Riot on Time

This week I felt like I kind of had to address what is going on in my former hometown, Los Angeles. But to be honest, it is difficult. I am so angry and frustrated — and those emotions don’t always lead to incisive and clear thinking. But I’ll do my best.

While it probably should go without saying, I’m going to say it anyway: of course, I condemn the rioting. I condemn property destruction and any initiation of violence. BUT, I am also aware that those responsible for the rioting are not the immigrant population (though MAGA is working very hard to sell that narrative). Then, who is responsible? First and foremost, it is Donald Trump. This whole ICE operation was performative and designed to sow chaos. If the goal were simply to deport illegal immigrants (a misdemeanor in many cases), ICE agents could have come in quietly and arrested people. This is how it’s been done for years. Despite MAGA propaganda, Trump deported 3.13 million people during his first term, compared to Obama’s 3.16 million, and Biden’s 4.44 million. And Obama and Biden managed to do this without using masked, militarized agents who start riots. The evidence seems clear to me that the ICE agents were sent to those particular areas of Los Angeles, in the aggressive way they were, in order to provoke exactly this kind of response. Why would Trump do this? Several key reasons. Given his many failures in the courts, the economic slowdowns caused by his tariffs, his embarrassing breakup with Elon Musk (and the accusations regarding the Epstein files) — and so much more — he desperately needed something to distract America. This certainly has done that! But even more than distraction, rioting in our cities always makes Americans hunker down and support “law and order.” Given how shaky Republicans are looking in the upcoming mid-term elections, this is just the kind of shot in the arm they need. The satirical site The Babylon Bee certainly gets it. A recent headline reads: Illegals Help Film Republican Presidential Campaign Commercial.

Another key reason is that, like all would-be authoritarians, Trump knows that he needs to control the military if he is to solidify his power. By federalizing California’s National Guard, against the wishes of California’s governor, he now has another powerful weapon against any who might oppose him. It should not go unmentioned that Trump has threatened to arrest California governor Gavin Newsom. Not on any particular charge, mind you, but just on general principles. This is part of Trump’s overall plan to instill fear in the opposition. I certainly would think twice about showing up to any kind of protest if Marines were going to be there (trained at killing but not at crowd control). And this is not paranoia. Trump came right out and said, "For those people that want to protest, they're going to be met with very big force.”

Arresting political opponents and threatening people for exercising their constitutional rights did not use to be something we did in America. But that America is disappearing fast.

While the preponderance of moral blame for the riots lies with Trump, his plans couldn’t succeed without the leftist rabble-rousers who are drawn to any kind of protest. Make no mistake, the people of Los Angeles have every right to be angry about these ICE agents and to peacefully protest. But these rabble-rousers use the cover of legitimate grievances to promote leftist ideas and generally to undermine our “capitalist” system. Some are probably Antifa, but regardless, they are most likely the ones burning cars, waving Mexican flags, and wearing pro-Hamas face coverings. I doubt that most of them are immigrants or even much concerned with immigrants’ rights. Their motivation is essentially nihilistic. That is not remotely what motivates most immigrants, legal or otherwise. The vast majority come to the United States for a better life. They recognize that for all its flaws, our system (which is not capitalism, but that’s a topic for a whole different post) is better than the one where they came from. The immigrants I know are almost universally more “pro-America” than the average person who was born here. They have come to America not to tear down the system, but to become part of it.

Unfortunately, these leftist rabble-rousers are pretty consistent — and they have done exactly what Trump hoped they would do. That said, the media is playing their role as well, exaggerating the extent of the riots and the damage. Trump claims that it was only the presence of the National Guard that prevented Los Angeles from “burning to the ground.” In reality, everything is business as usual in most of the city, and the incidences that have happened remain far less violent and destructive than many riots have been in the past — including the one on January 6, 2021 (you remember, the one that resulted in $30 million in property damage and severals deaths but that Trump refused to call in the National Guard for).

Despite my belief that the folks who fought back and started the American Revolution were reacting to less oppression than many are now experiencing under Trump, I am not advocating violent revolution — mostly because the underlying philosophy in the culture today would not likely lead us to any kind of good outcome, but also because we still have a semblance of free speech (though under attack, unfortunately, from both Left and Right). Part of that right to free speech, though, includes the right to peaceably assemble to protest the government’s actions. While ICE may be acting according to the existing immigration laws, those laws are irrational and unjust, and so it is absolutely right to oppose them and protest against them.

I think it’s debatable whether ICE should even exist. In a free country, people should have freedom of movement. If there is any vetting of those entering the country, it should only be to weed out criminals and those with contagious diseases — and I don’t think we need a separate (huge, powerful, and expensive government bureaucracy to do that. Obviously we do have ICE, but they should still be subject to the constraints (Constitutional and otherwise) to which other law enforcement agencies are subject. The people ICE is picking up in Los Angeles are not engaged in violent activities. Other than as a provocation, there is no reason for ICE agents to be masked and armed to the teeth like they’re about to invade Fallujah!

In a constitutional republic where the government is “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” law enforcement should be transparent. Officers should always carry clear identification, which must be presented when asked for. Although it isn’t in the Constitution (as nothing like it could have been conceived by the Founders), I think body cams should also be mandatory, so that an objective record of interactions between law enforcement and the public is always available.*

White nationalists playing dress-up and kidnapping people off the streets is not acceptable in a free country. This description may sound overly dramatic, but how would you characterize it if people jumped out of an unmarked van, grabbed you, and refused to show you their identification or let you see their faces? How would you even know if they were truly ICE agents, or imposters who, according to CNN, are now regularly showing up? In such a circumstance, I would feel morally justified in using violence to defend myself. Wouldn’t you? If not, then criminals now have free reign as long as they whisper the magic word: ICE.

But, of course, violence during a protest is a completely different matter, and I urge the many peaceful protestors in Los Angeles and elsewhere to denounce and, as much as possible, exclude the rabble rousers trying to hurt people or destroy property — and inadvertently helping Trump and MAGA to turn public opinion even more against the immigrant population.

These are scary times and we must resist Trump’s authoritarian tendencies. But we must do it within the law. Violence is not called for unless we’re ready for a full-blown revolution — and I don’t think we’re quite there yet.

*I suppose there could be exceptions for undercover officers, but I think that such officers should probably only act in an information-gathering capacity. When the time comes for actual arrests, all the usual rules should apply. I’m open to rethinking this if someone who is actually in law enforcement can explain how undercover operations work (as opposed to what we see in television and movies).