ik that Biden isn’t re-running, but Kamala is basically the same from the macro pov

  • Samvega
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    23 days ago

    No. They decide that they prioritise the other issues over a vapid gesture of protest.

    Yes, saying that killing innocents is wrong is ‘vapid’.

    Yet, when you - very rightly - raise the horrors of Trump, the very real and dangerous potential of him harming innocent people is terrible.

    Are you contradicting yourself?

    • luciferofastora@lemmy.zip
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      23 days ago

      Yes, saying that killing innocents is wrong is ‘vapid’.

      No. Refusing to vote or voting third party is. At best, it will make no difference.

      Protesting against the Genocide is right and important, but I’m railing against the people intent on dragging this topic to the public right before an election. The only people it will affect are left-leaning voters, and drawing them away from the non-Trump option sabotages that option.

      Save the protest until the election is done, then hold the government (not just Harris; allocation of funding is a parliamentary decision and the President’s veto can’t do much but delay it and lock up government) accountable.

      To be clear, Genocide is bad, what’s happening in Gaza is Genocide, the US regime is complicit and all of this is fucked up. But the immediate priority should be unity to keep things from escalating beyond democratic control.

      • Samvega
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        23 days ago

        No. Refusing to vote or voting third party is. At best, it will make no difference.

        Will anything make a difference to Israel being allowed to continue state terrorism and war against civilians? I’m concerned the answer might be ‘no’, as the political will to do this hasn’t been high.

        but I’m railing against the people intent on dragging this topic to the public right before an election.

        The killing of innocents is not less important just because of political convenience.

        But the immediate priority should be unity to keep things from escalating beyond democratic control.

        It is not the fault of a particular individual voter that they are given two options, both of which are right-wing, and both of which are complicit in killing the innocent. This might even be a situation which is not fixable at the ballot box, considering how Trump has a history of starting armed insurrections against democratic norms.

        • luciferofastora@lemmy.zip
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          23 days ago

          Will anything make a difference to Israel being allowed to continue state terrorism and war against civilians?

          Only one way to find out: Trying. But mathematically, drawing votes away from the non-Trump candidate increases the risk of another Trump presidency, and that carries the risk of further curtailing options.

          The killing of innocents is not less important just because of political convenience.

          …and which innocents do you actually have a chance to protect?

          On a pragmatic level, what is your suggested course of action?

          • Samvega
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            23 days ago

            On a pragmatic level, what is your suggested course of action?

            I am not pragmatic about the chances of humans when it comes to not oppressing each other. They seem to do it in order to profit from the power imbalance.

            I’m just saying I don’t like it, and waiting to die.

            • luciferofastora@lemmy.zip
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              23 days ago

              Yeah, well, some of us aren’t willing to give up just yet. Some of us are willing to reach for that slim chance that there is a way out. Some of us are trying to make things better, but like all political activism that has to follow some strategic approach.

              I didn’t hear many people complain about “both sides endorse genocide” until this election. Up to the primaries, pressuring your party to be anti-genocide is good and reasonable, and after the election is done, when the new government is being formed, pressuring it to be anti-genocide is critical, but right now, the strategic thing is to focus on things this election can change.

              That sudden upsurge of “both sides” rhetoric particularly in leftist spaces is concerning. Whether out of ignorance of how funding works, defeatism like yours or genuinely bad actors seeking to manipulate the election, it sabotages that pragmatic effort to keep the fascist out of office and buy time for more direct measures like protests, petitions, whatever else you want.

              “Both sides bad” may be true, but right now, it’s not helpful for leftist efforts.