I've got an idea. Instead of keep digging in about "sides", how about we have a real, honest, civil, heartfelt, intellectual discussion about the problem?
Why do you think it comes to violence? Is it because someone feels like they are in danger? That their way of life or their actual safety is at stake? Do they come to this decision on their own, or are they egged on by the echo chamber they live in?
Some people are feeling frustrated, attacked, unsafe. Others are taking advantage of that for their own ends -- be them attention, money, political power, etc. Look at someone like Alex Jones or Michael Moore, for example. They only believe half of what they say. But they say it anyway for the attention. They actually make a profit from our anxiety. They keep us from acting like normal, civil human beings. It's disgusting. Instead, we have people like this guy, or the guy who shot up the Republican baseball practice.
I don't believe all political violence can be blamed on this new, 24-7, social internet, news cycle. Look at Eric Rudolph or the Unibomber -- they weren't fed by this new corporate scare system. Maybe somebody like this Cesar guy might have talked about conspiracy theories, but it was more likely he wouldn't have done anything about it in the 1980's or 90's. But now this stuff is everywhere. Talking heads on CNN or Fox News feed into and magnify our fears and angers. It's really unhealthy for us as a society.
