politics
Welcome to the discussion of US Politics!
Rules:
- Post only links to articles, Title must fairly describe link contents. If your title differs from the site’s, it should only be to add context or be more descriptive. Do not post entire articles in the body or in the comments.
Links must be to the original source, not an aggregator like Google Amp, MSN, or Yahoo.
Example:
- Articles must be relevant to politics. Links must be to quality and original content. Articles should be worth reading. Clickbait, stub articles, and rehosted or stolen content are not allowed. Check your source for Reliability and Bias here.
- Be civil, No violations of TOS. It’s OK to say the subject of an article is behaving like a (pejorative, pejorative). It’s NOT OK to say another USER is (pejorative). Strong language is fine, just not directed at other members. Engage in good-faith and with respect! This includes accusing another user of being a bot or paid actor. Trolling is uncivil and is grounds for removal and/or a community ban.
- No memes, trolling, or low-effort comments. Reposts, misinformation, off-topic, trolling, or offensive. Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.
- Vote based on comment quality, not agreement. This community aims to foster discussion; please reward people for putting effort into articulating their viewpoint, even if you disagree with it.
- No hate speech, slurs, celebrating death, advocating violence, or abusive language. This will result in a ban. Usernames containing racist, or inappropriate slurs will be banned without warning
We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.
All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.
That's all the rules!
Civic Links
• Congressional Awards Program
• Library of Congress Legislative Resources
• U.S. House of Representatives
Partnered Communities:
• News
view the rest of the comments
There are 27 days until the election closes and there are still people saying things along the lines of "wanting to maintain leverage on the Democrats by not voting". That's 27 days to tell people there wont be a democracy if they don't vote and no Democratic Party left to leverage against. Republicans want to end our democracy and jail their political opponents.
They know. At this point they either don’t care, or they’re MAGA. Either way, they’re not being converted. Best to just point an shame them as it’s about all they deserve.
Love the enthusiasm though!
We need every single vote. There's no way to know how many people are on the tipping point of changing the outcome of this election. We have to act under the assumption that there are still minds that are close to being changed. As long as there is still time to advert fascism we need to be hitting the gas pedal of our most effective strategies.
Social media is an opportunity to communicate with people on a scale unprecedented in human history. On sites like Lemmy, users can argue in writing, at length, with each other from across the planet, in theory without delay. We can talk to people over the internet. On the off chance that talking to people has any capacity to change peoples' minds whatsoever, then we should make full use of that.
Since we have social media platforms, refuting the arguments of accelerationists is the best way to take the wind out of their movement. In general, people want to act in their own self-interest. If we make the choice as clear as possible, then people will want to strategically vote for Kamala.
Yeah… you’re not tipping the tankies man. They’re hell bent on watching America fall. Though under normal circumstances, I’m all with ya, but I’d almost believe that you would have an easier time convincing MAGA to vote for a democrat before any these tankies will.
There are people from across the political spectrum on Lemmy from anarchists to fascists and tankies. And everyone in between. Accelerationism is not limited to any political ideology. Everyone is susceptible to accelerationism because accelertionism is rooted in the idea that things have to get worse in order for them to get better. The opposite is true, things get better by making them better. But anyone can be tempted by the idea that they can make things better by watching them burn.
The only way we can build a better society is by putting out the fires. We have to alert people that there is no bottom. Things can always get worse. People will double down on bad ideas if they aren't shown a better way. So as long as there is still time and we have a way to communicate this, we should do so. We may not be able to convince the tankies and the fascists between now and the election, but we can outnumber them.
I applaud your optimism. It’s just that I’ve been around a while and I’ve seen that every election year- it’s the same shit. The GOP trolls the disenfranchised to the point where the line blurs and there becomes less and less difference between far lefties and republicans when it comes to voting.
They refuse to understand that not voting supports Trump and there is NO getting through to them.
But I’d never tell you to stop trying.
Despite this, Biden won in 2020. There is every reason Kamala can do the same if enough people vote. We can spell out the difference to people no matter how much trolling there is.
In my experience on Lemmy, I have seen people reject accelerationism. People have come around to strategically voting for a Democratic Party candidate. People can change their minds.
Being apathetic is giving the Republicans exactly what they want. It is not a more accurate view of the world nor is it useful to us now on the edge of another fascist takeover attempt by Republicans.
I don't care how old you are. You're an active user who is perfectly capable of arguing effectively. We need people like you to keep trying. Refuting a central point is both more efficient and more effective. If you see an opportunity to refute accelerationist arguments, please take it.
Don’t mistake apathy for being a realist. There’s a famous old adage that’s usually in the form of an epitaph that goes:
“As you are, I once was. As I am now, so too you shall be.”
I have been around long enough to know that some people don’t want to change. And the far left idealists here on lemmy won’t be changed. I was exactly like them when I was in high-school. It’s how I know. They’re passionately ill-informed. Logic doesn’t change that.
I wasn’t going to be told shit by anyone. And the more people pushed- the more I entrenched myself in my bullshit belief. And I didn’t change until I grew up and began to look into things for myself.
You won’t get through to them. But I won’t advise you stop trying.
Anyone who is a realist is either lying to themselves or is still in bed. Idealism is what motivates us.
I used to think realism was the only way to effectively engage with reality. Now I see it as a failure to imagine. If we want to leave the status quo behind we have to be willing to spend our days chasing ideals. The way I want the world to be wont happen unless people, myself included, believe in it.
I have gotten through to people and I have seen other people do the same. Arguments can convince the people we argue with and the people who read the arguments to change their minds. Confronting people with logic and facts in the form of arguments is one of our most effective tools to change minds.
Our ages are irrelevant, but how heavily your argument is leaning on your age is starting to get silly. I'm 31. Please tell me you are older than 31.
You have the capacity to argue effectively. Please do so.
We’re going to have to agree to disagree here. Good luck man. I sincerely hope you’re not wasting your time and energy.
We've got 26 days left to advert a christo-fascist dictatorship. The consequences of failure will impact us all no matter where we live. Please use this time effectively. Please use your energy effectively in arguments.
Fascism is around the corner. This is a bizarre statement to make in the face of that.
Look man. It’s pretty clear to most people here, that the majority of “leftists” on lemmy aren’t leftists, but MAGA trolls trying to divide the vote. The rest are young idealistic people that don’t quite know how shit works just yet. And Young idealistic people are easily persuaded if you can outrage them effectively.
And that what has happened.
So… no.
You’re not going to move ground trying to convince people to vote here. The MAGA trolls aren’t going to budge, and the far-left accelerationists are salivating over watching America burn.
As I’ve said a few times- best of luck. I’m not trying to stand in your way, but convincing people on lemmy? That’s a tremendous waste of time.
Outside, in the real world?
Fuck yeah! Canvas the shit out of everthing you can. You’re spinning your wheels thinking these people are going to change their minds.
The people online are real people. They have a wide range of beliefs. And again, it's not just people of one political position who are accelerationists. Communication online is no less real than if it was had in person. It's no less effective than any other form of communication. If people can be convinced by someone talking to them in person they can be convinced by reading text on an electronic device. The medium of communication does not legitimize or delegitimize any idea. The fascists use every medium of communication at their disposal because they know this. We should do so as well.
I do live in the real world. So I refuse to call it early. I have had experiences on Lemmy that contradict your argument. I personally know your argument's position to be false. I'm happy to talk to people in person when I get the chance, but I'm going to do what I can online while there is still time. Refuting accelerationist arguments is the least I can do. It's effective and more people should do it.
Okay.
I'm not sure they want to only jail their political opponents. The unhinged magamonkeys are seething over lots of nonsense their thought leaders dream up on the daily, and many are stroking off to shooting their neighbors, co-workers, family members and all over a bunch of lies. If they won't pull the trigger themselves, they seem positively giddy about the idea of putting people on trains.
Trump wants to put homeless people in camps and Republicans want to remove civil rights protections for trans people, lgbtq+ people in general, and people of color in the work place. It's hard to pay rent or house payments without a job. They want to make as many people homeless as possible and then give them a choice between prisons and death camps. Since they will be legalizing the death penalty wherever they can the difference between the two will be negligible.
So in short yes. Between the ethnic cleansing of immigrants and deaths camps it's going to be full on fascism. People seem to think they can wait out fascism. It probably wouldn't hurt to mention that we won't be able to leverage the Democratic Party while we are digging our own mass graves.
On the bright side, there is still time to do something about it. I think throwing this link around between now and the election would be useful. It's an easier way to process 900 pages.
https://www.25and.me/?topics=