Descriptions of January 6 Capitol Rioters Are Exaggerated
In the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol Building in Washington D.C., there’s a lot of talk, from certain segments, about an “insurrection” and “an attempted coup” and those participants being labeled as “insurgents” and “domestic terrorists.” The vice president even made a moral equivalency to the attack on Pearl Harbor and 9/11. Really? Seriously? Over-the-top hyperbole? You think?
Maybe a little perspective is needed here. Between 2,000 and 3,000 people were each killed in the Pearl Harbor and 9/11 attacks. An attempt to overthrow the government would involve guns and other firearms, which none of the protesters and rioters had. It would also involve cooperation with elements of the military and law enforcement; of which there is no evidence of.
During the summer of 2020, Black Lives Matter and Antifa led and inspired rioting and looting that took place in many cities across the nation killing more than 30 people and causing billions of dollars in damage. Were any of these perpetrators convicted and given prison sentences like the ones who participated in the Jan. 6 riot?
The person known as “Chewbacca Man,” Jacob Chansley, was sentenced to 41 months in jail for his role in this incident. Were any members of BLM and Antifa given similar jail sentences for the rioting and destruction they instigated in cities across the nation?
And those who stormed the Department of the Interior Building back in October, were they labeled as domestic terrorists and insurgents and being held in solitary confinement as many of the Jan. 6 participants were or still are?
It’s worth noting that autocratic and authoritarian regimes like China, Russia, Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua are very loose in the labeling of peaceful protesters as domestic terrorists, insurgents and coup plotters. Is this where our nation is heading?
Finally, it seems that the definition of the term insurrection nowadays to those currently in power is merely a state of mind and mischievous afterthought rather than a violent, disorderly, messy or disruptive acts to overturn the established order of things.
Bruce Kelly
Mahopac
Examiner Media – Keeping you informed with professionally-reported local news, features, and sports coverage.
