I fear that there is a looming civil war on the horizon. It is not yet inevitable, but all true American patriots must be prepared for the coming battle. And the costs in blood will be heavy. This war will not be fought like the American Revolution or the Civil War of 1861-65, where disciplined armies observed the laws of war and respected civilian lives.
This war will be waged by far-left radicals and their deep-state puppet masters. For them, civilian casualties and massacres will not be moral evils, but merely part and parcel of their larger plan to “reconstruct” America. Their objective is simple: overthrow our constitutional order, destroy our way of life, and deprive us of our freedom, our liberties, our property, and our honor.
I have spent many years in countries that have suffered civil war and its horrors, such as Russia (including Chechnya), Syria, Lebanon, Croatia, Bosnia, and Kosovo. I have also carefully studied the history of revolutions and civil conflict. And until recently I would never have believed a second civil war in America to be possible. But the warning signs are all there, and they began appearing most visibly when Donald Trump became the Republican nominee for president. He is the first American politician that strikes fear into the hearts of both the deep state and the radical left. And that fear makes them extremely dangerous.
The Bolshevik October Revolution of 1917 was carried out by a mere few thousand party members in St. Petersburg. And it was sudden and unexpected, the Bolshevik Central Committee made the decision to launch a coup d’etat only hours before its execution. In fact, as late as July 1917 Lenin himself did not expect a communist revolution in his lifetime. The Russian Civil War that followed is a horrifying story of savage carnage and obscene violence.
In similar fashion, I believe one likely spark for the Second American Civil War will be the result of a coup d’etat carried out by anti-America extremists. It will catch most Americans by surprise. The coup plotters will act quickly to seize the critical levers of power, before any opposition has a chance to react. And they will be aided and abetted by the kinds of people Lenin referred to, contemptuously, as useful idiots.
The shock troops will come from the ranks of Antifa and radical anti-white elements of the Black Lives Matter movement. These fascist stormtroopers will be augmented by the even larger numbers of veterans of Occupy and other far-left movements. And jihadists from across the globe will flock to support this coup. But the real power will be behind the scenes, in the hands of the bureaucrats of the American deep state, who will see such a far-left coup as their best chance to preserve and expand their far-reaching powers, but which President Trump threatens.
Much of the mainstream media will initially be warmly supportive. A few so-called conservatives at The New York Times may meekly protest that while the ends of the revolution are laudable, perhaps the means are a bit too messy. But most of the liberal media will fall into lockstep, in the belief that as long as they are supportive, the coup leaders will allow them to stay in business. Many Americans will believe their pro-coup propaganda and quietly submit, or at least refrain from overt resistance.
The faculties at Harvard, Yale, and Princeton will pass resolutions of fervent support, and their brainwashed students will rush to enlist in the revolution before all the excitement passes. Likewise, left-leaning foundations and oligarchs will promise financial support. And the Federal Reserve will flood the economy with debased currency.
Not all Democrat politicians will turn traitor, but there will be some prominent establishment “statesmen” who will betray our country. They will naively believe that they will be able to control the revolution and turn it to their own purposes. When their fig leaf of respectability is no longer required, they will get the fate they deserve. But their role will be critical, to give coup leaders the guise of “continuity of government” while they seize the critical levers of power.
America’s external enemies will not sit by idly. The new revolutionary government will offer generous terms in return for “foreign assistance” (meaning secret police), and troops if necessary. Expect a Treaty of San Antonio whereby Mexico “recovers her historic territories” of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and southern California. Russia will expect a return of Alaska (and its oil) to the Motherland. China and the European Union will demand we surrender our economic sovereignty and become vassals of Beijing and Brussels. And, of course, the United Nations will offer to send in the “blue helmets” to “restore civil order.” North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran will all also want in on the spoils in return for “technical support.”
And what will be the agenda of this regime? The first priority is obvious: the confiscation of all privately owned guns. An armed citizenry ready and prepared to defend its rights would be an intolerable threat to the regime. The next logical step would be identifying any and all possible sources of opposition and interning them and their families in “re-education” camps. The third priority will be a radical redistribution of property. It would destroy the American free-enterprise economy, but short-term it would guarantee the loyal support of all those hoping for a share of the spoils.
I do not wish to be alarmist. But what I describe here is a plausible scenario. And have no doubt, our nation’s enemies are resolute and determined. The continued existence of our great country, the United States of America, will depend on the bravery, strength, resourcefulness, and patriotism of her most loyal citizens. We must stand prepared for all possible threats.
May God bless and protect America.
Mark Nuckols teaches law and business in Moscow. He has a JD from Georgetown and an MBA from Dartmouth. He has lived in Eastern Europe for most of the last 20 years, including Russia, Ukraine, Slovenia, and Georgia. You can follow him @MarkLNuckols