The Marketplace for Violent Rhetoric

In the wake of the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords, I was listening to a self-describe "righty" acquaintance of mine. The topic was the current handwringing about violent discourse, and she was quick with the Talking Point: "Lefties do it too!" As evidence for her point: In 2006, a movie was made called Death of a President, which is a "cold case" police procedural trying to figure out who assassinated George W. Bush. She had other examples, as does Michelle Malkin.

These examples are pathetic.

Follow the link to the movie. No, seriously: then go look at the budget and box office. The movie cost $2 million to make. It's opening weekend, it made $281,000 and it's total reported gross takings was $486,000.

The question is not whether crazy people on the left and the right exist and use stupid, inflammatory, violent speech. Of course they do.

The question is whether other people support it.

The left did not go out in droves and support a film suggesting that George W. Bush be assassinated. They don't go out and support speakers and politicians that use the inflammatory rhetoric of violence.

People on the right who use inflammatory rhetoric get $50 million a year radio contracts. They rent space and hold rallies on the national mall. They get their own reality TV shows. They get elected to Congress.

The left does not buy violent fantasy rhetoric in Costco volumes. The right does. They buy it, they pay for it, they eat and drink and breathe it, and they shouldn't be surprised when someone decides to live it out.

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A catalog of Fox News hosts fantasizing about the death of liberals.

Apples Cause Orgies! (At least, among certain primates)

There's a lot to like in this:

Bonobos like apples. They like them a lot. As a matter of fact, it’s difficult to do bonobo research without a supply of green apples to motivate them to do the experiments.

But they like group harmony most of all. And the sudden appearance of the apples in their midst immediately raises the threat of discord. Who will get to eat the apples?

If these were chimpanzees, the strongest males would immediately claim the fruit. There would be a fair amount of shoving, and possibly some bloodshed.

But bonobos are so communal that the tension produced by something so precious as an apple in their midst must be dispelled by a gesture of community. In this case, everyone gets to cool off with a little sexual comfort from their neighbor. Then, self-interest replaced by a certain yummy group feeling, they settle down to share the apple.

It's too bad that we come from the chimpanzee, and not bonobo, line of hominids.