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Joined 4 months ago
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Cake day: July 3rd, 2024

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  • Late response (sorry!) but wanted to let you know that I appreciated the comment and details. Personally, this doesn’t convince me he’s a tankie, but that’s largely because I’m not familiar enough with Hakeem to know he’s a tankie, nor do I know what video you were referring to. Which is not to say you’re outright wrong — just that I would want to see more specifics to change my opinion, is all. All the same, I appreciate the effort and am happy to better understand your position.

    I do somewhat agree with your definition of a tankie, for what it’s worth. I don’t think saying the GOP and DNC are both bad is necessarily tankie behavior, but the rest makes sense. This said, I’ve personally seen extremely little defense of Russia from any far-left discourse, including communities close to Second Thought, and from what I hear from those communities China is still very divisive. You’ve clearly encountered worse though, and my experiences are limited, so take them for what you will.



  • I genuinely think now you’re a paid lobbyist. There is so much evidence

    Look, I get you strongly disagree with them, but please don’t fall into the trap of thinking people who disagree strongly with you aren’t real.

    Anti-capitalists have many, many issues with the Biden admin and Democrats generally, for a whole host of reasons. It doesn’t mean we want Trump to win, think he’s equally as bad, or want you to not vote. And it most certainly doesn’t make us paid shills. It just means we want better, and we are often frustrated at how “better” is never an option.

    I can’t speak for what Flash Mob’s beliefs are directly, but I can absolutely say I’ve been in a similar position. It is beyond aggravating to have no options that actually represent your beliefs, but to nonetheless have so many people around you insist that you should be happy about one of the awful options because the candidate in question – who is doing the things you hate – sometimes pays lip service to what you actually wanted. Or because it’s a woman doing it, now. Or, most frequently, because the Republicans managed to dig to an even deeper circle of Hell this time.

    Our options are terrible, and we’re pissed about it. But it doesn’t make us not real. All that accusations like that do is prevent people from being understood.



  • I’m not who you were replying to, but:

    It’s not so much that Trump and Kamala are the same. They aren’t, obviously – and for the record, the video agrees – it’s more that the Democrats here don’t really fix anything the Republicans break. Sure, Kamala is pro-abortion, et cetera, but how certain can I be that she’ll actually act on the principles she espouses? If the Biden admin is anything to go by, I can expect the occasional half-measure at best. Meanwhile, there are solid odds that she will continue to fund or otherwise enable the genocide in Gaza, at least tacitly.

    I’m going to vote for her, but not because she’s going to help me or anyone I care about. I’m voting for her because it is harm reduction; Kamala may be a neoliberal pro-cop warmonger, but the alternative is neo-Hitler. As far as presidential tickets go, I don’t have much of a choice, here.


  • This is something I occasionally hear and keep not understanding, and it makes me wonder if the word “tankie” is being thrown around a bit fast and loose. Last time I heard this, the reasoning referenced a Vaush video, which is… less than convincing.

    My working definition of “tankie” would be someone who unironically full-on likes China*, which is not a take I’ve ever known J.T. to have. Do you use a different definition than me, or do you have specific things you’re upset about?

    * Bear in mind I mean "likes China" here, not "thinks China and the U.S. are equally bad."






  • It is absolutely a reasonable interpretation to assume you were referring to the people making the decision you didn’t like. And even if it wasn’t, calling an idea a group of people have “incredibly fucking stupid” isn’t much different, as it carries an implication of how you see those people.

    If you feel other people are getting offended too easily at what you say, I recommend spending extra time on your posts to ensure you avoid saying derogatory things you don’t intend for. Something that looks good to you can be incredibly insulting to others who read differently from you, and since conversation is a two-way street, that’s the kind of thing we all need to be aware of.