I will preface this by saying I understand that I am more radical, revolutionary, and extreme of a leftist than most. Despite that, I still ask that you actually engage with this as I’m asking in good faith.
When is enough enough? We have elected a fascist into the highest office and handed the keys to him and his friends. Is now not the time to actually get organized, involved, and armed? In my opinion, the time for peaceful, democratic means of avoiding fascism was before the election. But we have failed to do so, and as such there will soon be a tyrant in power. Are we going to wait until troops are rolling down the street to stage any form of resistance, because by then it’s far too late. Now I want to be clear that I am not advocating for random acts of violence or an insurrection like January 6th. But is this not a point of radicalization? Is this not where we start organizing within our communities and getting involved in mutual aid and resistance? How much more do we need before people are actually ready to stand, fight, and maybe even die to avoid continuing down the path that we are on? Fascism is not on the horizon, it is here. Are we really to do nothing about it as a society except lay down and accept our fate? Because that doesn’t jive with me. That makes absolutely no sense to me.
I’m not an American, but I can’t help but notice something:
A clear majority elected Trump. Over 71 million Americans went out of their way to vote for him, saying “I am proud to be a Nazi.”
If you are going to fight (either figuratively or physically), then understand that a majority of the USA supports a fascist state.
71 million in a country of 262 million adults. 27% voted for fascism. 74 million voted for trump in 2020. This wasn’t a shit towards fascism, but the opposition party utterly failing to win voters.
The country has never been majority rule. Every modern election has split the country in thirds, about a third votes one way, a third votes the other and a third choses not to vote.
Over 70% of voting aged americans did not vote for trump.
We should give people tax breaks if they vote.
And over 70% of eligible voters didn’t vote against Trump.
Unless you make voting mandatory, that will always be the case. Regardless, the split amongst non-voters is statistically likely to be the same as the people who actually voted. Consider the election to be an information poll, with a sample size of ~65% of the entire eligible population.
So with updated numbers, Trump got 72.5M out of ~240M eligible voters, so yeah you could say that 70% of the population didn’t vote for him. But then to be clear, you should also look at Harris’s 68M votes, and say that 72% of the population didn’t vote for her.
The people who mark and deposit their ballots are the only measure we have of the nation’s opinion, and in that contest a majority of the votes went to Trump.
This is meaningless though.
You said “a clear majority voted for Trump”. In fact: a majority of Americans didn’t vote for a fascist. That is a good thing.
Neither did a majority of Americans vote for a milquetoast centrist, but I don’t expect anyone to take a great deal of comfort or pain in that fact.
If literally everyone is forced to vote things actually lean more left. The way you force people to vote though can affected different socioeconomic groups differently so can have a wide range of effects.
You solution to people not voting is not to appeal more to those people but to force them ? lol
That would not move anything to the left. Democrats would feel free to go as right as they want knowing that the are the only big party that is not the Republicans.
I can already see it, they would spend sooooo much money to make any actual left party unable to compete, then they would shift as much to the right as possible, and then loose.
Wait, did Trump win with 27% of votes!? How do you still use this system?
No, he got >50% of all votes that were cast. The voting system wasn’t the problem this time, the voters were.
If the voters are the problem every time, the problem probably isn’t the voters, it’s probably the system. The US always has bad turnout.
A turnout between 60 and 70% is actually pretty standard for a Western democracy without mandatory voting.
The voting system wasn’t the issue, here. The people around you are.
No, that’s a misleading number.
27% of the entire eligible population voted for him. Less than that voted for Harris. About 45% of eligible voters didn’t bother.
So Trump got more than 50% of the popular vote, as well as the majority of seats. First past the poll is a terrible system, but it’s not the system that’s at fault here, it’s the voters.
HE won the fucking Popular vote!?!?!
no, “didn’t vote” won the popular vote.
Likely, although all votes are not counted yet. All while getting fewer votes than previously, so he was very beatable. It seems people were just not excited to vote for Harris.
Coincidentally, a woman has never been elected POTUS, and she shifted right to embrace “former Republicans” while shrugging off progressives. Total coincidence.
I’m starting to think that America just really doesn’t give a shit about politics if one of their choices is a woman.
This isn’t even a system issue (FPTP, electoral college).
What you’re remarking on is the need for mandatory voting and a federal holiday on voting day
Tradition dear boy
It’s disappeared ballots and a bought electoral college.
Not twenty million of them.
I understand that wholeheartedly. But I personally refuse to be one of those people that sit back while everything deteriorates. When Hitler was elected a majority did nothing, but many chose resistance. I refuse to be the majority who live as cowards under fascism, so if that means I die resisting then so be it.
I don’t think you actually did get my point.
The fascists are the majority. The majority will do nothing because they chose this, and you - the people fighting fascism - are in the minority.
I’m not saying I disagree with you, but it is important to understand that your revolution is actually going against the will of the American people.
You’re right, but resistance is more than just revolution and even if everyone else is ok with living in 1984, I’m not. I know plenty of people who aren’t and I have a feeling the majority of the people where I live aren’t either (especially based on the voting data). Resistance to tyranny and injustice itself is just, and it can take many forms. Ideally yes there would be a revolution to remove the fascists from power and build something better, but that’s mostly lip service. I won’t lie, i was very frustrated when I wrote the post but in cooling down I am remembering that the resistance will have to start small and will have to grow. You’re welcome to see some of my other comments for what I’m talking about that isn’t revolution.
I personally wish I could just leave, but most countries won’t accept a useless factory worker like myself… I’m quickly realizing this isn’t my country. This is a country of Nazis.
These are the people that hear complaints that the entire yard is covered in rakes, but until they step on one and have it smack them in the face then it isn’t a problem. I’m sick of living with selfish Nazis.
Hitler never even got close to a majority in any election. That’s the scary part about this: Trump didn’t even have to seize power, the population just handed it to him.