And it is only likely to get worse:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics ... story.htmlOn the eve of a presidential election fraught with tension, warning flares are bursting across American skies. From federal and local law enforcement to analysts who track radical groups, concern is high about the possibility that violence could erupt, especially if the vote count drags on for days without a clear winner.
'The signals are disturbing: A sharp increase in gun sales. A spike in chatter about civil war in online forums where right-wing extremists gather. An embrace of violent language by President Trump and other leaders. And surveys showing an increased willingness by some Americans to see violence as an acceptable tool against political opponents.On the other hand...
'Even those who take the threat seriously say there is no evidence of any coordinated plan for widespread violence, and that isolated flare-ups are a more likely scenario. Equally important: “The vast majority of Americans across political lines reject violence, no matter what,” said Rachel Brown, executive director of Over Zero, a nonprofit group that focuses on preventing identity-based violence.'Still...
'“Militia groups and other armed nonstate actors pose a serious threat to the safety and security of American voters,” said the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, a nonprofit organization that researches political violence and has tracked more than 80 extremist groups in recent months. The project’s report said Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Oregon “are at highest risk of increased militia activity in the election and post-election period.”
'Yet Americans are unusually anxious about this election — and about violence in its aftermath. A YouGov poll found 56 percent of voters saying they anticipate “an increase in violence as a result of the election.”
'Unfounded rumors spreading in right-wing circles on Facebook and throughout conservative media have fixated for weeks on the notion that civil war is nigh. The longtime radio and TV commentator Glenn Beck has plied his millions of followers with the idea that the left has an Election Day “playbook” for civil strife.'It's the uncertainty of it all that rattles most. There's just no way to know for sure what the potential might be.
And, let's face it, if it's the worst of all possible worlds, a few of the Kids here may well be right in the thick of it.