I don’t think it’s performative to want the bigots to become people that aren’t bigots rather than wanting them dead. I mean I’ll take dead over spreading the sort of hate he was in a case like that I guess, and I get that the later is something other people have much more control over than the former, but still.
Oh, sure I’ll take a nazi flipping 180°, I would prefer that cause the fascist would be horribly mad because of it, but a dead nazi is the next best thing. In the end none of us had any say in the matter.
Depending on how the coming crackdown they’re planning plays out, I am not sure it’s true we’ll be better off with him dead. This is the main problem with political assassination as a political strategy.
That crackdown was coming regardless. Idk how to tell y’all any more clearly, but the fascists are going to escalate no matter what we do. Your options are to either fight back or roll over.
This has always been the Republican platform: “It’s all their fault!”
They just keep screaming it, no matter how much proof you may have that it’s on them. They know what they’re doing, they’re just lying. Like trickle-down. It’s obvious bullshit, but they’re more than willing to lie to enrichen their billionaire overlords.
As I said elsewhere I have no doubt they would try but this is allowing them to go further and muting criticism of their crackdown. It clearly increases the chances of success for their power grab.
I swear so many leftists have literally no understanding of politics or how public opinion influences political outcomes. It is maddening.
I never said don’t fight back. But fight smart. Killing Charlie Kirk isn’t fighting back, it’s just an expression of self-destructive rage from someone who probably wasn’t even a leftist.
I never said don’t fight back. But fight smart. Killing Charlie Kirk isn’t fighting back, it’s just an expression of self-destructive rage from someone who probably wasn’t even a leftist.
It’s weird how you seem to be aware the killer wasn’t a leftist, but are scolding leftists for not “fight[ing] smart” anyway.
Kirk didn’t have enough power perhaps? Soft power sure but didn’t sign war treaties or insurance denials or vote in Congress or w/e. Maybe that changes the general perspective. Also compare disappointment at presidential assassination attempt. Neither Luigi CEO nor president incidents had many people here worried on their behalf
Well, my personal perspective on the two was similar and I got a lot of flak for it.
But from a broader perspective I think the difference is that partisan politics have become deeply associated with a personal, tribal identity. The reaction to Kirk has been different because conservatives feel personally threatened by his death. This fear makes them react much more violently. I think journalists have also amplified this because even if they are not on the same side, they rightly perceive that they could be next if this turns into a tit for tat exchange.
In contrast, while most people didn’t support the murder of Thompson it was more of an academic crime. They don’t identify personally with a CEO in the same way.
Plus Trump wasn’t president and he wasn’t able to fan the flames as effectively back then.
Trump put a ton of troops into DC to “combat crime” despite it being lower than any time recently already. They don’t care about reality. This doesn’t really make it easier for them. If they needed an excuse, something was going to happen that they could use.
I agree people should be more focused on public opinion. That should be the primary goal. The more we can change that the better chance we have to accomish what we want. I don’t think this hurts that goal though; his death will be forgotten by most people in a month, along with all the other gun deaths in America.
Potentially it helps, though I doubt by much, because Kirk was capable of pushing this air of reasonableness with fascist politics. He cleaned up their image and made people feel like they could support Fascists and not be evil. Currently I don’t think there’s anyone else who fills this position. Almost all of the other are the “righteous rage” Fascists.
Again, it’s less about what he’ll do and more about what he can get away with and how much backlash there will be. Frankly, I don’t think most Americans know crime in DC is low. This is due to a media ecosystem that manufactures consent for fascism.
You can say this would happen anyway but I think the media’s sympathy for Kirk as a fellow media person also has a big impact on the way this incident has been covered and how they’ll respond to the coming crackdown. Look at how many left-leaning journalists and media people are being fired right now. That will have an impact on coverage going forward at minimum.
Regarding Kirk and his value to the fascists, I’m unsure because these people are all so repugnant to me. I want to say he’s just an empty suit that will easily be filled by the billionaires who funded him but truthfully I can’t say if he had some unique appeal because I wouldn’t see it even if it was there.
because the rich assholes behind all this mess own nearly all media outlets, the narrative must be controlled. hence recent move to try and censor various private companies whose lines of communication arent (as) under their thumb.
I think it’s important to keep in mind that the “political strategy” aspect of it doesn’t really apply since leftists didn’t do it and thus had no choice in the matter.
In fact, as far as political strategy goes, the only one on the table appears to be “blame the left for all violence anyway, even blatantly falsely.” Strictly from a game theory perspective, if leftists are going to suffer the negative effects anyway, they might as well commit the things they’re being accused of so they at least capture the positive effects too.
Fair but I’m speaking to the people who are here saying that we should do more of this kind of thing… perhaps including you? Whether the shooter was or wasn’t a leftist isn’t relevant to that talking point.
I don’t agree with the second statement. Some fools will believe anything but a lot of fence sitters who might defend us may not if we really do what we’re being accused of.
Hoping that the “fence sitters” will ally with us if we “act right” is as perfect of a self-defeating strategem as offing right-wing talking heads all over the place, methinks.
Public opinion matters. You don’t win political struggle without allies, and that means speaking to and persuading people who are not true believers. You don’t have to like it but you are going to have to contend with it.
Or don’t and lose. The left has been great at that for the past 100 years.
Fence sitters are useless allies… at best. When you need them, you’ll find them doggedly staying exactly where you found them the first time - on the fence.
At worst…
The left has been great at that for the past 100 years.
…you’ll discover what the left seemingly has to rediscover over and over again every damn time - fence sitters very rarely sit on the fence because they are undecided. Or, as Malcolm X put it…
The white liberals are more dangerous than the conservatives; they lure the Negro, and as the Negro runs from the growling wolf, he flees into the open jaws of the “smiling” fox.
I mean fence sitter as in prospective supporters. Not people who are neutral between leftism and fascism (there are few such people).
I’m talking about people who will act as supporters sometimes and not at others. These people possess the vast majority of political power on the left.
I didn’t realize the only two options were nothing or pointless acts of impotent violence. Funny, for some reason I thought there were other possibilities but I guess I was mistaken.
You need to wake the fuck up and get serious about political strategy instead of just reacting emotionally to the news. You’re not going to assassinate your way out of this one.
I don’t think it’s performative to want the bigots to become people that aren’t bigots rather than wanting them dead. I mean I’ll take dead over spreading the sort of hate he was in a case like that I guess, and I get that the later is something other people have much more control over than the former, but still.
Oh, sure I’ll take a nazi flipping 180°, I would prefer that cause the fascist would be horribly mad because of it, but a dead nazi is the next best thing. In the end none of us had any say in the matter.
Quothe Abraham Lincoln: I destroy my enemy when I make him my friend.
And then the rebels were pardoned and the whole “lost cause” narrative was allowed to take root.
You’re not wrong there.
Should have befriended Mr. Booth
Depending on how the coming crackdown they’re planning plays out, I am not sure it’s true we’ll be better off with him dead. This is the main problem with political assassination as a political strategy.
That crackdown was coming regardless. Idk how to tell y’all any more clearly, but the fascists are going to escalate no matter what we do. Your options are to either fight back or roll over.
They decided a leftist killed Charlie before his body was even cold. Reality doesn’t matter anymore.
This has always been the Republican platform: “It’s all their fault!”
They just keep screaming it, no matter how much proof you may have that it’s on them. They know what they’re doing, they’re just lying. Like trickle-down. It’s obvious bullshit, but they’re more than willing to lie to enrichen their billionaire overlords.
As I said elsewhere I have no doubt they would try but this is allowing them to go further and muting criticism of their crackdown. It clearly increases the chances of success for their power grab.
I swear so many leftists have literally no understanding of politics or how public opinion influences political outcomes. It is maddening.
I never said don’t fight back. But fight smart. Killing Charlie Kirk isn’t fighting back, it’s just an expression of self-destructive rage from someone who probably wasn’t even a leftist.
It’s weird how you seem to be aware the killer wasn’t a leftist, but are scolding leftists for not “fight[ing] smart” anyway.
Because people here are trying to make this killing into some brave act of resistance when it clearly was nothing of the sort.
Interesting how opinion was different with Luigi
Kirk didn’t have enough power perhaps? Soft power sure but didn’t sign war treaties or insurance denials or vote in Congress or w/e. Maybe that changes the general perspective. Also compare disappointment at presidential assassination attempt. Neither Luigi CEO nor president incidents had many people here worried on their behalf
Well, my personal perspective on the two was similar and I got a lot of flak for it.
But from a broader perspective I think the difference is that partisan politics have become deeply associated with a personal, tribal identity. The reaction to Kirk has been different because conservatives feel personally threatened by his death. This fear makes them react much more violently. I think journalists have also amplified this because even if they are not on the same side, they rightly perceive that they could be next if this turns into a tit for tat exchange.
In contrast, while most people didn’t support the murder of Thompson it was more of an academic crime. They don’t identify personally with a CEO in the same way.
Plus Trump wasn’t president and he wasn’t able to fan the flames as effectively back then.
Trump put a ton of troops into DC to “combat crime” despite it being lower than any time recently already. They don’t care about reality. This doesn’t really make it easier for them. If they needed an excuse, something was going to happen that they could use.
I agree people should be more focused on public opinion. That should be the primary goal. The more we can change that the better chance we have to accomish what we want. I don’t think this hurts that goal though; his death will be forgotten by most people in a month, along with all the other gun deaths in America.
Potentially it helps, though I doubt by much, because Kirk was capable of pushing this air of reasonableness with fascist politics. He cleaned up their image and made people feel like they could support Fascists and not be evil. Currently I don’t think there’s anyone else who fills this position. Almost all of the other are the “righteous rage” Fascists.
Again, it’s less about what he’ll do and more about what he can get away with and how much backlash there will be. Frankly, I don’t think most Americans know crime in DC is low. This is due to a media ecosystem that manufactures consent for fascism.
You can say this would happen anyway but I think the media’s sympathy for Kirk as a fellow media person also has a big impact on the way this incident has been covered and how they’ll respond to the coming crackdown. Look at how many left-leaning journalists and media people are being fired right now. That will have an impact on coverage going forward at minimum.
Regarding Kirk and his value to the fascists, I’m unsure because these people are all so repugnant to me. I want to say he’s just an empty suit that will easily be filled by the billionaires who funded him but truthfully I can’t say if he had some unique appeal because I wouldn’t see it even if it was there.
Why is this framed as a political assassination when fuckhead wasn’t a politician? He was just some asshole.
because the rich assholes behind all this mess own nearly all media outlets, the narrative must be controlled. hence recent move to try and censor various private companies whose lines of communication arent (as) under their thumb.
exactly. but we don’t have to call it a ‘political’ assassination. it was more like, some asshole getting shot because he was calling for violence.
he was the face of tpusa, definitely political…if he didn’t spread bullshit for a cpac he would still be alive.
I think it’s important to keep in mind that the “political strategy” aspect of it doesn’t really apply since leftists didn’t do it and thus had no choice in the matter.
In fact, as far as political strategy goes, the only one on the table appears to be “blame the left for all violence anyway, even blatantly falsely.” Strictly from a game theory perspective, if leftists are going to suffer the negative effects anyway, they might as well commit the things they’re being accused of so they at least capture the positive effects too.
Fair but I’m speaking to the people who are here saying that we should do more of this kind of thing… perhaps including you? Whether the shooter was or wasn’t a leftist isn’t relevant to that talking point.
I don’t agree with the second statement. Some fools will believe anything but a lot of fence sitters who might defend us may not if we really do what we’re being accused of.
Hoping that the “fence sitters” will ally with us if we “act right” is as perfect of a self-defeating strategem as offing right-wing talking heads all over the place, methinks.
Public opinion matters. You don’t win political struggle without allies, and that means speaking to and persuading people who are not true believers. You don’t have to like it but you are going to have to contend with it.
Or don’t and lose. The left has been great at that for the past 100 years.
Fence sitters are useless allies… at best. When you need them, you’ll find them doggedly staying exactly where you found them the first time - on the fence.
At worst…
…you’ll discover what the left seemingly has to rediscover over and over again every damn time - fence sitters very rarely sit on the fence because they are undecided. Or, as Malcolm X put it…
I mean fence sitter as in prospective supporters. Not people who are neutral between leftism and fascism (there are few such people).
I’m talking about people who will act as supporters sometimes and not at others. These people possess the vast majority of political power on the left.
What, because your preferred strategy of doing nothing is working so well?
Wake the fuck up.
I didn’t realize the only two options were nothing or pointless acts of impotent violence. Funny, for some reason I thought there were other possibilities but I guess I was mistaken.
You need to wake the fuck up and get serious about political strategy instead of just reacting emotionally to the news. You’re not going to assassinate your way out of this one.