Summary
Donald Trump’s potential loosening of cryptocurrency regulations as president could benefit extremist groups like neo-Nazis and terrorists who use crypto for anonymous fundraising.
Far-right groups, such as the Base, already solicit Bitcoin and Monero for training and supplies, exploiting crypto’s anonymity to evade financial scrutiny.
While Biden’s administration has cracked down on crypto over national security concerns, Trump’s pro-crypto policies and appointments could accelerate extremist financing.
Analysts warn that weak private sector oversight and a lack of regulatory enforcement enable such activities, raising concerns about future abuse of cryptocurrencies.
No, there’s good reasons to recognize people like Nazis as human.
Despicable, unforgivable, utterly detestable humans. But still humans.
It’s an important distinction, because when you say to yourself “Monstrous people aren’t human” the unspoken corollary to that is “And I’m human, therefore I cannot be a monstrous person.”
Dehumanizing Nazis is how Nazis get away with being Nazis. Because when they’re cartoon monsters on TV, everyone recognizes them as Nazis. But when it’s someone’s cousin or uncle, they figure “I know that guy. Yeah, he’s got some shitty opinions, but he’s not a monster. He loves his kids. He helps out at the church bake sale. So there’s no way he could actually be a Nazi, because only monsters can be Nazis.”
It’s incredibly important to admit to ourselves that evil can live anywhere. That it can be in anyone. It would be easier to live in a world where we could draw these clean lines between monsters and humans, but reality just isn’t like that.
Nazis are human beings, and that is by far the worst and most horrifying thing about them.
Yes, this is true and a more nuanced argument than the person I was responding to deserved. We’re all susceptible to propaganda and it can absolutely happen here. However fascists leverage good will to normalize hate and fear.
The only thing that we cannot tolerate is intolerance.
That changes nothing about the correct way to deal with them.
I never said it did.
Understanding that Nazis are human beings, with human thoughts, feelings and emotions doesn’t change the fact that their ideology is utterly intolerable. That’s the price of fighting fascism. You don’t get to make it easy on yourself by pretending that they’re something less than human.
Fighting Nazis… Killing Nazis… Is sometimes the only reasonable choice. “The only thing a tolerant society cannot tolerate is intolerance.” But you have to understand that when you talk about killing Nazis, you are talking about killing people. Human beings with lives and feelings and families and dreams. You have to be ready to take the cost of that on yourself. It’s easier if they’re not. It’s easier if they’re just NPCs to be moved down for points. But reality doesn’t get to be like that. Antifascism isn’t just a thing you do for the aesthetics. It’s not a cool badge you wear, and a slogan to shout. It doesn’t get to be fun and easy.