Comments

1
How sad that people can't respect the politics of others, no matter how adversarial the viewpoint is to their own. Diversity includes diversity of politics.
2
Yes, @1 that's true. Too bad so many conservatives don't follow this more conscientiously...
4
Did they piss on the hat?
5
@1 diversity is great, but not to normalize violent ignorant xenophobes. They belong in Alabama, not here.
6
Remember: Trump is just like Hitler, much like Obama was just like Hitler and Bush before him was just like Hitler

And naturally the comment of "well they get what they deserve" as seen by Comte.

So the left can be just as assholish and dictatorial as the right. Very good to know
7
@three not a very nice thing at all I am no Nazi but that was pretty harsh!! Callan Berry another one that made me laugh even though this one was a sad laugh because of the Cheeto Supreme Situation (Donald Trump) thank you still happy Friday!
8
No one should get beaten up because of a hat. We all know this, we can all agree on this, but it seems we often allow ourselves to hold only partisan viewpoints. Divide and conquer, divide and conquer.
9
The love crowd, ladies and gentleman.
10
@6:

That's not what I actually said, was it? No, it was not. But, hey, thanks for playing "Mis-attribution", we'll send you the home version of the game.
11
Two people stepped in to stop the attack.

And we all know how totally worthwhile it is to intervene in some other dude's fight. Who wouldn't jump at the chance to catch a stay punch in the face, ruin your outfit and maybe get blamed by the cops for starting it? Sign me up!

Zero people aided the attaker.

But yeah go on with your generalizations. Tell me how people are. You got it all figured out.
12
@11: According to the comic, you have two "attackers" and two "defenders." Not that this means fuck-all, but there you go.
13
Look. I am pretty liberal. (I live in Port Townsend, in Jefferson County, so my far left leanings pass as moderate.)

Someone gets attacked for wearing a hajib or a red hat, that is just wrong. No quibbling. No "but they did it first." Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

And until we fully embrace the truth of that statement, we are literally no different from the worst hate spewer on the right.

What is that phrase we like to say? Check your privilege?

Check your privilege, folks. Someone got beat up for wearing a hat. Just because it was red with some specific English words on it doesn't make it in any way funny or okay.
14
If you are STILL out and proud about your Trump support, you're pretty much advertising your all-around shitty personhood at this point.

That's not an excuse to assault someone, but advertising what a terrible person you are in a city like this is not going to have you met with smiles and helping hands. If a guy was wearing an overtly neonazi hat vs some MAGA bullshit, nobody would be discussing this.
15
False Flag! Maybe. Who knows. I'm not saying it, but people are saying it and maybe they're right. You can't prove they're wrong.

False Flag!
16
@10 you fuckhead I nailed EXACTLY what you wanted to express. But like you imply by your comment he had it coming. I mean they started it right?

Enjoy the EIGHT fucking years we are going to have to live through with Trump because of asshole regressives like yourself.
17
You fuck around on the street, the street fucks back. In this case, the victim wore a clearly incendiary garment. Unprovoked, unjustified, indefensible attack on him, yes. But he should have been prepared to defend himself. Righteous high ground won't save your bacon on the street. I have no sympathy.
18
If Trump doesn't destroy us; our fear and hatred of Trump will.

This is not good.
19
@17: Haha, yes, those mean streets of lily-white, milquetoast Seattle. I hear those MS programmers are real nasty when they get a few wine coolers in them.

Shit's real, yo.
20
@17

"...he should have been prepared to defend himself. "

If I wear an Obama t-shirt should I be ready for an attack?
What about a Bernie bumper sticker?
What about a woman wearing a miniskirt, should she be prepared to defend herself.

If we all start to act like right wingers, then we are no different from them.

What happened to 'they go low, we go high'?

We can't allow ourselves to turn into them.
21
@17 WTF! He wore a Trump hat. It wasn't a neo-Nazi hat, or a KKK hat, it was a Trump hat. I hate the asshole as much as anyone, but it is pretty fucking naive to think that all his supporters are assholes and trying to provoke something. It may have been just the opposite. There he was, in the city, buying coffee, just like a normal guy; yet he happens to like Trump. That is why John Kerry had bumper stickers that said things like "Hunters for Kerry" -- the whole point was to dispel with the bullshit stereotypes that have soured our national discourse (and lead to the election of Trump). But because he wore a hat with the name of the president-elect he was asking for it? What kind of bullshit victim blaming is that?
22
I hate to say it but post election the left/far left is acting like we thought the right would. The refusal to accept another Americans opinion is extremely low. Grow the fuck up kids your in for a long 4-8 years.
23
I not only approve of their action, I thoroughly endorse it.

However, it's a shame they weren't 2nd amendment fans.
24
@21 - You are a Nazi apologist.
25
@22 - yeah, thanks for the 8 years of respect shown to us. Thanks for stealing our SCOTUS position. Go fuck yourself.
26
#WeUsedToShootNazis
28
you know who does 99% of the shit that berry illustrates? the homeless, junkies, or street crazies.

who called my friend a nigger on a downtown street yesterday? a crazy woman.

who punched someone over a trump hat? probably a crazy person. it wasn't a "far leftist" starting a civil war, you poor persecuted snowflake contards.
29
I think the lesson here is that drunk people sometimes brawl over stupid shit. And New Years Eve brings out the lightweights. Just in case you didn't know that. Now you do.
30
@28 - good points
31
@20 I am fine with going like them. Fuck their couch.
32
Fuck Donald Trump, his friends, family, supporters and anyone not willing to pick a side.
33
@20 It's not anyone's duty to fit into the political binary. The country doesn't consist of two polarized groups of people. It's a spectrum of many different types of people, some of whom decide to throw their lot in with either the Democrats or Republicans, with whom they agree to one extent or another. But plenty of other don't like either side. I would venture to say that they probably don't appreciate having their strong opposition to one side being seen as having membership in or loyalty to the other.

Feel free to disagree with their actions, but don't politicize them.
34
Wasn't SLOG getting rid of comments? This thread might be evidence for why its a good idea.
35
So are you saying, based on what he was wearing, you're saying that he was...asking for it?

Why are you libtards so incapable of playing by your own rules?
36
@24 says the person endorsing politically-motivated violence.
37
If I see someone wearing a Trump hat, I already know they're a danger to me and my family and clearly aren't right in the head.

I plan on defending myself should they display any aggressiveness towards me or those I love.

Corollary - Its really easy to buy guns in this state. Sad that it took this election to make me feel I needed one.
38
@35 Disliking Trump doesn't make someone a liberal.

And also, comparing violence against a person showing blatant support for the most powerful bigot in the world to the assault of a woman based on their style is pretty gross. Think about that for a minute.
39
Was the proud Trump supporter just happened to be standing there quietly, and peacefully watching the anti Trump protest across the street - minding his own business, or was he expressing his views towards blacks, Latinos, gays, Muslims, women etc. to the protesters the way Trump supporters do at Trump's rallies?

They shouldn't have beaten him up, same as how people shouldn't get into bar fights. But it does happen.
40
@38 yeah nah it's just naked hypocrisy.
41
@37: Indeed, people's wardrobe choices can be terribly unnerving; but our family just goes about our business and gets on with our lives. Life is too short for such hypersensitive and tangential anxiety.
43
Contentious though this thread may be, there is something we can perhaps all agree on: Best use of color and animation in this feature to date.
44
@43: Agreed.
46
And democrats wonder why they lost, not only lost the White House, but lost congress too! YAY - one-sided, my-way-or-the-hospital diverse thinking. I think this year, Im going to hop the fence and work to make "insert redaction here". See ya in 2020 suckers!
47
Hey All, I'm the guy who was concussed on New Year's eve. Awesome to see so many great comments. Didn't think so many people would be supportive, so thanks. To those who thought we were both drunk, that is a reasonable assumption, but false. I was about go to bed (my gf says my nickname should be old man smith).

Anyway I am wearing the hat around town to spark useful discussion. I am honestly troubled by the complete castigation of one side as morally repugnant and the other side as righteous. I'm sure that the best way to prosper as a society does not involve ramping up the repugnance factor to 11 so that neither side bothers to talk to other.

My rule is I have to talk to anyone about politics that asks if they see me wearing the hat, so please do. You won't see me for a few weeks. I can't afford to get another concussion so soon; it could cause permanent brain damage . But after maybe two more weeks you should see me around again.

In the meantime, if anyone wants to read a book that will blow your mind and could not be more relevant to today's atmosphere, read 'The Righteous Mind' by Jonathan Haidt (it's a non-political book don't worry).
48
Tells me that trump supporters are in the minority in Seattle.
49
There goes the Stranger, cajoling about violence against people they disagree with. All morals are relative, right?
50
A good person would condemn this, but while I won't endorse it, I am not currently in a place where I can be that good person.

For now, I'm with @3: "I haven't been so upset since FDR bullied Hitler into committing suicide."
51
@14 How is a MAGA hat not an overtly neo-Nazi hat? I've never seen the difference between the Alt-Right and the Neo-Nazi movements. At best, Alt-Right means Neo-Neo-Nazi, Really Neo-Nazi, of maybe Alt-Nazi.

"Alt" just sounded cooler than "neo" to some clowns and they also chose to use "Right" as a euphemism for "Nazi." They're still the same white-supremacist, anti-Semitic, pro-authoritarian assholes that Neo-Nazis have always been.

That doesn't make them actual Nazis or make it OK to beat them up for wearing a hat, but I wonder if that's really how things went down. People sometimes don't tell police the complete truth and Callan sometimes simplifies to make a point. I'm cool with that, but my guess is that more words were exchanged before anyone got punched.

So, bravo to the folks that broke up the fight, fuck you to the racist asshole with the hat, and I'm reserving judgment on the other people in the fight, although it does sound like they were probably being assholes.
52
@47, Thanks for writing in and - if I'm being serious and you offered no provocation beyond a hat or calmly stated views, I condemn the attack you suffered, but "I am wearing the hat around town to spark useful discussion" sounds incredibly dishonest. Even if it were true, it would only mean that you're an asshole who pisses people off for shits and giggles. I suspect that the reality is that you're a terrible person who chooses hatred and delusional blaming of those from other nations and those who look different from you as an explanation for your dissatisfaction in life to actually looking at reality (by and large Mexicans aren't rapists, free trade helps our economy and makes us richer, the Chinese aren't stealing shit from us, Putin is a war criminal and almost none of the people he is killing are terrorists, high-paid jobs for low-skilled white men are largely a thing of the more unionized past, etc.).
53
Dcp123 I honestly disagree. Most people who voted for Trump did not vote for him for the reasons you described. The two sides need to talk to one another and if people can't even stand the mere sight of a hat, then we are a long way away from that.

If you all really condemn me as a racist without even talking to me, I would say that that proves the need for me to wear the hat.

People believing in the moral repugnance on the other side is the essential component for really terrible violence. Choosing the worst of the Trump supporters and using that as a reason to shout racist bigot misogynist is not helpful. It guarantees conflict. There are as many despicable qualities on the left and the point is not that you believe that, the point is that belief is honestly held by the people who voted for Trump. Both sides think the other side is repugnant. The longer they keep shouting at each other the more likely we are to really fight.

If you really want end hate start talking to people you disagree with.

Try reading the book I outline, it covers how people make decisions. It's basic premise is that we make decisions intuitively, and then use our conscious brain to justify what we want to believe. Basically we have no hope of actually coming to rational conclusions without talking to other people because we are too intuitive or biased if you like. Intelligence doesn't help either, intelligent people are simply more able to find reasons to justify what they want to believe.
54
I'm stuck in the airport, so you might see a lot of posts from me over the next few hours. Just thinking out loud here, but maybe the reason I'm more able to stand conservatives is because I've lived in both really conservative and really liberal areas. I haven't lived in Seattle that long, but I have noticed that it is very tolerant of other political views, or other worldview's in general. And while people might say love trumps hate, I see a shitload of hate in the city. Maybe that has to do with the citys near complete homogenous political atmosphere. When you hang out in an chamber it is absolutely the easiest thing in the world to believe the worst of the other side. But once you leave the echo chamber I guarantee it is more easy to not be angry; which is to say open up the possibility of actually accomplishing something useful.

All I can say is, I think you would find Viewpoint may be less stressful. I was a default liberal in college and at first it was hard living around people who were conservative. But honestly once I got over myself, I was a lot less angry. I was able to see the good in the conservative side and the bad in my own side, and am now convinced that neither side is morally Superior over the other.

I won't try to convince you of much, but I guarantee you this, if you can't see the flaws in the left, it is only from a lack of trying. Both side have negatives and positives and that's what we should be talking about.

If you need any minor taste of that, consider that conservatives give 4 to 5 times as much money to charity and almost 10 times as much of their own time to charitable causes. While Liberals are busy holding up signs and chanting, conservatives are Far and Away more likely to actively go out and help those in need. I find that impressive; they don't advocate for taxes for someone else to solve a problem, they give up their own resources and get their own hands dirty.
55
Thinking Out Loud again, well I'm reading the righteous mind again, I am still struck by what a profoundly impactly book this is.

It's central premise is the explanation for why it is so easy to believe you are righteous and right and the other side is evil and wrong. It also explains why listing out logical reasons doesn't really convince anybody. Your conscious brain has chosen the reasons that support what you want to believe intuitively, while the guy on the other side wants intuitively to believe the opposite and therefore ignores your facts and picks his own. We are basically motivated reasoning machines.

It only asks you to accept that there are actually alternative ways to view morality. It doesn't make the case that all morality views are equal or that one is necessarily better than the other, just that people honestly do think about morals differently. Accepting that and attempting to see the world for a second from the Viewpoint of another will help us work together to find our commonalities instead of fighting over our differences.

56
Play on my last comment here are some techniques you can use to avoid motivated reasoning.

1) don't fall into post hoc reasoning, it's basically what we're doing all day long. Moved into pre hoc. Ask yourself what kinds of evidence would I need to convince me that I am wrong on this point before you start a conversation if you're good looking online.

2) Try to find the smartest, or most likable person who, who believes the opposite of you and talk / listen / debate them. They might not change your mind, but if you focus on people you find repulsive, then you're guaranteed that your mind will never be changed.

3) be honest with yourself, don't rationalize. If you think shouting racist at the other side, and not talking is a good strategy, then just say that. Don't blame you're not reaching out on the actions of the other side. I was assaulted by multiple people, for no reason, and I'm reaching out. I'm honestly scared and repulsed by the people I see spouting hate around the city. that is not a reason to not talk to them.

I don't usually get so prescriptive, but if you haven't done any of the above things, there is a much larger chance that you are simply an idealogue.
57
How this cannot be simply condemned is beyond me, and I'm probably to the left of anyone else here (I'm an anarchist). I despise Trump, but face it: Hillary was an absolutely lousy candidate, and Trump was the first candidate in a November election that was speaking against the free trade consensus that has screwed so many people over in the past three decades or so. Not everyone voted for Trump because he's a racist, misogynist, liar, sociopath, etc.; many voted for Trump despite all of that.

He arguably deserved criticism for wearing the hat but he did not deserve a knuckle sandwich.

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