In Hate is thriving in New Jersey, New Jersey Star-Ledger Guest Columnist Patrick Murray, the director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, warns of the rising activities of so-called “hate groups” and related “hate” crimes and “hate” speech. I won’t discuss those vague terms here, except to say that Murray seems to imply that “hate” refers to the collectivist notion of identifying people by ethnic, racial, or other unchosen group characteristic and then viewing other groups as dangerous or the enemy. He doesn’t mention individualism or individual rights as the only antidote. He doesn’t give any evidence that this rise in “hate” is any more than a temporary blip, although he calls it’s rise “stunning. "
But however serious the rise in hate activity, Murray’s right to call it out. Ignoring it or downplaying it only allows it to grow into something really dangerous beyond some isolated incidents (He reports that “bias incidents,” which peaked at 876 in 2008, then fell to 367 in 2015, reversed and rose steadily to 1441 last year in NJ).
My focus here is on what Murray believes is the root cause of the rise in “hate” activity:
In any society — be it the United States, Great Britain, or Myanmar — a certain, and not insignificant, percentage of the population is willing to submit to authoritarian leadership in times of instability. This trait always lurks beneath the surface. At the same time, a segment of the public is prone to believe that one group — their group — is inherently better than others.
The intersection of these two traits — authoritarianism and intolerance [collectivism] — is the root of hate activity’s rise today. Stemming the rise of authoritarianism is a key component in reducing white nationalist activity. This question is what can we do about it.
A sizable segment of the public has replaced any prior trust in our political system with an unqualified faith in charismatic authoritarian leadership.
My emphasis. Well, I can certainly agree that there has been a rise in “intolerance.” Just look at the rise of “identity politics,” which has found a home on the Left. Critical Race Theory dominates the Democratic Party. CRT holds that “race” -- i.e., skin color -- defines each person according to groups (collectivism), divided between “oppressed” and oppressor, with “whites” the oppressor and “people of color” the oppressed. I can think of no ideology that is more designed to feed intolerance (and injustice) than a theory that focuses on groups rather than actual people -- individuals. The recent growth of “white nationalist activity” referenced by Murray is a direct reaction to the Left’s racism/collectivism, which itself is a reaction to the individualism that forms the core of Americanism. Note that the reversal of the downtrend in bias incidents began in 2015, just as Critical Race Theory burst onto the cultural landscape, and just two years after the official founding of Black Lives Matter (CRT had been growing in academia for decades). This, in my view, is no coincidence. While Right collectivism is certainly a long-term danger to America, as of now it is a far lesser danger than Left collectivism, which has already achieved vast political power, both in NJ and in Washington.
Authoritarianism is certainly a major threat--much bigger than Murray is willing to admit. We’ve been witnessing “an unqualified faith in charismatic authoritarian leadership” in New Jersey since Governor Phil Murphy usurped the authority of the legislature in March of 2020 by declaring a public emergency over COVID-19. As I wrote last June,
When a governor can declare a state of emergency, commandeer whatever “emergency” powers he feels like, make “law” by executive order, enforce his edicts, often unequally, however and against whomever he chooses, usurp county and municipal governments, and extend the emergency declaration in perpetuity, without limit or [legislative] accountability, we no longer have the rule of law. We don’t even have the “rule of men”. We have the rule of one man--i.e., a dictator. No branch of government should ever have the power to both make and enforce laws.
The U.S. Constitution and the NJ Constitution, both of which Murphy swore to uphold, gives only the legislature the power to make law. Yet Murphy recently extended the “public health emergency” into the 14th month, extending his unconstitutional "law-making" -- executive order -- authoritarian rule another 30 days. He can continue this indefinitely. You’d think there would have been a massive public outcry by now, followed by a by-partisan legislative move to reign Murphy in by repealing the unconstitutional law that allowed Murphy to seize this power.
Not so. While some members of the legislature are grumbling, Murphy continues to act unabashedly as lawmaker and law enforcer. As Jonathan D. Salant reports for NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
As Gov. Phil Murphy prepares to face the voters this November for a second term. a Stockton University Poll released Wednesday said that nearly 6 in 10 New Jerseyans approved of the job he was doing in office.
Murphy’s approval rating stood at 58% with 36% disapproving, according to the poll. It was Murphy’s highest rating ever in the Stockton poll. It was also the first poll on his job performance released this year.
While the poll did not specifically ask the question, John Froonjian, executive director of the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University, attributed the high poll rating to Murphy’s handing of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Crises give leaders a chance to show their chops,” Froonjian said. “There’s a sense that people got that when the chips were down, he stood tall and did what he had to do.”
My emphasis. Murray’s fear of rising acceptance of hate and authoritarianism in NJ is well-placed, but misdirected. Rather than look at fringe “hate” groups, he should look at the rise of racism and collectivism in the Democratic Party, which dominates the political scene in NJ. He should look at the number of NJ voters who are apparently willing to accept the authoritarianism of the Murphy Administration—58% of voters. This, not in the first panicky weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, but well over a year into it. To say this is a “not insignificant percentage of the population [that] is willing to submit to authoritarian leadership in times of instability” is a gross understatement. It is no longer a “trait” that “lurks beneath the surface.” It no longer lurks beneath the surface. It’s massive -- a majority -- at least in New Jersey.
Now that’s something to wring our hands over. And it’s coming mainly from the political Left. Murray advocates, as a way to undermine intolerance and authoritarianism, “a civic revival in this country.” He supports the NJ Assembly’s proposed Laura Wooten’s Law, which mandates civics education in middle school and creates a civics curriculum for required high school history courses. That would be great, if it recognizes that the whole point of our political system is checks and balances aimed at protecting individual rights, not majoritarianism. A "civics teachable moment" would be a great starting point. Examine the New Jersey constitution as it relates to Murphy authoritarianism, and his disregard for both the authority of the legislature and disdain for individual rights.
Related Reading:
NJ Governor Murphy’s COVID-19 Double Standard Toward the Demonstrators
Governor Murphy Doubles Down on his Double Standard
New Jersey’s Political Attack on Takeout Food Delivery Service Providers
The Scary Ease with Which Some Americans Accept Authoritarianism
Democratic Governors Threaten Business Owners Who Reopen Ahead of Schedule by Robby Soave for Reason.com
No comments:
Post a Comment