There is the possibility that these guys just lacked situational awareness, which makes it all the more important to REMIND THESE GUYS THAT IT'S ILLEGAL FOR THEM TO PLACE THEMSELVES BY BALLOT BOXES.
MAGA's war on America is fundamentally an attack on everyday Americans by the 1%, and for-profit banking plays a large role in this conflict. The 1% sit back and collect dividends on the mortgage interest we pay on our homes. They sit back and collect dividends on the exorbitant banking fees that we pay. They avoid taxes by living off of loans against their vast inherited assets.
Credit Unions are nonprofit banking cooperatives owned by the account holders rather than greedy investors. The fees they collect essentially get paid back to the community in the form of favorable savings and borrowing rates.
In this way, Credit Union membership is an act of community defense, mutual aid, and consumer protection, and we should encourage our friends and neighbors to join in.
Trump is quickly trying to escalate things, to bait us into violent protest so he has an excuse to call off or interfere with the elections. Don't fall for it -- channel that energy into campaigning and getting out the vote. If you need to let out rage, use it to loudly protest things like high gas prices, Flock surveillance, and data centers -- things that have EVERYBODY hating him for.
Although we usually think of Mutual Aid as a way to shelter each other from harm, it can also be an effective *offensive tool* to fight the regime. This administration is in place only because the oligarchs think it will increase their wealth and power, and Mutual Aid allows us to starve the beast.
When people take items home from a clothing swap, those are things that they didn't have to buy at Walmart or Kohls. Same for book exchanges or other trading meetups.
When you bake treats and share them with neighbors, they may no longer feel the need to pick something up from Dunkin' or Starbucks.
Have some friends over for a meal, even a simple spaghetti dinner. Play some games. Play some music.
Buy in bulk and prep meals together. The list goes on.
Skip the trip to Walmart, skip the trip to Target, skip the trip to chain restaurants, cancel streaming subscriptions. STARVE THE BEAST and have fun building connections along the way.
This regime is in place only because the oligarchs think it will increase their wealth & power, and the surest way out of this mess is to show the 1% that MAGA IS BAD FOR BUSINESS
This is a reminder that we don't need to wait for a General Strike to change corporate America's stance on MAGA -- all we need to do is slow shit down enough to hurt their bottom line.
Hold onto that document a little extra time, so that the next guy waits until after lunch (or even tomorrow) to deal with it. Call that meeting that could have been an email. Tie up traffic outside of the FedEx Express station at the end of the day when the vans are trying to rush in with the packages they've collected.
It doesn't need to be an in-your-face worker revolt, they just need to know that MAGA is bad for business
Time and again, I hear about people rejecting MAGA policies but at the same time saying that they feel like Democrats have forgotten what matters to working class Americans (thanks in large part to media misinformation). I think it's important in these conversations to identify and emphasize the points of common ground -- affordability, worker protections and job training, social programs, etc. -- to establish trust and open up the dialogue.
Strategy is not a dirty word.
More and more people are growing weary of rising gas prices, the pointless war in Iran, and other Trump failures. And we can all do our part to tip the scale by openly making unsolicited comments about this mess when we're buying groceries, filling our gas tanks, and other opportune moments.
Share the love . . .
maybe with money spilling off as the sawdust
And by "they", I mean VOTERS who think elections *alone* will be enough to stop this regime. But let's assume for a moment that *everything* goes our way:
How likely is it that he will say, "Oh, okay, I guess I'll leave then"?
Hardly.
There is *no* reason to expect MAGA will suddenly follow the rule of law, even if all of the above occurs. And so, IN ADDITION TO fighting for strong candidates, it is just as important to show the 1% that fascism is the path to financial ruin -- THAT is the source of pressure for change. And it's not enough to vote with your wallet, we need to actively disrupt financial markets and corporate operations. Divestment, slowdowns, simple sabotage, the works.
Last week's mosque shooting is a reminder that people (especially young men) with few prospects are ripe for radicalization by the far right. Yes, some people are too far gone, but MANY are still within reach.
The desperation we see is the complicated product of GOP attacks on education and the elimination of good paying jobs by corporate America (and other factors). That kind of desperation destroys one's sense of connection and purpose, and makes you open to radicalization, often the kind that leads to stochastic acts of terrorism. That isn't going to change even if we win in November, and we need to find ways to give people that sense of purpose, to immunize them against those kinds of destructive influences. We need to find ways of engaging people IRL in a way that makes it easy for them to be a positive presence in the community.
The best solutions will vary from town to town, but maybe they start as hybrid community service/food & social events -- anything from a free youth fishing day or fixing bikes, to painting the rec hall or connecting seniors with technology. Whatever would be a low barrier/attractive draw to get at least some participation from folks who might not normally join in.
It ain't glamorous work, but it's absolutely essential.
This regime is in place only because American corporations think it will increase their wealth and power, and the surest way to force MAGA out is to show the 1% that fascism leads to financial ruin.
This is a reminder that you don't need to wait for a general strike to disrupt corporate operations. There are lots of little things you can do to undermine corporate profitability. And while these acts may feel small, they are no smaller than the act of voting; if enough people end up on the right side, the impact will be felt widely. Here are some simple examples for the workplace:
The voter numbers in the Massie election are sketchy af, and are probably a preview of the shenanigans we can expect in November -- yet practically NOBODY is doing anything about it besides conduct a postmortem.
If we actually want to STOP ELECTION FRAUD that ain't gonna cut it. The slow, methodical, after-the-fact procedures from the Before Times aren't going to protect us from the no-holds-barred fascist takeover.
I'm just a guy thinking out loud, but it seems to me that instead of hoping people show up to protest if fraud is uncovered, it might be more effective to rally on Election Day and stay there until we're satisfied that the results are trustworthy. Now, maybe it's Election Night or maybe early in the morning after, but the point is that we should show up as the default condition and leave only when things seem right. By bringing this up now, it gives people a chance to schedule PTO if they're able to, etc. And people can rotate in and out as they need to, etc. But I think we need to get out of Reactive Mode, because it hasn't been working for us too well.
Maybe you can bring it up at your next Indivisible meeting.
Maybe you do something to build your mutual aid network. Maybe it's something targeting corporate operations. Maybe you focus on the elections. There are lots of possibilities:
There are TONS of things we can do. Some of these are small enough that you can even do more than one. Maybe you're already doing these things, and can suggest others or get other folks involved.
ETA: A lot of people complained about the May Day action being just one day, and small actions like these lay the foundation for larger actions, by more people, down the road
We are in a war of attrition with corporate America. They want to suck us dry, leaving us poor and desperate. But we have power too, in the dollars that we spend -- or don't spend. When we help each other, we make it easier for people to avoid handing valuable funds over to corporate America.
Baking treats for neighbors can make it easier for them to skip Starbucks.
Holding a clothing swap can make it easier for them to skip Walmart.
Inviting people over to play cards or board games makes it easier to unplug from Amazon Prime.
And the connections that we build while doing these things make everyone stronger. Find the things -- even little things -- that you can do to help your friends and neighbors pull back from corporate consumption.
This regime is in place only because the oligarchs think it will increase their wealth and power, and the surest way to force MAGA out is to show the 1% that fascism is the path to financial ruin.
It has been noted time and again that a general strike is uniquely difficult to pull off in the US, but there are numerous decentralized tactics available to us:
Not all of these have the in-your-face appeal of a general strike, but they're a lot easier to pull off and they're accessible now. And while these acts may feel small, they are no smaller than the act of voting; if enough people end up on the right side, the impact will be felt widely.
The Southern Poverty Law Center is one of the most important defenders of civil rights in America; and now Fidelity, Vanguard, and Schwab are trying to prevent donors from supporting them. If you have accounts at any of these places, they need to hear from you NOW.
"A government that criminalizes opposition is undemocratic. Financial institutions that enable it are complicit."
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Call to action from Democracy Fund:
The charitable arms of Fidelity, Vanguard, and Schwab have stopped processing donor-advised fund contributions to the Southern Poverty Law Center. There is no legitimate justification to this step against a nonprofit civil rights organization that continues to be a 501c3 and has not been found guilty of any crime — the precedent here is alarming. Any nonprofit perceived as a political opponent of the current administration could be next.
This is what a chilling effect looks like. When the financial infrastructure of charitable giving bends to political pressure, free speech and civil society both suffer. Courts have repeatedly rebuked the underlying campaign of intimidation against nonprofits, law firms, and public servants. DAF sponsors should not be carrying water for it.
Democracy Fund is joining dozens of foundations and philanthropic leaders calling on these firms to reverse course. Philanthropists and funders are watching — and we will remember which institutions stood with civil society and which ones folded.
A government that criminalizes opposition is undemocratic. Financial institutions that enable it are complicit.