Heidi Li FeldmanI’m exasperated by any energy spent now on Biden’s cognitive health in the final years of his term. It was obvious he should not have sought a second term; should have to stuck to his promise to serve one term. Had he, the Democratic presidential nominee might or might not have won in 2024. Impossible to know. Also, irrelevant. 1/
Assuming - and it isn’t a safe assumption at all - the U.S. has a non-sham presidential election in 2028, nothing about Biden’s handling of a bid for a second term matters. Nothing about the unapproachability of Biden or his family matters. 2/
Maybe the Biden case demonstrates the problem of nominating somebody sufficiently old to be at risk of cognitive and physical decline. So we should try to avoid having nominees in their late 70s and older - for many reasons, including health issues. 3/
But, time debating how Biden could or should have been convinced not to stand for
reelection is time wasted when we have none to spare. There is a fascist in the WH, Congress is controlled by a fascist cult of personality. 4/
reelection is time wasted when we have none to spare. There is a fascist in the WH, Congress is controlled by a fascist cult of personality. 4/
Pundits, commentators, electeds, Democratic Party poobahs, and every last citizen should
be doing everything possible to impede, oppose, and focus attention on Republican Fascism, at state and federal levels. All should be figuring out how we are going to make sure we have non-sham elections in 2026 and 2028. 5/
be doing everything possible to impede, oppose, and focus attention on Republican Fascism, at state and federal levels. All should be figuring out how we are going to make sure we have non-sham elections in 2026 and 2028. 5/
Biden is the past. The present and the future are fraught with problems that have nothing to do with him. 6/6
me_valentijn@heidilifeldman
Biden's initial 2nd term candidacy and Harris' subsequent mangled candidacy speak to serious problems in the Democratic Party. As does their attitude toward materially supporting Israel's genocide of Palestinians, despite massive disapproval from voters.
Being funded by corporations has caused the Democratic Party to see actual voters as merely something to be managed and manipulated, rather than respected and ultimately obeyed. And I've seen zero indications of change regarding those attitudes, but rather accusations of racism and misogyny against democrats who opted out of voting, and more pandering to the extreme right in the name of centrism.
The Democratic Party (and our American democracy) is in dire need of improvement and reform, but is currently led by people who would personally be financially and professionally harmed by reform. They need to be replaced via election primaries, and it's highly relevant to discuss the examples which demonstrate that need.
SouprMatt@me_valentijn @heidilifeldman It seems to me you’ve missed the point of this thread a bit.
Playing the blame game with Democrats is self-defeating. Money in politics is impossible to change in the short term. What CAN be done is voting against the GOP, in every single election.
And a corollary: If one wants the Democratic Party to align more with one’s values, one must vote. Because any politician is going to listen more to those who voted than those who didn’t vote at all.
It was malicious actors who convinced people that Harris was responsible for the situation in Israel, and told them the response was to not vote. Such behavior benefitted Trump and Netanyahu. We CANNOT allow such influence campaigns to work again.
@mls14 @heidilifeldman
I'm confused. How are democrats opposed to genocide supposed to vote for democrats over republicans in a manner which sends a signal of strong rejection of supporting genocide?
The choices were literally genocide materially supported by one party or genocide materially supported by the other party. Very vocal objections were systematically ignored by the Democratic Party and are still being downplayed and vilified to this day.
Thus simply voting democrat is not enough. We need to get the right democrats into power who explicitly reject the support of genocide and will engage in systemic democratic reforms. Otherwise we keep circling back to the same situation over and over again: neither party needs to represent voters' interests as long as they feel confident enough that we'll think they're not-as-bad-as the other party.
@me_valentijn @heidilifeldman Voting Democrat is not enough, but it is necessary, even if you don’t like the Democrat of the month.
And if you believe that Harris was pro-genocide, you were affected by the targeted disinformation meant to suppress your vote. Trump is going to literally remove every single Palestinian from Gaza. Do you REALLY believe Harris would do the same? We all know the answer to that.
@mls14 @heidilifeldman
The Biden administration supplied Israel with everything it needed to bomb Gaza into oblivion. Massive amounts of civilians were being killed even prior to the election, and documents repeatedly demonstrated that American bombs kept being sent even when the Biden administration was (publicly) scolding Bibi for his weekly episode of Definitely Going Too Far This Time. Harris refused to denounce any of that or give any indication that she would deviate from the Democratic Party in supporting Israel unconditionally.
And while Trump was always going to be far worse, there were also always going to be democrats who couldn't bring themselves to vote for the not-as-bad party while it was providing that support for genocide. It's human nature, not logic, and abusing people for it is perverse and not constructive.
@me_valentijn @heidilifeldman I’m not trying to abuse you; I am telling you that ill-intentioned people used the tragedy in Gaza to trick people into staying home. I’m hoping that people read this and don’t make the same mistake again.
I highly recommend reading @benroyce because he explains the importance of voting for Democrats and engaging in the primaries with far more clarity and energy than I.
Ben Royce 🇺🇦@me_valentijn @mls14 @heidilifeldman
whiny assholes who used the genocide in gaza to not vote harris
1. condemned palestinians to worse with trump
2. don't give a shit about other important issues (trans rights, women's rights, etc)
3. if the usa ceased all military cooperation with israel (we should) israel will keep going
4. are entitled. bellyache about one issue (self-destructively on that issue!) and they think all the other trump bs won't touch them
manipulated morons, just like MAGA
punIssuerIf the other option is worse, and one is intelligent enough to see it is only one or the other, then one should aim for harm reduction
This is cold calculation, it's not exciting. The problem. Because people are emotional
But if one doesn't vote leading to worse for Palestinians, as is now occurring, then one's actions are self-destructive on one's own stated concern
The manipulation of the stupid with emotional thrall, hurting oneself: nonvoters are herded morons just like MAGA
@benroyce If you only have two options and one is straight up fascism, then I'm sorry, but that isn't a democracy anymore and you can probably stop trying to defend it as such…
okanogen VerminEnemyFromWithin@punissuer
Dumbest thing I have ever read.
Dumbest thing I have ever read.
@punissuer@universeodon.com
"I guess if I have to vote against fascism it isn't a country worth saving! Durrrr."
"I guess if I have to vote against fascism it isn't a country worth saving! Durrrr."
🌼 Dagnabbit, Pascaline! 🌼"I can choose better or worse but I choose nothing because I'm an entitled toxic idealist helping to get us fascism"
Fixed it for you
You don't care about making the world better. You care about masturbating your ego. You want perfect, now, because you're an immature idiot, and you're too stupid to see how your nonvote *helps* get us fascism
Please stop following me
@benroyce I can make these remarks from my ivory tower of being an Austrian citizen. But go ahead calling people names who got forcefully removed from peaceful protests for not voting for the people who said "order" (whatever that means) was more important than their right to express their opinion, or even their safety
unread
uninterested
i asked you stop following me
did you do it? there's a delay in the ui
that's all i care about with you and morons who "think" like you
@benroyce sorry, I didn't understand "please unfollow me" as "please stop talking to me immediately".
Bye
Bye
🖕
moron
one hopes you have enough brain cells to realize one day the part your stupidity played in bringing about our demise
Micah@benroyce
@punissuer I have heard so many people say they didn't vote for Harris because they refused to support a candidate that supported the genocide.
But, they did anyway. They supported Trump. They may not have voted for Trump, but not voting for Harris did nearly as much harm.
The worst part is that they know this. Anyone who claims otherwise is fucking lying. They are lying to us, and to themselves, and the latter makes it damned fucking hard to talk any sense into them.
RuakueqcheI don't think this is the right approach. Like, I don't think you should blame people for not voting for a genocide enthusiast. You should blame the party for keeping genocide as a political promise, instead of making an explicit promise to *stop* it.
Like, I hope this is not mean, but this position sounds like "imperialism and genocide will happen either way, so you should choose the option that maintains our local infrastructure in place"... can you really blame people for not wanting to participate in that position?
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
i'm not a politician, i'm a hothead and a loudmouth rando
i don't give a fuck about the "right approach"
my approach is: "fuck your feelings, *think*"
we should choose the path of harm reduction. and then iterate to better
that is the only way
geniuses going "i want perfect now" and then not voting helps give us fascism and worse genocide and worse imperialism
if somebody can't realize that, they are a moron, and are sabotaging their own concerns
@benroyce @minego @punissuer I agree we should do the path of harm reduction. I also agree that harris was the better candidate. But I question where the blame should be placed.
I blame democrats for not having an anti genocide stance. If the issue of the genocide was important enough that they might loose the elections over it to a fascist, they should have campaigned against the genocide.
People who abstained from voting gave up on the system. Given the choices, that some people, even an important number of people, would give up was inevitable. I can't be angry at someone who despairs so hard they give up.
But I can be angry at those who, having the power to give up on the genocide, did not care at all, and after they lost to the fascist, they decided to collaborate with him.
Absteiners are not the same as MAGA, and the Democratic leadership deserves much more hate than the people who did not vote at all.
Political leaders are the ones with power, they gave the choices. They should face criticism for the choices they gave
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
yes the democrats need better, further left, candidates
everyone with 2 brain cells realizes that
the democrats suck, everyone knows that
so how do we get better candidates?
the point:
show up in the midterms
show up in the primaries
*that* is when we get better candidates
so if some nonvoter shithead can't be bothered to do that because they're playing video games:
fuck them
they are to blame
so yes:
fuck the democrats
*and* fuck lazy moron nonvoters
PoloniousmonkY'know, it wasn't until this time around I voted for a president. Biden had to show he could get it done before I trusted the Dems. plus, the alternative was so awful.
I was generally pretty good about voting downballot. Straight dem unless there was a green or somebody who might've had a chance.
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
i really dislike this endless blameshifting away from nonvoters
they falsely believe they are taking some sort of high road when by their choice to not vote they are actively driving us to fascism
they *are* as bad as MAGA
we have to vote
always
iterate to better from various grades of terrible choices
*that is the only way*
sitting there, doing nothing but casting lazy easy judgment because magic perfect doesn't exist is not admirable
it's fucking stupid
GJ Groothedde 🇪🇺@benroyce
Fuck all that "Genocide Joe" folk. Fuck them HARD. I have zero patience for these righteous Trump enablers.
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
Fuck all that "Genocide Joe" folk. Fuck them HARD. I have zero patience for these righteous Trump enablers.
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
⁂iwein⁂@benroyce
All that said, there are way better forms of collaboration/governance than majority voting.
Let's implement them, and until then, vote for harm reduction 🙂
@iwein @ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
we can easily imagine better systems than our fucking stupid FPTP
the thing is, we won't ever get them until we vote in the people that can deliver it to us
so those who go "the system sucks" and detach are only helping to ensure we live in FPTP voting hell forever
while those working the system to better, and iterating, are the ones who will gives us a better system
and all the while they are weathering the lazy entitled assholes calling them names
MidgePhotoI deprecate them, but the people who vote for horror do not have the excuse that others should have stopped them.
oh yeah, MAGA is not exactly the same as nonvoters, agreed
my point is that MAGA is manipulated to vote out of hate
and nonvoters are manipulated to not vote out of apathy
it's two sides of the same psyop on democracy to destroy it
in *this* way, nonvoters are as bad as MAGA:
manipulated morons driving us to fascism via a two pronged divide and conquer
Like, people who stay home playing videogames because they don't care about anything are not good people, true.
But, if I remember correctly, Harris was not elected in any primary election. She was directly chosen by the elite of the Democratic party. If that's true, then apathy through disenfranchisement is even more true than what I was saying before
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
the only way out of our mess is for people to show up in the midterms and the primaries *hard*
if they do that, then credit to them
if they cannot, they are useless whiny impotent assholes as bad as MAGA
vote, you lazy fucking motherfuckers
Irene (she/they, Sir/Mr.)@benroyce
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
I would add: campaigns need candidates & managers & treasurers & canvassers &&&... if you want better representatives, you have to participate beyond voting. Voting is the entry point, the absolute barest minimum. All of us have excuses not to. For example, >1 in 4 of us have a disability. But doing even one single thing more matters & makes a difference, bc 1 > 0, and too many are helping so little but complaining & pointing fingers SO MUCH
@irenetherogue @ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
well said
and protest
and do direct action
and do local action
all the good things
but if you're someone sitting out there who thinks you do not have to also vote, you are a complete moron, and you are sabotaging all of your good work
voting is not a *replacement* for good work, it's not an either/ or
it's just something very simple you *also* do to move things in the right direction
mizblueprint@benroyce @irenetherogue @ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
There should be NO uncontested offices. Put your own name on the ballot. There is no bar to running for a local office. School board, sewer district, city council... So many positions, and all need to be filled with people willing to do the work of self governance. You do not need lots of "campaign workers". You are the campaigner, and small budget campaigns don't need a lot of paper work.
There should be NO uncontested offices. Put your own name on the ballot. There is no bar to running for a local office. School board, sewer district, city council... So many positions, and all need to be filled with people willing to do the work of self governance. You do not need lots of "campaign workers". You are the campaigner, and small budget campaigns don't need a lot of paper work.
@benroyce
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer as i said, voting is the entry point. I strongly dispute that not voting cancels out or sabotages campaign labor, it simply leaves low hanging fruit on the tree.
As an aside, i invite u look up the difference between calling out & calling in, or if youre already aware of the difference, to start employing that knowledge. For starters, maybe dont put "if u dont, youre a [slur]" on your call to action, the reasons to do it dont outweigh the reasons not to
@irenetherogue @benroyce @minego @punissuer
I like people doing this. I don't have faith efforts like these change much. But we need good and active people inside the state machine so when the external pressure from protests and strikes come crashing, there are people inside who want to yield to it
@ruakueqche @irenetherogue @minego @punissuer
if those protesters are not also voting, then the people trying to do good inside the machine lose, and the malicious assholes that replace them simply machine gun the protesters
you need to wake the fuck up
you have an extremely naive misunderstanding of the stakes and the dangers
protesting alone is *not* good enough
you *must* also vote. period
➴➴➴Æ🜔Ɲ.Ƈꭚ⍴𝔥єɼ👩🏻💻@ruakueqche @benroyce @minego @punissuer
I mean, we can be mad at both. Generally, though, if the IDF is actively compaigning for a guy, the strategy of not-voting against his is the larger support for genocide.
Black and white thinking about this stuff is 100% playing into right wing hands.
@AeonCypher @ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
as always, perfect is played as the enemy of the good
and immature morons fall for it, and don't vote
and don't even understand how they are being manipulated via their apathy, in exactly the same way MAGA is manipulated via their hate
@ruakueqche
@benroyce @punissuer Wow.
I hope this is mean, because I intend it to be. Yes, I can blame people for causing harm. Yes, genocide is happening either way, and yes that is horrific and needs to be stopped. Other harms exist as well though, and ignoring that and then claiming you are doing good is a fucking lie.
Harris was wrong to support Israel, and if she had been elected we would have continued
the fight against that.
Throwing everyone else into the line of fire while doing NOTHING to help Gaza is NOT the fucking moral high ground you think it is.
I agree that abstaining is not a moral high ground. And I agree that voting for Harris was the better choice.
My main point is that "not voting" in the US election was less a planned, calculated decision and more a... deflation, a loss of will. You give in because things keep getting worse, and you believe that the democrats are just the ratchet that stops progress before the republicans make everything worse. In the elections of my country, I voted for a hopeless candidate because all the others were the same kind of shit. Like, the same kind of neoliberal fascist. That election in the US was special, it was about starting fascism now or postponing it 4 more years. Those who did not see that did not see reality.
My argument is that apathy is not a *rational* response, but it is a *reasonable* response. And I'd rather save my anger for those who are actively doing harm and have the most power to do something else, and not those so disenfranchised that their only exercise of power is voting once every 1.5 years in various elections
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
this is the part where you realize that that apathy is actively cultivated as certainly as MAGA is cultivated
that those who are apathetic enough not to vote are being manipulated into that by appealing to their entitlement and alienation as certainly as MAGA is appealed to with fear and hate
that this appeal to human weaknesses is by design
and that therefore there is nothing admirable nor superior in not voting
just the same ignorant victimhood as MAGA
I agree with you. There is nothing superior about not voting. I don't really have hopes for voting as a general strategy for making things better. Disruptive protesting and non-state organization is, I think, more effective for change.
I think that most of the time, voting is neutral. The choices given by those inside power don't really want to change anything, and anything they change comes mostly from external pressures like strikes and the like. Unless you are voting against a fascist, in which case you should really vote against them. And support your local antifa group for the rest of the year
@ruakueqche @minego @punissuer
"Disruptive protesting and non-state organization is, I think, more effective for change."
complete and utter bullshit
if all you do is protest, and the govt gets increasingly fascist, they eventually just machine gun you while laughing
i don't understand someone who is ready to give so much effort to protesting, but can't be bothered to do this tiny effort of voting, to *at least* hold the line and not sink further
it's fucking *stupid*
@benroyce
@ruakueqche @punissuer Exactly! This active apathy is a tool being used with a great deal of success by the fascists.
And yes, I said active apathy. This is NOT a reasonable response. Not even close.
It is a response that requires actively ignoring the harm you are doing,and actively telling lies to yourself. It is a response that requires tuning out news, and discussions, and reality.
These people didn't just not show up. These people put a MASSIVE effort into not showing up.
@minego @ruakueqche @punissuer
nonvoters are bringing us fascism as much as MAGA
they aren't even of the left. because the left is about action. "morality" without action is not morality, it's ego masturbation. justifying inaction to oneself in lazy ignorant entitlement: "fuck society" is their only real ideology
that is all a nonvoter is
rhempel@minego @ruakueqche @benroyce @punissuer There have beeneother candidates that campaigned on stopping a war and once elected did nothing.
Maybe she just didn't want to lie about what she could accomplish.
dragonfrog@ruakueqche @minego @benroyce @punissuer the way I see it there's plenty of blame to go around - nobody needs to worry about not getting their share.
Harris ran a terrible campaign in general, and was terrible on Gaza genocide in particular.
People who decided to stay home because they'd rather throw the country to a full spectrum fascist than home their noses and vote for a deeply mediocre liberal (pejorative) were also doing something stupid.
I kinda liked Harris. I think her problem was that she's a 20th century Cold War politician, and we're finally moving on from that.
People who stayed home over Gaza are fucking morons. Harris wouldn't be talking about annexing and cleansing it for a janky golf resort.
DrD@dragonfrog @ruakueqche @minego @benroyce @punissuer given she had 100 days - she ran an admirable campaign. Race & misogyny (especially) were the insurmountable barriers - even still in 2024. As for Gaza - aside from a small handful of States, precisely where was that issue truly determinative?
Jestbill@Jestbill I'm sure racism and sexism played a big part. And those voters also get lots of blame.