I wish some source would compile and compare threats received, because it definitely seems to me like people on the left receive death threats *a lot* more than people on the right too. Some comprehensive comparison of which side regularly adds more violence to the world - with sources to back all of it up, so it's easily verifiable - would do wonders for our country right now.
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It's just baffling to me that apparently Trump supporters are swallowing these stories whole about Democrat governors and mayors who don't want "help" in the form of federal troops are ALL suddenly radical left Marxist extremists? It's going to take a long, long time to recover from consequences of this shit smear's histrionic fear-mongering.
Not trying to be contrary but I think this narrative of the right being more radicalized and violent may not be accurate. I say this based off limited anecdotal experience. One example that sticks out was when I was protesting at a food festival the detainment and separation of kids from their parents. At one point the vibe totally shifted and this guy who had been standing near our group with signs lunged at a Trump supporter, no one stopped him from our group (though in fairness it all happened very quickly, 0 to 1000 really fast) and the collective vibe afterwards seemed to be it was OK, that was my sense, no one seemed upset by this from our group, as in, there wasn't from what I recall commentary on how what he did was unacceptable or expressions of shock etc, but who knows, maybe everyone was either in shock or used to things like that happening, he ended up being stopped by his wife but I am fairly sure that Trump supporter who wasn't even saying anything incendiary and was just voicing his belief Trump was doing a "good job" was pretty shaken up as the look on their face, if I was reading him right was hurt and fear. It shouldn't have happened and was wrong. After that this guy with an NRA shirt who had seen the whole thing stopped across from us and kept watch for like 40 minutes? In fairness to the guy who lunged, I think he may have been slightly inebriated as his eyes were a bit bloodshot and I think they were serving alcohol at the festival, his movements struck me as those of someone slightly inebriated and with the bloodshot eyes at the time I thought perhaps that explained partly his response. So who knows, what was going on with him.
It's like a moment I realized both sides get so emotionally heated, left and right, and it can get weird quick. I still believe we should have been there because the issue needed to be talked about and for people to know it was wrong but I don't agree with violence ever. I haven't actually met a lot of Trump supporters that I would consider violent and I've gone to an OK amount of liberal oriented protests, from green rights to anti-Trump, maybe it's just my state cause they are vastly outnumbered but mostly they just seem to express their views in a fairly calm way, I mean calm given the circumstances, a protest. It's arguable about the quality or morality of some of those views but the way they presented their opinion has been typically pretty respectful from my experience. There were a few who were obnoxious, like one guy would drive by with all these American flags and Trump signs and honk his horn, others would yell "Trump" while passing with an upraised fist etc. but nothing that seemed to try to escalate it somewhere violent that I recall. I have gotten more of an icy or angry vibe when they were passing, like the stink eye etc but not typically outright hostility. This was a year or so ago so maybe things have changed. But from my experience, I didn't interact with violent Trump supporters.
My feeling is, I think either side you will find people just losing it and finding themselves justified in losing it due to the passion of their beliefs and either side will paint the other side as being the ones who are violent and disrespectful etc. I'm fairly sure on the conservative web forums there are people talking about how liberals are on the whole more violent etc. etc. What scares me is increasingly people seem to ready to justify violence by painting the other side as the monsters, the bad people ... dehumanizing them. I don't really agree with that and I don't think that is what you all are trying to do ... but all the same, I wanted to share from my limited experiences I haven't interacted with anyone violent who supported Trump.
So all that can be said atm, I feel, until there are multiple studies done on which side is more violent, is say that politics just makes people get really emotional and emotional people can turn to violence. So violence on any side is wrong, whether that's towards a conservative or towards a liberal, its a zero tolerance thing. Personally, that is my feeling, violence is never ever justified.
