The Idea Of The Lone, Violent White Extremist Is A Myth

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This article is part of TPM Cafe, TPM’s home for opinion and news analysis. It was originally published at The Conversation.

This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1449171
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The same is true of political assassinations in this country but I don’t think you want to go there.

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This movie discussed this lone wolf BS well

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I’ve always wondered about this “lone wolf” trope. It fits the rights picture of itself as “Rugged Individualists™,” but ignores the fact that the shooter invariably was part of a group or social network advocating violence against their “other” group. Suicide bombers don’t seem to travel in packs either, are they all lone wolves? We knew about this problem in the 1980’s and seemed to treat right wing violence as the organized terror it was. Ruby Ridge occurred under Bush I, but after Waco and the Oklahoma City bombing the narrative really seemed to change. Calling organized terror attacks perpetrated by a single member of a right wing group “Lone Wolf” attacks and any disturbance by a liberal or minority group terrorism became a media and right wing feature.

I suspect that an unstated part of Newt Gingrich’s Contract with America was a nearly open agreement to whitewash rightwing violence as part of the GOP platform. Certainly the the right has adopted increasingly violent rhetoric since 1994 and demonstrated increasing willingness to openly promote asymmetrical official violence when they control even one branch of government.

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The “lone wolf” theory narrative also supports the law enforcement mythology that “they got the bad guy” and now the threat is gone. If you can sell the idea that you’ve eliminated 100% of the threat, police appear to be more effective than saying you only caught (one of twenty conspirators or) 5% of the extremist threat contained. Who can argue with what the police know. They’re the ones with the evidence and intel files. Nearly all news organizations will merely read the police press release.

Meanwhile some bad actors in police and political leadership actually support the cause of white nationalist murderous extremists. As was the case in Washington, D.C. prior to and during the ransacking of our Capitol on January 6, 2021.

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Or maybe law enforcement, some, want extremist to think they think this lone wolf thing is real to cover up their under cover operations.
Remember the 60’s when the FBI infiltrated organizations they believed were harmful or truthful?

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I think the concept of that sort of ambition within the police is over-sold. The '60s and Cointelpro was a different time. I am much more concerned about the relationship between closeted white supremacist pro-authoritarian politicians and the police.

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Aside from the KKK (which seemed to rely on internal snitches not undercover operatives) wasn’t that mostly directed at leftist and minority groups?

I’m not prepared to throw law enforcement under the bus, but they do seem much more worried about non-white folks and animal rights activists than say Oath Keepers.

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Exactly. The pro-police state crowd is eagerly willing to ditch the Constitution to hunt out those with leftist ideas. The left-leaning rank-and-file not so prone to take that approach. Whataboutism again. False equivalency. The fact that right wing nut J. Edgar Hoover did something more than 50 years ago doesn’t mean that liberal Democrats are doing it in the 2020s.

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Thanks to Fire and jnbenson for their beliefs because this is the way I learn.

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The Idea Of The Lone, Violent White Extremist Is A Myth, And Its Dangerous

Its dangerous what?!?

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It’s dangerous to ignore the 85% part of the iceberg that you cannot see. The FBI had information from an agent in San Diego about a possible terrorist act involving airplanes prior to 9/11. The “Bureau” did nothing with this information. Believing in one’s own omnipresence and omnipotence is no way to protect a country, my friend.

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If the overwhelming majority of these people shared the same religion, could we think about what it meant for the Kings of Northern Europe to ennoble all the human garbage that couldn’t in a thousand years do much more than blame?

These people come from the Reformation, and almost every single one of them is from the same predisposed-to-violence, predisposed-to-religious righteousness, Olde Worlde, Old Testament mob of slobs.

The countries of Europe that didn’t create whole knew religions, with the richest man in the land the leader, mind you, also don’t have the same warmongering nature, didn’t commit the same atrocities, didn’t enslave in any where the same numbers, and to this day do not foster Fascism to the degree where it would ever find a place.

Protestantism is human devolution.

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Rock and roll ain’t noise pollution.

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I’m pretty sure Danny was taking possession of the anti-apostrophetic nature of the headline. :wink:

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Yeah, well, ya can’t be anti-apocalyptic without being anti-apostrophetic.

Or is it the other way around?

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Of course they are because deep down they are losers and chickenshits whose self-image is largely delusional and purely masturbatory. They imagine themselves as the towering hero in their own pathetic story when most of them have simply failed at everything they’ve ever done. That failure is what fuels their extremism - if the world won’t give them what they believe they’re owed, then fuck you all me and my loser buddies will just burn it all to the fucking ground. Makes perfect sense.

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How pro-phetic of you!

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Anti. I am an anti. Stormy Daniels - now there’s a “pro.” Actually, I am pro-feta. Does that make me pro-feta-ic?

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We know there were law enforcement officers within the mob on Jan 6.

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