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Monday, June 25, 2018

What to do when anti-Trump zealots cross the line into violence or even chargeable menacing

Having served on active duty in uniform from 1965 to 1975, first at the U.S. Naval Academy and then as a Marine officer, I found it sad to feel hate when members of the public called us baby-killers and worse.  The worse included at times cowardly personal attacks, such as spitting and running away or "accidentally" stepping on shoes or bumping just enough to avoid proving a physical response.
The lowest of the low were anti-war activists reaching out directly to the families of the fallen to say their loved ones had it coming.  We all had sworn an oath to support and defend the Constitution, and the war wasn't our fault.  Congress letting it play out to its horrible end was to blame.
Those years did require personal discipline, as most of an entire generation of our peers blamed the warrior for the war.  It took considerable healing time to recognize America's Vietnam veterans' sacrifice.  Over time, a nation bonded back together.  That evolution was a good thing.
To the credit of Vietnam veterans, we did not take the dangerous "we were stabbed in the back" path.  In fact, quite the opposite: Many rallied to President Reagan's remarks at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
I'm not speaking provocatively here.  Unlike the other wars of this century, of course, there were deep divisions about the wisdom and rightness of the Vietnam War.  Both sides spoke with honesty and fervor.  And what more can we ask in our democracy?  And yet after more than a decade of desperate boat people, after the killing fields of Cambodia, after all that has happened in that unhappy part of the world, who can doubt that the cause for which our men fought was just?  It was, after all, however imperfectly pursued, the cause of freedom; and they showed uncommon courage in its service.  Perhaps at this late date we can all agree that we've learned one lesson: that young Americans must never again be sent to fight and die unless we are prepared to let them win.

Once again, now on a different issue, all are seeing an awakening movement blaming those who are engaged in safeguarding America as they make personal attacks against those enforcing our immigration laws.  It is now time to effectively fight back against an emerging threat by making a suggestion for aviation safety.
If an official of the U.S. government is attacked in public and those responsible are legally charged, because we must be careful never to infringe on First Amendment free speech rights, no matter how annoying, then the names of those responsible should immediately be placed on a "no fly list."
It is simple: if some zealots cross the line into violence or even chargeable "menacing," then by their very action, they have made it known that they cannot be trusted on an aircraft with all different types of passengers.
On any given day in airports across America, there are passengers waiting to board commercial jets who are ICE employees, or other government employees, along with their families, or members of the Trump administration – or even a person just wearing something that signals proud membership in what has been called Trump Nation.
 It is not as if ICE employees have not already been targeted:
"ICEPatrol is an important public resource for understanding ICE programs and increasing accountability, especially in light of the actions taken by ICE lately, such as the separation of children and parents at the US border," WikiLeaks tweeted.
Its database contains information and photos culled from LinkedIn of 9,243 former and current ICE employees, from interns to senior management.  The site is searchable by location, industry, current position, school attended and field of study.
Remember: the men and women proudly serving in Immigration and Customs Enforcement positions of responsibility are on our border, defending against vicious criminal gangs such as MS-13.
Consequently, the recent revelation in releasing names of ICE agents and their families is dangerous.  They simply are doing their job in enforcing the law.  Instead of attacking and vilifying those who honorably served in uniform during the Vietnam years, the left has now found a target for this generation's self-righteous activists.  Taking away the privilege to fly (it is not a right) would be a prudent and safe move to protect the innocents.
If someone losses self-control in making illegal personal attacks in, say, a restaurant or city street, then I doubt that many Americans would want to be on aircraft at 35,000 feet with such a proven erratic individual, whatever self-righteous virtue-signal he is currently hiding behind.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2018/06/what_to_do_when_antitrump_zealots_cross_the_line_into_violence_or_even_chargeable_menacing.html

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