#MarALago

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho

nevermind that the vote is controlled by the states. red states might fuck around with the vote but they are already red states

so anyone going "MAGA intends to fuck with the vote, waah, therefore they already did and won, waah" are just describing their own spinelessness, not reality

unless there are enough of such spineless complacent fools. then they are practicing self-fulfilling prophecy, not voting, and handing the country to MAGA

[admin@mastodon.slightlycyberpunk.com]

@benroyce @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho That's why they're planning to start sending ICE to the polls as an intimidation tactic. Even in Minnesota they're still sending state and local cops out to protect and support ICE no matter what those thugs do...

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho

they can send ICE to block polling stations

we show up anyway

the idea MAGA exhibits menace and we just give in and give up is ridiculous

btw, i'm not saying that is your sentiment, i'm just riffing on your comment for those reading out there who are spineless (not you)

ICE at the polls:

1. meek weak americans stay home

2. we fucking shove the goons aside

which scenario is the real left?

which scenario is willing submission to fascism?

[barryallen2023@mastodon.social]

@benroyce @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho Option 2 is what me and mine are going to be doing.

[painting_squirrel@muenchen.social]

@admin @benroyce @bridgeenjoyer @aho
Then that is what they should have to do. Every single act of escalation on their part comes with the chance of turning people from "this seems bad but I'm not gonna risk my neck because of it" to "this is completely unacceptable and I'm gonna do something about it".

[admin@mastodon.slightlycyberpunk.com]

@benroyce @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho Sure, but that's easy for this privileged middle class white guy to say. If ICE is deployed to the polls, people who don't look white enough *will* be hauled off and jailed for weeks or months without charge (possibly even disappeared entirely) -- just like they're already doing to folks on the streets. I hope that won't scare off too many folks but it's hard for me to sit here and tell people with families to worry about to just ignore that risk.

[aho@mastodon.social]

@painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @benroyce one misconception some people have is the if they register to vote, then they will also added to the jury duty list, but in many states it seems to be enough to get a driving license to be added to the possible jury duty list.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho

i'd be careful with that statement. you're saying nonwhite folks have no fight in them. of course the stakes are higher for oppressed groups, but time and time again we see the oppressed have more backbone and fight in them than the middle class whites who are fine with fascism

it's not that the white middle class douchebag is ok with a fight. it's more like the white middle class douchebag won't show up and won't fight and won't vote

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@aho @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer

jury duty is a civic obligation. if someone is put off because they don't want to do jury duty this is a further definition of an entitled loser who is fine with fascism

[aho@mastodon.social]

@benroyce @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer I'm not a believer of jury or bonds, replace the jury with "junior" judges and they know the laws better than someone from the street and why let someone pay to get out of jail (for a while at least), either the court think there is no ground to hold the person or the person should held, not something in between.

but that is a completely different topic...

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@aho @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer

you can bribe a judge. and over a lifetime the judge will start making decisions on an agenda rather than the individual merits of an individual case

so, it's not possible for me to disagree with you more, and quite heavily. i think this is a terrible statement you're making. it has to be juries

[mikelovesbikes@hear-me.social]

@benroyce @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho I don't think being afraid of people who can disappear you makes you meek and weak.

Also, I really don't think it's a good idea to try to push heavily armed trigger-happy goons around. They'll just kill you.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@mikelovesbikes @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho

they're going to kill us anyway

do you want to go out on your terms or their terms?

if all of us depend on someone else to show up and fix things, no one is going to fix anything. just looking at each other and expecting them to act

it depends on us

and we're either going to act now, with the potential for death, or we're going to act later, with a greater potential for death

those are our only choices

and we have to choose

[macacator@mastodon.social]

@benroyce @mikelovesbikes @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho just act now with little acts of disobedience, easy stuff. For example, taking pictures of unmasked ice agents for identification for trial later.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@macacator @mikelovesbikes @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho

but there won't ever be a trial later if we don't vote

we have to #vote

any rationale for not voting is simply self-subjugation to #fascism out of entitlement ("it doesn't affect me") or mindless cynicism and learned helplessness: personal weakness

[regguy@mstdn.social]

@benroyce The chance that any Democrat will vote for a left-leaning legislation than any GOP member. Therefore, voting for a Democrat, even if they aren't left-leaning, creates a more left-leaning legislature.

Voting in primaries is how you pick your candidate, once at the general, vote Democratic, regardless of issues you may have with that candidate. We can resolve those over time at the next election.

Vote, vote, vote, vote!

#Vote #Democratic #VoteBlue

[macacator@mastodon.social]

@benroyce @mikelovesbikes @admin @painting_squirrel @bridgeenjoyer @aho oh absolutely go vote, but why waste the opportunity to document these people while they're unmasked?

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@RegGuy

i'm trying to think of a sentiment that would disagree with you

and i see only the fucking #toxicidealism losers who are fine with rising #fascism: they only make excuses to do nothing

or the right wing trolls cosplaying left to work a helplessness #psyop on idiots who call themselves left, but aren't really

because their primary concern is their high holy sense of self-regard: to sit things out and judge from an ivory tower

while their world goes to hell

they don't care

#vote

[cascheranno@hachyderm.io]

@benroyce @RegGuy all (hand waves) *THIS*, but I also stare at this concept like a fucking mate-in-five chess puzzle. I would LOVE to find a way to fuck with a corporate Dem incumbent without hurting progressive ideals and goals.

[cascheranno@hachyderm.io]

@benroyce @RegGuy my best answer so far is something union-ish to counter the sense-of-community glue churches give. GOTV like unions and churches do.