When You Punch A Nazi In The Face, You Punch Me In The Face
Yesterday I was shown a video clip of so-called “neo-Nazi” Richard Spencer being punched in the face by an anonymous protester during last week’s Inauguration.
Nazism is horrible, there’s no question about that. But I have to admit that watching the Nazi get punched in the face sent shivers down my spine—the very same kinds of shivers that Nazism does.
Indeed, when that bystander punched that Nazi in the face, it felt a little bit like he was punching me in the face. And also the face of American civil society itself.
It was a chilling reminder that in this emotional time, we must never give into the same forces that threaten to tear our republic apart. Punching, Nazis, face-punching, punching me in the face, punching Nazis in the face: these are just different names for the same thing: Nazism. Except for when police do it.
If you think about it, what the Nazis want more than anything in the world is to be punched in the face, because that means we have to let them do a genocide again.
Next time you feel tempted to punch a Nazi in the face, before you make your decision, take a moment and imagine that you’re also punching me in the face.
If you’re like me, I think you’ll find that the biggest blow you can deal a Nazi is respectful criticism, delivered in the form of rational arguments and evidence.
In a weird way, the punchiest thing you can do to a Nazi is to not punch them at all.
