Last week a moderator on University of Oregon's subreddit was banned for pinning a message endorsing violence against conservatives on campus.
American "conservatives" are against healthcare, clean energy, labor laws, minimum wage, public education, child healthcare, science, women's right to vote, equal rights for black people, rock music, dungeons and dragons, ... Whatever it is the Republicans are against it. Their entire mode of operation is to throw a wrench in things and then feign aloofness. Some of us are done pretending they are anything than what they've shown themselves to be.
A lot of blood was spilled to create a civil liberal society with basic things like equality under the law, public education, clean water, 40-hour work weeks, and on and on. And a lot of blood will need to be spilled to keep it.
Moreover, while it is undeniably true that significant social and political progress has required great effort and, in some cases, profound sacrifice, it does not follow that we must now treat all dissenting views as immediate dangers warranting violent reprisal. If anything, the most effective way to preserve the foundations of liberal civil society, such as robust public education, fair labor laws, and equitable treatment for all, is to engage in an open, if sometimes messy, democratic process, rather than to endorse sweeping forms of retribution.
When we equate every policy disagreement with an existential threat, we risk undermining the very civil discourse we claim to protect. Therefore, invoking the Paradox of Tolerance to rationalize violence is far removed from Popper’s original intention and, taken to its extreme, contradicts the core values of a tolerant and inclusive society.