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Happy to report that I, a white christian-looking man, would probably get hauled to a death camp for openly supporting LGBTQ+ and minorities, and openly criticizing the government's behavior. Both of my cars, and my motorcycles, have enough stickers saying as much.
are you advocating violence against nazis?
WhAt HaPpEnEd To YoUr CiViLiTy!?
I would vote harder.
step 4. realize that, quite literally, the only way to fight fascism is to use their tactics agains them because fighting in good faith hasn't worked at all. Propaganda, bought out politicians, rules for thee but not for me...
This is America today:
What is this from?
The Man in the High Castle TV Series, about an alternate universe where the axis powers won WW2 and invaded the USA. It's interesting to watch, even if its a very fucked up scenario.
WW2, vietnam, Israels genocide in Gaza, the invasion of Ukraine, desert storm, the iran-iraq war, pakistan vs India, china vs india... so many wars.. In a sense they are all the same war. Its humanity against the worst impulses of itself that always threaten to define all of us. The western rules based order was supposed to the antidote for that cycle or left-right swing and resource coveting, and now the technocrats, fascists, and centrists have tossed that on the floor and pissed on it in the name of their own cleverness. They never understood why they were in politics to begin with, beyond manipulating tactical events for some selfish douchebaggy structural advantage. Thats what Kissinger got wrong, and Biden too. Empty ends-justifies-the-means reasoning in leadership leads directly to fascism. Thats part of what the man in the high castle was supposed to illustrate.
When you've oversimplified things to the point where you've become useless to anyone, you're not as clever as you think you are.
Thanks
Decades ago, as a schoolboy in Germany, this was a fascinating scenario to mull over. Especially because it seemed so unlikely. Well…hold tight everybody.
Pucker those starfish, it's gonna get bumpy
It's interesting because it also showed the hypocrisy of most western governments. On one side these governments were happy to support and in fact rushed to support ukraine. On the other side, the same was not afforded to palestine, in fact the opposite. (Giving aid to israel, etc)
This includes people too, but its been very clear with governments.
To be honest, Russia-Ukraine's war is at EU's doorstep, meanwhile Israel-Palestine's war is in middle east. I think that's at least one reason.
To say that they would care about the other more, sure. To say they continue their support of israels genocide? No.
it was right and good to support Ukraine, but i think where the buck stopped for so many countries is Ukrainians are white and Palestinians are brown. sure, in western countries we often strip Ukrainians access to the concepts of whiteness when they have aid needs other than weaponry, but they still get at least some access to the power of whiteness in colonialism when it suits whiteness. Palestinians, no such luck
There is also a lot about who their enemy is. When US will attack Mexico or Canada, there will be way less universal support to them because US is still seen as a "good guy" in a cultural sense. The same goes to Israel for historical reasons. Russia however is universally understood to be bad, they didn't manage to wash their reputation when they had a chance, and it doesn't seem like they really tried.
Cultural sense is relative. Quite a few cultures understand the US being one of the greatest evils in the world.
Im not sure many see the US as the good guy anymore. I think maybe they see the US as the shallow, bullying, good looking popular kid with a lot of money, who the other kids who just want to keep their heads down follow by default.
So much of politics resmbles the 3rd grade school yard.
Find like minded people, collective action is always stronger than individual action. If you don't currently have a community that is engaged, consider joining a Unitarian Universalist congregation. Unitarians in the US and Europe resisted the German Nazis by creating documents and providing refuge for Jewish people fleeing the Holocaust. Many congregations today have active social and environmental justice groups, often focusing on local action with low barriers to entry. Nobody is expected to believe any particular scripture, but UUs have a common set of principles, the first being everyone has inherent worth and dignity.
Never heard of them, but I see that they are calling out the Israelis in the same way as they did the nazis. I'm not into religion, but good on them.
If you speak with UUs, many of us would say we are also not really into religion 😆 my congregation has a number of firm atheists. A lot of the sermons are more about human values, finding lessons from history or science, and lived experiences. However, we do tend to celebrate high holidays from numerous religious traditions. It's highly variable across congregations though. My big draw other than collective environmental action is the music program.
This is it.
It doesn't have to be UU but you better find a team.
I'm not a fan of the religious aspect. What are some other options?
I volunteer at the local indie theatre group.
I visited the local queer bookshop today and left with an invite to a local queer hike and a lead on sea shanty night at the local bar. Put out feelers, talk to people, and find like-minded folks around you.
This is pretty cool, I've never heard of this thanks for sharing.
for anyone who doesn't know what to do and you're feeling stuck, let me tell you what the holocaust survivors from my childhood told me they did: they started meeting in their houses to discuss acts of resistance and to build up community strength through mutual aid and solidarity. they also got strapped and put a heavy emphasis into monitoring the nazis through actually scouting what movements the brown shirts were making, and into storytelling. storytelling is how you make sure future generations hear you and your best bet at dislodging someone from the death cult they're locked into
Please, anyone interested in resisting read this guide. Even if you work in an office building you can fight back. Work for an ultra-corrupt group in an office setting? It includes that, too.
Many of my neighbors are N supporters. There's a college campus nearby but I don't feel right trying to organize with teenagers.
Think of it as the passing of knowledge. And teens are an excellent audience, because they'd be getting one of those exceedingly rare "real talk" moments, when someone finally treats them as sentient beings.
You'd essentially be giving them a heads-up and contributing to their ability to prepare while better informed.
Organize with them! Offer your help, but don't try to lead them. Be prepared for them to think you're a cop lol.
I am in a workers assembly, and our biggest hurdle has been convincing people gen-X and boomer aged to join. A lot of teenagers and 20 somethings, quite a few millenials (including myself), and people up into their 70's. Please help organize, regardless of your age. If anything, being older will be a huge boon as you can teach them to avoid pitfalls you've already fallen into, how to avoid mistakes you've made.
i encourage you to still try it anyway. there is no one i valued more as a teenager than my elders who supported me despite not being my flesh and blood. i don't think i'd be alive today without having those adults who just said "hey, you're you. i believe in you. you got this"
just don't show up trying to direct them. just listen and give your advice when they want it. someday they'll do the same for someone else, and it will be you they recollect inspiring them. our movement of love hinges entirely on the elders passing it on to the youth.
and everytime an elder supports a youth, that elder becomes immortal. we are all immortal so long as someone picks up our work and carries it forward. it is through this process that we will all someday be free. so please, don't be scared to hang out with some teens. just make it your responsibility within their group to keep their brains safe so their souls can be safe.
My country got rid of a fascist state 50 years ago. My grandfather was part of the political police. He was a monster.
Anything to prevent that again.
Pushing stupid people will be a good start.
The only difference is that the Nazis were at least somewhat competent. Watching this administration pretending to be Nazis while walking themselves off a cliff is just... Bizarre. I expected things to be bad, I expected things to be stupid, I didn't expect things to be THIS dumb
They were not competant at first. Quite the opposite actually. The established institutions that feared socialism and communism above all else ensured the Nazis gained the competence they needed to invade the Soviet Union. (And engage the Phoney War.)
Try to take Hitler out should be hopefully on many people's minds. Em... should've been.
Let's not forget who it was that was above his bunker when he killed himself: the Red Army. The Communists.
Lets not forget that stalin was allied with Hitler early on, and they only came to be at odds because Hitler stupidly invaded Russia. The "communists" are not some sort of default good guys back then, or now. They are as morally bankrupt and inhumane as the capitalists, just poorer.
I don't think that's a particularly good idea. Hitler was charismatic, but there's a pretty strong impression among historians that he made a lot of dumb decisions that ultimately helped the Nazis lose. If you take out the bungler after they're already in power, he gets replaced by a more competent leader who won't make as many mistakes.
Yes. Let's never do anything to improve our situation because it might actually deteriorate. With that kind of mindset, you better never leave your bed.
I didn't say never do anything, I said this specific thing could most likely do more harm than good.
I don't want to martyr myself though
I warned people. Not that they listened. But I'll continue to do so, even if they "come get me" in the end. No one will ever take that away from me.
Post meme in social media...
Waited until I have something I can actually do. Right now everything is happening ~2000+ miles away, but I'm sure it will get here eventually. Until then, I'll try to get prepared for the inevitable shitstorm.
There is plenty to do locally to make your corner of the world better.
Copying my other comment: Find like minded people, collective action is always stronger than individual action. If you don't currently have a community that is engaged, consider joining a Unitarian Universalist congregation. Unitarians in the US and Europe resisted the German Nazis by creating documents and providing refuge for Jewish people fleeing the Holocaust. Many congregations today have active social and environmental justice groups, often focusing on local action with low barriers to entry. Nobody is expected to believe any particular scripture, but UUs have a common set of principles, the first being everyone has inherent worth and dignity.