The Democrats chose Biden in 2019, 2020. The thing is, the Democratic party is, itself, right wing. Neoliberalism is pretty far right, it's just not crazypants far right than the Republican party.

If you're EU centrist, you don't have a voice in Washington. Heck, the Democratic party is looking for ways to oust Occasio-Cortez and Sanders, no matter how popular their positions might be.

Don't vote for Biden, rather vote against the GOP. Any vote for a Republican is a vote to end democracy and let them rule as autocrats. Any vote against the Republican party (specifically your one vote for the next popular guy -- that is, the Democrat) is a vote to hold onto the US' meager democratic features.

If you're wanting to make a statement, your vote for officials is not where to make it, no matter how fervent your feelings about it. Elections are where you get to choose between King Log and King Heron. (And Heron will eat all the frogs.) Make your grievances known through other activism.

Engage in mutual aid now, so that you don't have to engage in sabotage and resistance against an overwhelming foe later.

[–] Zummy@lemmy.world 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

If you want to make a point your vote in the only place to do it. Sure you can march in the streets for party change, but if you are going to vote for the person anyways you won’t be taken seriously. The point of all this is to show Dems that a Biden vote isn’t guaranteed like they think it is.

[–] uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

As I said, your vote isn't for the Democrats, it's against the Republicans.

The first amendment right to petition our representatives for the redress of grievances is a right with no teeth. Our representatives cannot listen and retain their career. This is an example of regulatory capture and government failure.

But activism is not just about sending messages to officials, rather it's about resisting, whether causing inconvenience through civil disobedience to organizing to outright sabotage (such as blowing up oil pipelines ). If you cant participate in civil action yourself, support those who do. Materially, if possible, but even thank you letters and cookies can help.

The US is dying. But we can hang on until the GOP dies first, or we can let them take over and burn out in a blaze of facism and war, in which case you can be sure Palestine will be razed to the ground.

In the meantime, the Biden administration is arranging for air drops and trying to secure an armistice, no matter what a dick Biden is, the White House seems aware the clime has change regarding universal tolerance of the Palestinian holocaust.

[–] bouh@lemmy.world 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

A democracy where you vote against a candidate is a failed democracy.

[–] uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 8 months ago

I agree! But it is the state of the federal government in the US. Then again, at the point they included the Electoral College and the 3/5s clause in the Constitution, the democracy of the US was made in bad faith anyway, at least it was founded as a means by which aristocracy ruled without a permanent king.

But any election system that uses first-past-the-post voting is going to ultimately fail as a democracy, since they always reduce to two party systems. One-person-one-vote means you'll always be voting against the worst evil by voting for the next guy, and it is an indictment of the US that we've not been able to get any election reform through. At least not in federal elections. Some states have made a little bit of progress.

It's also telling that SCOTUS is able to veto anything or even legislate from the bench when a group controls a majority of the judges, such as the Federalist Society. Yes, the US system sucks, which is why we're stuck surviving it, rather than striving to change it for the better.