Preparing for Hatred

So, I've been spending the past couple of hours (I wrote this Thursday night, obviously) perusing my Twitter timeline and watching people batter Michelle Malkin repeatedly with misogynistic and racist slurs.  That woman is a true warrior.  She has learned not to care about the hate or the rape threats or the death threats.  At least, she does not let it show.  If only all conservatives could be like that.

But we can't.  Not all of us are in the trenches day in and day out, being told repeatedly that we are horrible fascists who want children to die and should go die ourselves.  Steven Crowder (remember, the guy who assaulted a man's fist with his face?) tweeted this out not long ago.

If most of us receive threats like this, we would be afraid.  We would not know how to react.  We would never have seen it or experienced it before.  We should not have to at all.  However, it happens and with increasing frequency.

You see, there is a bitter truth I think far too many people are afraid to admit to, whether it is for fear of offending people or being attacked: liberals are hateful.  No, I do not care that I am making a blanket statement and no, I will never care again.  It is irrelevant in the face of overwhelming evidence.  Time and again I have seen liberals spew vitriol at the smallest and biggest things.  Conservative women are whores who are going to be raped.  Black conservatives are Uncle Toms and niggers.  Supporters of Israel are Jew sluts.  We all deserve to die horrible deaths or should commit suicide.  Words like this, toothless though they likely are, can come from nowhere but a heart filled vitriol and bile.

Now, there are liberals out there who are not like this.  I follow a few on Twitter and know a few personally (I just had a pleasant conversation with one), but they are the exception, not the rule.  The hatred overwhelms those of good character and conscience who would never utter those slurs.

In the past year and after the election, in particular, we have seen a dramatic rise in hatred coming from the left.  It seemed that weekly some prominent conservative was libeled and viciously attacked for stating his or her opinion.  It has happened again tonight and will continue to happen as well.  In their arrogance, liberals assume their victories and "moral uprightness" means they will no longer be called out and challenged on their despicable views and behavior.  They take the filters off and what is truly in their hearts comes out.

Those filters coming off should tell conservatives everywhere that the game has changed.  These are no longer random events.  This kind of behavior is now the status quo.

We must be prepared.

We conservatives must be ready, willing and able to combat the hatred.  We must be warriors for our cause and be vigilant at the walls. We already recognize this combat will not be fun, but we must also recognize that it will come upon us eventually.  It most obviously affects those with a public spotlight already, such as the Malkins and the Crowders.

However, if we wish to defend our beliefs (and each other), then we must likewise be prepared to defend ourselves against these attacks.  It doesn't matter if you are a blogger, a student, a parent, a supervisor, a cashier; we must all be prepared for the anger and the vile behavior...and worse.  We will be tested and we cannot assume just because we do not garner much attention that it will not reach our doorstep one day.

The war of ideas will wear on us all.  We must be prepared to weather whatever is thrown our way.