The Banality of Evil

As our entire nation...No, wait, as the entire world tries to deal with the unceasing gusher of lies coming out of the Trump administration, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. So many lies, so many distortions, so many intentional omissions...Who has the time to keep up with them all?

A central theme of these many mistruths is our supposed "at risk" status, coupled with Trump's hollow promises to "keep America safe." Trump knows it's easier to sell the safety when you give 'em the fear, and the minority of the population that believes him eats up fear like it's candy. They can't get enough of it. (Some other time we'll have the conversation about how so many people of a conservative political persuasion are so susceptible to fear...)

And so, following the KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid), Trump would have us all believe that we are all in imminent danger from radical Islamic terrorists who may be hiding in our midst. This introduces the element of danger, which, when paired with the unknown ("Gosh, maybe my neighbor is a radical Islamic terrorist!") creates a low bar for proof, but a high degree of unease.

Never mind that, statistically speaking, it's all a bunch of nonsense.

Now, mind you, I readily admit there are likely to be radical Islamic terrorists within our borders, plotting ways to do people harm. But, the fact remains, those who are statistically more likely to do Americans harm are often able to hide in plain sight.



Above you'll see a mugshot of Benjamin Thomas McDowell, then 23 years old, of Conway, South Carolina. This mugshot is from April 4th, 2011, when he was charged with Burglary and Criminal Conspiracy. Now much to look at, is he? Just another nondescript, pudgy white boy.

 

Here's McDowell's mugshot from May 21st, 2013, when he was, once again, charged with burglary. Nothing seems to have changed. Same double chin, same orange jumpsuit. He was 26 years old.

 

 



Later the same year, on August 27th, McDowell was arrested again, this time for Assault and Domestic Violence. He was still 26 years old, still living at home. By this time, he has had some racist right-wing tattoos inked onto his doughy body. You have to wonder...Did his mom even notice?

 

 

And here is Benjamin McDowell just a day ago, after the feds arrested him for planning to commit a racist massacre in "tribute" to fellow disgruntled white racist murderer, Dylan Roof. Not necessarily what you'd guess if just shown this mugshot of someone who still just comes across as a nondescript, pudgy white boy.

 

But that's the point. There absolutely are dangers in our midst, especially for people of color, gay, lesbian and trans people, immigrants, Jewish people, and, yes, Muslim people. Statistically speaking, you are much, much more likely to be a victim of a homegrown right-wing terrorist than any other kind. In other words, essentially all the groups that Trump is trying to make you afraid of are actually groups who, in the distribution of violence in America, have much more to fear themselves.

 

Trump's already infamous seven nation "travel ban" was pitched as a safety measure. Yet, in the last 40 years, how many Americans have been killed here by attacks perpetrated by people from those seven nations? That would be zero. As in, zero deaths. None.

 

In that same time period, hundreds of people have been killed by homegrown right-wing terrorists. And those terrorists could often be described as nondescript white guys. The type of white guys who have started acting out in even greater numbers since Trump's election. So, yes, Americans are at risk, and a great deal of it is Trump's fault. He blows the whistle on a daily basis, and the dogs come running...

 

In closing, let me say that I don't want this to come across like I'm also trying to sell "the fear." (Being that I'm also a fairly nondescript white guy, that would potentially be counterproductive.) All I'm trying to do is inject a note of reality, a few facts, into the discussion about what we realistically have to fear living here in the United States.