndrome."
What is LRS and how do I know it exists? Not only have I read about instances of it, I have witnessed it twice recently. The first instance occurred a few weeks ago at the LSU-Florida football game pre-game festivities on University Avenue in Gainesville. There were thousands of people tailgating and walking about, all having a great time, Tiger fans included. There was a small McCain-Palin tent set up nearby and my wife impulsively grabbed a couple of name-tag-sized McCain-Palin stickers, put one on the side of her dress, and gave one to me. I stuck it on my shirt. Not 10 minutes later, a guy walking the other direction lunged over toward my wife, jabbed his finger at her and screamed "F*** McCain!" Both of us were so stunned that by the time we recovered the guy had disappeared into the crowd. OK, it wasn't a huge incident, but it fits a pattern, as you will see next.
Last Saturday morning, I got up early to go for my long run downtown. I was driving along at about 6:50 AM, and stopped at a red light next to the only other car on the six-lane street, a car with numerious liberal stickers on the back. You can probably guess what kind of car it was. I thought nothing of it, and when the light turned green, I accelerated normally and the other car fell behind slightly.
Then, all of a sudden, the car speeds ahead, swerves in front of me, and hits the brakes -- not enough for me to lock up my brakes, but close. I immediately swerve to the empty lane and the car swerves back in front of me to keep me behind him. I blow my horn at him, and then it hits me -- this nutcase is trying to get me to see his bumper stickers, including his Obama sticker, and he is enraged because I have the temerity to have a McCain-Palin sticker on the back of my car.
At this point, the adrenalin is pumping because I don't know if he is really trying to get me to crash into him. My instinct told me to gun it and get past him. It probably wasn't the safest move, but it worked. After all, I was in a 300 hp CTS and he was driving a lame (you guessed it) Prius. I blow past the psycho, and thankfully he decided to turn off onto a side street. I eventually calmed down and had a really nice long run.
Today on Drudge, I see this story: Owner Believes Lexus Vandalized Due to McCain Sticker. Read it and be shocked.
As bad as that incident is, and as much as it is another example of LRS, it is only doubled or trebled when one reads some of comments left by readers of the news story.
They range from complete stupidity ("So the KKK vandalized the car...and left their calling card..")...
...to stunning denial ("It's McCain's political machine trying to make Obama look bad.")...
...to blaming Republicans (!) ("Probably the car was vandalized at Palin's HATE rally. LOL Really they most likely reaping what they sowed.")...
...to glee and a suggestion to cower ("I love happy stories. May I suggest an Obama sticker next time.")...
...to a hope for more violence ("I can only pray that Frank-the-Lexus owner has a McCain-Plain yard sign.")...
...to the non-sensical ("Such a sad story. Sorry to hear his Rebel flag probably a family heirloom was destroyed. Sorry to hear that Republicans cannot get credit and must destroy their own cars to get a new one. I know how those KKK member like to remain hooded and not outed like this.")
I could go on and on with more examples. An anchorwoman was beaten and stabbed, possibly because she played a conservative in the "W" movie. We'll see, if and when she recovers. For more about intimidation tactics, see my previous post on Obama's Thugocracy.
Look, I realize that elections bring out intense emotions in people. I realize there have been violent incidents in previous election cycles, by perpetrators from both parties, although the vast majority seems to come from the peace-loving left. But I firmly believe we are seeing the syndrome reach a new level. It is infecting a greater number of people. It is almost impossible to have a civilized discussion with hard-core Obama supporters. They are so emotion-based and have so little regard for reason that the conversation ends almost as soon as it begins. They don't even know what he stands for, other than "change." They just know the He is The One.
It's no wonder that people who are so ill-equipped to conduct a calm, logical discourse turn to violence and hatred so easily. They have no other tools in their toolbox. They're empty. They're exposed. They have an internal dissonance (thinking of themselves as a member of the peace and love party, yet intensely hating conservatives) and rage that they can't resolve.
It's likely Obama will win the election, and we will be on our way toward socialism, higher taxes, and a stifling of free speech (the "Fairness Doctrine"). Hopefully, I am wrong, and he will turn out to be a centrist. Hopefully.
But imagine if McCain wins... I predict LRS will go into full bloom, and we'll see violence. Shocking violence. Violence that the Obamedia won't be able to ignore. Hopefully, I am wrong there too, but I doubt it.
I am seeing signs that BDS has morphed into a more generalized hatred that includes violence. I've never liked the term "Bush Derangement Syndrome" since it isn't Bush who is deranged, but those on the loonie left. So, I'll call this new variation "Liberal Rage Syndrome."
What is LRS and how do I know it exists? Not only have I read about instances of it, I have witnessed it twice recently. The first instance occurred a few weeks ago at the LSU-Florida football game pre-game festivities on University Avenue in Gainesville. There were thousands of people tailgating and walking about, all having a great time, Tiger fans included. There was a small McCain-Palin tent set up nearby and my wife impulsively grabbed a couple of name-tag-sized McCain-Palin stickers, put one on the side of her dress, and gave one to me. I stuck it on my shirt. Not 10 minutes later, a guy walking the other direction lunged over toward my wife, jabbed his finger at her and screamed "F*** McCain!" Both of us were so stunned that by the time we recovered the guy had disappeared into the crowd. OK, it wasn't a huge incident, but it fits a pattern, as you will see next.
Last Saturday morning, I got up early to go for my long run downtown. I was driving along at about 6:50 AM, and stopped at a red light next to the only other car on the six-lane street, a car with numerious liberal stickers on the back. You can probably guess what kind of car it was. I thought nothing of it, and when the light turned green, I accelerated normally and the other car fell behind slightly.
Then, all of a sudden, the car speeds ahead, swerves in front of me, and hits the brakes -- not enough for me to lock up my brakes, but close. I immediately swerve to the empty lane and the car swerves back in front of me to keep me behind him. I blow my horn at him, and then it hits me -- this nutcase is trying to get me to see his bumper stickers, including his Obama sticker, and he is enraged because I have the temerity to have a McCain-Palin sticker on the back of my car.
At this point, the adrenalin is pumping because I don't know if he is really trying to get me to crash into him. My instinct told me to gun it and get past him. It probably wasn't the safest move, but it worked. After all, I was in a 300 hp CTS and he was driving a lame (you guessed it) Prius. I blow past the psycho, and thankfully he decided to turn off onto a side street. I eventually calmed down and had a really nice long run.
Today on Drudge, I see this story: Owner Believes Lexus Vandalized Due to McCain Sticker. Read it and be shocked.
"Someone etched obscenities and "KKK" into the paint, burned several areas of the car with cigarettes, set the flag on fire on his hood and may have urinated on the vehicle. Officers and the owner think the car was singled out because of its political stickers, including one reading "Nobama."
"This is definitely a hate crime," said the Armstrong (the owner), a 41-year-old physician.
Police estimated damage at $4,500. Police classified the incident as "criminal mischief/hate crime" and said it appeared "to be politically/racially motivated because the victim affixed a bumper sticker supporting the McCain campaign as well as an anti-Obama bumper sticker."
As bad as that incident is, and as much as it is another example of LRS, it is only doubled or trebled when one reads some of comments left by readers of the news story.
They range from complete stupidity ("So the KKK vandalized the car...and left their calling card..")...
...to stunning denial ("It's McCain's political machine trying to make Obama look bad.")...
...to blaming Republicans (!) ("Probably the car was vandalized at Palin's HATE rally. LOL Really they most likely reaping what they sowed.")...
...to glee and a suggestion to cower ("I love happy stories. May I suggest an Obama sticker next time.")...
...to a hope for more violence ("I can only pray that Frank-the-Lexus owner has a McCain-Plain yard sign.")...
...to the non-sensical ("Such a sad story. Sorry to hear his Rebel flag probably a family heirloom was destroyed. Sorry to hear that Republicans cannot get credit and must destroy their own cars to get a new one. I know how those KKK member like to remain hooded and not outed like this.")
I could go on and on with more examples. An anchorwoman was beaten and stabbed, possibly because she played a conservative in the "W" movie. We'll see, if and when she recovers. For more about intimidation tactics, see my previous post on Obama's Thugocracy.
Look, I realize that elections bring out intense emotions in people. I realize there have been violent incidents in previous election cycles, by perpetrators from both parties, although the vast majority seems to come from the peace-loving left. But I firmly believe we are seeing the syndrome reach a new level. It is infecting a greater number of people. It is almost impossible to have a civilized discussion with hard-core Obama supporters. They are so emotion-based and have so little regard for reason that the conversation ends almost as soon as it begins. They don't even know what he stands for, other than "change." They just know the He is The One.
It's no wonder that people who are so ill-equipped to conduct a calm, logical discourse turn to violence and hatred so easily. They have no other tools in their toolbox. They're empty. They're exposed. They have an internal dissonance (thinking of themselves as a member of the peace and love party, yet intensely hating conservatives) and rage that they can't resolve.
It's likely Obama will win the election, and we will be on our way toward socialism, higher taxes, and a stifling of free speech (the "Fairness Doctrine"). Hopefully, I am wrong, and he will turn out to be a centrist. Hopefully.
But imagine if McCain wins... I predict LRS will go into full bloom, and we'll see violence. Shocking violence. Violence that the Obamedia won't be able to ignore. Hopefully, I am wrong there too, but I doubt it.