#and continue to happen under biden

[eruhamster]

Evil hot take is that if we're talking in terms of 'harm reduction' between the dude that pussied out of a coup because he doesn't actually want real power and the dude actively funding genocide and getting into a war with one of the world's poorest countries to continue to fund that genocide, there's something to be said that while their actions are largely the same, only one of these individuals make people think critically about the government. only one of these individuals is hated by the news enough that his actions are reported on as the terrible things they are

like we know what 4 years of both biden and trump are and we are not all dead in the streets. like people act like will happen if the 'wrong guy' wins. i'm not voting for war mongers but if you really want to talk harm reduction, given that there's no true reduction of harm on a governmental level from either of these individuals, there is an argument you can make if you wanna really piss people off that a trump presidency ensures that people stay informed on matters that they'd normally turn a blind eye to

literally everything awful that you can think of that trump enacted either was happening or has continued to happen under democratic presidencies, just with less air time. the only separate thing is... The Obvious. The capitol riot. And he pussied out of it, which I feel like... Is proof that the dude is all talk and no bite and does not want actual power. He got scared when it became a potential reality and told everyone to go home. I don't think that he'll be a considerable threat going forward, I'm more concerned of any republicans that do want power (and thank god Ron DeSantis dropped out). But also if he does become more of a threat, my more evil hot take is that you can look at it from an accelerationist perspective, and... "Biden is the harm reduction" still isn't set in stone, US collapse from Trump holding onto power could feasibly be a better outcome than Biden kicking the can down the road until we end up with a real dictator who can install fascism in a way that would unify both parties and not just splinter the country.

[wheelie-sick]

You are very aware of what Trump will do.

Not voting could very much give Trump the advantage in this election.

And while Palestine is important.

So are your rights in your own country.

That Trump wil definitely make sure that you have less of if he becomes president.

So I really struggle to understand.

By not voting.

You basically say

I don't care who wins the election.

When this is literally about your own rights.

Why do you care more about Palestine than yourself?

if you think that I care more about myself than the 2 million people in Gaza and the 3 million people in West Bank you are so incredibly wrong. My love for Palestine is immeasurable and my hatred for genocide is equally infinite

"in your own country" I do not recognize this place as a country. it is illegitimate.

[sliceofdyke]

idc how long we've been mutuals if you reblog a post trying to guilt people into "voting blue no matter who" i'm softblocking. ESPECIALLY if the posts mention palestine. see my previously reblogged posts for further elaboration

[the-voice-of-night-vale]

whatever ur electoral decision is. can we PLEASE stop pretending america is a democracy. it is, and has always been, a farse of a democracy at best. the electoral college? the supreme court? anyone?? i remember finding those things distinctly undemocratic in middle school.

saying that 'we're choosing between fascism and democracy' is just patently untrue and frankly disrespectful to the vulnerable people who have been harmed by the authoritarian state even (and in some cases ESPECIALLY) under democrats.

(and before you say, "okay, fascism vs worse fascism" please take a moment and think about how fucking insane that is.)

[altruistic-meme]

shoutout to walmart for doing more for my community than the government officials are

[overclockedopossum]

OK fuck it. I've seen this post cross my dash twice already and left it but I'm sick of it. Truth is always your ally when you're in the right, and this post is lacking in truth.

Firstly, let me point out what the OP is doing. This is a style of argument called a "gish gallop" - but I've also seen it called a "trump tirade". You make a series of shaky assertions in quick succession. Since it takes a lot longer to demonstrate the truth than it does to assert a half-truth, this is a way to mislead people while being difficult and time-consuming to fact-check (see the length of what follows...).

Since the advised way to deal with this is to focus on the shakiest claim, let's do that. I'll get to Israel as well, because that's relevant. But the absolute worst part is an X in the Trump column for "vaccines and public health". Sure, pick a random antivaxxer and odds are they'll be a trump supporter. However the reality is that the Trump administration were responsible for starting "operation warp speed" and delivering covid-19 vaccines in the USA (and across the world). You cannot sum up a presidency that put tens of billions of dollars into vaccine development with "vaccines and public health: X". That is not truthful.

I do want to briefly mention that some of the items on the list are empty non-items. What's "advocating racial equality"? Is it doing anything, or is it saying words? The number of police killings has gone up under Biden, who opened his presidency by using federal agents in much the way Trump did. His 2022 budget was criticised for increasing the amount of money given to US police. But those are actions, not words. He may advocate racial equality but that doesn't do much.

Anyway, Israel. This is the big one. I'm going to focus on gojira007's addition, as there's more of an argument to engage with, and that will in passing cover the claims made by the OP.

With that said, gojira007's argument is really misleading. Saying that trump's stated goal is to "finish the job" implies continuing forever, but even just clicking through to the article will tell you "he would advise Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to swiftly conclude Israel's war in Gaza". Read more into it and you'll find he's said “We’ve got to get to peace. You can’t have this going on, and I will say Israel has to be very careful because you are losing a lot of the world. You are losing a lot of support.” Looks a lot like support for a ceasefire to me! I have encountered people who genuinely read Trump's stance as "nuke gaza" in order to finish the job, but that's obviously completely at odds with his stated concern about international support.

To the other claim - "Biden is one of the only American Presidents in my lifetime to threaten limiting Military Aid to Israel" - that article is from May. Click through to read and it related to an invasion of Rafah, which was carried out. Was the threat carried out? Not according to the guardian:

Biden has not delivered on his threat to curb arms deliveries, which would have triggered outrage from not just Republicans but pro-Israel Democrats. Administration officials have instead sought to parse what “going into Rafah” means. When he issued his ultimatum a month ago, Biden had suggested it meant the IDF advancing to the city’s “population centres”. That has clearly already happened, but US officials are now arguing the forays so far have not been “major operations”.

It is true that Biden had prior to that threat already halted shipments of the very biggest bombs, but that doesn't seem to have changed anything. It's worth noting that both of the Bushes achieved actual changes in Israel's behaviour by threatening loan guarantees (this may or may not be outside gojira007's lifetime). Moreover, this should also be viewed in the context of how extreme Israel's current behaviour is - while there have absolutely been threats to Israel's aid before I'm not sure if there has ever been a period of sustained military action that has killed this many Palestinians. Incidentally, the current war isn't even the first Israeli atrocity during the Biden administration.

It's difficult to say what would be different under Trump when it comes to Palestine, because October 7th doesn't have an equivalent. However while he's clearly no friend to Palestinians, having recognised disputed and illegal Israeli claims, he has also pushed for peace (as long as it doesn't inconvinience Israel). When there was a pretext for bombings Trump did purport to "support Israel 100%", but the result was nowhere near as disproportionate as what's happening now.

Overall I don't think there's evidence that Trump would fail to clear the historically low bar that has been set by the Biden administration when it comes to avoiding killing in Gaza. While there are other aspects of his policy regarding Israel that you can criticise (at least some of which Biden has continued), it is not truthful to suggest he's worse than Biden on the matters of either military support or a ceasefire.

Right. I wish I was done, but one other thing.

if you want to vote for a third party, what you are going to do is vote for biden in november 2024 and then as soon as that’s done, start trying to get ranked choice voting in your state

I would argue this is something like the Nirvana Fallacy. If it's plausible to get ranked choice voting while continuing to vote blue across the board, then it would be a wonderful solution. Do you think it's plausible, reader? Or is it just being said to shut you up?

Personally, I'm old enough to remember the last three election cycles where leftists were told "first vote blue but after that you can try to push the person you already voted for left I guess" (the cycle before that Obama actually looked promising). At some point you have to draw a line.

Besides, I would suggest that ranked choice is far more likely to be adopted by the DNC if lack of it is perceived to be hurting them at the ballot box. That means a third-party vote high enough to swing the election, cast by people who will not be bullied back into voting DNC by pied piper tactics in place of policy improvements.

(Obligatory: obviously not voting at all is pointless, if you can it's worth going to the ballot boxes and voting Green. Furthermore, voting for congresspeople, on ballot measures etc is important - don't take out your dislike of Biden on DNC candidates for congress! Also, the more local stuff can often make a massive difference.)

(by all means take out your dislike of specific DNC candidates on those candidates at the ballot box if there's good reason to but control of congress is very important whoever is in the white house)

Look.

I have made you a chart. A very simple chart.

People say "You have to draw the line somewhere, and Biden has crossed it-" and my response is "Trump has crossed way more lines than Biden".

These categories are based off of actual policy enacted by both of these men while they were in office.

If the ONLY LINE YOU CARE ABOUT is line 12, you have an incredible amount of privilege, AND YOU DO NOT CARE ABOUT PALESTINIANS. You obviously have nothing to fear from a Trump presidency, and you do not give a fuck if a ceasefire actually occurs. You are obviously fine if your queer, disabled, and marginalized loved ones are hurt. You clearly don't care about the status of American democracy, which Trump has openly stated he plans to destroy on day 1 he is in office.

[fairuzfan]

I was debating whether or not to say this because it makes the vote blue crowd more insufferable but it's telling how no one knows *how* trump is "worse" than biden with his promises about palestine. They mention how he says he wants israel to "finish the job" but biden has been doing everything but outright saying that he wants the Gaza invasion to continue. He doesn't need to say it, he let's it happen. Interestingly, they don't mention how trump took money from the adelson family under the condition that he lets israel "annex" the west bank but rather just focus on nebulous "he's worse because he's the bad guy" type vibes.

I mean this is interesting because it shows that you all have no idea about foreign policy other than just vibes, with no... intent to actually educate yourself about concrete facts. Yet you still expect us to take you seriously politically by just telling us "trump is worse than biden about Palestine" without you even being aware about policy relating to Palestine. How many of you knew about the Abraham Accords when it happened? I literally sat in my car listening to npr the day it happened and cried in the garage of my college. So many of you vote blue people have not seriously followed news about Palestine before and it shows with your flimsy explanations lol.

Do I want a trump presidency? No of course not. But if you're serious about caring for Palestine, you'd make actual arguments instead of these "he's worse than biden" copypasta to try and convince people.

[chilewithcarnage]

she said the quiet part out loud basically 'i care more about lgbt rights than black rights because I'm not black'

YouTube has been giving me nonstop ads for Kamala’s campaign and not one of them has mentioned LGBT people or any group that votescolds on this site seem to think she’s fighting for. which could mean nothing.

[ahaura]

i saw someone point out the frequency with which liberals back social justice movements... how, for instance, when ferguson happened under obama it was not popular and there were many, many liberals who found the blm movement, in a sense, "in violation of [liberal] sensibilities" (when liberalism as a rule does not challenge the status quo, only maintains it and sees any call for revolution or real change as disruptive or 'bad for optics' and therefore not acceptable) but then when trump became president and he opposed blm a lot more liberals decided that the blm movement had merit because they viewed it from a team-sports perspective rather than a worldview based on morals and an understanding of the systems in place in the U.S. - that it was more comfortable for them to operate from a "trump bad" basis rather than "the american justice system and the police are inherently white supremacist, which are inherently, automatically, and always violent"

+ that, if trump was president while israel is carrying out its genocide, liberals would have NO problem denouncing israel and demanding for a ceasefire because they're comfortable operating from the 2-party system basis, NOT from a framework based on material conditions or factors or any acknowledgement or analysis of imperialism, colonialism, or capitalism. but because biden is a democrat, and democrats are supposed to be "the decent party" "the lesser evil" "more respectable" when, in functionality - in real practice, they don't want to disrupt the status quo. (internally, maintaining systems of white supremacy and capitalism; externally, furthering U.S. imperialism by maintaining hegemony and continuing the practice of exploitation and extraction of labor+capital+resources from the global south)

which is why we're here, a month into a genocide, and liberals are so cowardly and gutless that, in the face of our democrat president allowing and funding the genocide of palestinians in order for the U.S. to maintain its military base in the middle east, liberals IMMEDIATELY jump to "well, you HAVE to vote for him still, because trump will be worse!" and go "well im powerless there's nothing i can do", immediately folding like a wet paper bag in the face of the american empire rearing its ugly head in the most blatant, naked way in years, instead of thinking "this is unacceptable, i should pressure my elected officials and do everything i can - be it combating propaganda, contacting my congresspeople or senators, protesting, or engaging in direct action - to ensure this stops as quickly as possible".

there are liberals STILL IN MY NOTIFICATIONS who go "well you'll be electing a fascist if you vote for trump" not realizing that YOU CAN'T SIMPLY VOTE FASCISM AWAY. (which is not to say you should vote for republicans; that's not what i'm saying. none of us have said it.) we're pretty much already there. it's 2003 all over again, with the patriot act and all. the american war machine is pumping out racist, orientalist, pro-colonial, pro-genocide propaganda on behalf of the ethno-state america and its allies have backed since the so-called state's inception. people are being doxxed, fired, harassed, and attacked for visibly supporting palestine/opposing israel. islamophobic hate crimes are on the rise; a 6 year old boy was murdered not one month ago, an arab doctor in texas was stabbed to death. antisemitism is on the rise as well, thanks to the conflation of antisemitism with anti-zionism (which nazis have and will attempt to co-op in order to 'justify' + then act on their antisemitism, racism, and genocidal worldviews). our government is silencing people, brutalizing protestors, and arming and funding an ethno-state committing genocide - everything that would have been called fascist if it was under trump. but because it's a *democrat* liberals place "vote blue no matter who" and "optics" over the extremely basic moral stance that "genocide is wrong and people have the right to self-determination, autonomy, and life". arabs and muslims are already so dehumanized in the west that liberals (whether they consider themselves liberals or not) consider it an inconvenience to talk about the ongoing genocide that is happening with the blessing of OUR government. in this they expose their selfishness, the shallowness of their morals, their chauvinism, and their racism/orientalism/islamophobia/et cetera.

for example, if you see israeli troops waving a gay pride flag and the israeli state touting its support of gay people while said iof soldiers are murdering men, women, and children en masse every single day and you somehow????? think that because gay people are the ones doing the killing or a state claims to support gay people is doing the killing is ok then 1) you have fallen for pinkwashing propaganda and 2) that you find the murder of palestinians, or any people, permissible by a colonial force that uses causes liberals may genuinely care about in order to disguise, whitewash, or "lessen" the severity of the injustices it does unto usually black and brown people outside of the U.S., then you are just as bloodthirsty and depraved as anyone you would personally assign those descriptors of.

once again, it goes back to resorting to a team-sport understanding of the world rather than approaching it from a material one.

[potofsoup]

i love your fourth of july comics every year but this years feels extremely optimistic about biden’s abilities in the face of him letting roe get overturned and funding a gen*cide at worst or letting it happen at best by taking the bare minimum of regulatory action… i mean can he really be trusted at all anymore to do the right thing or act in line with the people’s demands? and how do we know the people behind project 2025 won’t just rig the election again to get in under false pretenses?

Hihi! Thank you for reading and enjoying my July 4th comics every year! I am in a non-US airport en route to a month-long trip in a place with sketchy internet, so sorry in advance for sloppiness in my response (and potentially going radio silent).

But:

I don't think he "let" Roe get overturned, since that was the Supreme Court's overwhelming conservative majority, which really started with Mitch McConnell refusing to approve Obama's appointee and forcing it into a 2016 election issue. The fact that Trump got to appoint 3 Supreme Court Justices is what got us here.

Re: Biden and the Israel/Hamas war ... on the one hand, there's definitely more that he could have done, but on the other hand, they are a whole other country over there. It's Hamas that initiated the Oct 7 attacks and took the hostages. It's Netanyahu and his right-wing government who decided to retaliate to such extreme extent. Biden can talk about how he would really like Netanyahu to stop fighting and step down, but at the end of the day that's not his call, any more than he can stop the Sudan fighting that is near-genocidal either.

So, to come to your question #1: "Can he really be trusted at all anymore to do the right thing or act in line with the people’s demands"?

For me, it's a resounding YES. Guyz, he has passed so much good domestic policies. My spouse works in green energy and the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act halved his anxiety and gave him legitimate hope. The tumblr post I linked to in my comic has links to many of the other great things that Biden has done. Tbh I voted for him in 2020 because "a moldy onion is still better than Trump", and I've been pleasantly surprised. Like how he tried to cancel student loans, the Supreme Court overturned it, and then he came back 6 months later with a different way to do it that didn't lead to a court challenge.

Is he perfect? Hell no. There's tons of stuff that I wish he did more about, or he went further on, but also he's just one guy heading one branch of government who is heading into an election year. (Just like FDR promising not joining WWII, while behind the scenes doing all the Lend-Lease Act stuff). And "the people" have lots of demands, many of them conflicting.

I'd also like to push at the unspoken part of your question... "Can he really be trusted to do the right thing..." compared to whom? Because right now the answer is "compared to Trump." And compared to Trump... I don't even trust Trump to respect the results of a legitimate election. Heck, he might just take his favorite state secrets, sell them to the highest bidder (or just show them off to someone for funzies), and then claim Presidential immunity. A decent Democrat who got stuff done vs someone who probably wants to pardon himself and all his friends and do Project 2025 stuff is not even on the same level. (Do I wish that there was a viable Democratic alternative to Biden? Sure! But who?) Heck, at this point -- imagine if it's Kamala Harris vs. Trump. Who would you vote for?

As for your question #2: "How do we know the people behind project 2025 won’t just rig the election again to get in under false pretenses?"

We don't. But also what can we do besides showing up to vote?

Actually, I need bullet points for this:

The 2022 midterm elections brought in fewer-than-expected election-deniers into crucial electoral offices at the state level, which means that hopefully most state electoral boards will continue to have integrity

Yes, voting is harder but at least we can still vote. So it's about getting out there and getting your vote counted. For some states, it involves waiting in 8 hour lines. For some states, it involves bringing 2 forms of ID. Document. Track. Make sure it's dropped off in a real ballot box and not a fake one. Don't believe messaging that the voting is happening on a different day or location, etc.

A 50.1% majority is easily challenged. A 55% majority, less so. Which means getting people out to vote.

The more people know about and think about the reality of a second Trump term (versus being disappointed by a Biden term), the more they will be motivated to vote against Trump.

Finally, let's be real here: I'm braced for a 2nd Trump term. That said:

I'm still going to go and vote for Biden, because the only way to prevent a 2nd Trump term is to vote.

A Trump term where either the House or Senate is controlled by the Democrats will be *very* different from a clean Republican sweep.

Even with a clean Republican sweep on the federal level, States have so much more power now, and voting the state level stuff will help shore up Democratic goals for the future. States get to draw voting districts however they want. States get to decide on abortion policies. If you live in a deep Red state, there still might be things to vote for that make it easier to live in now, and turn it purple a few elections down the line.

So at the end of the day, it's "Vote AND". Vote and keep living your best life. Vote and tell others about Project 2025. Vote and have hope. Even if Trump wins, at least you'll have voted against him. Vote and stay to build up a progressive wave for the next election.

[anarchywoofwoof]

"This year we have seen many defining elections all over the world. On November 5th, it is time for one of the most powerful countries in the world - the USA - to go to the polls. It is probably impossible to overestimate the consequences this specific election will have for the world and for the future of humanity.

There is no doubt that one of the candidates - Trump - is way more dangerous than the other. But no matter if Trump or Harris wins, the USA - a country built on stolen land and genocide on indigenous people - will still be an imperialist, hyper-capitalist world power that will ultimately continue to lead the world further into a racist, unequal world with an ever increasingly escalating climate and environmental emergency.

With this in mind, my main message to Americans is to remember that you cannot only settle for the least worst option. Democracy is not only every four years on election day, but also every hour of every day in between. You cannot think you have done "enough" only by voting, especially when both those candidates have blood on their hands.

Let's not forget that the genocide in Palestine is happening under the Biden and Harris administration, with American money and complicity. It is not in any way "feminist", "progressive" or "humanitarian" to bomb innocent children and civilians - it is the opposite, even if it is a woman in charge. And this is of course one example among many of American imperialism. I cannot for my life understand how some can even pretend to talk about humanitarian values, without even questioning their own role in further deepening global oppression and massacres of entire countries.

So, Americans, you must do everything in your power to call out this extreme hypocrisy and the catastrophic consequences American imperialism has on a global scale. Be uncomfortable, fill the streets, block, organize, boycott, occupy, explicitly call out those in power whose actions and inaction lead to death and destruction. Join and support those who are resisting and leading the change. Nothing less will ever be acceptable."

Greta Thunberg, 11/01/2024

[spaghettioverdose]

“Y’all are just going to have to live with a tanking quality of life and oppression” is not the best way to radicalize people in the US

Yeah you're going to have to live with shit. Do you want me to say "no, you all need to make a suicide pact now" or something? Brazilians made it through Bolsonaro, you can survive Trump.

Regardless, it is borderline delusional to think Biden will win. Best case scenario is the blue team replaces him with some guy who is at least mildly charismatic and is willing to give like two whole concessions to the usamerican working class. Biden is an unpopular president who is too old to even do this shit and has been at best dead at the wheel for 4 years.

Also what do you mean tanking quality of life and oppression? As opposed to what? Sunshine and rainbows during Biden? Was it good? Did you get financial aid? Did the blue team protect your rights? Were the last 4 years good? Will any of you admit that he didn't do shit for you either or are you too busy foaming at the mouth about orange man? You will continue to have tanking quality of life because there's been a recession. You're going to have to deal with oppression no matter which team is leading. Every right you lost in the past years has been under Biden.

Would it kill you to imagine the concept of political action outside of the electoral system? Not one of the rights that have been gained for oppressed groups in the US have been gained by begging the democrats. Not one.

And I'm just talking about what has been happening within the US. If anyone talks about what effects your presidents have on other countries, especially the global south, you all stick your fingers in your ears and scream about tankies.

Maybe you assholes need 4 more years of Trump so you remember how to protest. Maybe you'll remember about kids in cages and police brutality again because none of that even slowed down during Biden but everyone stopped talking about it.

[unrelaxing]

From a country where voting is not a choice, but a duty, it's interesting seeing American discourse every four years on whether or not voting matters. This year there's an added layer, because Joe Biden has been supporting Israel's genocide against Palestine. Now there's a pervading sentiment - both in and out of the US - that voting for Joe Biden supports Palestinian genocide, and it's an American's moral duty to withhold their vote in support of Palestine.

I guess the question I ask is: how is withholding your vote effective activism?

If you don't vote, and Trump wins, he says he will deport pro-Palestine demonstrators. He says he supports Israel's right to defend itself. If you vote independent, and Trump wins the same thing happens.

If Biden wins, he will continue his support of Israel.

So: Is voting really the battleground for the Palestinian genocide, when either outcome leads down the same road?

And what other battles are being fought in this presidential race?

Gun laws - Biden passed "the most significant gun safety legislation in more than two decades", the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It includes enhanced background checks for gun purchasers, and prohibits individuals convicted of domestic violence towards a romantic partner from purchasing a gun (wherein the past a 'boyfriend loophole' had existed, wherein the law only applied if an individual was convicted of domestic violence against a spouse or cohabitant). Trump has promised to overturn Biden's new laws.

Healthcare - Uninsured Americans are at an all-time low under Biden's administration, with only 7.6% of Americans being uninsured in the second quarter of 2023. The number of people who signed up to Obamacare in 2024 is at 21.3 million - and Trump plans to repeal it.

Climate change - Biden's Inflation Reduction Act invests 300 billion dollars towards clean energy. Electricity generation from renewable energy sources — including wind, solar and hydropower — surpassed coal-fired generation in the electric power sector for the first time in 2022, making it the second-biggest source behind natural gas generation. At a recent dinner with oil executives and lobbyists, the Republican promised to eliminate Mr Biden's new climate rules and environmental regulations if they donated $1bn to his campaign.

Much has been said about Trump's second term beyond the above three points. @batboyblog posted a very clear and concise graphic on Trump's plans for his second term.

The BBC has also posted about Trump's plans for his second term, which I'll screenshot:

Trump is now a felon, but I was really shocked to learn about how little impact this has on his ability to run as president. His supporters are likely to stay by his side, because they believe in these policies.

Biden does not have the same luxury. I don't think he should have the same luxury. Still, I feel like it's important to point out that Trump and Biden's opinions on Israel and Palestine align, but there are a plethora of other issues they do not align on. As a voter, as an activist, when given two political parties, why would you choose based on the similarities as opposed to the differences?

Ways to help Gaza.

Vetted gofundmes.

Other links to help Palestine.

[psychotrenny]

Like when are all of Biden's idiot fans gonna realise that he is not the "lesser evil". They love threatening people with how any opposition to Biden is gonna let Trump win and how Trumps gonna do all these awful things to the US as though said awful things aren't already happening under Biden. Increased border militarisation and deportation of migrants, loss of reproductive rights, legal assaults on the existence of gay and transgender people, corporate malpractice, police brutality etc etc. Like they're not just continuing to happen they've actually gotten worse under Biden than they were under the Orange Satan himself. The only substantial difference between them is foreign policy and in that area Biden is actually even bloodthirsty; in particular he's been an especially bad zionist for his entire political career and there's nothing to indicate that Trump would have somehow handled it worse beyond the mindless truism of "Orange Man Bad". Looking at their actual policies, voting for Joe Biden isn't gonna protect anyone within the US and is arguably more dangerous for the rest of the world (i.e. where the majority of the world's population lives). There is no "harm reduction" here.

If you're actually looking to help create a better world and protect vulnerable people, as opposed to feeling good that you helped the blue team win, then you're going to have to do it through avenues beyond voting for Joe. Vote third party, withhold your vote to pressure the democrats into nominating a better candidate, engage in action beyond electoralism; there are plenty of options out there. And they're all more effective than lecturing people on the computer (most of whom don't even live in your country they're just part of your empire and so forced to follow the politics) about how being mean to Biden makes you functionally a fascist or whatever

[qqueenofhades]

But…but…Biden has a great team of ethical, effective, smart, not evil people around him who are not 81. Also, if he gets elected and becomes senile or dies of old age or something, we have a procedure for that and then we end up with a president Harris who will probably be swell!

Cheeto Hitler (NOT THAT MUCH YOUNGER) is probably never going to die bc he’s like a cockroach, but if he got elected and did, we’d still have the axis of evil to contend with, who will be swiftly dismantling democracy as fast as their bloody, bejeweled hands can do it.

I mean... yes. This. You are not just voting for one person, you are voting for the entire team that you want to run the country. Biden is the manager and most prominent player on that team, but regardless of what SCOTUS says, he is not the only almighty god-king. When you vote for team blue, you are voting for the people who staff every federal agency, the cabinet picks, the judges who will be appointed (already the most diverse ever selected and a MAJOR issue due to the possibility of SCOTUS seats, which may be filled under Biden but WILL be filled under Trump when Thomas and Alito retire to make way for younger wingnuts), the ambassadors and diplomats, the people who make foreign and domestic policy. Etc. Etc. You are not only choosing one person, and as noted, if Biden God forbid DID bite the dust, there is a perfectly competent and indeed very historic replacement ready to take over. That is the Vice President's literal entire job and always has been.

When you vote for team blue, you are voting for a team of (for the most part) well-meaning, diverse, intelligent, qualified people who want to make life better for America/the world, and who genuinely believe in democracy as a concept. They are flawed, because they are human, but they are still by any reasonable metric the only choice at hand. That is because team fascist, uh, red, has literally descended to the depths of cartoonish and unimaginable evil and continues to make their intentions clear at every moment. Any argument to the contrary is thus delusional and wishful thinking. As such, I literally do not care if you think Biden is personally the antichrist. You are not exempted from the moral duty to do everything possible to stop the other guys from getting into power, and if that is voting for the team that Biden happens to currently manage, so be it. Anyone saying otherwise is either a Russian psyop, a tankie, a doomer, a bot, or an idiot, and none of those are your friend. Voting is the number one most repeatedly reliable tool at hand to fumigate fascists. I suggest we use it.

[aftaylorglow]

i want so badly for taylor swift to speak out against israel and the genocide this apartheid state is committing in palestine. im so proud of her and everything she has achieved this year, starting from the eras tour to her successful rerecords. it’s not a surprise she’s on top of many year-end most influential/best of the best lists.

but what then? what use is her ever-growing influence? it’s ridiculous to say but she’s the only one who has enough of a sway to make people actually pay attention to something. just look at how the voter registration in the US spiked again when she posted about it a few months ago. how the NFL had boosted views for the simple fact that she was attending the games. can you imagine how much the tides would change if she denounced israel’s atrocities? if she rallied for support for palestinians? the legions of swifties would actually listen and pay attention. because right now only a very small fraction of us care, truly care, about what’s happening. the rest are too busy fishing for a taylor nation notice.

yes, taylor swift cannot end wars. no, it’s not taylor swift’s job to make life better for an oppressed population. but she has the platform, the momentum, and the voice to bring all these issues to light.

this is not to mention how the apartheid state has been using her pictures, her lyrics, even the friendship bracelets to further their propaganda. did taylor not fervently oppose the n@zis who were calling her an aryan goddess a few years ago? even if this is all she does now, ask them not to use her for their propaganda, it would already do so much.

instead she’s silent. when her influence is needed the most, she’s not there.

the sad thing is, we all know she’ll live and thrive if she chooses to stay silent. hell, i have tickets to see her next year. she’ll continue to be successful and she will put out more albums and she’ll earn more money and she’ll be safe and happy. palestinians have none of any of this. some of them are dying under the rubble after their house is hit with b0mbs that israel is dropping as im typing this.

but if she uses her influence? if she puts pressure on the government, on joe biden whom she proudly endorsed, there’s a chance that she could tip the scales. and even if it doesn’t work, isn’t it better to have at least tried? even selfishly, will your conscience not feel lighter knowing you did something instead of nothing?

taylor, you have a ton of resources at your disposal. i hope you use them, and i hope you use your influence to help the palestinian people.