Charlottesville

I love my country.  It has its flaws, for certain, but I love it.  I love the urban areas teeming with people and the rural areas showcasing the majesty of nature.  However, today, for the first time in my life, I was truly ashamed to be an American.

We're 8 months into the Trump Presidency now.  There are threats of nuclear war, which have frightened me all week.  However, what truly broke me was today in Virginia.  Nazis.  I hate Nazis, to lift from Indiana Jones.  My grandfather returned home from World War Two with shrapnel in his arm from his time in Germany. He was told he'd never work again due to the damage done to his arm, but he founded and ran his own business for five decades.  Yet, every week, he would awaken screaming at the horror of the memories from his experiences with the Nazis and the war.  I'm glad my grandfather isn't alive today, because men like him fought the Nazis, and their children and grandchildren have become them.

Last night, a torchlit procession took place prior to the Unite the Right even today (where people were encouraged to bring guns).  A small band of brave college students stood against them.  Today, a small line of clergy locked arms to temporarily block white supremacist militiamen with assault weapons.  Those students and those clergy are representative of what is good in this nation; the spirit that we will not surrender into hate.

Today, Klansmen and Nazis and other white supremacists gathered and a riot erupted.  There were chants of "heil Trump" and "blood and soil".  There were chants against the Jews, against African Americans, and others.  Former Grand Wizard of the Klan, David Duke, gave a speech about how awesome Trump is.

And then a white supremacist emulated the terrorist attacks recently in Europe, committed by Islamic terrorists, and ran a car into a crowd of peaceful counterprotesters.  As I write this, there are three dead and over a dozen injured from this terrorist attack.  As I write this, the President of the United States said that there is violence from "many sides", but refuses to call out these terrorists by name...after making a rather big deal of calling Islamic terrorists, Islamic terrorists, during the campaign.  As I write this, the Daily Stormer, the world's leading Neo Nazi publication has thanked the President of the United States for his support of their cause by not condemning them and by not singling them out.

There are bright spots politically though.  The President may not condemn these Nazis, but many of his fellow Republicans are doing so.  Senator Rubio of Florida was the first to condemn the attack.  Senator Hatch of Utah has come out saying that his brother didn't die fighting the Nazis for them to be in our streets now.  Senator Cruz has asked the Department of Justice to investigate the car attack as domestic terrorism.  Meanwhile, among the Democrats, it has been condemned almost universally, including by former President Obama and Secretary Clinton.

That said, I've spent all day reading things by Nazi apologists on my Facebook feed.  I've spent all day watching the President of the United States refuse to condemn Nazi terrorists who have killed innocent Americans in the streets of this nation.  And for the first time in my life, I'm ashamed of this country, and I'm ashamed to be an American.