A Permanent Dividing Line
Where you stand on J6 determines your ideological standing - and is likely to forever do so.
As I read the comments from both sides regarding President Trump's pardons of J6 prisoners, it's clear that the events of January 6, 2021, will forever be a dividing line among Americans. There are those who view it as an insurrection, a direct attack on the U.S. Capitol and "democracy" (however broad their interpretation), and others who see it as a protest that spiraled out of control. Both sides often focus on the sheer number of individuals apprehended by the FBI, arrested, and subsequently convicted or forced into plea deals, becoming felons in D.C. courts.
Supporters of the insurrection narrative celebrate the prosecution of over 1,500 individuals, while others argue that the number of legitimate arrests should have been much lower. The former group might feel that even four years in jail without a trial is not sufficient punishment (actually happened), whereas the latter see the fines, suspended sentences, and convictions for "parading" as excessive.
My stance might be unpopular, but I believe those who broke the law, especially violently or by attacking law enforcement, should face appropriate legal consequences, including any law enforcement who used excessive force. Riots and their consequences are significant, yet not everyone present at a riot should be labeled a rioter.
If the Biden administration's response had ended with sensible legal proceedings, many reasonable Americans might have grudgingly accepted the outcome, while recognizing the judicial system's lack of interest in addressing lingering questions about the 2020 election.
But Biden, Garland, their commissars and petty tyrants couldn’t and didn’t stop there.
Emboldened by the blanket of air cover provided by the bloodthirsty, Trump-hating media, they decided to recast Trump into Auric Goldfinger and J6 into an Irwin Allen (youngsters can look him up), B-grade, made-for-TV disaster event, casting people like Capitol Police Lieutenant Michael Byrd (he shot and killed Ashlii Babbitt), and Officer Michael Fanon (who provably lied in federal testimony) as the heroes, mewling and hysterical elected officials (some not even close to the rioting) as victims (AOC should get at least a daytime Emmy for her portrayal) and hapless protesters caught up in the moment, and grandmothers following the flow of the crowd as the enemy.
Blinded by postmodern, progressive rage-hate, the Democrats believed any seventy-year-old grandpa who walked through the Capitol between the velvet ropes deserved the same rage they expressed at Kyle Rittenhouse (who was guilty of nothing but endured two years of prosecution/persecution).
Set against a background of a 2020 that featured “Firey, but mostly peaceful” rioting, arson, literal murder, and looting by ANTIFA/BLM, rational people saw how completely invented the outrage about J6 was.
We've seen how enthusiastically Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI leadership, and D.C. judges like Tanya Chutkan pursued even elderly grandparents, compelling them to plead guilty to misdemeanors inflated to felonies.
We saw how misdemeanors were inflated into felonies in true Alvin Bragg/Letitia James style.
This was all set against the backdrop of 2020, where "fiery but mostly peaceful" protests by ANTIFA and BLM involved arson, murder, and looting, which highlighted the perceived hypocrisy and exaggeration surrounding J6. Many of us are having a difficult time reconciling the differences and circumstances leading to the conviction of Derek Chauvin in the George Floyd case versus the lack thereof in the case of Michael Byrd’s killing of Ashlii Babbitt.
Consider the case of L. Brent Bozell's son (Bozell is the founder of Media Research Center and William F. Buckley’s nephew), who, after deciding to turn himself in for breaking two windowpanes, faced a stark choice from the Justice Department: accept a three-year sentence or risk 20 years in prison with additional charges like insurrection and assault, despite no prior criminal history beyond a traffic ticket. When he refused the plea deal, they added terrorism charges they knew were unfounded, leading to a 45-month sentence for Leo Brent Bozell IV, a 44-year-old husband and father of three young girls. He served six months until he was pardoned yesterday.
This situation is only one of many that underscores why many of us believe J6 was not an insurrection but rather an excuse used by a Democrat-led government to send a chilling message to American citizens about the consequences of questioning their authority.
Ultimately, these events and their interpretations continue to divide us, suggesting that consensus on this issue will never be reached.
First it was no insurrection, at best it was a protest encouraged (by planted actors) to reach riot stage. We all know this. When the FBI was giving testimony to the committee they refused, repeatedly to say if there were FBI agents planted within the group. We now know there were.
The J6 tapes not being made public was a blinding realism that they (committee) wanted no one to see the real happenings of that day. The committee wanted it 'their way or the highway'. Just like the Spanish Inquisition (I paused here to see if they show up, credit Monty Python), the committee was going to crucify anyone that dare question its authority and furthermore make example of anyone anywhere near the Capitol on that day.
And as far as BLM and Antifa go, well I guess they were invisible to the left. Their activity reminded me of a Star Trek episode 'Return of the Archons' where this calm society goes berserk on Festival/Red Hour. Then after a night of all kinds of mayhem, all is forgiven the next day.
After this past 4 years, the one thing I have witnessed for sure, is that our official, elected to represent all of us, yield to their party bosses, swaying in the wind of whichever way their bosses are blowing. Time has come for a total clean house, instituting of Term Limits, and transparency to all stock and other financial deals these representatives make either by them, their family, or their financial teams, while they are in office.
Lastly, we need to end lobbyist, end the ability for past representatives to be in congress chambers while law is being made, and make it law that any member of any house will be subject to the same laws as those imposed upon America.
We attended protests on The Mall in the 1960's.
People describing J6 as an insurrection have no concept of history...They've forgotten the damage done to DC by leftist protests, including a Capitol bombing in the 60's by BHO's buddy, Bill Ayers...
Destruction of "evidence", used and ignored, by the J6 Committee is criminal. Thanks to Biden, they can't be charged - but, hopefully, they'll be questioned.