While none of us were precisely born as liberals, the vast majority of us were raised as such.
If you could reach back in time to the past version of you that remained under the illusions of liberalism, what would you say?
People on the right are not working in good faith. There is no series of words you could say to any Republican politician, or most “regular conservatives,” that would make them understand the error of their ways and move to the left. They believe that the way that society is ordered, or was ordered in some imagined past, is the way it must be ordered. And while there may be people in power above them that they are subservient to, they are not at the bottom of the social order either, and they must protect their place in the existing structures of power. The suffering and pain that they inflict on others is not out of a misguided attempt to make the world a better place. The suffering and pain is the point; to keep those that they believe ought to be below them in line, to put those who have gotten out of line back in their place, or to eradicate those who might upset the social order they seek to protect.
And liberals will join those on the right if something threatens their comfort.
“Why is it we live in a democracy but our schools and jobs are dictatorships?”
The vast majority of families also function as dictatorships. This is a great point which I think would really make a lot of people stop and think.
“What if I told you that liberals aren’t leftists and that there are actual leftists out there, and they’re pretty cool?”
“You’re not the only one who feels this way.”
“It’s okay to be angry.”
imo there is nothing I could say to my old self to speed up the process. My whole move away from liberalism and into communism was gradual, but also punctuated by several real life moments that can’t be instilled in a person through words.
US hegemony was never about exporting democracy, it has always been about clearing the way for western capitalists to exploit other countries.
The Supreme Court is not an effective check and balance on the power of Congress, it’s a bulwark against progress.
The Democratic party is also captured by corporate interests.
I thought Jon Stewart pointing out right wing hypocrisy would surely change minds, if only I could show it to them. So I’d tell 2004 jimmy that shit doesn’t matter, at all. Enjoy the laughs but it’s not doing anything
“Isnt it weird how Finland has apparentely never done anything wrong? Remember that one punk looking dude in school who was talking about finnish concentration camps? Yeah look into that a bit. Oh also look into this transgender stuff a bit too, trust me.”
Listen, I know it’s tough right now, first Bernie drops out and now this dumb removed can’t even win, but I promise you, I promise you.
This is one of the funniest things that happens in your life :feast:
“You’re a girl idiot!”
My dad was your typical “centrist” republican and I was raised not to have opinions on things. The idealized man in my home was basically Eco’s ur-fascist. All of my communications with friends were monitored. One time I got in trouble for being gay because I wasn’t homophobic enough in turning down my friend’s advances. That sort of home.
The one thing I’d hammer into my young head is that nobody else knows what the fuck they’re talking about, either, and that goes double for anyone who claims otherwise. Just trust yourself to do what’s right and it’ll be fine. You might make mistakes, you might do the wrong thing sometimes, you might make people upset on occasion, but whatever, at least you’re making an effort. The desire to help others regardless of their “worth” doesn’t make you weak.
Happy you found a better place to be in MerryChrsitmas :)
That the bad things that keep getting done by people in power aren’t accidents, failures, ignorance, etc. this is how they want things to be. And they will make things as bad as they need to if the price is right and we let them
Also, protesting that is not peaceful is not bad or “hurting their cause”
“get the fuck off of 4chan, it’s giving you brain damage and making you unlikable”
“read these articles and books by trans people. you might see yourself in them”
“read more feminist/queer/anti-racist literature so that you can stop being a shithead to the people around you”
i was already on the path towards leftism in high school i dont really think that i needed an extra push towards communism. but i was an edgy, stupidpol-esque asshole and i wish i wasnt. also my life would be a lot easier rn if i’d realized i was trans in high school instead of in my mid 20’s
Same for me. I really wish i could delete the neurons that hold any memory of 4chan it gave be permanent brain damage.
- Go get therapy. It’s not as dangerous as you imagine and your life sucks because you’re not going.
- Don’t go to law school. You might have some pretentious fantasy of becoming rich and important but in reality you’re going to end up a burnt-out dropout because of the dissonance between your leftist morals and becoming part of the system.
- Don’t waste your time doing respectable politics. It will make you a burnt-out cynic. Join something radical or take the grill pill.
- You’re bi and that’s cool. Go have fun
- You can be a pretentious little prick at times. Chill the fuck out and stop being such a nerd.
You’ll never find a job or a career that makes it feel like you’re free under capitalism.
A ton of things (Let’s say I’m talking to 6th grade me)
This list is mostly not-particularly-political
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Start fucking lifting. Bullies and fascists are one in the same, get strong and they will back down without you needing to throw a single punch. But take up some boxing so if you have to, you can publicly humiliate them and get them to back off. Plus bodybuilding will make you like the way you look better and give you some much needed confidence.
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Oh my fucking God learn how to dress. Again, this is a matter of getting people to respect you so you can at least be better socially well-adjusted. Just follow some fashion guides on /fa/ and then order some stuff off of Uniqlo that actually fits you.
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Speaking of which, get a non-vidya hobby that you love. It can even be vidya-adjacent like coding. This will give you something to talk about, and will help you with learning to relate to others and learn to be less awkward.
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See if you can get therapy in middle school, it WILL save you a FUCKTON of grief. The school counselors are ableists that probably only got these jobs so they can passively bully neurodivergent kids (to show how bad it is, one “counselor” suggested to me and my parents that I should just silently put up with the bullying I got.). With that being said, still when you follow tip number one, kick the bully’s ass.
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You’re bi lol. There’s this guy you will understand, let’s call him Dave. Ask him out.
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When you get to college, just major in bioinformatics and minor in art. Saves you a world of trouble.
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if you’re going to lurk on 4chan, just stick to the hobby boards. /r9k/ will give you a latent amount of baseline depression. Stop calling people “normies”, it’s not funny and makes you look like a dork.
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