VICTOR JOECKS: The barbarians are at the LA riots

Violence is the foundation of civilization. Ignoring this truth has made the West vulnerable to manipulation by left-wing activists.

The scenes from the ongoing anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles are harrowing. Criminals burned cars and threw scooters and large blocks off an overpass at police vehicles. Officials charged one man with hurling a Molotov cocktail toward a police officer. Looters pillaged downtown businesses, including a Foot Locker and an Apple Store.

Rioters even shut down Highway 101.

“We had individuals out there shooting commercial-grade fireworks at our officers — fireworks that can kill you,” Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said. He continued, “We are overwhelmed as far as the number of people engaging in this type of activity and the types of things that they’re doing.”

In a defining image of the chaos, a masked man on a dirt bike waved the Mexican flag in front of a line of police cars as smoke billowed in the sky.

People who illegally enter a country and then rampage through a city waving a foreign flag are invaders. At most points in history, that fact would have been obvious and universally agreed upon. It wouldn’t have been controversial for the government to respond with force.

Think about why that is. One reason is that invaders destroy, loot and pillage. Governments were “instituted among Men” to secure people’s “unalienable” and God-given rights. They include “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Rioters violate those rights. It’s why fighting off hostile foreigners is a core function of the federal government.

Another reason is that invaders threaten the country itself. A country isn’t just a collection of atomized individuals who occasionally bump into each other when their economic interests align. It’s a homeland. It’s a nation. It helps shape and define individuals, even as the families within its borders shape and define it.

We have only this country, this homeland, this nation, because we are better at committing violence than our enemies. But there’s a major downside to violence. It often requires men and women to sacrifice their lives for victory. It endangers civilians where the fighting takes place. It’s economically destructive.

And so for generations, America has built up her military might. Service members and veterans sacrificed so that others could be free from even the fear of foreign violence.

But as the threat of violence has faded from public concern, so has the public’s understanding of its necessity.

Leftist groups exploit this by engaging in violent acts and then hoping to provoke a disproportionately violent response from law enforcement. They use the public’s aversion to violence as a way to prevent the police or military from stopping their violence.

Even though they can make some squeamish, violent acts done to protect our country and civilization are noble. The alternative is to tolerate violent acts by those who wish to destroy our country and civilization.

Victor Joecks’ column appears in the Opinion section each Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Listen to him discuss his columns each Monday at noon with Kevin Wall on AM 670 KMZQ Right Talk. Contact him at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on X.