I don’t disagree but the status quo is quite bad, and will remain bad with small incremental improvements. So yes, vote for harm reduction but that is the bare minimum. Find like-minded orgs in your area and get involved. I think one reason the US is in such a sorry state today is that most people think voting is the beginning and end of their involvement in democracy. I felt this way for most of my life but gradually I realized that no matter how good the intentions of the person you vote into office, the system will force them to stay within the bounds outlined by the powers that be and their interests. That’s why we need to build an equal or greater mass movement to demand leaders fight back. Obama spoke of this when he was in office but I didn’t quite understand what he meant at the time.
Mostly agree, but as someone disabled and unable to work, so fully reliant on the state for survival, I find minimising voting / both sides are evil rhetoric is terrifying.
It takes one very good election for the GOP, for me to become homeless, due to their proposes benefit cuts, and if I’m homeless I die. I’m severely immunodeficient and bedridden.
Yeah, voting is something that gets completely recharacterized when you think about it through the lens of harm reduction vs ideal broadcasting. (And, bluntly, for anyone reading this who might disagree: Since votes are private, they don’t cast ideals anyway.)
Damn that’s scary. Best of luck to you. But I still think your interests are best defended by grass-roots organizing. Of course my whole point is that this strategy is completely compatible with voting, so we need to do that as well.
I don’t disagree but the status quo is quite bad, and will remain bad with small incremental improvements. So yes, vote for harm reduction but that is the bare minimum. Find like-minded orgs in your area and get involved. I think one reason the US is in such a sorry state today is that most people think voting is the beginning and end of their involvement in democracy. I felt this way for most of my life but gradually I realized that no matter how good the intentions of the person you vote into office, the system will force them to stay within the bounds outlined by the powers that be and their interests. That’s why we need to build an equal or greater mass movement to demand leaders fight back. Obama spoke of this when he was in office but I didn’t quite understand what he meant at the time.
Mostly agree, but as someone disabled and unable to work, so fully reliant on the state for survival, I find minimising voting / both sides are evil rhetoric is terrifying.
It takes one very good election for the GOP, for me to become homeless, due to their proposes benefit cuts, and if I’m homeless I die. I’m severely immunodeficient and bedridden.
Yeah, voting is something that gets completely recharacterized when you think about it through the lens of harm reduction vs ideal broadcasting. (And, bluntly, for anyone reading this who might disagree: Since votes are private, they don’t cast ideals anyway.)
Damn that’s scary. Best of luck to you. But I still think your interests are best defended by grass-roots organizing. Of course my whole point is that this strategy is completely compatible with voting, so we need to do that as well.