***Official Political Discussion Thread***

[Belgium]

Yeah this dude should probaby be institutionalised.
Stripped from any context, this Mike Johnson line could’ve easily come from patient in an state of psychosis.

Mike Johnson thought the cameras were off. They weren’t.​

The man second in line to the presidency shared the details in a speech at a Christian nationalist gala Tuesday.

 

[gry60]

Yeah this dude should probaby be institutionalised.
Stripped from any context, this Mike Johnson line could’ve easily come from patient in an state of psychosis.

Mike Johnson thought the cameras were off. They weren’t.​

The man second in line to the presidency shared the details in a speech at a Christian nationalist gala Tuesday.

In that "Red Sea moment", the people with all the power and might were the Egyptians...

Considering that the US is still the strongest military in the world, I'm not sure it's wise to make that particular promise...

 

[TooOlfForThisIsh]

Yeah this dude should probaby be institutionalised.
Stripped from any context, this Mike Johnson line could’ve easily come from patient in an state of psychosis.

As someone with many Christian relatives, many of them evangelicals, this kind of speech is not remotely uncommon

 

[IATT]

 

[dragicon]

Gas is down to $2.11 right now in Colorado

 

[mplsdunk]

It’s not even poor people. It’s everyone here.

Idc, we live in the land of 10,000 taxes so at least the kids can eat.

 

[aepps20]

Republicans really are scum’s. It takes a special kind of deplorable that wants to see kids starve.

 

[mplsdunk]

Our state has a big surplus. It’s only right they spend it instead of hoarding it.

They need to build about 40 more homeless shelters and get that clown mayor out of Minneapolis while they’re at it.

 

[IATT]

Republicans really are scum’s. It takes a special kind of deplorable that wants to see kids starve.

 

[IATT]

These maga Republicans are slowly dividing and killing the republican party. It's great to witness.

 

[IATT]

 

[MakeNTGreatAgain]

Quality journalism showing again that terrorist state continues to lie

 

[ballinsam23]

 

[letsgetit22]

Shame. But hey, that's what they voted for. So...

 

[DLF]

Jeffrey Epstein/Maxwell really about to have US going into WW3

 

[DLF]

 

[RustyShackleford]

That is such an asinine tweet

Like people know how to post hot takes online, but don't know how to use Google to get informed.

 

[rexanglorum]

osh kosh bosh

Again, BJG is not an exemplar of left media. In the same way that Brian Williams isn’t exactly the most trustworthy or electrifying liberal journalist out there.

There’s downsides to a youthful, often crowdsourced and decentralized news and opinion. Fact checking isn’t as good and I’m sure some reliable democratic voters have got sucked into the nihilistic morass of Jimmy Dore and BJG.

But on balance, the online left media space helps Democrats to win elections. It helps in a few ways.

1.) It rejects the idea that America is exceptional, so it cuts off jingoistic appeals that Republicans make.

2.) it gets young people engaged when they’d often times not be engaged. Engagement is a prerequisite to voting.

3.) it connects people to other types of people whom the viewer might not otherwise see. And it’s usually not like the MSM’s micro doses of poverty porn “oh look how bad these migrant workers/people on reservations/black people in Flint live…any way, here’s an ad from BMW.”. It’s more like people from marginalized communities are able to speak for themselves, present their own stories, assert their own humanity, and form lasting connections with people outside their community.

4.) even if you’re a young person whose first exposure to politics is BJG, there’s a good chance that you’ll get tired of her talking about “Force the Vote” in 2023. You’ll check out other podcasts and follow other lefty personalities on twitch or elsewhere. You’ll eventually fine left podcasts that talk about why the GOP needs to lose every election. The next logical step is pretty obvious to most who hear that message. Not only that, there’s popular socialist podcasters, streamers, and short video content creators who explicitly recommend voting for Democrats. Plus, you’ll probably find yourself either joining or being exposed to the DSA. Say what you will about the DSA but most chapters are pretty emphatic in voting for Democrats in races where a Republican has a chance of winning.

5.) while left media points out the flaws in the Democratic Party, they also highlight the humanity and worth of marginalized groups that the GOP wants to murder, namely trans and non binary people. Left media is very, very pro trans and other gender minority. That issue alone overcomes a lot of young leftists’ objections about the Democratic Party.

In left online spaces, if you don’t stand up for Gazans or trans people, then your purported anti racism, anti sexism, even your anti capitalism/oligarchy stances are not seen as genuine or worthwhile (Bernie Sander’s social media is getting killed in the comments any time he posts).

Dems failed the Gaza test but they are passing the trans test. Young voters tend to have zero patience for politicians who want to regulate their bodies and sexuality and since the vast majority of such politicians are GOP, the negative polarization makes leftists into one of the highest margin voting blocs for the Democratic Party. Only black voters, as a bloc, delivery bigger margins. Big college towns are becoming tie breakers in otherwise 50/50 purple States. And this cohort is going to only move further left and more of their peers are going to vote in the coming years.

6.) Lastly, left online media tends to emphasize direct action and activism as the tools for positive change. When you see voting as just one of many political acts that you can do, the lesser evil argument is a lot more compelling and causes far less resentment.


The Democratic Coalition is vast and diverse. Moreover, there is less and less of a monoculture and shared reality. Unsurprisingly, there’s going to be certain forms of media that appeal to older, more affluent, Democrats. Meanwhile that same media that’s for “boomers” like CNN or MSNBC is alienating as hell for a 20 year old whose entire life has been defined by crisis after crisis usually caused in whole or in part by elite failures. They live in a totally different reality, their material reality is going to cause alienation. The only question is what form will it take? It’s not always pretty but online left media keeps a lot of alienated young people from falling for reactionary politics or apathy.

 

[IATT]

wrong thread

 

[osh kosh bosh]

osh kosh bosh

Again, BJG is not an exemplar of left media. In the same way that Brian Williams isn’t exactly the most trustworthy or electrifying liberal journalist out there.

you keep saying this but I named, the young turks one of the biggest youtube channels, Hassan Piker, the biggest twitch streamer, A tiktok influencer with 1.7 million followes.

so it goes way beyond just Briana Joy Gray. It seems like a lot of the most popular leftist influencers are toxic grifeter adjacent people who teach young people to hate the democratic party.

1.) It rejects the idea that America is exceptional, so it cuts off jingoistic appeals that Republicans make.

I have no idea why you assume this is positive. I could easily spin this as a negative.

The most successful American progressive movements have been fundamentally optimistic at their core. The Civil Rights Movement, The abolitionist movement, Obama hope and change.

optimistic progressive messages that believe in the greatest of America, and ask america to live up to those ideals seem to be successful.

I can see doomerist "America bad" takes leads need nihilism and demobilization if anything.

and it alienates Democratic from rural, and non college educated voters they need to win the senate. See the collapse of rural Dems, the the weakening of support on non college educated black and brown men.

not i don't know for sure which narrative is true, but I think you must concede you are making a massive assumption.

2.) it gets young people engaged when they’d often times not be engaged. Engagement is a prerequisite to voting.

again maybe, maybe not, I think it depends on the issue, do you think the people who have been imbibing, genocide joe memes, or Twitch streamer hyper anti-dem propaganda are going to be engaged and ready to turn out for Dems.

and what are they engaged in, actual positive political action or factional infighting online?

3.) it connects people to other types of people whom the viewer might not otherwise see. And it’s usually not like the MSM’s micro doses of poverty porn “oh look how bad these migrant workers/people on reservations/black people in Flint live…any way, here’s an ad from BMW.”. It’s more like people from marginalized communities are able to speak for themselves, present their own stories, assert their own humanity, and form lasting connections with people outside their community.

sure connects young educated people to other young educated people. sure they are different races but I think it's also a double edged sword. as people start to delude themselves into thinking that your black socialist buddy you went to college with represents the opinion of the median black voter.
which can lead to defund the police type disasters.

5.) while left media points out the flaws in the Democratic Party, they also highlight the humanity and worth of marginalized groups that the GOP wants to murder, namely trans and non binary people. Left media is very, very pro trans and other gender minority. That issue alone overcomes a lot of young leftists’ objections about the Democratic Party.

if this true how come all of the major gains in Trans rights came BEFORE the rise of the online left?

in fact for the first time we are seeing a DECLINE in support for LGBT issues and especially trans rights,

according to polling majority of Americans in both parties don't buy into the new fashionable talking points on sex and gender.
and non-binary-ism is still almost entirely a feature of insular leftist in groups.

I think highly online trans activism has been totally disastrous for the average trans person. and the online activist class is almost entirely to blame.
embracing indefensible circular self id, defending unpopular trans women in sports arguments, and the even more unpopular childhood transition.


so much so elder trans activists like Buck Angel have totally disowned the current trans rights movement.

The Democratic Coalition is vast and diverse. Moreover, there is less and less of a monoculture and shared reality. Unsurprisingly, there’s going to be certain forms of media that appeal to older, more affluent, Democrats. Meanwhile that same media that’s for “boomers” like CNN or MSNBC is alienating as hell for a 20 year old whose entire life has been defined by crisis after crisis usually caused in whole or in part by elite failures. They live in a totally different reality, their material reality is going to cause alienation. The only question is what form will it take? It’s not always pretty but online left media keeps a lot of alienated young people from falling for reactionary politics or apathy.

I think of a lot of it leads to reactionary tankie politics or doomerist apathy.
It fact it's often an excuse to do nothing.

I encounter this attitude constantly in local housing politics, the left wing parties are trapped in this online meme ideology. where nothing can be fixed without the elimination of capitalism.

"We need to build more houses"
"what does it matter if we build more houses nothing will change until we eliminate capitalism"


for all the engagement it can just as easily lead to paralyzing doomerism;

 

[osh kosh bosh]

Remember everyone, the online left is fun and approachable and always good for the democratic




thanks goodness biden has people like this to show young people the way;

 

[osh kosh bosh]

Now again, im not saying it's all the online lefts fault.


but it's weird we have no problem acknowledging that having a minority of online right influencers telling lies constantly is probably not great for a party.

but when leftist do it, it's "fun" and "approachable"

I just think we should acknowledge there is a significant online group of people who make money and get attention by doing maximum damage to Biden and the Democratic Party.

they lie constantly, and spread ridiculous misinformation.
but because they are on the far left, no one is doing "dangerous online misinformation" think piece's about them.

 

[RustyShackleford]

I think there are a lot of leftist grifters who make bad-faith arguments to get people upset, and in turn, monetize that anger

But I think their impact on electoral politics is still rather minor

I feel a certain brand of centrism from Clinton- to Libermann -to Manchin, practice by Eric Adams types, has been way more disastrous for the Democratic Party's brand than anything the online socialist left has done. Especially with demographics that are slipping away.

 

[dmbrhs]

Didn't work the last time. Definitely won't work this time, either.

 

[TooOlfForThisIsh]

Didn't work the last time. Definitely won't work this time, either.

Not just Japan. The idea of Western Europe re-militarizing in order to “pull their weight” in NATO fills me with dread. I don’t particularly trust the US or Russia to be responsible with their arsenals, but two militaries are way easier to chart the game theory and strategy for. Multiplying the destructive force will exponentially changes the probability that someone does something stupid even under the favorable assumption that the likelihood of stupidity is independent.