this post was submitted on 09 Nov 2024
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Lefty Memes

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An international (English speaking) socialist Lemmy community free of the "ML" influence of instances like lemmy.ml and lemmygrad. This is a place for undogmatic shitposting and memes from a progressive, anti-capitalist and truly anti-imperialist perspective, regardless of specific ideology.

Serious posts, news, and discussion go in c/Socialism.

If you are new to socialism, you can ask questions and find resources over on c/Socialism101.

Please don't forget to help keep this community clean by reporting rule violations, updooting good contributions and downdooting those of low-quality!

Rules

Version without spoilers

0. Only post socialist memes


That refers to funny image macros and means that generally videos and screenshots are not allowed. Exceptions include explicitly humorous and short videos, as well as (social media) screenshots depicting a funny situation, joke, or joke picture relating to socialist movements, theory, societal issues, or political opponents. Examples would be the classic case of humorous Tumblr or Twitter posts/threads. (and no, agitprop text does not count as a meme)


1. Socialist Unity in the form of mutual respect and good faith interactions is enforced here


Try to keep an open mind, other schools of thought may offer points of view and analyses you haven't considered yet. Also: This is not a place for the Idealism vs. Materialism or rather Anarchism vs. Marxism debate(s), for that please visit c/AnarchismVsMarxism.


2. Anti-Imperialism means recognizing capitalist states like Russia and China as such


That means condemning (their) imperialism, even if it is of the "anti-USA" flavor.


3. No liberalism, (right-wing) revisionism or reactionaries.


That includes so called: Social Democracy, Democratic Socialism, Dengism, Market Socialism, Patriotic Socialism, National Bolshevism, Anarcho-Capitalism etc. . Anti-Socialist people and content have no place here, as well as the variety of "Marxist"-"Leninists" seen on lemmygrad and more specifically GenZedong (actual ML's are welcome as long as they agree to the rules and don't just copy paste/larp about stuff from a hundred years ago).


4. No Bigotry.


The only dangerous minority is the rich.


5. Don't demonize previous and current socialist experiments or (leading) individuals.


We must constructively learn from their mistakes, while acknowledging their achievements and recognizing when they have strayed away from socialist principles.

(if you are reading the rules to apply for modding this community, mention "Mantic Minotaur" when answering question 2)


6. Don't idolize/glorify previous and current socialist experiments or (leading) individuals.


Notable achievements in all spheres of society were made by various socialist/people's/democratic republics around the world. Mistakes, however, were made as well: bureaucratic castes of parasitic elites - as well as reactionary cults of personality - were established, many things were mismanaged and prejudice and bigotry sometimes replaced internationalism and progressiveness.



  1. Absolutely no posts or comments meant to relativize(/apologize for), advocate, promote or defend:

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Liberal and leftist are both very vague terms with several definitions that place them both in very different places in the political spectrum.

You should just use other, clearer terms.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

These terms are rather well understood by leftists, it's only liberals who think they mean the same thing.

[–] [email protected] -3 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

No, conservatives think that. Liberal doesn't mean what leftists desperately want it to mean; neoliberal

[–] [email protected] 18 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Conservatives, liberals, and neoliberals are all just subtypes of the classical liberal.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago

You forgot progressives, too.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 weeks ago

I see leftist as Revolutionary. The resistance. Quite honestly, I loved nazi hunter stories growing up and stories of the resistance movements and operations to smuggle the vulnerable to safety. I will be a part of it this time around.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

What is so vague about them?

They seem perfectly clear-cut to me.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Some people think liberal is right-wing, just not extreme (for example, liberal party of Quebec)

Some people think liberal is centrist. (For example, liberal party of Canada)

Some people think liberal is some sort of wide category including everyone left of center.

As for leftist, some people think it means anything left of center.

Others think it means left-wing, but more so than center-left.

Others yet think it refers only to the most left-wing of political opinions, including communists, anarcho-communists, and adjacent ideologies.

And even "center" is a vague term to begin with. What passes as center in the US is decidedly right-wing in other countries.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago

Some people think liberal is right-wing, just not extreme

What can possibly be more extreme than being pro-capitalist? Even a fascist can be made to admit that there is more to water than merely it's market value.

And even “center” is a vague term to begin with.

That's the whole point of "centrism" - vagueness. You can hide all kinds of right-wing garbage under "centrism."