cacheson
joined 3 months ago
The electoral system is so focused on the specific immediate task at hand, the election these people were hired to win (and working people to the bone doing it), that there’s never any room to step back and build something long-term. No one is planning for the Democratic party five or ten years from now (at least, not in a way that affects local organizing) because that’s ten or twenty times as long as the average staffer is expected to last. The feeling seems to be that every minute spent planning for something further out than the next election is a minute not spent working on winning the next election.
So, when I get on my anarchist high horse now and talk about how we need to spend our time, energy, and money on something other than electoral politics, it’s not the voting part that upsets me. It’s all this bullshit. Every election, we have to burn out all our most promising organizers in six months because there was no infrastructure for them to build on, and they have to make it all from scratch every time. It’s like we’re working extra hard to pay off our last payday loan, then taking out a new payday loan at the end, ensuring we’ll have to do the same thing over again next time.
I feel like this part bears emphasizing, given the arguments over it that I've seen recently. I'm aggressively neutral on the question of whether or not anarchists should vote. The hour or less per year that an individual anarchist may spend on voting just doesn't matter. Almost all the waste of electoralism is in the time, energy, and money spent on campaigning, and having nothing to show for it afterwards if your candidate loses.
On the other side, if a fellow anarchist doesn't want to vote, fighting with them about it isn't worth the social cohesion cost. Even if you see value in voting as a rearguard action, we're not a big enough bloc for their non-voting to really matter.
Oof ouch owie my skin
Huh, didn't know that this was a thing. Sounds a little more permanent than I would want, though. I don't want to stop being a mascboy (mascman?) entirely. Variety is nice though.
The problem is that I am very, very lazy.
I'm serious, though. For this whole platform to work, admins and moderators need to be able to discuss their issues in a mature fashion. Ava acted reasonably here, but you remained belligerent and got the community removed from her instance. It didn't have to go down this way.
It might be wise to step away from the computer for a bit. You didn't handle this exchange well.
NOOOOOOOOOOO!
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It wasn't me. I'm still hairy. q_q
Some anime meme communities:
And that's true, but I think it's important to note that Trump is a symptom, not the disease itself. The disease is his base, and the corruption of their belief in democracy. I hope I'm wrong, but I feel like we'll see this level of politics for a while more.
It goes both ways, really. You're right in that Trump couldn't have gotten elected without the existence of that reactionary base. That's always existed in American politics, though its strength has varied over time. However, his presence in politics energizes them, and inspires them to organize and spread their propaganda, while also serving as a powerful propaganda mouthpiece himself.
You're also right that Trump's exit from politics won't calm things down right away. Hopefully his movement won't find a new Fuhrer figure, though that's always a possibility.
I'd been trying to promote gun ownership and training among left leaning folks since early 2016. Took various friends and Facebook randoms to the range and taught them to shoot. Have had motivation issues with that project for a while though.
Cheapest option is an assault 12 gauge.
I don't think I've come across any "assault shotguns", but maybe you're referring to the "tactical" variants? They'll typically come in black rather than wooden or camo pattern, have shorter barrels, and hold more ammo when compared with hunting shotguns.
It's important to note that shotguns aren't super beginner friendly, though they're probably the most financially accessible option for home defense. One piece of advice I would give is to look up what "cheek weld" is when using a shotgun (in additional to general safety and usage info). We're also pretty late in the game here for those that are worried about election-related violence, since developing marksmanship skills takes time. Better late than never though, just try to get at least one range trip in so that you can familiarize yourself with the basics.
Not looking to turn this into a guns thread, since that wouldn't be very useful for the OP. If anyone has any questions on the subject, you could make a post in one of these communities, and I (and probably others) can give advice:
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26-year-old Rhyker Earl killed by Indiana Sheriffs during medical call, please share as this story has not reached any major outlets yet
(piefed.social)
From r/acab:
FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE
September 16, 2024
On September 8, 2024, 26-year-old Rhyker Earl experienced a medical emergency around 8:30 PM. He underwent a severe seizure at home in Demotte, Indiana. His grandmother called 911 for emergency assistance. EMTs from Keener Township Emergency Medical Services and officers from the Jasper County Sheriff's Office responded. While they were on scene, Rhyker was in a postictal state, trying to recover from his seizure. He was confused and agitated, typical symptoms for someone who had just suffered a severe seizure. As Rhyker was trying to put on shorts to go to the hospital for medical attention, he lost his balance and fell into an officer. At that time officers became aggressive, yelling, "you don't treat law enforcement that way." Officers took Rhyker to the ground and handcuffed him face down on the floor. Multiple officers then remained on top of Rhyker while EMTs administered three separate doses of sedatives. Some of the EMTs on scene had responded earlier in the day to a different location when Rhyker had another, less severe seizure. They knew he was undergoing a medical emergency, and they also knew he had asthma. Officers stayed on top of Rhyker for more than 15 minutes, with his face in a pillow. During this time, Rhyker begged for his life and screamed that he couldn't breathe. His pleas, and those of his aunt and grandmother, were ignored. After more than 15 minutes, Rhyker went limp. His aunt noticed that Rhyker was blue in the face and pleaded with EMTs to do something. After an agonizing few minutes, they finally took Rhyker's pulse and realized he was not breathing. Rhyker was taken to the hospital, but it was too late. After tests confirmed Rhyker had no brain activity, life support measures were terminated on September 10th.
National civil rights attorney Ben Crump, along with Indiana attorney Stephen Wagner, have been retained by Rhyker's family to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death. At this early stage there are still many unanswered questions. Why was Rhyker treated like a criminal, not a patient? Why did officers ignore the obvious risks of prone restraint? Why did they ignore his pleas that he could not breathe? The family's attorneys intend to fully investigate this matter and hold all those responsible for Rhyker's needless death accountable.
During this difficult time, Rhyker's family would like to thank all those who have expressed their condolences on the tragic loss of a young father who was loved by many, especially those who attended the candlelight vigil for Rhyker last evening.
Until their investigation is complete, the family and their attorneys will have no further comment.
Stephen M. Wagner WAGNER REESE, LLP 11939 North Meridian Street Carmel, IN 46032 Email: SWagner@WagnerReese.com Mobile: (317) 431-6966
One of the Attorneys for the Family of Rhyker Brian Earl
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Reminds me of the Alt Right Playbook episode "You Go High, We Go Low".
Those of you feeling disillusioned with democracy and its tendency to vote itself into autocracy might want to look into anarchism. I'm fond of mutualism in particular.