Edit: better not to suggest anything specific & give free education on tactics, but I think there's a germ of something here.

[sarae@ecoevo.social]

@msbellows @angiebaby @artemis these are not people who want that

[purrperl@noc.social]

@artemis @sayonaraminasan

I don't know enough history and sociology to answer this, so please help me answer this — what happened in Germany, in 1945? What is the historical precedent for treating pawns and foot soldiers of fascism? At least, it'll give us a first approximation about what works and what doesn't.

Were all German soldiers rounded up and imprisoned and then tried at Nuremberg? Did some casually move back into civilian life? What did civilians think of them? Did they reintegrate?

[sayonaraminasan@urusai.social]

@purrperl why look at precedent? There are still neo Nazis in Germany today, so whatever was done at the end of that war wasn’t sufficient in stopping the rise of wannabe gestapo there today. So I propose we go even further than what was done in Germany 1945. Given American history of pardoning war criminals and covering the crimes of others - my position is that the administration of justice this time around needs to be ruthless and complete. None of this reintegration nonsense. Their plan is to deport us all and or kill us all, you don’t reintroduce that back into society. Too extreme?

@artemis

[artemis@dice.camp]

@petealexharris
The pay is not actually very good & the "signing bonus" was a trap because they would have to pay back IN FULL money they already spent (including the money they never received because of taxes removed). So they are stuck in an awful job that they can't leave.

So they are abused everyday by their own bosses & coworkers, then go out into public to get screamed at by everyone else, & on top of everything else, they are barely able to get any sleep at night.

[artemis@dice.camp]

@petealexharris
We aren't going to turn ALL that away onto other targets, but the anger & resentment are already there, & their anger & resentment literally run their lives & determine all their choices.

[artemis@dice.camp]

@petealexharris
By all reports, these are insanely abusive work environments. Because of the type of organization it is, receiving abuse from within is just part of the job. Because these people are dicks, they don't actually do well at playing nice with each other whatsoever. Horrible people don't just get angry with nice people. They get angry with everyone they feel has harmed them in some way.

[angiebaby@mas.to]

@artemis It will have to be someone else's job. I have a relative who is an ICE agent and knows I'm trans, and I tried talking with him because I used to have such a good relationship with him before he went down the alt-right rabbit hole. He essentially accused me of calling him a terrorist (I didn't) and told me to "watch my step."

[woozle@toot.cat]

@artemis Maybe part of the goal can be just reminding them of who is betraying them (promising one set of things, delivering a very different set) -- towards the goal of directing their anger in more beneficial directions.

[angiebaby@mas.to]

@msbellows @artemis

That I can see - but I am still going nowhere near anyone who is involved in ICE. Not even family.

Instead, I will tell cops how disappointing it must be to see ICE make a mockery of them and ruining community involvement for them.

[artemis@dice.camp]

I'm also not talking about collaborating or partnering with anyone in ICE.

I'm thinking more of a propaganda campaign than anything (or a psyop). We don't need them to be our friends. They wouldn't be good friends. They wouldn't even make good strategic allies.

These people have been weaponized against us in a million ways. The fash have done *really* effective propagandizing, exploiting their resentment. Have we learned anything from them about how to exploit their resentment?

[artemis@dice.camp]

The horrible social conditioning that led us here as a society has largely been laid bare at this point. Bots, bots, & more bots. Fake people spewing outrage. People's unthinking resentments & fears harnessed to accomplish their purposes.

It was so goddamn effective for such a long time. But we're learning how it's done, right? They hacked these people's minds, proving that it isn't actually all that fucking hard to do.

[artemis@dice.camp]

I am not the person to ask about strategy for this, but we do have people with the right specialized knowledge, people who have spent a lot of time analyzing the tactics used who could probably extrapolate a thing or two. A lot of those people are probably going to be found here on Fedi.

[angiebaby@mas.to]

@artemis

I do respect your bravery.

[kmck@mas.to]

@artemis Good idea and I think maybe the Epstein affair is the way in to their heads

[humanadverb@dice.camp]

@artemis I think this is a really good track to go down. Like you said, not to turn them into allies, but just to undermine the enemy.

Like how they don't want to be made fun of, I didn't think they want to be pittied either.

"Look at these sad sack lonely guys, who after everything don't even get their signing bonuses. You know they're not going to get any help when it turns out the shit they're spraying around causes cancer, either. They're not scary, really, just kinda sad and gross."

[artemis@dice.camp]

@petealexharris
It can be both!

In fact, I think that second thing actually can help with the first. They should HATE everything about this experience. They should be frightened of what could happen to them, both now & in the future. We don't let up on them. We don't go "oh we're your friends." Oh no, it is essential to let them know that we see exactly what they are doing, & that we won't forget it. They should be vulnerable, afraid, & isolated.

[gardengeek@mstdn.social]

@artemis

I appreciate what you're saying. These agents are people (horribly racist, violent, misogynistic, xenophobic assholes), but still people.

Maybe a message like: You can QUIT ANYTIME! JOIN US!

Like that video of Goldie Hawn's son last year, yelling at officers in LA. He expressed righteous anger, yet also spoke to them like humans. With a message like: "Are you proud of what you're doing??" I'll try to find the video.

I think a JUST QUIT! and JOIN US! message could work.

[gardengeek@mstdn.social]

@artemis

ahh, apparently it wasn't Wyatt Russell. But regardless, this man made some truly excellent points!!

Sorry, That's Not Wyatt Russell in the Viral L.A. Protest Video

A man went viral with a TikTok in which he told off National Guard troops deployed to L.A. amid anti-ICE protests, but it wasn't actor Wyatt Russell.

Rolling Stone (www.rollingstone.com)

[gardengeek@mstdn.social]

@artemis

here he is.

https://youtu.be/8STFRSygtOA

it's hard to believe this was just 8 mos ago. I think he was yelling at National Guard (not ICE/CBP). Today he would probably be choke-holded, zip tied, and dragged into detention. or worse.

[artemis@dice.camp]

I don't know exactly how good or effective it would be to pursue this specific angle, but I do know that we too need to employ propaganda & social engineering to exploit the weaknesses of our enemies. They don't hesitate to do it to literally *everyone*.

Some important battles are won & lost entirely inside people's minds. So we're going to have to get in their heads.