There can be no comparison.
Billionaire venture capitalist and
all-around horrible person Tom Perkins thinks that "a rising tide of hatred of the successful one percent" could be leading us to a new liberal Kristallnacht. The
Wall Street Journal's editorial board thinks that Nazi comparison was "unfortunate, albeit provocative," but that that aside, Perkins was
not wrong; in fact "the vituperation is making our friend's point about liberal intolerance—maybe better than he did":
While claiming to be outraged at the Nazi reference, the critics seem more incensed that Mr. Perkins dared to question the politics of economic class warfare.
The Nazi reference was specifically used to question the politics of economic class warfare, guys. He said there were "parallels." Saying that criticism and calls for higher tax rates is parallel to the mass killing, synagogue burning, and concentration camp internment of Kristallnacht is an actual substantive point of his letter, not some distraction from Perkins's actual point. The editors continue:
Maybe the critics are afraid that Mr. Perkins is onto something about the left's political method. Consider the recent record of liberals in power. They're the ones obsessed with the Koch brothers and other billionaires contributing to conservative causes, siccing journalists to trash them and federal agencies to shut them down.
Yes, I'm sure the Koch brothers are whimpering in fear and sorrow over critical magazine profiles ... as they roll around in piles of cash, Scrooge McDuck-style, and dispatch far-right political operatives around the country to run dirty campaigns.
The liberals aren't encouraging violence, but they are promoting personal vilification and the abuse of government power to punish political opponents.
Please. The left
wishes it knew 10 percent as much about personal vilification and the abuse of government power as the Koch brothers and Karl Rove have forgotten. Truth is, the simple act of observing that inequality is staggeringly high and is endangering our economy, or that a few billionaires exert enormous power over our political process is simply too much for these crybaby defenders of plutocracy.