E. Swanson🗽

Views are official current positions of America’s Founders. Individual rights & liberties are recognized, not granted. Personal autonomy = peace = prosperity.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

Offense can be offered, and offense can be taken. That one takes offense does not mean that offense was offered; taking offense when none was offered is a moral fault. That offense was offered does not mean that one must take offense; turning the other cheek is a virtue.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@japan_nobunaga It’s not a competition! The only people I judge are the ones who refuse to share their recipes. 😂

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

Edit: Arguably the largest individual financier of the American Revolution was Robert Morris - the two worked together.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

Today is the 85th anniversary of the 1941 Farhud in Baghdad, Iraq, a pogrom against Jews that occurred seven years before Israel’s existence as a nation-state. The pogrom occurred despite the 2500+-year continuous history of Jews living in Baghdad.

Men, women, and children were hunted in the streets, murdered, assaulted, tortured, and robbed, simply because they were Jews. Homes and businesses were looted, entire neighborhoods were terrorized. Up to 780 Jews were murdered, with hundreds buried in a mass grave. Many Jews emigrated to the land of Israel as a result, due to both religious ties and the desire to seek safety in numbers.

The Farhud is a reminder that Jew-hatred was not contained to Europe, nor did Jew-hatred in the Arab world begin with Israel. It’s also a reminder that Jews will continue to emigrate to where they feel welcome: where they are confident they will not be subjected to violence by their own neighbors.

Meanwhile, there is rising violence against Jewish Americans in our country; Jewish Americans are subjected to more religious violence than any other American religious group, by a factor of ten. That is completely unacceptable. Being truly “America First” means caring about the safety and wellbeing of all American citizens.

Far too many Americans are instead stoking the flames, calling American Jews and their allies pedophiles, “Epstein class,” and other libels and epithets, and claiming violence against American Jews is somehow justified or understandable, in light of Israeli conflict.

As America approaches its 250th anniversary, I sincerely hope Jewish Americans - and all religious minorities - continue to feel both welcome and safe in America.

Notably, the largest individual financier of the American Revolution was Jewish immigrant Haym Salomon. He was twice arrested by the British for spying, but escaped his death sentence, fleeing to Philadelphia. Salomon died penniless at 45, before the U.S. government could repay the debt.

Our country likely would not exist without the assistance of a Jewish financier.

🇺🇸 ✡️ 🇺🇸

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

On this day in 2017, an Islamist terrorist bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan killed 150 and injured more than 500.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

I have often avoided discussing Islamist terrorism because (a) I don’t want anyone to discriminate against non-Islamist Muslims, and (b) the statistical likelihood of being killed in an Islamist terrorist attack is fairly low.

After thinking about it more, however, I have decided to spend more time explicitly speaking out against it, and honoring its victims.

Intentionally targeting civilians in their schools, businesses, homes, and places of worship, without any militant target, is a unique evil. There is no justification for it. It is not resistance, and it is not God’s will.

The fact that some governments fund and support that terrorism, even in this day and age, is also uniquely evil.

I am concerned at polls and surveys showing more Americans over time equivocating on the above moral statements than in the past.

I abhor the initiation of violence, and government-sponsored Islamist terrorism is an extremely clear-cut example of that.

No more.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

On this day in 2017, Taliban-affiliated Islamist terrorists committed a truck bombing during Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing 92 and injuring 491.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

I have often avoided discussing Islamist terrorism because (a) I don’t want anyone to discriminate against non-Islamist Muslims, and (b) the statistical likelihood of being killed in an Islamist terrorist attack is fairly low.

After thinking about it more, however, I have decided to spend more time explicitly speaking out against it, and honoring its victims.

Intentionally targeting civilians in their schools, businesses, homes, and places of worship, without any militant target, is a unique evil. There is no justification for it. It is not resistance, and it is not God’s will.

The fact that some governments fund and support that terrorism, even in this day and age, is also uniquely evil.

I am concerned at polls and surveys showing more Americans over time equivocating on the above moral statements than in the past.

I abhor the initiation of violence, and government-sponsored Islamist terrorism is an extremely clear-cut example of that.

No more.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@PolitiBunny @CynicalPublius @jeanne_cleve I’d vote for Johnson over Massie any day.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

It was, in fact, Rand Paul’s son. Rand Paul has thus far chosen to simply not address this.

https://t.co/NSkSMiPDvm

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

It is not unreasonable to believe Massie veered into antisemitic territory.

(1) Massie took cozy campaign pics with Ryan Matta, an open Hitler fan and social media personality who is buddy-buddy with Buckley Carlson. In the pics, Matta was wearing an “American Reich” sweatshirt. Massie didn’t respond to ensuing public outcry. That’s not “just being against foreign spending.”

(2) Massie proposed a bill clarifying when an American citizen is actually a foreign agent. He choose to name that bill “AIPAC.” That’s not “just being against Americans acting as foreign agents.”

Massie, and many others in the liberty movement, currently have a huge problem with AIPAC. On what liberty principles? Do we really want laws against American citizens lobbying “on behalf of a foreign country”? Who gets to determine what qualifies? Who gets to enforce it?

American citizens get to believe what they want, that’s a core First Amendment principle. Different Americans have different beliefs about what America’s relationship should be with various countries around the world. Current First Amendment law is that Americans can donate to political organizations they trust to advocate for their political beliefs.

Massie’s arguments against AIPAC have never seemed very liberty-minded, and he consistently conflated American citizens who support Israel (a First Amendment right) with Israel itself.

(3) Massie said everybody in Congress, aside from him, has an AIPAC babysitter managing their votes. The level to which he believes AIPAC and American Jews control American politics is unwarranted and conspiracy theory level.

(4) He blames Israel for America’s political decisions, and Americans’ political stances, to an unwarranted degree.

(5) Massie posted a meme contrasting American patriotism with Zionism - as if Americans can’t be both patriots and pro-Israel.

(6) Massie has repeatedly implied or directly stated that pro-Israel Americans prioritize Israel over America.

(7) Massie’s Dual Loyalty Disclosure Act accused Americans who hold dual citizenship of having divided loyalty to America, and of being secretive about their dual citizenship, to the point that a law was required to prevent it in the context of running for public office. There was no existing issue of people running for public office while hiding their dual citizenship.

Accusing Jews of dual loyalty is an old antisemitic trope, to the point where the phrase “dual loyalty” rings that bell. It was pretty clear Massie was referring specifically to Israeli-American citizens. Few dual citizens hold office, and few of those number are Israeli-Americans.

(8) The comments on Massie’s social media were regularly an antisemitic mess. (“Hitler was right” level stuff.) If that happened to me, I would have addressed it somehow. I would have said something like, “Hey, there’s a lot of antisemitism in response to my comments about Israel, and I want to say I’m not okay with that - I don’t want to be affiliated with antisemites.”

(9) Finally, Massie did interviews with Candace Owens, Tucker Carlson, and Cenk Uygur. If I were running for office and facing charges of being an antisemite, I would not have made that choice. I wouldn’t want voters associating me with those personalities.

Overall, some Americans are diehard pro-Israel, some Americans are diehard pro-Palestinian. Neither group is magically “less American,” less patriotic, or a “foreign agent,” and Massie should not have stated otherwise. Especially when his electoral success relied on getting the votes of many in the former camp!

Meanwhile, American Jews, and Jews all across the western world, are victims of skyrocketing numbers of physical attacks and terrorism. Antisemitism is increasing by every measure.

In that context, politicians and public personalities have a special responsibility not to feed into that. It’s more important than ever that we speak in terms of universals: human rights, liberties, and principals that apply to EVERYONE, without exception. We cannot communicate those values and inspire others to share them unless our beliefs and arguments are consistently grounded in them.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@jbreeves I don’t think he voted against tax cuts. Massie voted as a constitutional conservative for a very long time, and I liked a lot of what I saw. But I didn’t like the turn he took since 10/7.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

On this day in 2017, there was an ISIS-inspired Islamist attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, UK, resulting in 22 dead, 1,017 injured (mostly young victims).

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

I have often avoided discussing Islamist terrorism because (a) I don’t want anyone to discriminate against non-Islamist Muslims, and (b) the statistical likelihood of being killed in an Islamist terrorist attack is fairly low.

After thinking about it more, however, I have decided to spend more time explicitly speaking out against it, and honoring its victims.

Intentionally targeting civilians in their schools, businesses, homes, and places of worship, without any militant target, is a unique evil. There is no justification for it. It is not resistance, and it is not God’s will.

The fact that some governments fund and support that terrorism, even in this day and age, is also uniquely evil.

I am concerned at polls and surveys showing more Americans over time equivocating on the above moral statements than in the past.

I abhor the initiation of violence, and government-sponsored Islamist terrorism is an extremely clear-cut example of that.

No more.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

I couldn’t support Massie’s campaign, but hopefully I get some credit for not posting about this until *after* the primaries! 😂

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@sappholives83 I can’t even fathom the pain and fury his parents must feel.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@sciencegirl Dose-response graphs plot a nearly linear relationship: eating just 50g of processed meat daily increases colorectal cancer risk by roughly 16-20%.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

The U.S., just like every other country, is self-interested. Huge numbers of American politicians are not acting on behalf of a foreign country. To contend otherwise is both unwarranted and conspiratorial.

If Country A is accused of controlling democratic Country B’s politics, contrary to Country B’s interests, and despite Country B being much larger and more wealthy, clear and extraordinary evidence would be required as proof.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@glukianoff I remember hearing about this case and thinking (hoping!) that there was more involved than it seemed. An actual threat, that was not being publicized. Truly scary.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

@DailyEmpireNews @Inevitablewest Quote by American author Taylor Caldwell in her 1965 historical novel A Pillar of Iron, a fictionalized biography of Cicero.

[E. Swanson🗽 @Swanson4Liberty]

This should be national news, but the “D” by Galindo’s name is protecting her.

[Michael Karlis @MichaelKarlis]

TX-35 Democratic candidate Maureen Galindo says she will convert ICE detention center in Karnes County into an internment camp for "American Zionists."

"It will also be a castration processing center for pedophiles, which will probably be most of the Zionists," she added.