[retrac]

In 2020 in Ottawa, a man rammed through the gates of the Prime Minister's residence with a vehicle. He was in body armour and carrying multiple firearms. He claims he just wanted to meet with the PM, who thankfully wasn't home at the time. Is Canada on the verge of civil war?

Multiple US presidents have been assassinated! Political violence is shocking but not actually so rare that we should latch on to any specific incident with particular meaning. It's particularly meaningless when it is the act of a single person who is somewhat deranged. If an organized group takes out a politician or other official, and this act had some support with the public, then we should start worrying.

[rossjudson]

In Arizona, bands of visibly-armed thugs are parking themselves around mail-in voting points taking videos and pictures...and even following people in their cars to see where they go. There's a 75 foot distance law, but that doesn't mean much.

What happens if the also-armed liberals get sick of this crap, and the confrontations escalate?

It's not civil war, but it can lead to ugly conflicts.

[Beltalowda]

The thing isn't so much that there are incidents of violence, but rather that there are ideas where violence is both logical and even moral.

Let's take Trump's election fraud claims for example; if you genuinely believe that the election was stolen then violence would be a very reasonable and even moral action in literal defence of democracy. I sure hope a lot of people would rise up if such an event would ever actually happen. Of course, Trump's claims are a load of utter nonsense, but my point is that people seem to genuinely believe it and that violence is a logical and moral result.

This is what worries me. That there's the occasional nutjob or conflict that gets out of hand: yeah, that's "normal". But these kind of ideas ... I'd say not so much. That we haven't seen more violence leads me to suspect many "election deniers" don't actually believe Trump's claims as strongly as they say they do.

[vkou]

> Is Canada on the verge of civil war?

So, the difference between the two countries is that this viewpoint in Canada is a fringe one, while in the United States, it enjoys popular support among mainstream politicians and media. Oh, they don't directly endorse violence, but they are very happy to call for someone to 'remove this turbulent priest'.

That's the difference between fringe lunacy (present in every country, shit happens, you deal with it and move on), and the peaceful political process unraveling.

Just a reminder - one of the presidential candidates in the past two elections has yet to concede that he lost the popular vote in 2016, as well as the popular vote and the electoral college in 2020[1]. This sort of insanity is so far beyond the political pale in Canada, I can't even envision it.

[1] My state's gubernatorial candidate has also yet to concede that he lost 43-56 in 2020. Why even have elections if the losers don't accept the results?

[kQq9oHeAz6wLLS]

Also a reminder - a left-wing nut shot Scalise during a baseball game. Rand Paul was attacked at his home and had his ribs broken. There was an assassination plot against a conservative-leaning Supreme Court justice.

The right does not own the monopoly on violent nutjobs among their ranks. Sadly, they exist everywhere, left, right, and center.

[Beltalowda]

In Rand Paul's case it was just a conflict with his neighbour over leaves in the garden or some such incredibly stupid thing like that, right? I don't believe there was a political motive behind that one.

[christophilus]

Yep. The extremes have gotten crazier. Hence the thought that civil war or at least a really nasty escalation could happen.

[vkou]

No, they haven't. The left used to have people like the Weathermen, the civil rights movement used to have the Black Panthers. Nowadays, there aren't any groups with their reach or methods, whereas their equivalents on the right have exploded in popularity, mindshare, and political reach.

That explosion is what made Jan 6th possible two years ago, and what will give legs to the next try.

[christophilus]

In my lifetime, no one on the left tried to assassinate a conservative Supreme Court justice until the last few years. It’s gotten more extreme.

The left might not be as crazy as they were in the 60s or whatever, but things are more heated today than at any point in my 30 year memory.

[influx]

Ironically, the suspect in the Pelosi terrorist act was born in Canada...