German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whom most now consider the leader of the free world, issued a statement today against the far-right racism, anti-Semitism and bigotry displayed by the white supremacist rioters in Charlottesville:
"The scenes at the right-wing extremist march were absolutely repulsive - naked racism, anti-Semitism and hate in their most evil form were on display. Such images and chants are disgusting wherever they may be and they are diametrically opposed to the political goals of the chancellor and the entire German government."The spokesman for Chancellor Merkel went on to say she stood in solidarity with the counter demonstrators.
That's how a moral leader firmly addresses what happened in Charlottesville without equivocation, dog whistles, or cowardice.
BONUS: Charles Pierce weighs in on the shameful "on many sides" statement by neo-fascist demagogue Donald "Rump" Trump:
"He wasn't a national leader. He wasn't even the counterfeit of a national leader that helped get him elected. He was an incoherent, unlettered old man with a deeply troubling allergy to the truth. For the first time since FDR was elected, we have a president unable to state simply that he opposes Nazis. This was the best chance—and the easiest chance—he ever will have to turn people around on himself and his administration, and he bungled it so badly that it is fair to speculate that the president* couldn't call Nazis for what they are because he didn't want to alienate some of his most reliable voters." (emphasis added)
