Becoming part of a mob is dangerous both for those who participate and for those who are exposed to the mob’s attacks. It can begin as a peaceful demonstration for or against something that has created commitment. Normally, the individual knows what he or she is doing and is conscious. But if the demonstration, with a large gathering of people, for some reason turns into a riot, the individual becomes part of a mass, which acts on the basis of the movement of the masses. Those who become one in the crowd stop taking their own initiatives and maybe even stop thinking clearly. The individual stops taking responsibility when she accompanies the masses. It can mean doing things that he or she would never do under normal circumstances, even if the opportunity existed.
Under the power of thousands of people in action, it also happens, of course, that there are individuals and types of leaders who take advantage of the situation and drive the movement in a certain direction and intention. The course of events and their inner dynamics naturally also affect how the development turns out. Resistance also increases aggression and violence.
Applied to the situation in Washington on Wednesday, January 7, when the demonstration turned into a storm of the Capitol and the violence that then developed, can be seen as an effect of the psychology of the mob. As more and more information and images came to light, we see that the whole thing was much more aggressive and violent than we might have realized from the beginning.
It was a blessing that Mike Pence and Nancy Pelosi managed to get to safety. Otherwise, this action could have ended even worse than now with five dead and many injured and extensive damage. What would have happened if the mob had caught up with Nancy Pelosi and Mike Pence? We hardly want to think about that! And the people who were involved in such a development of the action, would in a few minutes also have ruined their own lives. We can probably say that participating in a mob is the blind spot of man, as is panic. Then we are back to an early stage of development that evolution has not corrected.
Now the blame for what happened is discussed. Of course, those who took part in the action have a great responsibility and will surely be punished in due course. But there is no doubt that this action, which has been planned for a long time, was incited by President Donald Trump through his constant allegations and accusations that a widespread electoral fraud and the profits were stolen from him. For the protesters, the day began with a long and fiery speech by Trump, where he repeatedly claims that he was the one who won the election, but it has been stolen from him. The country has had enough of this fraud and we must stop it now. We’re going to the Capitol! ”We do not let them silence your voices. We will not let that happen. ” ”You have to show strength, and you have to be strong.” ”We must get rid of the weak members of Congress, those who are not good. We (do not) allow this group of people to take over our country illegally. ” * Trump is pressuring Mike Pence to stop the final decision of the congressional election. But Pence refuses and therefore the mob chanted that he should be hanged.
The discussion is now whether this was a coup, a terrorist act or the consequence of domestic terrorism, insurgency and revolt, civil disobedience and riots or what? The FBI is investigating whether this was a manifestation of domestic terrorism, so this has gained such dignity. Given the groups that were there and what they did for many years, harassment of politicians with opinions they do not like and a number of assassinations, most famous is probably Charlottesville in Virginia 2017. And there is information (from Army Chief Ryan McCarthy) that they are investigating 25 cases of terrorism in the country before the storming of the Capitol. It also turns out that a dozen of those who participated in the storm are being prosecuted by the Supreme Court in Washington D.C. for similar crimes.
The concept of domestic terrorism seems adequate and given all the truly extreme right-wing groups in the country, the concern is justified that domestic terrorism is on the rise, the ones that Trump has repeatedly said he loves. Civil disobedience, riots, uprisings and the like are obviously relevant. But it was probably not a state coup in the sense that Trump and his supporters were really trying to seize power. It takes more than a storm of Capitolium. But if Pence had obeyed Trump and sabotaged the constitutional order and the final determination of the election results along with a sufficiently large number of Republican candidates in Congress and Trump in that way could have continued as president, then it would have been a state coup. Now, however, many are worried about whether Trump will do something that will make the world remember him forever.
Alf Ronnby * https: //www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/donald-trump-speech-save-america-rally-transcript-january-6
Kritikern Alf 