A welcome consequence of the Tucker Carlson fiasco - Parker, WaPo
Every now and then, a movement, like a house, needs a good scrubbing. For the deep clean taking place in the conservative movement to eradicate bigots and antisemites, we can thank Tucker Carlson, the once-charming, bow-tied boy wonder of an erstwhile kinder, gentler Republican Party.
Carlson invited white nationalist Nick Fuentes onto his podcast recently and failed to challenge his guests bigoted remarks about Jews, setting off a cascade of righteous outrage. This was hardly the first time Carlson has engaged in antisemitic commentary. Jew-hating has become all the rage in certain once-respectable circles. Its just that this time, Carlson and his guest went too far even for friends and political allies.
One wonders why it took so long for Republicans and other conservatives to speak out, but here finally we are. The Fuentes interview launched a protest from important corners of the conservative world, including Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas), Sen. Lindsey Graham (South Carolina), U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and, belatedly, the Heritage Foundation, though only after its president, Kevin Roberts, took heat for defending Carlson. It shouldnt be long before fellow bigot-baiter Candace Owens bellows a rant too far. Shes not in Carlsons league as listeners go, but shes not a nobody. She has millions of social media followers.
(snip)
So, when Carlson engages in tropes to describe Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, as ratlike, shifty and dead-eyed, or inexplicably uses his eulogy for Kirk, whom he compared to Jesus, to remind people that the Jews killed Jesus, he is winking at neo-Nazis And when Carlson invites someone such as Fuentes, a 27-year-old Holocaust denier who has praised Hitler, for a congenial chat, he deserves the wrath hes receiving. And more. In fairness, Carlson did challenge Fuentes for his antisemitism once, an interjection that was lost amid the two-hour interview.
(snip)
Counterintuitive though it is, we owe Fuentes a muted thank you for riling conservatives into action or at least to declare intolerance for the hateful among them. Hate is the brain virus. Antisemitism is, too. Carlson knows better but apparently has fallen victim to the virus. Its time he and others like him clean their houses before its too late.
https://archive.ph/Tiku2
underpants
(194,089 posts)The shooter is a Groyper - follower of Fuentes.
Everyone knows it but no one even in actual media would or will say it.
question everything
(51,461 posts)underpants
(194,089 posts)The Groypers, or the Groyper Army, are a far-right group loosely defined as followers, fans, or associates of the American white nationalist[4] political commentator, activist, and live streamer Nick Fuentes.[5][6] They are named after a variant of Pepe the Frog, an Internet meme.
The Groyper movement has been described as homophobic, racist, nativist, fascist, sexist, antisemitic, Islamophobic, and an attempt to rebrand the alt-right movement.[6][9][10][11] It has also been called accelerationist.[12]
What was later dubbed "The Groyper War" began in the fall of 2019, when Fuentes launched a social media campaign targeting Turning Point USA's "Culture War" college tour, led by Charlie Kirk. Enraged by the firing of a Fuentes ally as well as other political conflicts, Groypers disrupted college events by asking provocative questions on immigration, Israel, and LGBT rights, in an attempt to challenge mainstream conservative figures like Kirk, Donald Trump Jr., and Ben Shapiro, whom they labeled "Conservative Inc." The war gained traction after a November 2019 UCLA event where Trump Jr. was cut short by Groyper heckling, exposing divisions among conservatives. Fuentes expanded the movement with the Groyper Leadership Summit in December 2019 and the formation of America First Students in January 2020.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groypers
question everything
(51,461 posts)What a world we live in. Once upon a time such fringe groups did not merit a second look. Not today.
Thanks, again
underpants
(194,089 posts)They call themselves AntiFa and anyone who does not agree with everything they say (what Fuentes tells them) are Nazis. Yes, its irony, projection, and group think all in one.
Some of the messages he wrote on the rounds he left behind included Eat this Nazi which is from a Tarantino movie. Its very popular saying in a combat game played by Groypers called Hellcat or something like that. There were other horrible crude homophobic language popular with them. I wont post those here.
Kirk and Fuentes hated each other. Kirk basically neutralized Fuentes
.well he thought he did.
Fuentes (who dined with Kanye 🙄 at Mar A Lago ) has even gone after Trump just to see if his followers would follow him. A loyalty test.
So this is a Facebook post from the shooters mother. Hes doing something called a Slav squat Groypers so to should their stripes mimicking an imagine if a cartoon Pepe the frog thats been basically taken by them and other right wing groups as avatars. If you see it, they are hard hard right - Nazis.

Skittles
(168,776 posts)it will be hard, if damn near impossible, to make them go under again