Can I punch Nazis?
I don’t know. Can you?
I am capable of the act, yes.
Then you should.
May I?
The answer to that is also yes.
My mother told me that violence was never the answer.
My mother told me I was handsome; you can’t always listen to your mother.
What happened to letting the other guy throw the first punch?
Nazis don’t throw the first punch. Nazis burn the first Reichstag.
Aren’t the Left supposed to be the tolerant ones?
Supposed to be the smart ones, too, but they keep falling for that “I thought you were supposed to be the tolerant ones” horseshit.
What about dialogue?
Dialogue is for reasonable people acting in good faith. Dialogue is between two acceptable positions. “Taxes need to be raised” vs. “taxes need to be lowered” is grounds for dialogue. “Taxes need to be raised” vs. “Jews should be thrown in ovens” is grounds for a beating.
But isn’t this sinking to their level?
That depends. After you punch the Nazi, do you espouse the tenets of National Socialism?
No.
Then you’re better than a Nazi.
But doesn’t this just give the other side ammunition?
The other side in this argument are lying fucks who can twist any piece of information into a swastika-shaped balloon animal if you engage them in good faith; lacking a piece of information, they’ll just make shit up. Might as well punch a Nazi.
What about peace, love, and understanding?
Great goals, and once we get rid of the Nazis we can get to work on them. All three are completely impossible when Nazis are about.
When should you punch a Nazi?
Whenever you get a chance. Preferably when they’re not looking.
What if they’re smaller than you?
Hit them with your fist.
What if they’re bigger?
Hit them with a bat.
Isn’t this a slippery slope?
After we defeated the Nazis in World War II, did we keep shooting people or did the troops come home and start having babies?
The second thing.
There you go. The slippery slope argument is nine times out of ten bullshit. Human beings are good with slippery slopes: we build stairs.
What if you think you’re punching a Nazi, but you just hit a white guy with a shitty haircut?
Run.
What should you do if you hit a Nazi?
You should run then, too. Don’t get me wrong: punching Nazis is still illegal. We’re discussing morality.
But I don’t want to punch anyone.
Then get off your duff, mister, and give aid and support to the boys on the front lines. We’re all in this together. Again.
Edit: If you liked this, then why don’t you hit the Donate Button? If you didn’t, I don’t care; please don’t leave a comment.
January 21, 2017 at 12:46 am
Don’t you know that you can count me out (in)
January 21, 2017 at 7:57 am
“It’s hard to satarize a guy with shiny boots.”
January 21, 2017 at 8:24 am
Oops . . . “Satirize.” Spelling counts.
January 21, 2017 at 8:02 am
And this: “How the hell do I know why there were Nazis? I don’t even know how the can opener works.”
January 21, 2017 at 2:30 pm
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/richard-spencer-alt-right-punched-donald-trump-inauguration-a7538746.html
January 21, 2017 at 5:26 pm
Back in the eighties we punched nazis all the time. Mostly after they punched us, usually when we were outnumbered. So it’s nice to see the youth have learned to strike first. Zero tolerance for nazi scum!
January 22, 2017 at 11:09 pm
I knew a veteran of Anti-Nazi League action in Britain. He said they used to throw lucozade bottles at Nazis. Because when they broke, the sticky lucozade stuck broken glass to the Nazi, and he cut his hands trying to brush it off.
That’s the level of tolerance of Nazism that I approve of.
January 23, 2017 at 4:39 pm
I may or may not have taken part in this.
January 21, 2017 at 5:46 pm
I think I love you
January 21, 2017 at 5:48 pm
So what are we so afraid of?
January 22, 2017 at 4:35 am
I’m afraid that I’m not sure of a love there is no cure for
(perhaps punching more Nazi’s is the cure…)
January 24, 2017 at 11:17 am
How about punching grammar nazis? Coz that apostrophe………….
January 21, 2017 at 10:10 pm
Can I stab a n@zi and be nice and understanding to nice people?
*sarcasm NSA
January 22, 2017 at 4:32 am
Yo, it’s not just boys on the front lines.
January 22, 2017 at 5:38 pm
Good article, I did laugh.
Though on a serious note, I had mixed feelings when I first heard about the incident. Don’t get me wrong, I dislike Nazis old and new. But having been suckerpunched myself, I despise the practice.
For me, if you are going to hit someone for a principle, make the blow a fair one.
January 22, 2017 at 8:27 pm
Look. I’m not gonna wait for a literal bruise on my face to put a few on my knuckles. I’m too angry (and too pretty) for that. They’ve already spray painted swastikas on the HUC sign, and sent bomb threats to JCCs, and that’s good enough for me to start swinging.
January 24, 2017 at 8:14 am
Cos nazis really fought fair in the death camps!
January 22, 2017 at 6:17 pm
I think this post is out of line – even if you’re partly joking. Violence against others is NOT OK — unless you are fighting in a war or defending yourself (or another person)
I’d hit a Nazi (and a lot worse) in war or self-defense, but if you start hitting people whose views you don’t share (no matter how hateful), you’re harming the value that make us different from Nazis.
January 22, 2017 at 6:17 pm
You and people like you are the problem.
January 24, 2017 at 5:10 pm
No, Nazis are the problem.
January 22, 2017 at 6:26 pm
It is BY DEFINITION “defense of others” to aggressively, violently, attack Nazis and their sympathizers as soon as they identify themselves.
You don’t wait to defend yourselves until you are standing naked in the shower room.
January 22, 2017 at 8:23 pm
Someone said it
January 23, 2017 at 4:42 pm
The extreme Left and the extreme Right did their little slamdances in the streets of the German Weimar Republic for 14 years.
Undoubtedly, at the outset the extreme Left was not only assured of the unassailable righteousness of their cause, but certain of victory. So certain that they had no reservations about “heightening the contradictions” with acts of street violence.
When the dust settled, the victor in that struggle was the most extreme faction of the extreme Right. Perhaps their most famous fight song was an appeal to avenge one of their early casualties, Horst Wessel.
That historical example has no business being recycled in this country. By either the Left, the Right, by some undifferentiated “just want to see the world burn” faction of nihilists, by Christian theocrat nutcases, or by anyone else. The entire planet is facing crises, but the USA itself is still in a position to have the resources and national will to get the planet and its human inhabitants through them. Americans have no business re-imagining the polarizations of Germany in the 1930s as a productive model, from any point of view. It’s a model to avoid. That’s the instructional value.
January 23, 2017 at 5:30 pm
How do you think people should deal with the nazis now?
January 24, 2017 at 10:53 pm
This is not the Weimar Republic. The Weimar Republic was a government formed after its previous one was dismantled after losing the greatest war anyone had seen. The previous government was a hypermilitarized state which had been described as “an army with a state” 150 years before, and had only grown in stature and strength since. Liberalism – meaning the parliamentary system of the republic – had been forced on them. I think, certainly, it would be reductionist to state that Hitler and the far right won solely or mostly because the militarized autocratic nationalism was part of the “German culture” or any such but regardless it must be noted that many in the Weimar Republic had lived through Bismarck’s tenure and the Franco-Prussian war and many people of influence and power supported it and longed for it.
In the United States we have our own institutions which, while gravely flawed in many aspects, are pretty fuckin far from those of the German Empire. The type of fascism and racial violence – this man has literally, openly advocated for genocide of black people – advocated for by Richard Spencer is not going to be elected. We’ve probably got the most right wing authoritarian nationalist president we’ll get in the forseeable future. Spencer’s racial violence is taking place, imo, on an institutional level through things like mass incarceration, the war on drugs, and political and police corruption and/or violence, but while we fight that fight we cannot let it happen in the streets. We’ve already failed at that to some extent – check how many black teens have been shot by white drivers for playing their music too loud in a parking lot (or by police, but hey). It has to be known AT LEAST that if someone like Richard Spencer openly declares intent to do things like this if he can get away with it (which many have), he won’t feel safe in public. Because if Richard Spencer feels safe in public after openly declaring his desire or intent to murder someone for their race, even not a specific target, that means that it is not safe for anyone who could be a target, which is his greatest victory.
This is not a street war in Weimar. As happy as he may be about the result of the election, Richard Spencer is not in the White House or Congress. Their political wing does not really act for them, is not ideologically driven like them, it acts in self-interest. Richard Spencer’s political power will grow from the streets. It will grow from being able to give a nice lil speech at the local university. Those types of things will encourage affinity groups at universities. And on. Partly because our institutions have not taught people to think in ways adjacent to their ideology, they do not have the mass support needed to sustain a street war, yet. There are no Prussian veterans who miss Bismarck here. There is no National Socialist Party winning seats in a proportional vote parliament. The average Trump voter doesn’t read Breitbart – but he might, if Breitbart could host a music fest in the public park. All this to say this is not an all out street war with organized brownshirts, its making sure dumbass dork nazis with masters degrees in philosophy can’t spout their bullshit with impunity. Richard Spencer simply does not have the institutional or popular support to be compared with the far right agents in the Weimar Republic, even before Hitler’s rise.
Also, more than anything, what the failures of the left in the Weimar Republic mean to me is that it is imperative to win. There is nothing in the nature of the far right that makes them better at street wars – the left could have won in Germany, if it had done better. However – to push this home again – older, trained, militarized conservative German Imperial Soldiers and their sons being so plentiful and powerful in the Republic played a fair part in tipping the scales right, and we don’t have that here.
January 24, 2017 at 1:09 am
Yeah, fuck that.
Nazis don’t shout slogans – they shout INTENT.
The First Amendment protects me when you use ‘Fighting Words’ – provoking violent response and being met with violence? It’s covered and Constitutional.
By stating that ethnic cleansing should take place – he’s already said something worth a sock in the mouth.
Invoking the Nazis and the Reich? In the city where heroes from that war are buried? To a son of a soldier and great-nephew to a hero of D-Day?
Every…read this Jeff — EVERY NAZI deserves to be punched and met with VIOLENT rebuttal. Or we roll over and welcome a new Reich.
NEVER. AGAIN.
January 25, 2017 at 7:26 am
I disagree. Their ideals are morally abhorrent and they should be punished for making the choice of following them.
-But isn’t this sinking to their level?
That depends. After you punch the Nazi, do you espouse the tenets of National Socialism?
-No.
Then you’re better than a Nazi.
January 22, 2017 at 6:36 pm
R.I.P comment section….
January 22, 2017 at 6:38 pm
Yup. And we just got it the way we wanted it, too.
January 22, 2017 at 6:39 pm
The goddamn happiest, bizarre, surreal, and friendliest comment section on the whole wide interwebs…….
January 22, 2017 at 6:40 pm
This’ll blow over and it’ll be just us chickens again.
January 22, 2017 at 8:20 pm
“swastika-shaped balloon animal” Thank you so much for pinning a name on these types of interactions. Did your account get suspended yesterday over this?
January 22, 2017 at 8:28 pm
Went viral on facebook and started taking too much of my host’s server space, apparently.
January 24, 2017 at 3:02 am
And on Tumblr – I posted a link and the text and it’s getting towards 30,000 notes.
http://reddragdiva.tumblr.com/post/156180409523/on-the-propriety-of-punching-nazis-an-faq
January 22, 2017 at 8:29 pm
This post is amazing, and I’ve shared it several times already. I am a small person, and shall start carrying a bat immediately.
January 22, 2017 at 9:52 pm
Carry a glove, too, so you can tell the cops you’re on your way to a softball game.
January 22, 2017 at 9:46 pm
love this. I really do. I just wish there was an honest amendment to it that addresses “what if I’m a black or brown person and fear a cop will shoot me instead of just throw me in a paddywagon.” I don’t expect a yes no answer. Although maybe you just shouldn’t bc that’s a r e a l possibility. But an acknowledgment of the privilege of a white guy to be able to commit assault in broad daylight would make me feel like this current wave of antifas is more inclusive and mindful than what at least I’ve been part of in the past. It’s abt more than rage and retribution. I’m interested in what you think abt it!
January 22, 2017 at 9:51 pm
Pull your hoodie down real low and wear gloves: boom, instant white guy.
January 22, 2017 at 10:34 pm
It’s legit to be afraid of the personal consequences. There are plenty of us happy to finally be able to use our white privilege for something good (and easy, to be honest) who will land a blow or two in your name.
January 23, 2017 at 11:01 am
(Sung to the tune of “Fish Heads” by Barnes and Barnes:
“Skinheads, skinheads,
Racist, Nazi skinheads.
Skinheads, skinheads
Punch them out.
Scum.”
January 23, 2017 at 11:44 am
I might not punch a Nazi myself (one that was doing nothing wrong other than passively standing there holding his or her ideology to his or her self), but I can promise you if said Nazi got punched in my presence and the police asked me about it, I would have been curiously absorbed in tying my shoes at the time of the incident and remember absolutely nothing about it.
January 23, 2017 at 12:36 pm
Long read, but, let’s sum it up by saying I disagree.
https://www.allthink.com/2146865
January 23, 2017 at 12:42 pm
Your ideals will keep you warm in the train cars, and your beliefs can traded for crusts of bread when you get to the camp.
January 23, 2017 at 4:14 pm
There’s a wide between vigilance and paranoia that has no business being elided.
Richard Spencer was not advocating for the Jews of this country to be rounded up and shipped to concentration camps at the time he was blindsided. He was doing a snoozy exposition on what he imagined to be the mediagenic value of copping a cartoon frog for propaganda purposes. That isn’t threatening; that’s pathetic.
Now Richard Spencer has a higher media profile than he would ever have received otherwise, with what I think is an objectively reasonable claim to sympathy. For all practical purposes, the guy who hit him couldn’t have done him a bigger favor if he had been in league with him. Which I wonder about, without drawing any conclusions. In the interest of vigilance, not paranoia.
January 23, 2017 at 5:20 pm
Oh, so only when a Nazi is actively talking about genocide is he a Nazi?
Nazis have no claim to sympathy. They’re fucking Nazis. Several members of my family would have backed me up on this. Had it not been, you know, for the fucking Nazis.
January 24, 2017 at 9:30 am
Richard Spencer already had a huge platform within the neo-Nazi subculture – he’s the guy who rebranded it into the alt-right in the first place. He has actively & famously espoused his perceived values in racial cleansing (particularly against black people) & has incited violence with his words on a wide scale.
Now he’s the literal punchline to a joke meme. This is good.
January 23, 2017 at 12:37 pm
Perfectly expresses my views in response to the “give the man a chance” line of argument. Have shared quite a bit and donated. Thank you.
January 23, 2017 at 12:40 pm
Thank you.
January 23, 2017 at 2:45 pm
For those looking for an alternative that is violent but not illegal, one might try this: http://www.dailydot.com/layer8/shia-labeouf-art-livestram-white-supremacist/?fb=dd
At this stage in the game, it’s about getting their message out. Remove their ability to deliver said message (in Shia’s case, by upping the literal signal to noise ratio), then most of them become harmless. Another example is stink bombs, although those are less legal.
Punching can play into their narrative and make their message stronger. Shouting them down removes their ability to deliver their message, or provokes them into taking the first swing, in which case, punch away.
January 23, 2017 at 3:46 pm
The rise of polarized extremes of the Left and Right did more to enable the rise of Adolf Hitler than all of his speeches put together.
Richard Spencer was on a slow train to media oblivion. Hopefully, he still is. But if this sort of shit keeps up, he and his ideas are guaranteed a higher media profile.
Speaking of media profiles, my suggestion for the elements of the American press that have been baited by Trump is to refuse to run any photos of him. Obviously, Trump and his actions need to be covered as a story. That doesn’t mean he deserves to get his picture in the paper.
January 23, 2017 at 5:35 pm
One less Nazi in the world is a better world
January 23, 2017 at 5:37 pm
Nazi are to be legaly regconized as a domestic terrorist organization so that any law abiding citizens can legally take action to protect themselves and our country from domestic terrorist violance and the proliferation of any terroristic act on peacful law abiding citizens and there property.
Punch them and cuff them Dano 🙂
January 23, 2017 at 6:05 pm
I like this so much that when I have money again, I shall donate some to you, or otherwise arrange for some to be donated.
January 23, 2017 at 6:09 pm
I agree with the post, but it’s really, really disappointing how you responded to “Not a boy either” in the comments. Why not show some respect to women antifas?
Giving a shit how [sexist] language affects people isn’t “nitpicking” – it’s being decent, and it’s actually really easy to do. (Look, I’m doing it now!) But yeah, per your request: Not sharing, going away, not coming back.
January 23, 2017 at 6:12 pm
I don’t care. I truly don’t. Come. stay, leave, whine, fuck off, whatever.
This fucking post has been more trouble than it’s worth; I’m ten seconds worth of hassle away from deleting it.
January 23, 2017 at 6:45 pm
Damn straight.
January 24, 2017 at 4:53 pm
if it helps New Enthusiasts, i like to do all six, not necessarily at the same time (though i wouldn’t be averse to that), and repeat in a different order. lately, i’ve been doing the fifth, then the first, then the fourth, then the second. whatever has been a good follow up to these as a whole.
now that i think about what i’ve been doing lately, leaving out the leaving? which could be construed as leaving? i guess i do all six. in different order-like.
sometimes i throw in a whatnot.
January 23, 2017 at 7:52 pm
Brilliant!
January 23, 2017 at 10:59 pm
PUNCHING NAZIS IS ALWAYS SELF DEFENSE.
January 24, 2017 at 12:20 am
We fight the nazis because they stand in opposition to a more unified, inclusive world. So why not include the good ladies that think the same way. Same team dude.
January 24, 2017 at 12:23 am
Newcomers to the Comment Section are unaware of TotD’s attitude towards being pestered repeatedly about something he’s always explained.
January 24, 2017 at 8:09 am
How are we going to stop the actually-existing revanchist conservative movement in America that now controls essentially all branches of our government? Punching Nazis isn’t wrong; it’s irrelevant. It doesn’t matter. It has no tactical or strategic connection to any meaningful left-wing progress. People fixate on it because we are weak. So skip the snark; we don’t have anything to be joking about. We are losing terribly.
January 24, 2017 at 1:26 pm
You are my new favorite person.
January 24, 2017 at 1:45 pm
Thank you. Welcome. Check out the archives
January 24, 2017 at 4:02 pm
Facepunched Fascist?
THIS is a meme that needs to stay viral.
Propriety rots in Irony’s coffin.
January 24, 2017 at 11:09 pm
Scrolled all the way down to leave a comment, have bookmarked this page and keep coming back to it. Glad to see more about your blog. Rock on, stay inspired, I will be following and would love to connect.
Let’s see with our eyes,
These things our hearts have seen
And know the truth must still lie
Somewhere in between
-Robert Hunter
{;(~) (~);}
January 24, 2017 at 11:10 pm
Welcome.
January 25, 2017 at 8:56 am
Thanks for lifting up my morning!