A violent incident from last week's anti-war march provides a window to conservative psychopathology

[marmar]

from OurFuture.org:


"He needed a rescue"
Submitted by Rick Perlstein on September 20, 2007 - 8:08pm.


Last week I wondered whether an oily substance found on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and reported by wingnuts as anti-war vandalism might have actually been a false-flag operation intended to stir violent outrage at the anti-war activists coming to Washington for a September 15 march.

If so: mission accomplished. The pro-war fascists of Gathering of Eagles found a father of fallen Marine to beat up along the route: Carlos Arredondo, who marches in anti-war demonstrations pulling a flag-draped coffin adorned with a picture of his son. Here's one account:


As Carlos passed counter protesters, one man ripped a picture of Alex from the memorial. Carlos leaped on the man to retrieve the picture. It was at that point that approximately five others all began to attack Carlos by kicking him in the head, legs, stomach and back.

The Capitol police bicycle patrol then appeared to break up the fight. Several officers including a female officer were engaged in breaking up the fight and were able to stop any further injuries from occurring. Hannah Jones who was walking with Carlos was also assaulted.

A bystander named Ramesh witnessed the whole encounter and also retrieved the picture of Alex for Carlos. He was quite distressed at how he watched the men follow Carlos as he pulled the memorial, purposefully yelling epiphets and eventually taking Alex's photograph. Soon, an ambulance showed up as well as many concerned activists. The paramedics provided first aid to Carlos but he did not seek further medical attention. Carlos sustained bloody cuts on his shins. He also reported bruises all over his torso and head where he was kicked.


And here's what one of the perpetrators has to say about it. He clearly believes himself a hero: the fallen Marine, after all, was "being held hostage in company not of his own choosing." Well, yes, none of us get to choose our own parents. But these parents "immediately and obviously intended" to "disrespect his Corps," and had to be wailed upon. Their son would have only wanted it that way:


My teams broke up at the Capitol, mission accomplished, and I was walking alone back to the Mall when I saw the photo-image of a proud young Marine in dress blues being held hostage in company not of his own choosing and affixed to a coffin not his own.

The insult to his honor and disrespect to his Corps and cause by his captors was immediately obvious and intended. These same peddlers of provocation are paid to push their coffin-prop all over the country they revile. They subvert a common will and undermine the cause and country for which this hostage-Marine had sacrificed his very life.

The captive Marine was not among his own. He was surrounded and outnumbered by those who shamelessly exploit his image and memory, disgrace his uniform, his brothers in arms, and his willing sacrifice. He would never choose such company. He needed a rescue…


"He needed a rescue." This remarkable discourse reminds me of the Terry Schiavo case, one of the signal conservative failures of our era, and a crucial window into the deep psychology of the far-right. The lesson is: no family attachment matters when it falls afoul of the cleansing perfections of right-wing ideology. In the Schiavo case wingnut ideology provided a weird psychological defense against the disappointments of our children who fly away and disappoint us; recall that it turned upon an argument that it was really the parents who get to decide everything about their adult children, not the spouses who steal our children away from us. In this case the Freudian issue is rage at the parent. We see a damaged soul beating up someone else's father for "disrespecting the Corps": sorry you never got a chance to wail on your own dad for doing you wrong, dude, but it must be fun to get to do it symbolically, and with such self-exculpatory glee to boot.

How I tire of conservatives working out their psychopathologies in the public square.

http://commonsense.ourfuture.org/he_needed_rescue?tx=3

[liberal N proud]

1. He needed a rescue? That makes my head hurt

[BridgeTheGap]

2. Such are the attitudes that fascist movements are built upon

Their ignorance and thuggery run counter to free expression and democracy.

[valerief]

3. Welcome to the United States of Moronica founded on OJ, Monica,

zygote worship, a teevee diet of Forrest Gump and Faux Newz, and questions like, "Does Mars have its own sun?"

[kenfrequed]

4. The words are so coached

I wonder if the rest of his mob were as convoluted in their illogic. No I am not seeing someone "rescuing" a marine. I'm not even seeing a man working through daddy issues. I am seeing facism + mob mentality. Of course the daddy isssues this counter logical, violent, counterprotester may have been experiencing only exist in how common such issues are in all facists.

[PDJane]

5. And the archetype of the ugly American rears its head again.

I have yet to figure out if these folks think they're accomplishing something, or whether the herd mentality takes over and they do these things just for the hell of beating on someone.

[sinkingfeeling]

6. And no major MSM outlet reported it, right?

[Solly Mack]

7. Sick.Sick.Sick. Scary sick.

He felt entitled to attack...that it was his duty to attack

and was he charged?

[damntexdem]

8. But try to see it their way: many chickenhawks lack fallen military in their own families.

So they try to "adopt" them from antiwar families.

Besides, think of how frustrating it is to be clearly on the wrong side and not have enough intelligence or courage to recognize it and change sides.

[EFerrari]

9. The projection in that passage is amazing and revealing.

"those who shamelessly exploit his image and memory, disgrace his uniform, his brothers in arms, and his willing sacrifice. He would never choose such company. He needed a rescue…"

Isn't that pretty much a description of how Junior's administration treats our troops and veterans?

[MagickMuffin]

10. I did my comic on this disgusting episode of the GOE who attack the grieving father

of a fallen soldier. I will add this link.

There was a thread a couple days ago with the attackers pics. I wanted to use those as well but they had been altered by highlighting the Jack-booted thugs. I would love to get my hands on the originals so I could do a comic just to show who these thugs are.

I did an image search using google for gathering of eagles and found a lot of disturbing websites. These freepards are sooo full of hate it is unbelievable. I will never understand how people can be filled with sooo much hate.

Of course this outrage is just what the GOP envisioned with their "Culture Wars" back in the 60's to the current situation. Only now they have become even more violent against people who question authority. You can Thank the great Mad king Boy George and his sidekick Oil Slick Dick for that.

I wish Keith Olbermann would have Carlos on to discuss what happened to him. KO would be the only one to provide him with a platform to inform the rest of the US what is being done to our fallen soldiers families who dare cross that line of speaking out against this War of Choice, that has claimed so many people from both sides of the "battle" both over there as well as the one waged at home.