How much evidence will it take? We are on the road to factional violence

Yesterday, news spread everywhere over the threats, and acts of violence in Michigan. Acts and threats from Democrats  and Union Members (many of whom were teachers who SHUT DOWN LOCAL RUN SCHOOLS to protest).

Unlike the claims made over Tea Party protesters, these violent acts, incitements to violence  and threats were evinced live on camera, and on the airwaves. Without fear.

I think we can term what occurred the actions of thugs and gangster like criminals whipped up by political morons acting as if this were the actions of Mr. Frick at the Homestead Mill. Actions which made clear that unions were a necessity.

Likewise the pendulum has now swung all the way around with unions now being the pro-active inciters of Brownshirt like violent action, intimidation and coercion.

But never mind. I have, many times warned that the failing abilities of the choices of the people in the persons of those we elected, to effectively deal with the issues we face mimic in almost every detail, the beginning of the end of the Roman Republic beginning about  133 BC.

I make no judgment here as to the right or wrong.

In that time 2 brothers, members of the patrician, Senatorial class sought to redistribute the land wealth of that class among the poor, the urban poor. The Gracchi brothers BOTH ended up killed over the next 10 years in the resultant violent confrontations on the streets of Rome. NOTHING WAS SOLVED. 

Outside threats by disorganized and seemingly unending ‘barbaric’ hordes, and involvement in northern African tribal foreign policy messes, yielded the ascension of one Marius, who in defeating these threats saw himself elected 7 times as consul, and then arrogated (approximately) the land reform the Gracchi wanted over a cowed and shrinking patrician class. In achieving this a lot of heads ended up on spikes. Marius was regarded as the savior of Rome, and was extremely popular among the plebeians. 

It was THIS, and the disenfranchised others within Italy that saw the ascendance of Sulla, and the FIRST march on Rome by an army, representing the ‘victory’ of the patricians.

All of which lead to more civil wars until the assassination of Caesar by the patricians, and finally the frank end of the republic after almost 100 years of civil violence.

I have no doubt we are on this path.

Lack of ability to find compromises fuels incitement, confrontation and violence.

How long will it be until one of these threats results in a political figure getting hurt or killed?

What will be the response?

In this new America will we see a pulling back, or will this accelerate the process as fingers are pointed, and blame laid?

I am a cynic, and we are ruled by a self righteous demagogue, who is a true believing zealot for the progressive idea, and surrounded by nothing but others of the same ilk. These people regard the triumph of their ideas AS THE ONLY PATH WORTHY, and more worthy than preserving the ‘flawed’ founding documents.

The greatest threats we face are not found outside the borders any longer. It is most ironic that in the time of Marius it was the entanglements in what is today Libya which yielded the personality that dominated Rome.

We are going down the drain because political compromise has become the enemy of both idea sets. In fact, things have gone so far, that compromise might NOT SOLVE OUR PROBLEMS.

If compromise can no longer get us out of this jam, WHAT WILL?

While elected Michigan Democratic reps tell us there will be blood, WHAT WILL?