There are only so many more braindead, agenda-fueled smug remarks I can deal with at this point and I’ve lost all hope of changing most of these people. Just this evening I commented a one sentence defense of China’s foreign policy on reddit only to get every single one of my comments from the past week bombarded by a guy spamming Taiwan emojis and calling me a “CCP slave girl who should go to the Xinjiang rape camps”. It’s tiring
Avoiding liberal discourse is a form of self care for any ML at this point.
Its kind of astonishing that people have lived through the past few decades, and still don’t become communists. They look at the world on fire, their own countries doing terribly and concluded that its because they’re not copying the US’s political system closely enough.
Communism I can begin to understand from a “they are too propagandised against it to realise how based it is and how it addresses literally all their concerns” but for them to remain pro capitalist or apologetic of the imperial core says to me they fundamentally can’t process what they see in front of them or are too stupid to care.
I’ve noticed that when people complain about systemic issues they come at it from an individual perspective. As in the problems they face aren’t because of the system we have now, but because of the individual’s decisions. For example: A guy I “know” was complaining about traffic and driving; angry at pedestrians wearing hoodies and headphones (not jay-walking), new driver stickers giving people excuses to be stupid (his words not mine), and just complaints like that. Instead of realizing that the way our city and streets are designed is incredibly anti-pedestrian and cyclist; instead of building infrastructure that is safe and accessible (also better public transit) our city accommodates personal motorized vehicles (e.g. adding more lanes, slip-lanes, turning right on red, the worst crosswalks, etc.). When accidents happen, the first thing people bring up is: well what was the non-driving person doing wrong?
Again, people believe that the problems they experience are personal choices rather than systemic issues that make life harder.
I know what you mean, I know people who do this. The most common example is people blaming others for gambling or addiction without recognising the conditions that encourage or lead to those pitfalls.
You must like the ‘not just bikes’ series on youtube.
I live in the Netherlands and one of the few remaining things that isn’t going down the drain here is our pro-cyclist, pro-pedestrian safety-first-by-design infrastructure.It’s the only thing I miss since moving out of The Netherlands. Belgian cycling is just not the same.
I love Not Just Bikes!
This is the only “social media” site I use. I learn a lot from comrades even though it is an echo chamber in some regards, there’s almost nothing I feel I can learn from the libernet regardless of how hard I search. I genuinely think the feds have an iron grip on the pulse of much of the internet, even the supposedly “leftist” side of it. Not to say that everyone who responds negatively is a CIA bot or agent, just that the misinformation war is slanted pretty hard in their favor. It’s much more worthwhile to educate people IRL who aren’t terminally online. When we’re the most intentionally isolated political tendency, it makes perfect sense that we gravitate towards each other even if what we’re doing here isn’t inherently revolutionary, just shooting the shit or whatever
I think we should stay clear of reddit and discord, they really are the cesspits of the internet. I’m trying to depoliticise my TikTok algorithm as well so this ends up being my only outlet for political discussion and I don’t lose any more will to live. Marxism really makes you believe that shitpost “tolerant left” meme conservatives use on a whole other level - I don’t think I’ve ever commented on r/worldnews without either a rape threat in the DMs or being called Kremlin propaganda
People in real life are definitely much more rational and easier to explain things to than their online counterparts. The internet makes people so aggressive, maybe it’s the anonymity idk
I think it absolutely is. Nobody is going to say that shit in real life. I still don’t understand it, though, because the internet literally is just another form of communication. Why can’t people just treat it like that? It’s so weird that people’s knee-jerk response is toxicity and being braindead.
It amazes me when people use Facebook to spew the most vile shit imaginable, when they’re using their real name, pictures of themselves and their kids, with their location easily accessible. I’m surprised the murder rate over Facebook fights isn’t astronomically high. I used to act like that when I was 17, but I know 30-60 year olds who are playing with absolute fire on there, without any anonymity. They’re also mostly fine seeming IRL, even though their inner, fascist demons are on full display online.
I’m mostly here for sources, non-Western news and viewpoints and the comradery.
I sometimes discuss things in liberal spaces but in general I don’t bother too much with Redditors really. I do enough outreach and education in real life, where I can make more of an impact.
I don’t see anything wrong with this being your only social media. It can be an echo chamber, but imo there is a lot of valuable discussion going on here. Discussing on social media can be ass, because you can easily get called what you mentioned above. There’s often no pointin engaging.
There are probably a few online spaces its still worth engaging liberals in, and we gotta give props to the ppl still trying to educate them even on cesspools like reddit and twitter. I’m like u tho, I lost the patience for it years ago… the more in depth you learn about Marxism, the more the societal rejection of it sounds like people denying newton or darwin.
I think mostly non-political spaces, those devoted to arts, media, science, music, could potentially be spaces to influence them.
I pretty much only use Lemmygrad. It can be an echo chamber, I guess, but honestly after engaging in so much bad faith and just plain ignorant discussion I feel it is justified. Like SovereignState said, when we are as isolated and silenced as we are, there really isn’t much else to do.
I think the only answer is to really get out in real life and try to change people/discuss that way.
Most people don’t give a fk. They just wanna be part of what’s popular, even if that’s literally fascism. If they regurgitate the line, nobody sees them as strange, and their way of life is not threatened. If someone goes against the status quo that shakes their boots and they react viscerally. It’s okay to give up on people like that. You can trust them to react in this way. Really it’s sad they don’t know any better. Full of hatred to what they simply don’t or can’t comprehend. Treat them nicely bc they’re nearly mindless. As soon as the insults start flying. Goodbye. You can’t change these people, they’re pretty much cursed.
Maybe some day they’ll realize they’re so hateful. Maybe you can ask them why they are so hateful. It’s up to you, but don’t be troubled by them. Nice to have you on lemmygrad!
Recently, I made a comment critical of Ukraine under (I think) an r/pics post, and unsurprisingly, I got called mentally ill, and someone sent me that mental help thing that Redditors like to troll people with.
On one hand, posting or just browsing echo chambers probably isn’t the best thing, and anything you post or comment is just preaching to the choir.
On the other, going to other platforms with views different from yours often just seems futile, because it’ll likely be an echo chamber for another view, and even if it’s not, people rarely ever discuss divisive topics online with an open mind— all they want is dick-measuring contests disguised as “debates” and to own the other side with facts and logic or whatever, and I’m guilty of this myself.
Reddit, Twitter, Facebook ect are completely lost causes as far as I’m concerned. Those platforms are completely under the grip of US security, its only a matter of time before any communist discourse is banned from them completely.
In terms of arguing with liberals I feel like it’s important to pick and choose when. Any of my close friends or family for example I will aggressively combat any liberal nonsense coming out of their mouths because I care about these people on a personal level. Reactionaries in my community or even worse, reactionary strangers on the internet, are likely not worth my time because they won’t even try to listen or consider alternative perspectives.
yep. everything with an “algorithm” is code word for controlled alienation echo chamber. it is pointless to engage in those platforms. all you do is waste your time. post your mao quotes, your friends will only see your weding pictures and ads for the latest handgun.
only way to engage liberals is to compromise. we need a post modern version of social democracy, which was the first compromise but is already too left since the “left” party is way to the rigth everywhere
Well, from the Freeze Peach Free Marketplace of Ideas perspective? Yes.
But we live in an attention economy. We’re being so bombarded with information and opinions that we simply can’t entertain them all. So you don’t owe anyone your attention and brain space. Block away, stay in the safe confines of the echo chamber.
I had to deal with the same pure neoliberal ideology from my parents, and I gotta say, not good for anyone’s mental health. There is only so many times we can explain.
You can just tell them that China is better than them in every way that counts and now has sufficient means to kill them if they decide to step out of line. Tell them to be humble because China is beyond their impudant little grasp.
my taste in boot licking is better than yours!
– you.
China good, US bad
China good. USA bad.
Glory to the PRC. Death to the USA.
look at you, being a shitstain
We’ll be riding our high-speed rail, watching taikonauts on TV, in cities powered by fusion power, while the next dementia-ridden 5% approval-rating geriatric who runs the USA will be telling you how he needs more funding for cops because of the 80% houselessness rate. Go on and cry about having an even whinier, more pathetic decline than the british empire.
booooo
Reddit just isn’t the place for these discussions considering it’s a cesspool and seldom a good take will ever appear in large communities. Like twitter, we all know the big subreddits have been flooded with pro-west sentiment and propaganda. I don’t think it’s worth it. I still do use twitter so I’m a bit hypocritical lol.
There are comrades on twitter but they are difficult to find because of the algorithm. I’ve only been able to find them because I follow left-wing people in general. But even when you find comrades you will always find their tweets being flooded by, not only libs, but little loser neo-Nazis. They’re much braver than I, being so open about your politics on fucking twitter and still going even with all the harassment. I retweet and like but I’m too scared to comment. Lets not forget the fact that Twitter, in their trending section, is exclusively running “coverage” on Ukraine. This only pushes people in one direction considering whose narrative they decide to spread, and with the fear mongering of “Russian State Affiliated Media”:
So to me, if you’re okay with dealing with all that then you’ll find some good people on Twitter, but there is risk considering the amount of fascists infesting the site. I don’t comment much on my comrades’ tweets because I don’t want problems yet.
When it comes to people in real life I just tend to pick and choose my battles. Some people who aren’t too involved in politics I can talk to, but others who are involved (not academically) in current events or have strong political views (I.e. racist AF) I tend to avoid for now.
I only say all this to illustrate my own experiences and choices. There are people on twitter who don’t have worms in their brain, but those that do will flock to those who don’t just to be a dick, or worse, dox them. Also the warnings for certain media sources can be a real struggle. I don’t think it’s wrong to stick to Lemmygrad considering the amount of depraved individuals that hang out on more mainstream social media, I only ever talk extensively on here. I stick on Twitter because, even subtly, I want to at least help a little with spreading our messages.
Your mental health also matters. If even the thought of these people flocking to you with their bullshit causes you any distress or exhaustion, it’s probably not worth it. Debating doesn’t really go anywhere unless people are genuinely wanting to listen. Social media brings out the worst in people so there’s a good chance no one is arguing in good faith. There, unfortunately, are real life consequences for being an outspoken ML. Doxxing is real, and because these sites are lenient (at best) on explicit fascists, there’s a chance they will try to find personal information. I don’t want to scare you or anyone, but it is a reality for marxists online, especially if you live in the west/NATO affiliated country.
So honestly, if you can mentally/emotionally handle the chance of dumbasses flooding your notifications: go for it. Try not to debate as it never works. At most the best you can do is share sources and accurate information. People will either take it, or most likely, won’t bother to engage. If you’re not worried about physical harassment, or are in a place where that won’t be an issue: go for it. For me, I’m waiting until I get my degree to even bother engaging explicitly with “the masses” because at least then I’ll have a little bit of “paper protection”.
Wall of text lmao but hopefully explaining my personal experiences/views can help you make a decision.
I’ve taken a page from the right and consistently toe the line to see how much I can get away with. Before they know it I’m posting Houthi music and taking selfies in front of my bookcase with Quotations from Mao in full view.
It’s completely natural to want to stay away. Even lemmy.ml, which is still full of commenters from Lemmygrad, makes me somewhat uncomfortable, never mind hellholes like R*ddit (aside from specific sections like /r/sino). Still, for those who are mentally stable enough to deal with it, there are always some liberals who can be convinced on those kinds of websites, although it’s probably more productive to organize in person if you’re capable of doing that
If your views are never challenged, you’ll never grow as a person.
On the topic of chinese foreign policy, isn’t that usually «Bully whomever mentions Taiwan until they leave»? Seems to me you only got a taste of the product you’re peddling.
Taiwan is a province of China.
You are resurrecting 9 month old threads.
