this post was submitted on 14 Jan 2025
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Lefty Memes

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An international (English speaking) socialist Lemmy community free of the "ML" influence of instances like lemmy.ml and lemmygrad. This is a place for undogmatic shitposting and memes from a progressive, anti-capitalist and truly anti-imperialist perspective, regardless of specific ideology.

Serious posts, news, and discussion go in c/Socialism.

If you are new to socialism, you can ask questions and find resources over on c/Socialism101.

Please don't forget to help keep this community clean by reporting rule violations, updooting good contributions and downdooting those of low-quality!

Rules

Version without spoilers

0. Only post socialist memes


That refers to funny image macros and means that generally videos and screenshots are not allowed. Exceptions include explicitly humorous and short videos, as well as (social media) screenshots depicting a funny situation, joke, or joke picture relating to socialist movements, theory, societal issues, or political opponents. Examples would be the classic case of humorous Tumblr or Twitter posts/threads. (and no, agitprop text does not count as a meme)


1. Socialist Unity in the form of mutual respect and good faith interactions is enforced here


Try to keep an open mind, other schools of thought may offer points of view and analyses you haven't considered yet. Also: This is not a place for the Idealism vs. Materialism or rather Anarchism vs. Marxism debate(s), for that please visit c/AnarchismVsMarxism.


2. Anti-Imperialism means recognizing capitalist states like Russia and China as such


That means condemning (their) imperialism, even if it is of the "anti-USA" flavor.


3. No liberalism, (right-wing) revisionism or reactionaries.


That includes so called: Social Democracy, Democratic Socialism, Dengism, Market Socialism, Patriotic Socialism, National Bolshevism, Anarcho-Capitalism etc. . Anti-Socialist people and content have no place here, as well as the variety of "Marxist"-"Leninists" seen on lemmygrad and more specifically GenZedong (actual ML's are welcome as long as they agree to the rules and don't just copy paste/larp about stuff from a hundred years ago).


4. No Bigotry.


The only dangerous minority is the rich.


5. Don't demonize previous and current socialist experiments or (leading) individuals.


We must constructively learn from their mistakes, while acknowledging their achievements and recognizing when they have strayed away from socialist principles.

(if you are reading the rules to apply for modding this community, mention "Mantic Minotaur" when answering question 2)


6. Don't idolize/glorify previous and current socialist experiments or (leading) individuals.


Notable achievements in all spheres of society were made by various socialist/people's/democratic republics around the world. Mistakes, however, were made as well: bureaucratic castes of parasitic elites - as well as reactionary cults of personality - were established, many things were mismanaged and prejudice and bigotry sometimes replaced internationalism and progressiveness.



  1. Absolutely no posts or comments meant to relativize(/apologize for), advocate, promote or defend:

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 3 days ago

You dont have safe words in real hierarchies, which means femdom is not a hierarchy.

[–] [email protected] 41 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Idk too much about theory but what about accepting those with more knowledge in specific fields? Isn’t that a voluntary hierarchy

[–] [email protected] 33 points 3 days ago (1 children)

You can aknowledge someone's ability without creating a power differential.

[–] Gold_E_Lox 6 points 3 days ago

I guess heirachy isnt "real", like its entriely within our socialogical minds. So i feel like its entriely up to each individual's ego to decide wether they can give that power (the power of knowledge and information and 'truth') over to another.

i guess i agree with you, you can acknowledge anothers technical ability, but it might be bruising.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

Does it follow that I reject all authority? Far from me such a thought. In the matter of boots, I refer to the authority of the bootmaker; concerning houses, canals, or railroads, I consult that of the architect or engineer. For such or such special knowledge I apply to such or such a savant. But I allow neither the bootmaker nor the architect nor the savant to impose his authority upon me. I listen to them freely and with all the respect merited by their intelligence, their character, their knowledge, reserving always my incontestable right of criticism censure. I do not content myself with consulting authority in any special branch; I consult several; I compare their opinions, and choose that which seems to me the soundest. But I recognize no infallible authority, even in special questions; consequently, whatever respect I may have for the honesty and the sincerity of such or such an individual, I have no absolute faith in any person. Such a faith would be fatal to my reason, to my liberty, and even to the success of my undertakings; it would immediately transform me into a stupid slave, an instrument of the will and interests of others.

— Mikhail Bakunin, God and the state, Chapter 2


Expertise merely refers to one’s knowledge or skill in a particular field, but my understanding of CPR or ability to bake shortbread cookies does not make me an authority over you. Other than the conflation of force and authority, this is one of the most common confusions people have about anarchism, made worse by the fact that there are some anarchists who still use authority to refer to both command and expertise just because Bakunin did. Personally, I find that creates needless confusion. If you’re using the word authority to describe everything from slavery to knowing how to build a bridge, then why use the word at all? Just use the word expertise when you’re talking about expertise. Listening to medical advice isn’t a hierarchy. Having expertise doesn’t give me the right to command you unless I hold a position in a hierarchical power structure that grants me that authority. As Bakunin himself said:

...we ask nothing better than to see men endowed with great knowledge, great experience, great minds, and, above all, great hearts, exert over us a natural and legitimate influence, freely accepted and never imposed in the name of any official authority whatsoever, celestial or terrestrial.

— Andrewism, How Anarchy Works » Dissecting Authority (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrTzjaXskUU)

I highly recommend reading in full that section from Andrewism. It's no more than 5 minutes to read.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 days ago

Genuinely excellent points, all! Looks like I have some reading to do 😁

[–] davidgro 19 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Also you know literal volunteering, like for a charity.

I volunteer at a non-profit on weekends, and that places me in a position of extremely little power, way below the board of directors and the executive director and I'm choosing to be there.

I really just don't get the original statement, not sure what it's trying to say.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Yea but the charity has to be nice to you since they depend on volunteers. At any point you could just leave. I'd say this is an about equal relationship in terms of power

[–] davidgro 1 points 3 days ago

That is true but I feel it's still uneven. Assuming I want to be there, if I mess up they can just not invite me back.
Those who set the rules (what 'messing up' even is) are still in a position of power over me in that sense - I can't get them fired (those positions are paid) the same way they can just dismiss me.
I am of course perfectly fine with this, and am not seeking to move up in the hierarchy. (But it is possible to do so.)

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

in a healthy kink relationship, the submissive is the one in control: what they say goes; the dom merely makes suggestions in a manner that seems to outsiders as if the sub doesn’t have the control (and indeed the headspace of both participants leans toward that too). if the sub says no, it does not happen

this isn’t a hierarchy; this is a complex relationship that can’t be defined as narrowly

[–] shneancy 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

but it's not hot when you describe it in the way that it is :( /j

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 days ago

idk it made it more hot for me! when you know the dynamic you can fuck with it and then things get REAL fun

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 days ago

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)