• Empricorn@feddit.nl
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    1 month ago

    Voting. Voting could have been done. I know it sounds trite and overly simplistic, but that’s the power We The People have, as set up in the founding of our country. We just have to use it…

    How many people sat out in 2024, as everyone politically-engaged screamed that a Trump administration would be bad for the economy, bad for Palestinians, bad for Ukrainians, and bad for America (because it might literally elect a fascist dictator who will enact Project 2025 and refuse to give up their power)? Several thousand? That sounds reasonable, right? Maybe up to hundreds of thousands? Maybe even a million people…? No. 90 million people who were eligible to vote in the presidential election didn’t vote by mail, ignored the election drop boxes, and sat at home on Election Day.

    That’s enough to beat any entrenched political coalition opposed to progress. That’s not some “pie in the sky” fantasy, we literally had the numbers to accomplish every single political agenda that actually helps working Americans:

    #If “Did Not Vote” was a candidate:

    I say this all without an ounce of schadenfreude. I genuinely don’t want to hurt the faces of the people who voted for the leopards, not least of all because we all suffer along with them. I will keep shouting this point because we have to do better in the future. Voting isn’t always fun, but it’s the first and most powerful defense against a wannabe dictator like Trump or Musk. I literally don’t care how “not excited” you are about the candidate that doesn’t want to tear the US apart, you need to vote, and vote against fascism. That’s our only hope going forward… EDIT: Okay, maybe it’s not our only hope, but it’s where we have to start.

      • Empricorn@feddit.nl
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        1 month ago

        I guess we should actually try it first before succumbing to defeatism in advance, no? There’s a lot more of us than there is of them… What is it people say about the 4 Boxes to be used in defense of Liberty:

        1. soap
        2. ballot
        3. jury
        4. ammo

        “Please use in that order.”

        (That’s a quote from Frederick Douglas)

        • Dadd Volante@sh.itjust.works
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          1 month ago

          Exactly. We’ve never actually used our voting privileges. Not really.

          Whenever I hear the argument that voting doesn’t do anything, I cringe.

          When people show up (not just for presidential elections), shit gets done.

          But Muricans are lazy and expect others to do the work for them

    • zarkanian@sh.itjust.works
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      1 month ago

      we literally had the numbers to accomplish every single political agenda that actually helps working Americans

      Great! Now all you need is a candidate who runs on that.

      • TropicalDingdong@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        2024 was the biggest decline in votership (relative to the previous election: eg, participation) of the previous 40 years.

        Democrats:

        • nickwitha_k (he/him)@lemmy.sdf.org
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          1 month ago

          Sure looks to me like both Dems and people who couldn’t give enough of a shit to prevent fascist oligarchy are at fault. And neither side is likely to take responsibility for their actions in this lifetime.

          I’m sure looking forward to a significantly increased chance of my loved ones dying violent deaths because non-voters wanted to “send a message” in a manner that has never resulted in positive change in modern history. /S