Thank you to Anonymous II and Misha for bringing to our attention what the Dems are planning to do if Trump wins the election. 4 short years ago they were laughing at us. Now they’re making threats. Take a look around you. They’re going to make it WORSE. This isn’t an election, this is a war.
Anonymous II 09/08/20
https://2020electioncenter.com/watch?id=5f57eef9af4ce8069e6c6e46
Misha 09/08/20
What you are witnessing is the slow realization on the part of the Democratic powers that be that they may be looking at a genuine Republican landslide. Their little theory to explain a front loaded Republican pseudo victory is probably mostly rationalization. It’s also why they’re projecting about Trump possibly not wanting to leave. They’re trying to create their own reality through the prophecy of words, exerting magical control over the future. It’s all quite pathological.
They want to soften the impact on election night and still preserve some room to maneuver in the aftermath. Yet the public will likely see an electoral tsunami for Trump and the Democrats will be left with saying, “Who you gonna believe, me or your lying eyes?”
You’re talking about a limited number of states that are actually in play where this will work itself out. Republicans will press for high standards to qualify legitimate ballots and Dems will press for the opposite. It may end up in the courts in more than one state.
My guess is, though, that there will be a canary in the mine which will enable us to see if it actually was close. If we see some reliably blue states flip red in inarguable proportions, ones that Trump wasn’t counting on or expecting, that will be the toll of the bell.
If you don’t think a landslide is possible, consider the view from thirty thousand feet. President with excellent record on the economy gets hit by the Covid plague and manages it with minimal grief, though much inconvenience. He’s on the side of getting back to normal and reopening the schools. Economy is rebounding aggressively. Lie after lie emanates from the left. Leftists riot for over a hundred days in a dozen major cities – hard leftists, “trained Marxists”. The Dems and the media refuse not only to condemn them but even acknowledge the fact of the rioting until after Labor Day. Who will forget scenes of burning buildings in the background with reporters insisting that the protests are “mostly peaceful”?
Basically all Dems have to offer is endless disease and rioting.
The Democrats could not do any worse if they were consciously and aggressively trying to lose this election. All that’s left is for Biden to get lost and be the subject of an “amber alert”.
All true. However, the only thing that genuinely frightens me is…mail fraud.
Bold predictions of a Trump landslide continue to seem based more on feelings than data. The race has been remarkably static, neither candidate even received a meaningful convention bump this election.
The general vote is not the Electoral College. But inferences about probabilities to win the Electoral College can be made by general vote projections. If Trump can get the deficit down to three or four points, his chances likely mirror 2016. If it ends up a six or seven point difference, the likelihood is remote. McConnell has valid reason to sweat the Senate majority at this point in time.
I would caution certain people on here that what you think should be the outcome of current events may not match the reality of what actually happens. It is important to recalibrate expectations based on actual results.
I agree. It’s too bad the Dems didn’t re-calibrate 4 years ago. They still think we’re a bunch of yahoos, only now they think we’re a bunch of rabid yahoos. And for what? For being successful in electing Trump, for bringing down the unemployment rate, for extracting ourselves from foreign interests and allowing our economy to take off again?
No. What really pissed them off is the fact that Trump navigated the obstacle course they designed for him, first with the Russia nonsense, which I understand they are now resurrecting again (Hillary calls Tulsi an “agent” and it’s Russia, Russa, Russia), the impeachment waste of time, and now civil unrest everyone knows is not “peaceful protesting.” Talk about a bunch of rabid dogs.
So, yeah, they thought they would win 4 years ago by a landslide. When they lost, they literally cried, totally blindsided by the reality that the other side could win.
And they’re not happy about it. Now, they’re launching into threats like “we’re going to hold up the inauguration if Trump wins.” Notice, they don’t say if we find evidence that Trump didn’t win legitimately. No. They’re approach is that if he wins, they’re going to hold everything up to find the evidence that he didn’t win.
This is right out of their current playbook. In every case where they “held up things”, there has been no evidence to show for it.
Those who can’t re-calibrate have been a royal pain in the ass. They have failed miserably and in the process pissed off more and more Americans who are going to vote for Trump merely to get rid of them.
Flavius, your first assertion is incorrect: Biden received no bump from the convention; Trump on the other hand has closed the gap in the battleground states. Don’t believe me? Then why is he crawling out of his hole and going to Wisconsin and PA?
Nate Silver also posted a prediction that Biden would have to have +3.5 popular vote to win the Electoral College.
Flavius, I’m gonna be brutally honest with you: this is for all the marbles and the DS is going to do whatever it takes to try and foil his reelection. So what’s my point? Only this: there is no way of being 100% sure who is going to win. All we can do is look at the betting markets (which are moving in Trump’s direction) and other extraneous factors.
Black swans will be swimming regularly; information overload as well. Hence The Atlantic story which has died an ignominious death. Etc. If you or I had predicted back in June that Portland would resemble Beirut, we’d have been hauled off to the loony bin. Now it’s inevitable.
According to Steve Turley, Trump is in the process of activating militias. https://youtu.be/_V9hZvGC2HY
Prediction markets are a slight improvement over horoscopes, but not by much.
Post convention polling data agrees with me, and does not support your counter assertion. Go look at the 538 and/or RCP data and compare to historics. Biden doing campaign visits in battleground states should not be a shock to you.
I fear you are not correct on Silver. He recently laid out his ranges mapping general margin to EC probability estimates: https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1301190941110341632
That it is possible for Trump to win the election is not in doubt. But I emphasize again that asserting a Trump landslide, or that Biden can’t win the election are not positions supported by current evidence.
I note, somewhat wryly, that Steve Turley apparently believes a civil war appears, in his word, ‘IMMANENT!!!’. But not, apparently, imminent enough to not want me to buy some of his special tumeric. If it truly is 4600% Better Absorbed Than Standard Turmeric, the left might as well surrender now.
RE: “Post convention polling data agrees with me, and does not support your counter assertion.
You could have said that in 2016 before the Dems had so much on the line.
Everything we’re reading is just off. I don’t know how else to describe it. But people are beginning to seeing the cracks. Frankly, a huge number of people are afraid of telling anyone how they’re going to vote, and they have reason to be.
Trump doesn’t have to win by a landslide. He just has to win.
“Trump doesn’t have to win by a landslide. He just has to win.”
They already seem to conceding that Trump WILL win in a landslide, but they still won’t concede, and but will keep counting votes, that will continue to mysteriously flow in, for weeks. The Constitution requires the House to accept the results of the election, so if the Democrats hold the House, they just won’t accept the electoral results, then Nancy Pelosi becomes President on Jan. 20th, which is why she’s already talking of using the military to evict Trump from the Whitehouse, and has been applying “domestic enemies” language from the Constitution to Republicans.
I know. What a nightmare.
Myst,
I don’t think the Constitution allows the Speaker to simply reject the results and thereby ascend to the presidency.
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL32717.pdf
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/3/15
https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendment/amendment-xx
https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/512540-presidential-succession-act-can-congress-manage-chaos
https://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/493101-who-takes-control-if-there-is-no-presidential-election-this-year
They count the electoral votes and abide by the outcome or, if there is no majority, they vote in the House with each state getting one vote. In that case, assuming a Congress approximately composed as this one (for it would be the new Congress that decides) if the majority of states had Republican representation, then Trump would be re-elected.
Only if no one has a majority for either president or vice president and the new House has not selected a president would the new Speaker become president on January 20th. And that would only last until the new House could vote.
But House terms end on January 3rd. Only if Pelosi is re-elected as majority leader/Speaker might she become acting president. If there is no new Speaker, it goes to the president pro tem in the Senate, which is Charles Grassley.
At least that’s my reading of everything applicable.
Dear Gail,
“Trump doesn’t have to win by a landslide. He just has to win.”
If he doesn’t win by a massive landslide it doesn’t portend well for the future of America.
Basically it would buy four more years for decent people to get organized against the insane ones in American society, namely the democrats.
On a personal note I have learned that I’m not capable of comprehending how any Orthodox Bishop or Priest is capable of belonging to and supporting the democrat party.
I understand your point. A landslide would be nice. But even if that happens, they’re still going to fight us tooth and nail. These people will lie, cheat and steal.
Nixon won reelection by the biggest EC margin ever, and he was driven out of office by the media over a prank that was memed into the worst crime in history.
Most of the 1950s-60s civil rights program was vehemently opposed by the populace, but it was forced through by the media and politicians.
More recently, only 15 years ago, gay “marriage” was failing on every ballot it was put on, including California. But the media-political cartel got what it wanted in the end. Now even the GOP is pro-gay, and the vile “Lady MAGA” is a celebrity.
Mississippi changed their state flag to an ugly rag churned out by a committee, just because Walmart said they won’t fly a battle flag outside their stores.
The establishment media-political-finance-corporate cartel runs this country and they get what they want in the end, regardless of who wins. It has to be taken down, and I’m disappointed Trump hasn’t done more towards that end.
He’d be walking away with it if corporations were forced to uphold the 1st amendment. That is the issue of our time. Even banks are now canceling customers for their political views. This is what needs to stop.
Nixon was less Republican than Trump. Trump cut the taxes and Nixon did EPA and price controls. The left hatred Nixon over Alger Hiss and Nixon’s appeal on the right was mainly law and order. John Schmitz ran against Nixon on the American Indpt party for some Republicans that didn’t like Nixon on some of his more liberal stands.
There are a hundred things I would rather Trump have done than cut taxes.
The EPA has done a lot of good, I don’t begrudge its existence. But like all agencies it became draconian when it got a taste of power. Just like our public health system is now experiencing.
But I don’t want to get in the weeds on details. The point is they got rid of a popular president who wasn’t with the program.
Amen, Gail, much to fear/expect/prepare for in the way of negative reactions and consequences from strangers, businesses, employers and sadly from liberal family and friends now due to the mindless rage just beneath the surface which has been stoked and simmering for years by the media and Democrats and now allowed free rein by the Democratic leaders for their own purposes.
Because much that is anti-Christian is now claimed as Christian by these ignorant or cunning liberals, there is a self-righteousness which fuels the passion as well and tolerates/encourages great cruelty toward other human beings in the service of the perverse cause. For the first time I understand Christ’s words about family member against family member, much as Alexander Solzhenitsyn described and predicted for us once he arrived in the US and was treated fairly quickly to liberal media cancelling, per an autobiography I am reading…Fr Seraphim Rose’s analysis in Nihilism is brilliant and spiritual.
So now we prepare to “show up” and speak for Christ regardless, being wise as a serpent and gentle as a dove. To that end, our priest last week spoke about how we are to prepare for speaking when persecuted, per Holy Scripture. Fr Seraphim Rose’s Orthodox Survival Course on youtube (and some transcripts on Orthodoxriver.org) as well as Fr Peter’s OSC on Patreon are excellent resources to prepare. And as my spiritual father entreats, the time has come to imitate our Church of old and repent for our personal and national sins to God with tears and prayers for forgiveness from Him, and re-dedication to love and serve Him. And pray with love for those deluded enraged anti-Christian liberals “Father, forgive them; they know not what they do.”
Everything that has happened in the rest of the world is finally here. We’re up. I too pray we have four more years to prepare well and to return to our usual Orthodox Traditional way of worshipping and believing so we will have the strength to be true.
Ephesians 6:10–18: (10) Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. (11) Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
One of my Da’s favorite verses Gail, right on!
I’m pretty confident in my view based on the available evidence. However, sometimes the dragon wins.
http://humor.hirschy.net/dragon/sometime.htm
You really never know until it’s over. I can certainly conceive of the possibility of a Biden win, though I find it unlikely. In that case, the people have spoken, time to switch focus to plans to emigrate peacefully to greener pastures. Eurasia is on the rise, regardless. If it is the fate of America to recede into third world status under the Demsheviks, so be it. It’s not like we couldn’t see it coming, now is it?
I agree that if there is an actionable front surrounding the election besides campaigning, it is mail fraud. That is a wild card and the Demsheviks have let it be known that they intend to press it for all that it is worth.
Yet there are deadlines, the Supreme Court and, if all else fails, a vote in the House, one vote per state, which will go to Trump. Though there is much room for mischief, Trump has deployed lawyers and activists around the country to restrict the impact of attempted voting fraud. It may be a Battle Royale, but we’ll get through it.
Part of me thinks that the highest movers and shakers in the Democratic Party have already reconciled themselves to Trump’s second term and that the rattling of sabers is only so much “coup porn” to emotionally stabilize the rank and file given the situation. When you poll people about who they think will win, rather than who they will vote for, Trump carries it away.
Why did the Demshevik Establishment pick Biden, of all people? Politicians are candid behind closed doors even if they put on a united public face. They knew he was going senile then and still rallied everyone around him. That tells me that their objective was not to win the election but to defuse the impending takeover of the party by the Bernistas.
Let us not forget that at one point we had Bloomberg v. Bernie – a billionaire v. a card carrying Marxist. That was the Dems worst nightmare, that Bernie would take over the party formally. Untenable positions can be changed; but Bernie would have smothered dissent. It’s possible that they were content to live to fight another day.
I agree with you Misha, if by some chance Biden does win, it is time to leave for other shores. Poland, Hungary, Russia are my top 3 choices. It is not hard to see the writing on the wall that if the Dems get in power then we can kiss the U.S as we know it goodbye. Their first rule will be to eradicate the Electoral College, essentially solidifying their rule over the U.S for the foreseeable future. If that is the case then it would be prudent to not stay in the U.S unless you want to end up like the Jews who didn’t see the writing on the walls in 1930’s Germany.
I still think a Trump victory is likely, but, what I am worried about is that a Trump victory might only stall the inevitable and that demographically we will inevitably slide back to the Democrats. I hope that I am wrong.
This is where civil war becomes a real possibility but Trump has friends both here and overseas who will help us. Look at it this way, they haven’t killed us yet. . . and they’re going to have to.
That pretty much sums it us, doesn’t it Dear?
Think of it: it’s all so unnecessary. All the Left had to do is not act insane and they went ahead and blew that. And yes, they’re clinically insane. I don’t say that snarkily but in dead seriousness. They’ve violated every rule of warfare, diplomacy and politics. What are they going to promise us if we don’t vote Republican in November? That they’ll be all violent? We’re there already. That they’ll be peaceful should they win? Why should we believe that? Oh sure, they could act peacefully –for awhile but America will have been turned into a banana republic and mob violence can be turned on and off at will. That’s how Maduro stays in power in Venezuela. Sure vast swaths of the people hate him and they are miserable but as long as he’s got the goon squads on his side, what does he care?
The merciless application of violence by the government worked for Castro in Cuba, for the Soviets in Hungary in 1956 and in Czechoslovakia in 1968 and Deng Xiaping during Tianenmen uprising.
Basically, those of us on the Right have no choice but to fight at this point. If it is to the death, so be it.
Sun Tzu said that you should always leave your enemy a way out. That’s why we have diplomats. The only time in history (if memory serves) when an enemy was completely surrounded and completely destroyed was Cannae, 216 BC, when Hannibal surrounded the Roman legions. That’s how rare complete encirclement coupled with complete annihilation is.
One Roman Army was destroyed at Cannae.
Rome wasn’t. She had other armies, other generals.
Wouldn’t the military and the police prefer/back Trump? Or is it rank and file versus generals so to speak?
I have heard that the military is heavily infiltrated by the “Deep State.” Generals usually like to have boots on the ground and Trump has resisted their attempts to get involved or stay involved in places we don’t belong.
Because a police chief is appointed rather than elected, I imagine they are loyal to the party of their local government. In blue states, they would probably be democrat.
It depends upon if they flipped the Senate or not. Biden or Harris can’t win in 2024. BIden should have pushed electric cars since now there is a bunch of electric car companies starting production, This would appeal to folks in the midwest the the assembly line or are engineers.
Misha, as usual, you are insightful. If I may expand on the Dem civil war: it’s not that the Dems wanted Biden per se, it’s that they were terrified of Bernie winning the nomination.
This bears some serious appraisal: Bernie did what no other major party candidate did since the primary system was set up in 1912: he won the first three primaries/caucuses. Not even Reagan or Ike did that on the GOP side of things or LBJ, Carter or Obama on the Dem side.
More perspective: Obama won more votes (69 million) than any other candidate in history. And he had to fight tooth-and-nail to get the Dem nomination. Bernie’s feat was stupendous, hence the abject terror that the grand pooh-bahs of the Dem Establishment felt at the prospect of his winning.
Exactly, George.
All is not as it appears. There is actually probably a substantial segment of the Demshevik Party that sees the party has run aground and will either vote for Trump or stay home. What they would say if they could articulate it, make it a platform and reduce it to soundbites is this:
“Only a fool wants to nationalize everything. ‘Fernando’ is a beautiful song but a dark reality. So we sing the song and make it a point to never arrive at ‘liberty’. No, just ’cause we shovel it does not mean that we believe our own bs and want to turn the country into Zimbabwe. Capitalism self evidently is too lucrative to society as a whole to nix it. We are parasitical and we intend to remain parasitical and not kill the host. We want to pursue identity politics and social criticism, but not much more than to rearrange the furniture from time to time since it gets drab and we have already revolutionized society on social issues. The border into real socialism is a bridge too far and we like being a capitalist elite in a social democratic state of mind. It’s a contradiction we live with because it is overtly rewarding to our little materialistic souls.”
‘Cause, as you said, Bernie/AOC would shut ’em down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQsjAbZDx-4
Bernie got white leftist and latinos. Bernie appeal to the lower income is why he beat BIden with working class or middle class Latinos.
There is something at play that almost no one talks about the Obamas, Bidens, Clintons, Comeys, Schiffs, Pelosis, Brennans and 1000s more are Fighting Hard to Avoid JAIL & HANGINGS it’s a battle for Survival – that’s why they ran Biden – their only option.
The #SwampNAZIS, many of which are RINOs and NT (Never Trumpers), media, corporate gurus, unions, education critters, entertainers, etc are also worried about their crimes.
This is the reality, the left is very organized and calculating; they had no choice but to run Biden there was no one else they could use or trust to save their miserable necks from all the money laundering, pay for play, pedo, sex trafficking and many other Crimes and now all their hopes rest on the election outcomes or stopping it, etc.
Trump’s only promise not kept is the most important “Lock Her Up” – Arrest Someone Already!
Picking Jeff Sessions as AG was a HUGE mistake also Devin Nunes recusal another big mistake – moving at stone’s pace for justice is always in favor of the Marxist Criminals. Calling them in front of Congress and telling ahead of time what questions you’ll ask is foolish when dealing with criminal minded #SwampNAZIS.
When the Left is in power the DOJ & AG are weapons which they move fast as reckless to neuter the opposition and when the Right takes over they are slow as snails trying to be fair. That is why nobody is in jail yet not even the one that took a plea…
Tired of this #Blueshit – SWAT TEAM AND ARREST SOMEONE ALREADY there are 1000s that should have been prosecuted already to put a stop to this Lefty MARXIST MOBS PARTY persecution of America.
Wasn’t it Fr. Seraphim Rose who said; What began in Russia, will end in America? It certainly appears to be the corse we are on. Anarchy/revolution and the overthrowing of the rightfully established Government. The Democratic National (International) Communist have proven that they will stop at nothing to achieve their aims. Let us continue to pray for the preservation of our country and that we not see an assassination attempt made on life of President Trump. Lord have mercy on this world.
Amen Paisios!
It was not Fr. Seraphim who said it first, although he quoted it often. According to the blog “Morning Offering” it was Schema Hieromonk Elder Ignatius of Harbin Manchuria in 1958.
The Dems picked the wrong minority group, Take Florida where the latinos outnumber the blacks and some of them are anti-socialist because they come from Cuba or Venezuela. The BLM movement overemphasized black problems with cops, but in two states the Dems are trying to flipped Florida and Texas blacks make up a much smaller number of the voters than latinos. Trump tied with Biden among Latinos in Florida.Also, the Dems go too much into educated suburbs not thinking that they do better in Northern burbs more so than southern burbs. The southern burbs are more religious.
CORRECTION Elder Ignatius said in 1938.
Even more prescient. All human governments end in tyranny. Just a matter of time. Especially so-called “representative” government. .
I definitely think that “middle America” has tired of the lawlessness. Also it seems that the percentage of Caucasians who are willing to hate themselves and their own heritage/skin color has maxed out – that group is limited to (more or less) middle class white people who have overwhelming needs to conform. The “I’m such an awful white person” schtick only goes so far.
The left likely won’t be able to achieve its goals by democratic means – I’m just curious when they’ll stop pretending to use democracy to gain power and just go full on “we’ll do what has to be done to gain power and to heck with democracy.” Some of the left are already there.
Trump is on a strong trajectory to win. I didn’t think it was possible for the Dems to put forth a worse presidential candidate than HRC, but somehow they managed to.
Biden should be spending his time playing golf and pinochle – he has neither the stamina, grit, charisma, nor mental acuity to run for president.
This election result will more depend on how many people believe that Trump’s vulgarity and buffoonery disqualify him from the presidency and therefore vote against him for that.
But if Trump wins, the lawless progressive left will intensify – but at least the Pelosi/DeBlasio/Cuomo/Schumer wing of the left will then be irrelevant. And hopefully post-election the lawlessness will be stamped out as any sensible country would do, or else various leftist cities in America will turn into 1970s Beirut.
Judging by 4 years ago when HRC signs were everywhere in my state (which ended up going for Trump), there are Biden/Ka-Mah-la signs nowhere around this time. These two excite no one, not even canasta players or your neighborhood communist. They finished at the bottom in the first 3 primaries for a reason.
The Dem coalition is so tenuous and relies on a bunch of people who don’t like each other to unite against a common enemy (Trump). Methinks it ain’t gonna work again in 2020.
Sooner or later, the left will just come out and say “we no longer believe in democracy,” which is an interesting commonality they share with many saints and Fathers of our faith.
Consider the substance of this piece:
https://amgreatness.com/2020/09/07/why-is-kamala-harris-invisible/
The Demsheviks are behaving as if they know they are going to lose and they can’t do thing one about it.
They’re either going to call Biden the winner and Trump will challenge it or Trump will win and Biden won’t concede. In both cases, neither Biden or Kamala will come into office. They are placeholders until the election. Why bother to campaign? By the time the dust settles, Biden will have been replaced due to his “difficulties” and Kamala will come off the ticket. Better they stay home and not mess things up.
OK, so lemme get this straight: if we re-elect Trump, then we’re going to see massive unrest?
https://hotair.com/archives/john-s-2/2020/09/14/atlantic-trump-wins-democrats-wont-accept-results-election/
Uh, quick question: just what the hell is it we’re experiencing now? A cotillion?
The Dems made a tactical mistake in June when the protests turned into riots; and they kept adding kerosene to the fires. Now all that’s happening is driving Normies, Hispanics, South Asians and East Asians into the arms of Trump. I even foresee Trump getting 20% of the black vote and 40% of the Jewish vote.
Well, I have thought that the new age movement in far left circles was not much of a factor I was wrong. Blm practices Voodoo. This is why some blacks are turn off by BLM is the black magic stuff.
Like you, I didn’t know it either.
In truth, much of modernism and political ideologies were set in motion by Alistair Crowley, a renowned Satanist.
Yeah, and according to Paul Kengor he had an affair with Walter Duranty. Walter Duranty brought the Stalinist line on the Ukraine that Stalin was not starving people there. In fact BLM is into Voodoo and contacting the died. I’m not talking about prayer to saints but the dead in general which the old testament says is a no no.
Power is power, I guess.
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/americas-china-class-fights-trump
This caught my eye today and is worth a read. I had been working on a post about the likeliest explanation for some of the crazy, surreal developments over this spring and summer (Covid, the riots, etc.) – that Trump has a “guardian angel” . . .
This article has led me to want to take time to expand that thesis. Long story short, the current feral rancor of American politics can be viewed as a cold proxy war between China and Russia. I’ve long thought that there is more FSB involvement in our politics than that of which we are aware. I have no direct evidence, only circumstantial, but it would explain a lot . . .
Yet the Chinese element, as the above article makes clear, is undeniable. There is a symbiosis between American elites, especially in tech and manufacturing, and China. The value of low cost production and access to Chinese markets is strong motivation to defeat “America First”.
For different reasons, the Russians have a strong interest in “America First” since it gives them room to create a security perimeter around their country and resist economic imperialism with their own energy export capability.
https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/09/15/this-blm-co-founder-and-pro-communist-china-group-are-partnering-up-heres-why/ This is interesting. I’m not saying all Dems like the communist, but the progressives like them better than the moderates This explains the tearing down of the statues. A desire to follow the culture war of China under Mao.