So, what’s up with all this “Proud Boys” stuff ???

So let’s be a little provocative here:  Who is Gavin McInnes  ---  Is he a timely hero ?  ---  OR  ---  Is he a menace to society ???  ---  OR  ---  Is he just a latter day Justin Brannan,  before he cleaned up his act ?????

According to several reports,  there was a flap recently at a Manhattan GOP club that many saw as an indicator that we are slipping into a pre-revolutionary stage of things, sort of akin to the time when the Weimar government was breaking up in Germany.

This from the NY Times:   “….  A brawl outside a Republican club in Manhattan involving a far-right group and anti-fascist activists spurred calls over the weekend for an investigation into the violence and whether the police handled it properly. Some Democratic politicians, including Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, also criticized the club for inviting the founder of the far-right group, the Proud Boys….   Mr. Cuomo said he has asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation to look into the violence that accompanied Friday’s appearance at the Metropolitan Republican Club by Gavin McInnes, a right-wing provocateur. He also assigned a State Police hate crimes unit to assist with the New York Police Department’s investigation of the fighting, which he linked to President Trump….  But state Republican Party leaders accused Democrats of trying to exploit the violence for political gain….”  (See “Proud Boys Fight at G.O.P. Club Spurs Calls for Inquiry; Cuomo Blames Trump” by  Ashley Southall & Tyler Pager,  10-14-18,  NY Times/ New York    [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/14/nyregion/proud-boys-nyc-antifa-fight.html]).

THE INCIDENT ITSELF
An earlier report in the Times said this:   “The Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan was vandalized early Friday, the police said [Photo caption]….   Three people were charged with assault in connection with a fight on Friday near the Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan after the appearance of a right-wing provocateur, the police said….    Doors had been defaced with anarchist symbols and windows had been broken at the club hours before an appearance there by the provocateur, Gavin McInnes, who was banned by Twitter for violating its policy on 'violent extremist groups'…   A note left with the vandalism suggested that the damage to the building on the Upper East Side was related to the appearance by Mr. McInnes, the founder of the Proud Boys. The Southern Poverty Law Center has characterized it as a hate group that has engaged in several battles with the left….   'The Metropolitan Republican Club chose to invite a hipster-fascist clown to dance for them, content to revel in their treachery against humanity,'  the note said….   (See  “Fight Breaks Out Near Republican Club After Visit by Gavin McInnes, Police Say”  by  Shane Goldmacher,  10/12/18,  NY Times/ New York    [www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/nyregion/gavin-mcinnes-republican-club-vandalized.html?module=Uisil]).

The Times’ report continued with this:   “….  In publicizing the event, the Republican group’s Facebook Page called Mr. McInnes a 'Godfather of the Hipster Movement.' It also highlighted that he had been 'banned from Twitter' and has 'taken on and exposed the Deep State Socialists and stood up for Western Values.'…   The event drew the attention of a group that calls itself the Metropolitan Anarchist Coordinating Council, which urged the Metropolitan Republican Club to cancel it….”  

CLEARLY THE EVENT WAS NOT CANCELLED

Timesman Shane Goldmacher went on to say that  ---  “….   The Police Department said it assigned its Strategic Response Group to a protest at the club, which is the home to both the statewide New York Republican Party and the Manhattan Republican Party. There were no incidents reported there, the police said….   [However, t]he police said three men were arrested after officers leaving the protest saw an assault taking place at 8:40 p.m. at the corner of Third Avenue and East 84th Street, not far from the club….   Finbarr Slonim, 20, of Manhattan and Kai Russo, 20, of Brooklyn were each charged with robbery and assault. Caleb Perkins, 35, of Manhattan was charged with robbery, assault and resisting arrest, the police said.

OTHER REPORTS 
A notable alternative source on these events can be found in the “Gothamist” (See “Videos Allegedly Show Proud Boys Beating Protesters After Gavin McInnes Event At Manhattan GOP Club” by Jake Offenhartz,  10/13/18,  Gothamist Website    [https://beta.gothamist.com/2018/10/13/proud_boys_beating_video.php]).  According to this report,     “….  A mob of pro-Trump right wing extremists appear to have beaten a small group of protesters in the streets of Manhattan on Friday night, following an appearance at the Metropolitan Republican Club  by Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes….” 

OTHER OPINIONS
Since the incident(s),  many have spoken out about these goings on,  one way or another…..

For example, there were several tweets about it on the Fight Back Bay Ridge (FBBR)  Twitter site  (See  [https://twitter.com/FightBackBR], for example this R-T of a Ben Smith item on Buzzfeed [https://twitter.com/BuzzFeedBen/status/1051646068188950528]).  And Andrea Catsimatidis mentioned these matters during an interview on Fox News,  saying that she thought the Democratic leadership’s use of inflammatory language might have led to these attacks by “fueling these radicals” (See  “Calls for civility in political discourse in wake of street clashes”  interview with Andrea Catsimatidis, 10/14/18,  Fox News  [https://twitter.com/foxnews/status/1051517585483882496]).

As for the questions raised in my sub-headline  ---  You didn’t really expect me to go THERE,  did you…..