!ATTENTION ALL LIBERALS!

A warning from an ex muslim arab

Trump supporters are a dangerous breed. They are aligned with the alt-right
movement--which is racist, and has displayed contempt for fundamental democratic
principles and human rights. I believe I understand the mentality underlying this socalled populist movement.
It evinces a remarkably unsettling resemblance to certain other populist movements
throughout history, and I truly wonder whether many of its advocates do not have
some small presentiment of its wrongness--that this movement, whatever reasonable
grievances it embodies, hints at something sinister. All fascists come as saviors, but
this does not mean all those who present themselves as saviors are fascists. To make
that distinction, a fair guideline is this: By their fruits you shall know them, and has
the Trump tree borne good fruit? I see discord, animosity, instability, fear, rage, and
doubtless may think it will all change when Trump is properly inaugurated, which is to
say, once Trump has the political power to fully enact his will. Maybe he will change.
Maybe Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is a true prophet of God. Embracing either one of those
maybes is a tremendous act of faith in any case.
It bears mentioning here that many Muslims who oppose terrorism sheltered, abetted,
and enabled the fanatical, reactionary elements in their societies that made the rise of
ISIS an inevitability; and I think, even if Trump turns out to be a swell guy after all,
what about the ones who will come after him? What will they be like? Even almighty
Trump may eventually come to fear the forces that bore him into the White House. I
believe that is possible.
For those with ears to hear, I implore you: take all decisive and effective actions you
can, while you can! Elevated polemics will not lead to a bipartisan compromise.
Fanatics do not believe in compromise, and moderate Arabs tried that tack for
centuriesone may judge the effectiveness of those efforts differently than I, but I
hold a rather dismal view of the matter.
Consequently, here are a few measures I recommend personally, although I invite any
party with a mind sensitive to the problem to adapt, expand, enhance, or dispose of
these recommendations on the good advice of his or her conscience; the governing
principle for me is this, to take a stand against something awful and to create a united
front with others of like mind against such awfulness:

1. If you see a populist acting suspiciously, don't hesitate to report him/her to the
police, e.g., if he/she has a gun, do not take for granted that it is being carried lawfully.
Let the police look into such matters.
2. In dialogue, do not waste breath on appeals to the better angels of [their] natures.
Call them out: "Extremist," "Terrorist," "Racist"; fanatics thrive on the indulgences of
political correctness even as they denounce it with respect to themselves. Do not fall
for that ploy.
3. Stand firm and united: Christians, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, LGBT, liberals,
humanists; to wit, anybody who is not a White Supremacist ought to band together. We
are strong to the extent that we are united. If we are defeated, it will be because we
could not set aside petty rivalries for the sake of greater moral principles.
4.Name and shame them. They need to be outed. Out the Trump supporter in your
neighborhood. Take note of his/her appalling statements and do not hesitate to air
that record publicly and repeatedly.
5. Support the ACLU, the SPLC, and other reputable organizations that are poised in
opposition to the all-too-predictable outrages to come.
6.Every person who is attacked by a Trump supportereven if that attack is merely
verbalmust react to such attacks in a prompt and legal fashion: Such attacks should
be registered with local police for investigation as potential "hate crimes". Even if no
investigation immediately follows, the creation of a legal record of such incidents
cannot fail to have value, either in later prosecutions/investigations, and by putting
the would-be extremist on notice that his/her antisocial activities will be registered
legally.
7. This is a somewhat subjective recommendation, but personally, I stop just short of
urging a general boycott of the whole for-profit, corporate news edifice. If everyone
had watched PBS instead of a thousand paid pundits and professionals spinmeisters on
CNN, MSNBC, FOX, etc., the so-called Trump phenomenon would have been done
before it was fairly begun. While one may quibble on the degree to which this or that
institution contributed to the rise of Trump, few can doubt that they all profited
enormously from the increased popular interest spurred by the rise of such an
entertaining candidate. To the extent that they did and do, I am inclined to think
there is a substantial conflict of interest that undermined the essential purpose of the
fourth estate in this case and may yet have catastrophic consequences. I am less
concerned about the core motives underpinning this failure than the final effect, and I
consider it worthwhile to send a message to remind such organizations of their
essential civic responsibilities.

8. Print and circulate flyers. Know that not everyone knows what you know, and have
faith that people have some innate, fundamental affinity for the truth when it is
presented with clarity and accuracy. It must be the case that there are genuinely
misinformed Trump supporters, and this is not something I consider wholly
unforgivable in light of the proliferation of misinformation in these times. Speak the
truth and only the truth and call out all liars. Damn all liars, even when their lies
serve to advance some short-term political objectives close to ones heart.
9.Do not assume that things will work out okay because it has been so for the span of
your short mortal, political memory. Do not assume every German who voted for
Hitler said to themselves, I think this fellow will precipitate the greatest war in
human history and will actively suppress the very same political/legal rights that
enabled his rise in the first place. Democratically-elected fascists virtually always (as
a historical point) reshape political context as soon as they can, and see little point in
protecting political systems which do not rig the deck in favor of fascism. Why should
they? Its the fascism they love, not the liberal institutions that enabled their political
ascension.

I close with these timeless words:

The Only Thing Necessary for the

Triumph of Evil is that Good Men Do
Nothing.