David Pakman Debunks Asmongold's Claim on Political Violence

Asmongold's False Claim

• 🎯 Streamer Asmongold, with a large audience, falsely claimed that 90% of political violence in the US is left-wing, particularly since the BLM movement.
• ⚠️ This claim was made in the wake of an assassination, and Asmongold stated he would denounce violence regardless of the perpetrator's political affiliation.

Data on Political Violence

• 📊 Studies from CSIS, Brookings Institute, and Reuters indicate that the overwhelming majority of political violence in the US originates from the far-right.
• 📈 For decades, the far-right has been responsible for the majority of political violence and deadly attacks.

Misrepresentation of Data

• 🔍 Asmongold's 90% statistic appears to stem from cherry-picking incidents, mislabeling protest-related property damage as left-wing violence, and ignoring right-wing attacks.
• 🧩 A vague definition of political violence, including minor incidents like a broken window, can be used to manipulate numbers.
• 🚫 Serious researchers use consistent definitions, which clearly show the far-right poses a greater threat and has caused more deaths.

Consequences of Misinformation

• 🗣️ Spreading false claims about the origins of political violence, especially by those with large audiences, exacerbates the problem.
• 💡 Lying about the origins of violence hinders efforts to address and end it, making the country worse regardless of who is targeted.