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!
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.
This was a result of election night that is underreported, but hugely telling and frustrating.
All this noise about California being liberal, progressive, and the resistance to Trump. But they kept slavery in prison legal. And I think the people who are predicting prison "labor" will be used to replace migrant labor if mass deportation does happen have it right. And California had a chance to make that impossible and decided not to.
Criminal labor isn't split down any party line.
I've voted blue for decades, just so I can say I did the right thing: harm reduction.
This nation's last, last, last chance to improve its course would have been to soundly reject the supply side, trickle down Reaganomics grift, but when they lied that YOU could be one of the rich ones one day, Americans giggled like schoolgirls and the former party of labor went full neoliberal to take the larger corporate bribes unions just couldn't match. That is when any hope for the US to become the benevolent nation it never was but claimed to want to be died.
Citizens United was just a victory lap for the capitalists to piss on its decomposing corpse.
Anyone who wants to claim this country was over a couple of Tuesdays ago, hasn't been paying attention.
And it wasn't the Neonazi scum that killed it either, they just see opportunity in the cultural vacuum and chaos. Twas unchecked capitalist greed that killed the beast.
This is why we need a "New California Republic", with rangers to protect the population, just don't listen those anti-mutties bigots...
Wasn't the ballot initiative also deliberately confusing? I remember seeing something about it and reading it myself and going "what the fuck is the answer for no slavery?"
No, it wasn't. It had no argument against, no supporters against, and the text was extremely simple.
Yes/No Statement
A YES vote on this measure means: Involuntary servitude would not be allowed as punishment for crime. State prisons would not be allowed to discipline people in prison who refuse to work.
A NO vote on this measure means: Involuntary servitude would continue to be allowed as punishment for crime.
Although I can't seem to find if this text is on the ballot to explain it
Yep that's what's on the ballot too. Very simple. I'd argue middle-school level or below.
They also still have the death penalty.
It has not collapsed yet. Democrats are electing a new chair RIGHT NOW (I don't know the date, but in the next few weeks).
They are going to elect a centrist. We can stop them. Now is the time.
If the new DNC is progressive and inspires people, it will prevent reluctant Republicans from going full scorched earth.
A progressive platform will win Democrats the white house for the next 20 years. Ask FDR how I know.
This, right now, is the final chance we have to prevent collapse.
Spread the word, share & cross post.
The DNC goes where their donors want them to go. We have no real impact on what the DNC does, the wealthy Capitalists that buy them do. Collapse isn't prevented even if the Dems went progressive, it would just be slowed, you can't escape Capitalism's inherent unsustainability.