Essentially, there have been two reactions over on grad today:
- I didn’t vote, neither of the candidates were going to stop the war in the Gaza Strip, therefore, there could be no good outcome for the US, therefore I can’t be held accountable
- I voted for a third party, which Republicans will have to acknowledge and respect
I know you’re all going to have to get this out of your system, so go ahead. Mock the leftists who stubbornly refused to vote for Kamala. Assign the blame for fascism taking over on those who could not see past their principles to the bigger picture (at least, as you see it). Eventually, you’re going to have to move on and acknowledge that the blame cannot fall solely on them.
I voted for Kamala Harris. I, like most of you, felt strongly that doing so was necessary to prevent a far worse outcome. In the short term. The truth is, those that you mock for failing to see what was so plain to you were looking past it to an even larger picture, and that is why they could not see the strategic necessity of their vote. Why they chose not to see it, just as many of you choose not to see something that is very plain to them, the inevitability of this outcome.
Kamala Harris began her campaign to thunderous applause from those who were hopeful that the Democratic Party was finally embracing progressive ideals, only to then abandon and insult those very same hopefuls while moving further to the right than even Biden dared go. Kamala Harris then also proceeded to approach the economically anxious right with the same limp-wristed and tired economic messaging that has consistently failed to address the concerns of the working class. She campaigned as a moderate old Republican, the very same that the Republican electorate abandoned in favor of Trump.
A large number of progressives and radical leftists saw this and surrendered. They sacrificed their hope for change and reform to preserve their principles, and embraced accelerationism where previously they resisted it. I felt what they felt but held onto hope not because I truly believed Kamala Harris would turn around, but because I feared that we were not ready. I voted for Kamala Harris because I wanted to buy just a little more time, but fascism is here now, and we’ve run out of time.
Accept responsibility, stop assigning blame, we can’t afford to. Accept responsibility not because you are at fault, but because no one else will.
embraced accelerationism where previously they resisted it
The “some of you will die but that’s a sacrifice that I’m willing to make” strategy that has no historical evidence, and in in fact a fair amount of counter evidence, that it had ever worked? That’s a bold move cotton. I sure am glad that people that I love and care about are all but certain to see untimely deaths because of it.
Accept responsibility, stop assigning blame, we can’t afford to. Accept responsibility not because you are at fault, but because no one else will.
Way ahead of you.
I made it clear that I don’t agree with their decision. I despise accelerationism as much as you do. I am trying to make the point that those who made the decision not to vote or to vote third party were driven to do so by a variety of factors that could have been avoided.
They should accept responsibility for the consequences of their decisions, but many of them are not, and it’s fair to be frustrated with that. Another who will not accept responsibility for this outcome is the Democratic party, and they will be very happy to shift blame to leftists who did not vote.
I despise accelerationism as much as you do.
<3. Sorry about that. It’s been a bit of an upsetting time.
Democratic party, and they will be very happy to shift blame to leftists who did not vote.
I mean, in this case, they are objectively correct when it comes to the statistics. The Right always wins when voters sit out elections and protest votes (and non-votes) only helped them in the current FPTP system.
The neolib captured Democratic party refusing to move left at all didn’t help but, lack of participation is what allowed it to happen in the first place. Our fellow leftists have continually decided to ignore the basic numbers and be swayed by propaganda suggesting ideological purity over concrete benefit to at-risk populations and demanding seats at the table. Maybe they’ll self-reflect and take responsibility for the consequences of their actions when they see the harms that they contributed to but, I’m not holding my breath as it hasn’t happened in my lifetime despite Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, and Rojava, not to mention the impending Project 2025.
The neolib captured Democratic party refusing to move left at all didn’t help but, lack of participation is what allowed it to happen in the first place.
Bit of a chicken or the egg situation, don’t you think? I recently watched a documentary about union coal miners in Harlan County, KY, and while watching it felt like I was watching a culture of resistance transition to a culture of defeat as a result of compounding traumas coinciding with minor improvements to material conditions that made it tempting to settle.
The left has had a culture of defeat for some time, and I believe we are now witnessing the early developmental stages of a new culture of resistance. It is young and naive, and chose too early to abandon electoralism entirely, but it will either mature or be stamped out by the fascism they thought they were ready to face. If we are to survive fascism we can’t hold grudges against one another for their errors in judgment.
Edit: Here is the documentary I mentioned, and here is a video that explains what I mean by culture of resistance.
Thanks for the optimistic words. Definitely needed.
Maybe they’ll self-reflect and take responsibility for the consequences of their actions when they see the harms that they contributed to but, I’m not holding my breath as it hasn’t happened in my lifetime despite Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, and Rojava, not to mention the impending Project 2025.
Allow me to restore your hope a little bit:
Not all of them will, and those that do might take quite a while to get there, but it happens. Those who see others express such regrets will be inoculated against making the same error.
Regarding third parties, leftists like to claim this giant reservoir of support just if Democrats listened to them, but they never show up in an election at all. Jill Stein and other leftist candidates didn’t win even a percent of the vote. Trump won an outright majority of the popular vote.
Why listen to a group that’s just a blip?
Exactly. There’s not much split vote because people listened, there’s no record low turnout from the looks of it so far, Democrats is set to lose no matter what because majority of american went out and voted for trump. Lefties always twist the fact to fit their view.
There literally is, though. Trump got nearly the same level of votes as in 2020, but Harris got over 10 million fewer votes than Biden. That’s objectively decreased turnout.
It’s not just grad and hexbear. Beehaw is doing it too.
Positive vibes only space, my ass.
Update: I never wanna hear anybody talk about how cool drag is ever again
Update: I never wanna hear anybody talk about how cool drag is ever again
I mean…drag is correct. The American fascist party has captured all three branches in entirety and announced that they will be ending democracy and committing genocide. So, I don’t see where you’re having a problem with drag’s statement, unless you’re trying to avoid self-reflection and taking responsibility for your own actions.
I like not killing people. Especially not civilians. Not killing civilians is cool.
We agree entirely there.
But, people are currently dying and will likely still be in larger numbers due to “allies” who care more about there own egos and performative leftism than other people. We’ve got a fascist party that has achieved, as of January, full control of the federal government and has stated that they’re going to do some genocide. The reasonable thing is to believe them.
That’s true. And yet, somehow, committing politically motivated murder remains pretty high on my list of things to not do.
I think that, perhaps, you’re not understanding. I didn’t read that as drag calling for politically-motivated murder. It was drag acknowledging that, if the fascists do a fraction of what they’ve promised, trans rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, among many others are over in this country for the lifetimes of everyone currently living and probably several generations more.
This wasn’t just another “4 years until the next election”. Democracy and human rights are not going to be restored in this country through political means. That shit’s over because of non-voters and everyone else that refused to take it seriously.
Trump’s reign will only be ended by violence. We aren’t getting centrists’ and moderates’ help with that. They are the enemy. They are the complicit citizens of a nation we are going to war with. Some of them will try to stop us, and we need to be prepared to kill them.
Tell me how else I am supposed to interpret this, please.
Tell me how else I am supposed to interpret this, please.
I’d recommend reading Dr. King’s letter from Birmingham Jail. Drag is coming to terms with the fact that Dr. King was right but his statement also applies to the plight of all marginalized people.
In addition, once they’re in power, fascists do not voluntarily leave while they are still alive. I’m not personally calling for violence but, non-voters have helped to remove the ballot box as a tool for any meaningful change for anyone currently living or coming generations. The courts are gone along with any hope of free and fair elections. That’s something that you need to understand. A lot of people are in complete denial of that and will remain so as the pressure ramps up.
People who remain moderates and centrists are going to be those who inform on their trans and immigrant neighbors in order to try to keep out of the line of fire and keep pretending that everything is “normal”.
This was my ex. A single issue voter about a war another country is waging. Fuck Israel but got damn letting Ukraine die because of your fuckin morals is ridiculous.
Lefties suck, they don’t have their way and don’t vote. This is why no progress happens.
I wouldn’t call people like that a leftist. Left is progress, Right is conservatism. Their choices led to less progress so they’re not lefties.
They’re simply not very smart, and they’re impatient like children.
The tide is sure as fuck going to be shifted. They got that part right.
If you want a preview about how any of these dummies that are actually in the US are going to behave, look for the reaction of the civilian Germans after World War 2. For the most part, it was, “This is awful and unfair, I can’t believe they would be so mean to us, when we didn’t even do anything.”
That reaction was tune down, due to the country being occupied. It pretty much took the Nazis having to shut up for a few decades, by threat of prison to end up with a somewhat pro democracy population.
Please do not compare Nazi Germany to the US. The Holocaust was and is very real to a lot of people and you are disrespecting those who were murdered.
You can hate the US all you want. Just don’t casually about talk Nazi Germany like it was some random historical event. Millions of people died.
