Heroes Don’t Wear Masks

(WRITER’S NOTE: After writing this I thought more about the title and decided that it was important to remind everyone to be careful taking things at face value (face value…masks…get it?) For example, this title, while catchy, is not 100% accurate. Surgeons wear masks. Nurses wear masks. Fire-fighters wear masks. And Batman, the most bad-ass of all superheroes, wears a mask. So be skeptical of everything you read. Now onward.)

“The extreme always seems to make an impression.” – J.D., from the movie Heathers

We live in an extreme world. Even though great leaders have long espoused the power of moderation, over the long term, as a path towards permanent change, Americans often lack patience and prefer extreme measures to rational ones. The word extreme has been reduced to little more than a marketing tool. Your deodorant offers EXTREME protection. Your toothpaste offers EXTREME whitening. Even your snack foods are EXTREME. Why would anyone waste their time on normal when you can have an extreme? Americans love extremes. They want the immediate outcome promised from extreme actions.

It is interesting to note that when we look at things that are at opposite extremes, we often see that they have more in common than they have differences. For example, a devout atheist and a Christian fundamentalist may seem to be at extreme opposites, but often times share much in common. Both sides are often intolerant of differing views to the point of feeling compelled to constantly lecture those naive enough to believe differently than they do. Both sides often believe that the world would be a better place if everyone shared their views. Both sides believe that they know something that is scientifically unknowable. The list of similarities between opposing extremes is usually greater than the differences. Thus is the nature of extremism.

One extremist group that has been working overtime in the United States since the election of Donald Trump, are the White Nationalists/White Supremecists/Nazi fringe hate groups. While these groups may differentiate themselves in degrees and goals, they still represent roughly the same agenda, which is the exaltation of white people and their culture above other races. Some of these groups are particularly problematic, because they are well-armed and believe in using any means necessary to achieve their agenda.

Seemingly, at the opposite extreme is Antifa (ANTI-FAscist). Like the KKK these extremists hide behind masks and believe in using “any means necessary” to further their agenda.

While I am in absolute agreement with Antifa that fascism must be battled wherever it is found, I also believe that there is a blueprint for fighting White Supremacy that has been employed with great success by people such as Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi. That path, of course, is not extreme and therefore does not necessarily appeal to people who desire the instant ego-gratification achieved through violence. It is a path that exalts strength of character above physical strength. It is the path chosen by Rosa Parks, Gautama Buddha, Bob Marley and John Lennon. I am speaking, of course, of non-violent resistance.

Using violence against White Nationalists elevates their cause. White Nationalist rallies like the one in Virginia last week occur on a regular basis. You don’t hear about them, because there is nothing newsworthy about morons yelling and holding Tiki-torches. The Nazis show up, hoping to elicit a reaction from counter-protesters. When they fail at their goal, they go home feeling further marginalized. The only reason why you are hearing so much about what happened in Charlottesville is because, in this case, the Nazis were able to achieve their goal of finding a counter-force that was willing to use violence. This offers them free media exposure which helps them to recruit others to their cause. It is for this reason that some have speculated that Antifa is actually an alt-right organization designed to help White Nationalists with recruiting.

Antifa members use their own form of hate-speech against those who do not believe in using violence to elevate the White Nationalist movement. They call those who disagree with their tactics “Nazi sympathizers”, a term designed to put peaceful Progressives in the same group as the fascists Antifa claim to be fighting. These tactics weaken non-violent resistance and allow Antifa members to attack peaceful leftists. Similar tactics have been used throughout history to divide movements.

An extreme type of black and white thinking pervades Antifa. Their very name is set up to divide with black and white thinking. If you are against Antifa’s tactics, then you must be pro-fascist, right? Extremist groups often seek to divide by eliminating the gray area of an issue. Extreme black and white thinking is a cornerstone of nearly every personality disorder in the DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual used by psychologists to evaluate mental disorders). One could make the case that Antifa is a cult that preys on people with violent personality disorders. Like any cult they believe that they are doing righteous work. Attempting to debate someone who suffers from extreme black and white thinking is difficult at best and usually resembles the following conversation.

Progressive: I hate Nazis, but I’m not sure that using violence is the best way to go about it?

Antifa: So you are a Nazi-sympathizer?!

Progressive: No. Like I said I hate Nazis but..

Antifa: Pick a side!! You are either FOR Nazis or you are AGAINST them!! Which is it?!

Progressive: I’m against Nazi-ism, but like I was saying..

Antifa: What?! What are you saying?! You’re going to make excuses for Nazis?! Then YOU’RE a Nazi!!

Now you find yourself one step away from being attacked by a violent extremist who believes that they are righteous in attacking you, because they have now labeled you as a fascist. In the Antifa extremist worldview, a fascist is anyone who does not agree 100% with their violent ideology. In their extreme black and white thinking you are either part of their myopic solution or you are part of the problem and Antifa believes fully in solving any and all problems with violence and destruction.

It is easy enough to pick an unpopular stance and name your group after the opposite of that stance. For example we could start a group against hate and call it Antiha (ANTI-HAte). This catchy name would allow us to use “any and all means necessary” to counteract hate. We could even use hate to counteract hate. If anyone opposed our hateful measures we could accuse them of being pro-hate and marginalize their voice. If it sounds ridiculous, that’s because it absolutely is.

Life is not black and white. There’s more than one way to fight Nazi-ism. Breaking windows of local businesses like Antifa did in Seattle or destroying University property as they did at Berkeley does nothing to stop White Nationalism and unfortunately moves us closer to the right-wing police state that the elites have been trying to thrust on us since the Orwellian days of Richard Nixon. Simply put, Antifa’s tactics are counterproductive to our movement. If you are a Republican governor trying to get anti-protest laws passed in your state, having Antifa smashing in the windows of local businesses and starting fires in the streets is a quick and dirty way to scare the locals into agreeing with your Draconian law.

I certainly identify with the anger felt by Antifa and even admit to feeling schadenfreude at the sight of seeing Richard Spencer getting punched in his stupid, racist face. But this punch did nothing to change Spencer’s ideology. In fact, getting punched while expressing his views, however unpopular, made him into a sympathetic character in the eyes of those not particularly schooled on the finer details of Spencer’s creed. Most people had never heard of Spencer before the infamous sucker-punch. Antifa’s attack expanded Spencer’s base greatly and as Spencer is a deceptive and articulate speaker, this new broader base has allowed him to recruit new members to his disgusting cause.

White Nationalists are always seeking to recruit from the millions of white Americans who use the phrase “I’m not racist, but…” Many white Americans do not call themselves racist and would be appalled to be part of a group that openly and blatantly hated any minority group. White Nationalists like Richard Spencer and David Duke know this, so instead they seek to paint themselves as patriotic Americans who are simply trying to preserve American heritage. When a group that is dressed like Isis shows up and engages in violence against these “patriotic” Americans, it allows them to use their sympathetic position to recruit the “I’m not racist, but…” white Americans, who now begin to see themselves as fellow patriots who are simply trying to defend white heritage against an extremist group. In this way, “Antifa is a major gift to the right.” as Noam Chomsky has been pointing out recently.

I cannot stress enough that Antifa is the absolute best recruiting tool that alt-right White Nationalists have at their disposal. Without Antifa, these clowns are exposed for exactly what they are, or they are ignored, which is the very thing they fear the most. The Nazi movement in America is small and fringe. You can equate it roughly to a toddler who has been put in timeout. It will kick and scream and throw anything it can get its hands on in order to try to gain your attention. Antifa is the equivalent of smacking the toddler in the face. Their extreme actions give these Nazis EXACTLY what they are seeking. Listen to the disgraceful words of their White Supremacist President, Donald Trump. Over and over again he says “What about the actions of the alt-left?!” in his attempts to normalize the behavior of these Nazis while simultaneously marginalizing our powerful leftist voice.  Antifa pushes us closer to the second civil war the White Nationalists has been courting for decades. Antifa makes the White Nationalist movement sympathetic to those who otherwise would not have aligned themselves with it.

Antifa says that they believe in the use of physical violence as to “make racism so unpalatable as to discourage anyone from practicing it.” If only humans were actually wired this way, then I would fully support this use of force. But we know intuitively that violence only causes those on the receiving end to double-down on their belief, while simultaneously recruiting others to feel sympathy for the victim and their cause.

Imagine that you were exercising your First Amendment Right to free speech on the subject of pro-choice, for example. You believe very strongly in a woman’s right to choose and you are peacefully demonstrating, using your voice, when suddenly someone in a black mask comes up and punches you in the face. How hard would the person have to punch you to turn you pro-life? Of course the question is ludicrous. Violence will never change your mind on that subject or any other. All it will do is to cause you to be more locked into your belief than ever. Now you have been assaulted for your belief. Before you were simply a single voice. Now you are a martyr. It will be much easier to recruit people to your side for future rallies. People who normally could not care less about your politics will suddenly want to be by your side. Violence against you has made you more effective at spreading your ideology. It has had the opposite effect of its intention. Enduring a punch is a small price to pay for the ability to effectively spread one’s philosophy. If I were Richard Spencer, I would pay someone to dress up in all black and punch me. My jaw would feel better with a few aspirin, but my message would be heard by millions of people I couldn’t have reached previously.

Let us not dismiss violent resistance entirely. For example, during World War II violence against Nazis was absolutely necessary. But let’s not make ourselves look foolish by comparing hate-mongering idiot, Milo Yiannopoulos, to Adolph Hitler and the Third Reich. To do so would be to give him entirely too much credit. Milo Yiannopoulos was a virtual unknown before Antifa burned the Berkeley campus. Overnight he became a household name. Once again Antifa had the effect of elevating the alt-right cause. Their antics canceled one speech that would have only been heard by a handful of people. But as a result of their violence, millions who had never heard of Milo Yiannopoulos before, became interested in what he had to say and as Milo is a deceptive and persuasive speaker, surely he was able to sway some of this newfound audience over to his garbage ideology. If I were Milo Yiannopoulos, I might even consider hiring people to dress up like Isis and burn down the place where I was suppose to be speaking as a publicity stunt.

As much as I would like personally to slap Milo Yiannopoulos in his little bitch mouth, I simply cannot reward him by turning him into a martyr. Nor can I make the claim that his rhetoric is somehow violent, simply because it leads others to inaccurate viewpoints that can lead to violence. The most proactive thing I could do to counteract hate-speech is to educate others as to their methods, so they will not fall victim to them. If I really want to silence Nazis I can use The First Amendment and apply a variety of different political pressures to the venues that allow them a place to speak, reminding venue operators of the peril they are putting themselves in as hate-speech is not protected under The First Amendment. I can threaten to publicize their position and this will undoubtedly cost them future revenue. This is the strength that the left has long been known for, the strength of creativity and relentless political pressure.

We have these Nazis outnumbered 10,000 to 1. Let’s not help them grow their numbers. If a Nazi puts his hands on you, then knock his stupid-ass back into the dark ages he crawled out of. But don’t allow yourself to be provoked to violence with words.

Because that is EXACTLY the reaction they are looking for.

Michael E Sparks fights hate through political means and by educating people with articles such as this one. If you believe in his message, consider donating by clicking HERE. All donations go towards furthering the mission of Resist/Revolt Activist Media.

Michael E Sparks – Nazi Sympathizer

Just some rambling thoughts to whomever might follow my exploits. We are currently in the middle of dealing with a family tragedy. I am not going to get deep into my personal life in this forum, but I wanted to tell anyone worried about us that no one is dead. I am pretty much in a state of shock right now, so do not expect good grammar, punctuation or stellar prose. I do however consider my extended family, you, the ones who are reading this, to be of the utmost importance, so I wanted to keep you abreast of what’s been going on.

The last few weeks have been pretty insane. As some of you may know, out of complete frustration with the corporate media, I decided to start my own media company, Activist Media. I did this by, well, I’m not sure. We didn’t have any money except the money we had for bills. We spent that money on film equipment, borrowed a car (both ours broke down in July) and hit the road, recording interviews with Progressive activists in 24 cities. It was magical and it turns out I have a knack for it. And when I say “I”, I am completely discounting Carrie, my partner, and now First-Assistant Director of our rag-tag film team. I literally could not do anything without her. But with her, we turned out to be okay as a film team, learning a lot as we went, with a better idea of what we need to learn before we go back on the road again in December. We’d love to have just staid on the road doing interviews, but we ran out of money and also we had to get home to our parental duties as a new school year was starting.

Why did we go out on the road like that, two non-filmmakers suddenly dubbing themselves as filmmakers and then just going out and interviewing people?

Mental illness is the obvious answer. I say that only half-joking. Someone could make the claim that I often choose passionate choices over logical ones, but what are you going to do? Work in a fucking cubicle until you die? I’d rather do my best to make the world a better place and be broke, than to be rich and unfulfilled. Thankfully these are not the only two choices we have and I imagine that at some point, money will not be as big of an issue as it currently is, once I get Activist Media off the ground. I have big plans for it and I am highly motivated to have it become an important part of the Progressive movement. I’m sure if I create enough value in enough people’s lives then I will not have to worry about where my next meal is coming from. I’ve been well below the poverty line my entire life and I’ve been just fine. I’m done judging myself for not working some empty corporate job. My kids work hard and understand the value of money, yet aren’t greedy and love to help others. Perhaps if they had been raised with lots of money they would have turned out differently. I can’t really know how things would have been, but I’m incredibly proud of my children, so I can’t feel too bad about raising them poor. We never acted poor and we never thought or felt poor. When an added expense came up, we’d always find a way. That’s what people do. I know you can relate.

One thing that I am really proud of in my life is that for 12 years I was a single dad. I never received any child support from the mother. I have no anger towards her for that. She had her own challenges. I was always just super-happy that she left me with these two incredible people. They made me who I am today. I go to play both roles, which was kind of perfect for me, because I’m nurturing in ways that might surprise some people who look at me and see some big crazy looking guy. I liked being both Mom and Dad. It was challenging, but a lot of fun. I didn’t really have any extended family so I asked my friends if they would help. We made them honorary Aunts and Uncles and we built a tiny little family. It’s been pretty great. I’d love to do it all again.

The Virginia Nazi rally has been kind of rough on everyone. Carrie and I were actually fairly close geographically when it happened and I kept the news from her until we got home, because I knew it would scare her. When we arrived home I sat down and wrote out a transcript of a conversation I had with one of my teenagers. Basically it was just a conversation where I talked to him about passive resistance and how the majority of the time it is the best path to long-term change. I didn’t really think it was that important of an article and it certainly didn’t think it was hard-hitting or controversial. But I guess I was wrong, because I got a ton of hate-mail from people identifying themselves as Alt-Left Nazi Hunters, Marxist and Antifa members. I find it odd that people on the political left hate me, because most of the time when people hate me they are centrist who think I am too far to the left. Oh well, a bunch of angry violent people hate me. That’s nothing new. I try not to let shit like that bother me. I figure doing what I do, that if I do it long enough and well enough, then one of these crazy people will shoot me dead in the street some day. My last words will be “Which of my pieces inspired you to kill me?” and then “Oh yeah. I really enjoyed making that.”

I say these things only joking a little bit, because the political landscape has become extremely toxic. The constant knee-jerk reactions of people are embarrassing. I think about the billions of years of evolution that got us to this point where we have highly-advanced monkeys with handheld devices that have access to the entire history of human knowledge and all these monkeys want to do is jerk-off and insult people’s character pseudo-anonymously. It makes me pretty sad if I let it.

Oh so, anyway, Virginia really shook me up. Coming off such an inspirational road-trip to return home to the anger and sadness surrounding that event, where everyone has a strongly-held opinion, but none of us really know the facts or nuances of the event. It has been incredibly polarizing. Militant members of The Left have began using the term “Nazi-sympathizer” to degrade anyone who believes that meeting violence with violence is not the answer. That makes me incredibly sad. By this definition Martin Luther King, Buddha, Gandhi and pretty much every great person who ever believed in peace would be a Nazi-sympathizer. For every thing there is a season and yes there absolutely is a time when war is the answer, but I am not so cavalier with human life to declare war without exhausting all potentially peaceful options.

I asked myself if it were possible to take a compassionate act that was directly related to what had happened in Virginia. I didn’t have to look too far. There is a man in my city who displays Nazi flags and Confederate flags side-by-side on his property. It has caused quite a stir in our community. Corporate media outlets have come out to interview him and photograph his property, but I notice that none of the outlets ever really posted anything that he said or when they did, it looked like maybe they had twisted it to fit their narrative. As a Progressive who always seems to have a microphone in my face, I know how frustrating it is talking to corporate media outlets. So I approached him for an interview. He accepted. And the hate from The Left intensified. I really don’t know what people are so afraid of. I’m just going to listen to the dude and record it. Do people think that he is going to be so radically convincing that soon Nazi flags will be popping up even more frequently than they currently are? It just doesn’t make any sense to me that people who are supposed to stand for love and peace hide behind the same tactics as those whom they oppose. Human being’s capacity for self-deception never ceases to amaze me.

So anyway, Virginia + Hate From the Left + Personal Tragedy = Challenging Week.

But I won’t stop working.

This book is almost finished and I’m editing footage and recording new interviews.

Soon we will have a documentary and a new Progressive YouTube Show and Podcast.

I’m working 18 hour days for this.

We are building something here.

Michael E Sparks, is not a Nazi-sympathizer, but he IS an Independent columnist, author and wannabe filmmaker. If you feel that what Michael does creates then you can contribute by clicking HERE. Donations go to pay for equipment for projects, hotel rooms, travel expenses and occasionally, if there’s anything left over, he buys pizza with it.

 

That’s How We Win (Talking With My Son About Nazis in Virginia)

This morning my teenage son came into the kitchen fuming. As I was pouring my first cup of coffee he was talking about throwing Molotov cocktails at White Supremacists.

Me: That doesn’t work.

My Son: They are running our people down!! It’s time to fight back!!

Me: It’s natural to feel that way. I think we all feel that way, right now. But it doesn’t work. That’s all I’m saying.

For a while he played with his phone and looked annoyed. I sipped my coffee. Then suddenly my son looked up, righteous anger in his eyes.

My Son: So what works?

Me: The same thing that always works, compassion.

My Son: So just love hatemongers?!! So just hug away the problems?!! Are you serious?!! I thought you loved Bernie Sanders!! Now’s the time for revolution!!

Me: This, as painful as it is, is part of our Revolution. There are very real battles happening in America. People died in this one. We can’t disgrace what they stood for by murdering people, as much as we may want to.

My Son: How does love beat hate? I mean how, actually, using this situation, can you imagine that happening. They will just kill us. They have no souls.

Me: They think the same about us. And if you go throwing Molotov cocktails into their “pride” celebration then they will return home to their communities and some will see them as martyrs. Some as patriots and heroes. And this will make them sympathetic to some. And they will meet in the shadows and whisper to each other about how “it’s illegal to be white in this country.” And they will feel empowered to attack innocent people, because they will be doing exactly what you’re doing. Through your desire to protect the innocent, you are allowing your anger to distort your viewpoint. You keep saying us and them. I used to think this was all just hippie bullshit, but the truth of the matter is that those men are not as different from us as you might think. They are just misguided. They are the victims of Fox News and Breitbart. They believe a lie and that lie makes them afraid. It’s like Yoda in Star Wars, when he says that “Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. And hate leads to suffering.” That’s what you’re feeling now. It’s the same thing those guys in Virginia feel, because they believe a lie. That’s not fun to hear, because you are hurting and your ego wants gratification, but if someone uses violence against these people, it will embolden their cause. If you don’t react, it exposes them for exactly what they are. And people who normally don’t even care about politics will wake up and be angry. And we can invite them in and they will become brothers and sisters in our cause.

My Son: Our cause? Back to Bernie Sanders? What does Bernie Sanders have to do with White Supremacists murdering innocent people?

Me: Not Bernie Sanders, but his message. We could just as soon say Martin Luther King or John Lennon or Siddhartha Gautama. But yeah, Bernie has a message and it’s to love one another. And it’s a message of Revolution through peaceful means. And I know that seems weak when all you want to do is load up your gun and go exact revenge, but history has shown us that we win through love and peace. These guys, these dudes holding their stupid Tiki-torches, looking like they just walked off the sex-offender registry website already make themselves look bad to almost everyone who observes them. Many of these guys have little kids and they try to train them to be hateful just like they are. If Daddy comes home with third degree burns because “some libtard threw a Molotov cocktail” at him then those children will be indoctrinated into that thinking. Their Daddy will be a victim, a hero, a patriot. Not reacting is the hardest thing to do in times like these. It is literally the one thing that has furthered our cause throughout history. When you are being attacked you have the right to defend yourself. But long-term change has always come from peaceful protest. It’s Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat on the bus. It’s Gandhi refusing to eat. And sometimes it’s dying. It takes a type of courage that these wannabe patriots cannot even comprehend. They act out of fear. We act out of love. That’s how we win.

My Son: Okay, well I’m going over to that Nazi’s house on the next block and I’m going to steal his fucking Nazi flags right off his front porch.

Me: And what will that solve?

My Son: I don’t know.

Me: It will make you feel better for a minute, right? Let’s not talk about all the shit that can go wrong, like you getting shot or arrested or both. Let’s assume you get away with it. What does it accomplish?

My Son: So you think it’s okay that that dude just sits out there with his symbols of hatred?! You think it’s okay that people have to walk by and see that shit?!

Me: I think it’s more than okay. I think it’s necessary and helpful.

My Son: Helpful HOW!!??

Me: Does he look like he’s happy sitting out there? Does he look powerful? Do you think little kids walking down the street see him sitting there with that Nazi flag and want to grow up to be like him?

My Son: No.

Me: He’s a fucking monument dude. He’s a warning to everyone of what will happen to them if they don’t open up their hearts. They will end up old and alone and bitter and watching their world slip away. And the sad thing is that the world isn’t slipping by. It’s getting better. And that man with the Nazi flag is scared and that fear is keeping him from taking part in this beautiful new world we are creating. Besides I like my racists labeled, so I can see them coming.

My Son: I never thought of it like that.

Me: And that symbol of hatred causes little kids to ask their parents what it means and parents can explain to their babies and teach them the importance of love from an early age.

My Son: I didn’t think about that either.

Me: Can I tell you one more reason why we would never steal his flag? Because all it would do would be to prove his point about how evil the world is and make him feel more justified in his hate. You can knock down a building, but they will just build it stronger the next time. You can steal his flag and he’ll go on eBay and buy two. Because, in his mind, he will be fighting the oppressor. The way you eliminate an enemy is by making them your friend.

My Son: Okay, I feel better.

Me: I love your anger. You will need it. Just direct it properly is all. If we go around silencing those we disagree with, then we violate The First Amendment and if The First Amendment goes, the whole thing goes and that document is very wise. It was basically an exact copy of The French Constitution. They saw that it was working there and knew that these principles were universal and would work here. And they do. It’s not pretty, but they end up working out in spite of the inherent foolishness of man.

My Son: Yeah, but the French also had to go and chop off a bunch of heads to get shit done, too.

Me: Yeah, well it may yet come to that. But we’re not there yet. And as long as we have means to exercise peace than we do that. We win this war through peace and love. Civil war isn’t as glamorous as you think it is.

My Son: I know it’s not. You said that you would make the Nazi guy into your friend. How do you do that?

Me: Well, I noticed that in the paper he said that he flies his Nazi flag “because the liberals are trying to take away his First Amendment rights.” And that was literally the only line that the newspaper gave him. An entire article written about the dude and they only quoted him one time. Kind of ironic. I want to give him an opportunity to speak. I’m going to listen to him. And I’m going to film it so others can hear him too. And I’m not going to be mean. And I’m not going to attack him. I’m going to compassionately listen. My goal isn’t to make him look foolish.

My Son: No, he’ll do that all by himself.

Me: I suspect he might. Or maybe while he is talking he might notice some inconsistencies in his thinking. We all tend to do that when we find someone who actually cares enough to listen. But that’s not for me to decide or to attempt to manipulate the situation in that manner. I sincerely want to listen to him and I sincerely want to hear him. And when you do those things, you would be surprised at how small the distances between humans actually are.

My Son: And everybody sees the interview and they see how foolish those antiquated views are.

Me: That’s how we win.

My Son: Yeah. That’s how we win.

Hello revolutionaries. I just got back from filming interviews with Progressive activists in 24 cities. We have an upcoming show and podcast that will be debuting in September, based around these amazing interviews. We will then go back on the road to collect more (after I finish the My Bernie Journey book). We are in the process of building a Progressive media outlet and it takes ALL of our time and ALL of our money. If you believe in what we are doing please help us get this media out by donating HERE. Even $1 means a lot. We are absolutely dedicated to representing our movement without corporate donors. Thank you in advance for supporting these important projects.