How Fragile The Camel's Back?

Everyone is familiar with the phrase "the straw that broke the camel's back", but the colloquial consequence of reaction to such has been socially stigmatized to the point of zero tolerance for the brief flair of violence that usually results. Fair enough, score one for civilization.

How many times have we seen a cretin of the worst kind jovially taunt the grieving parents of the child he is accused of brutally murdering? And while the parents - who have remained true to the pacifistic tendencies they displayed throughout the investigation - remain stoic, how many of us watching on the evening news wanted to jump through our television screens to throttle the bastard?

Check me off in the column of the juris prudent, up to the point of that in-your-face-display. Afterward, I am solidly in league with the mentality that would leap over the courtroom banister and tear asunder such a creature.

I write this not to justify the unfortunate and violent behavior of the bereaved and enraged, but to understand the motivation that would cause the peaceable to become dangerous. After all, haven't we been systematically conditioned to coddle the criminal? "Sure", we're told, "they did a bad thing, but they must have had a reason".

So if we are to take at face value the accusations of the Democrats in the case of the racial epithets being hurled at passing Congresspeople, we must also consider the motivations of Tea Party members as a result of a taunting designed to break the camel's back. There are photographs of the House Speaker and her entourage walking through a crowd of angry but peaceful protesters of the passage of the Heath Care bill, and they are laughing in a way that can only be characterized as uncharacteristic with the significance of the event.

Combine this with the fact that - having known that the demonstrators were present - the House members could have easily made their way between chambers by way of tunnels, but chose to wade through a hostile crowd, and one can't help but wonder if they were not fishing for controversy. Or perhaps they were seeking actual photo evidence to combine with fictional dialogue. In any event, I am reminded of the acquitted strolling past the house of the mourning parent.

I can't help but wonder what may be next from this cabal on Capitol Hill, but people have developed a very high tolerance for governmental abuse in this country by virtue of steady inoculation. They still have a bad reaction, however, to having their faces rubbed in the byproduct.

A final thought: Unlike the Left, Conservatives remain committed to the peaceful redress of grievances and will condemn actual acts of violence and hate. But just as gloating over the murder of our country is perhaps more enraging than the act itself, there will be zero tolerance of false accusations levelled. As it is, Democrats face a rough time in November, and most people have better memories than given credit for.

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