tim f

even back to my first "antiracism/antioppression" trainings 25 yrs ago, and in so many other microcosms i've seen since, there's a cycle when people get radicalized by disillusionment about their own power; for many, guilt dominates the early going. distancing, projection, reactive social sanctions.

and so what's described here is absolutely i think credible and even foreseeable: a posture that understands what the world is really defined by, but isn't going through some shit about it, and therefore can actually think tactically and sensitively about what there is that can truly be done.

even back to my first "antiracism/antioppression" trainings 25 yrs ago, and in so many other microcosms i've seen since, there's a cycle when people get radicalized by disillusionment about their own power; for many, guilt dominates the early going. distancing, projection, reactive social sanctions.

This can't be underscored strongly enough. Winning elections isn't about moving your platform to the middle. It's about making your platform the most magnetic, most attractive, most effective, most inspiring, most courageous, most truthful, most relatable one around.

This thing where people negatively polarize in favor of the word “tankie” is not clever or good. Tankies are in fact a real thing, they are a reactionary tendency, and they have no place in a pro-democracy movement. No, this doesn’t make me a liberal or a fascist. I am a libertarian socialist.

“Tankies” means that you would respond to a popular uprising — impetuous democracy — with suppressive state violence. That is directly contrary to any technical or mechanical definition of democracy. It is also incredibly self-destructive to revolutionary movements as history has consistently shown.

This thing where people negatively polarize in favor of the word “tankie” is not clever or good. Tankies are in fact a real thing, they are a reactionary tendency, and they have no place in a pro-democracy movement. No, this doesn’t make me a liberal or a fascist. I am a libertarian socialist.

a thing that will not be happening is a return to the idea that "conservative" is about preserving the status quo holistically and on principle. everyone now understands it was only concerned with defending the few specific parts of the status quo that it enthusiastically torched the rest to defend

This is the most coherent version of the story I think. You knew it had to be Elon’s idea because Trump would never think of a speed limit cap or know it could be a thing, but if Trump didn’t know about it ahead of time he and his henchmen wouldn’t have spent all week pretending it didn’t happen.

Republicans have had two strategies for winning the midterms: - cheating - Islamophobia They’re both gonna fail, and that’s awesome. But it’s also great for Dems that Rs never even tried governing competently, having any kind of party narrative, trading favors to peel off support, solving problems

Who needs all that? Just cook the books however you can and demonize whoever seems like they might have a hard time explaining themselves. How could it fail?

I just tried to call my Senator, who is Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, to demand that he start standing up against the scourge of Islamophobia -- this motherfucker doesn't even have a voicemail box. Are you kidding me?

I had to listen to the message twice because it didn't make any sense to me -- I thought I'd missed something. The message says to call back when the Senate is in session, or fill out a web form. I cannot fucking wait to help relieve this fool of his job.

It’s at the point where taking anything that seems aimed at confounding the left at face value makes you a rube. There’s plots from every vector, on every medium, online and in real life. Our opps are ops. And they’re being paid with the billions liberals have allowed Musk, Thiel, etc to accrue.

yeah imo this has been fundamental to his ability to absorb scandals; most people fundamentally just think he's the apprentice guy. the impression trump's previous aggrandizement + that show left on the american psyche is so much deeper and wider than all but the biggest news cycles can approach.