Ex-Trump insider Lev Parnas over the weekend noted the situation surrounding the Los Angeles protests, saying āthe clock is tickingā as Trump has ātroops in the streets, tanks on standby, and plans to crush the resistance.ā
āI know a lot of you woke up this morning in shockāstaring at the footage out of Los Angeles, asking yourselves: How could this happen? Is this real? Is this really happening in the United States of America? But let me be clear, folksāthis is real. It is happening. And I need you to know that my sources deep inside Trump World have been warning me that what we witnessed overnight was no isolated event. Itās part of something much bigger. And what I have to tell you today is chilling,ā he wrote.
āYesterday, when Donald Trump deployed over 2,000 federal troops into Los Angeles under the justification of ārestoring order,ā most headlines ran with it like it was some isolated act of retaliationājust another example of Trump punishing blue states. And yes, part of this is personal. Make no mistake: this is revenge against California, against Governor Gavin Newsom, and against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. But itās not just about settling scores.ā
According to Parnas, in reality, āThis is about control.ā
āWhat happened yesterday in Los Angeles was a test runāa dry rehearsal for something much, much bigger. Iāve been hearing from multiple trusted insiders that Trumpās inner circleāparticularly Pete Hegseth and some of the more radicalized loyalists embedded at the Pentagonāare actively drafting operational plans for the mass mobilizations expected on June 14th,ā he added. āThis isnāt just about Trumpās birthday. This isnāt just about another vanity parade. This is about shutting down resistance.ā
Parnas added that Trump āfears the American people rising up on June 14th, in all 50 states, with signs that say No Kingsāwith voices that remind the world that we are still a democracy.ā
āThatās why heās pushing for tanks. Thatās why he wants the biggest military display America has seen since the Cold War. Because he wants the optics of power. He wants to smother the story before it even begins. He wants his parade to dominate the headlines, not the marchers in the streets fighting for democracy,ā he said. āBut I need you to understand this: According to my sources, there are discussions happening right nowāwithin Trumpās most trusted circleāabout invoking martial law if the protests āget out of hand.ā Theyāre looking for any excuse. Any video. Any act of violence. Any disruption. Thatās all they need to justify a crackdown.ā
He then warned people not to fall for a trap being set by Trump associates.
āAnd it gets worse. What Iām being told is that Trump alliesāincluding elements connected to Proud Boys, III Percenters, and other far-right militia networksāare planning to infiltrate the June 14th protests. Not to support them. To sabotage them. Their goal? Create chaos. Spark confrontation. Trigger a response from law enforcement. And then hand Trump the justification he needs to clamp down,ā Parnas wrote. āLet me say this loud and clear: We cannot give them that excuse.ā
Parnas went on to encourage peace, and told protesters to āstay vigilant.ā
Thereās a thing going around on Facebook saying that if violence starts, you should just sit down in place. If all of the actual protesters do that, itāll be pretty obvious the violence is coming from provacateurs.
Donāt fucking sit down. Thatās terrible advice. Cops beat the shit out of compliant protesters all the time. Fight back or run away. If youāre not capable of either then youāve already missed your chance at contributing to the movement.
Okay, first I think it needs to be said that this is a complex and difficult situation that really doesnāt leave us with any good options either way, and I think both sides of this debate have people with good intentions behind them.
Second, this
is true and something people need to be aware of.
However, third, it needs to be said that
will absolutely get the shit beaten out of you unless you got an army in your back pocket I somehow havenāt heard about yet.
Fourth,
Bullshit. Every news story picture and video that shows protesters getting attacked and arrested is an incredibly powerful piece of evidence showing the consequences of rising fascism in America thatās going to be harder and harder for the people who are trying to ignore all this stuff to tune out. Even the selfish asshole centrist dipshits who donāt care about immigrant rights and just want everything to settle down are going to see that this unrest canāt be beaten into submission and efforts to do so just make the protests bigger, and thatās when those people are going to turn on the fascists and say āLook, I was willing to give up civil liberties for law and order, but you canāt even give us that.ā (weāre already seeing talk like that out of Gavin Newsom).
Personally, I say if youāre in a protest and cops start attacking, run away if you can or sit down if you canāt, because I donāt feel comfortable asking people to just turn themselves over to the mercy of law enforcement who may very well do permanent injury to them, but I have nothing but respect for the people who do make that sacrifice for this movement, and the notion that people being arrested arenāt contributing is absolute bullshit.
Dumb idea. cops wonāt leave the sitters alone theyāll go after them first because cops are pussies who look for the easiest way off the clock