I guess I’m about the only person following the Alt-Right who does not think this (a few Nazi salutes at the last NPI conference and some Nazi language such as “Hail Victory!” and lugenpresse aka lying press) was a big deal.
The kerfuffle reminds me of all the PR missteps of Donald J. Trump over the past 16 months and how all the pros said this or that would end his candidacy.
If the Alt-Right presents a compelling vision for millions of people, it will triumph. If not, it won’t. Bad PR won’t kill it.
People who imitate Nazi gestures or clothing are no more likely to be genocidal maniacs than those who wear Che Guevara t-shirts and adopt languages and dress of communists (and I don’t see trendies in America as likely to commit genocide).
My proof is that not even Nazis were always hell-bent on genocide. They were in power for more than eight years before they started slaughtering civilians in large numbers. Communism in Russia turned genocidal earlier than that, and overall, communism murdered far more civilians than did Nazism.
In its first six years, the Nazi regime facilitated Jews moving to Palestine (the Haavara Agreement). In some times and places, Nazis, communists and many other groups are genocidal threats to Jews and in other times and places, they are not. Everything is time and circumstance. Most Israelis wish that all the Palestinians disappear but that does not mean Israel is likely to commit genocide against the Palestinians.
Genocide happens when you have a dramatic conflict of interest and heightened stakes in group conflict. It does not happen from adoption of rituals or dress of those who committed genocide in the past. In some circumstances, Jews, Christians, Muslims, Nazis, communists commit genocide and in other circumstances they don’t. All groups are susceptible to pressure to survive and often that means slaughtering your enemies. There are no good guys or bad guys in the universe unless you look at things through the eyes of faith, and faith, by definition, is subjective.
There are no permanent enemies or allies in the world. At some times and places, for instance, Christians are allies to Jews. In other circumstances, the two sides are enemies. The same goes for gentile nationalists and Jews.
