I need to say up front that I have no direct information on this incident. I am, however, very suspicious about the way it is being reported. There was a rally today in Charlottesville, Virginia, that turned ugly. The rally was sponsored by a group called #UniteTheRight. Basically the purpose of the rally was to protest the tearing down of statues that are part of American history that some people have decided are offensive. The people the statues represent may or may not be offensive, but these people are part of American history. Like most of the rest of us, they tried to do what they considered right within the circumstances of the time in which they lived. A little tolerance is in order. It is totally unfair to judge those who lived more than a hundred years ago by the standards of today. How do you think future generations will judge the black genocide in America that is the result of government policies regarding abortion? The media is reporting the rally as a white nationalist rally. First of all, since when is nationalism white?

The dictionary defines nationalism as follows:

loyalty and devotion to a nation; especially :  a sense of national consciousness (see consciousness 1c) exalting one nation above all others and placing primary emphasis on promotion of its culture and interests as opposed to those of other nations or supranational groups

Nationalism under normal circumstances is a good thing. Americans need to be proud of their country and its culture. We were pioneers in personal freedom and responsibility. We made mistakes, but there were many things we did right. Women vote, minorities vote, and in spite of what you have heard, when honestly calculated, women are paid as much as men. We still have equal opportunity in America, and we still have the freedom to voice opinions that may differ from the majority.

We need to ask why this rally turned violent. We also need to look at the way the rally is being characterized in the media. I am not sure that we will get any honest answers as to what actually happened from the media in the coming days, but as I said in the beginning of this article–I remain skeptical. I don’t see any difference between the Ku Klux Klan, the neo-Nazis and the antifa. I don’t agree with any of them, but all of them have the right to protest–none of them have the right to be violent.

It would be interesting to know where the protesters on both sides were from. How did they get there? Were they paid? Were any expenses paid for them? Who planned this rally? Who planned the protest? What were the instructions given to those attending? What is the news story that is not on the front page because this rally is taking center stage? It is time to be skeptical and assume that we are simply not being told the entire story and that the story we are being told may not be the truth.