What do we do about it? Simple. Question the F out of new candidates for office, on who they will take money from and what specific things they will do to fix healthcare. And refuse point blank to vote for incumbents. Make it clear that if that incumbent, no matter which party, didm't lead the charge to fix healthcare, they don't get your vote. No matter what. No matter what bullshit excuses they make. If they weren't personally pushing legislation to fix things - out on their ass.
Is there even a metaphor for when a person who is actually complicit in the crime is highlighting it like they're breaking news? What fucked up level of capitalism is this?
What middle-class? There's just "working class", "working poor", and the utterly impoverished and the previous two experiencing their own steady impoverishment heading in the same direction as the last. The US sacrificed the middle-class to its oligarchy.
We're at a point where each person needs to ask themselves when they are willing to risk all to resist. They're sending people to concentration camps now, they are planning another coup, they are building a Gestapo. We know what is coming.
How far down the poem are we going to get before enough of us stop waiting for someone else to save us?
The longer we wait, the worse it will get. It’s not a fairy tale that with money you can buy everything, and with that disproportionate power now accumulated in a few hands, things are already worrying. A private army would be a catastrophe, oh..wait
I wish they would stop using “Class” and instead use more real terms like “hard-working people,” “those barely making ends meet,” “families who worry about rising prices,” etc. Class always sounds too synthetic and no one knows what class they are in anymore.
We need to elect representatives who won't take PAC money! I'm actively campaigning for one in western Montana who won't take a dime of PAC money and the national DNC is running someone who lives in another district against him because of that. This is the fucking problem with the Democratic party!
Execute it, then gut it and hang it up to dry. Then lightly smoke it and slice and dice it before cremating and dumping the remains into the Mariana Trench to make sure it never comes back again.
I dunno about that, the definition just changed a bit... I'd argue middle class are people who have to work but can still save money and retire, where as upper class doesn't have to work at all, and lower class is fucked churning the wheel to try and stay afloat if they can even float
There never was a middle class. It was another social construct / invention of those in power to divide the working class into smaller pieces that could be pitted against each other.
It got working class people thinking they were in the same circle as the wealthy so they'd vote against other working class people they felt were beneath them.
Had to google. Technically correct, but sweet baby gilbert - the range for a family of 3 is $54k-$161k. Anyone making 54k with a family feeling middle class these days?
It's easy to believe that, because that's what they want you to believe through changing definitions. If you look at how middle class was defined in the 70s/80s, maybe 20% of the USA in 2026 is middle class- maybe. But they lowered the bar so more people could feel like they're part of the buffer between the poors and the owners.
Yes, if we just step outside of our literal minds and go along with changing the definition of middle class to include less buying power, less stability, and fewer opportunities (you know, the things that defined the middle class) then half the country is still middle class! Best economy ever!!!1!!
Do you mean, like— wait—are the wars on trans people and wars on immigrants (and maybe even wars on drugs, because why are police so hell bent on arresting nonviolent offenders and ignoring violent crime?) are almost like…. Wait for it… is…is there a term for it….
Be·hold·en (adjective) /bəˈhōld(ə)n/ : being under obligation for a favor or gift, "owned and operated by" | The entirety of the Republican Party is Beholden to the various foreign and corporate entities that bribe and blackmail them.
To be fair to the Republican Party, they'd do a lot of this heinous shit even without the foreign and corporate backing, because it's what they WANT to do. They're not corrupted by the money, because they were corrupt to begin with.
It can be both things. Think about the money Russia dropped on the right-wing YouTubers to just keep doing what they were doing - whataboutism. They are absolutely corrupted by the money, because the money is a prime motivator
I mean, duh. Zohran won by focusing on actual issues New Yorkers were dealing with. Even Trump voters voted for him.
Harris lost by trying to respond to Republican framing (bringing around Liz Cheney, agreeing to build “the wall”, talking about small business loans, etc). And idiots like Ezra Klein think we should run Democrats that are “pro-life” and “anti-trans”. We, don’t need to concede on culture war issues. We need to focus on class issues like healthcare, child care, social services etc
wouldn't the current scotus need to be gone for that to happen, even in the unlikely case that all the other branches of government were controlled progressive dems?
Not just the current SCOTUS, the current legal institutions that gave us that SCOTUS. Money = speech dates back to Buckley v. Valeo in 1976, and the idea that buying & selling influence is just what you get to do when you have money and/or gov't office is pretty widely accepted - look forex at this lovely 8-0 ruling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_v._United_States . The rot goes very deep and will be very hard to root out (although court reform is definitely the first step necessary)
Maybe she's telling on herself as well? Sometimes people with a conscience blow the whistle from the inside to let the public know that their leadership is compromised.
I agree but we also have to expect elected officials to have some principles. Otherwise what significance do their statements have regarding other politicians if they do the same exact thing. I would probably take a bullet for Bernie Sanders but if he started taking money from AIPAC and/or big corporations, I'm not sure his message would have much credibility anymore.
Okay, fine. So what do we *do* about it? I've been noodging my representatives since they got into office; *they're* on my side, but they don't know what to do either.
End Citizen United. Make it illegal for corporations to donate billions toward super pacs. Make it illegal for representatives/senators to trade stocks. Enact ranked choice voting. All of these would force representatives to do their jobs and represent their constituents.
HOW?! What do WE do to make that happen? We know what has to happen, we are at a loss on how to make it happen. What do we actually DO that will affect that change? There are not enough people with nothing to lose to actually revolt.
Message your state representatives about what you want done. Do it clearly and concisely. A message every 3-9 weeks that's not talking down to them or being hateful, that keeps repeating the request for want you want done, although worded a little differently each time. You keep the sending the message to them, effectively annoying the heck out of them with how often you keep asking about it and what they're doing to work towards said goal until they respond in a way that moves toward such
thats a decent question. i live in 6th district ohio. my representatives sneer at me.i know what needs to be done, but my they are invested in not doing it because they like it as it is. am i supposed to just go down and shoot people?
They still need your vote. Get involved in primaries. Get as many people as you know voting in every election. After that protests. After that, well... revolt.
Do that. Have done that. Donate, protest, vote. Not actually revolting until enough of the population is willing to show up for it to actually have some slim chance of success.
Myself also, and I also think there are alternatives to revolt -- *if* we can get some people off their butts and doing something. I've been doing the best I can on that score, but people willing to take actions and accept consequences are hard to find. Please do hit me up if you happen to be one of them.
So what do we do? It seems like we have zero options to stop this from happening as the people making money are the ones who are in power and have the ability to make it stop.
These ex and current military currently in the public eye should run for office. How about a 3rd party, like the People's Rights Party, or Party for Working America.
Well, so far in the last 2 years, there have been several countries where the people rose up and overthrew the government. And quite frankly, there was an attempt in the US in 2021 that failed, but it was directed by the wrong people. So the energy is there in the US, but it’s currently being co-opted by a cult which is drastically imploding. And when the economy nearly collapsed in 2008, we damn near got universal healthcare, an idea which is way more popular today.
Direct Action is the next step after voting. Protests are one example of DA. The Montgomery bus boycott is an example of DA that was more than just demonstrating. We learned about it in college, after just getting the soft version in high school. Several groups came together in the 1960s and we need that again.
I know what I've done! I have GIVEN UP! Sure the dems will still get my vote, but I needed to have a hope-ectomy after my fellow 'muricans shouted loud & proud for Trump, TWICE.
Vote/Focus socialist not democrat(a center, not left party), since people are too afraid of using violence the way the government uses violence on the people.
The voting electorate need the fear around boogieman words like “socialism” dissolved. The past examples of socialism that are pushed by the Right are always authoritarian regimes first, and socialist second. There are plenty of social democracies and democratic socialist examples of today that serve as better examples of healthy and burgeoning societies. Start electing candidates that are outside of the norm and to the Left.
This is important. We need to reject the idea of only voting for "electable" candidates. "I like so-and-so, but they'll never win." Not if you don't fucking vote for them! If we keep voting for people, even in primaries, who are like people who've won in the past, why would we expect anything to change?
Dems need to break off into 3rd party. Rebrand as the middle class patriot party. (Need simple messaging) It'll be new, control the narrative, and get people to vote in such high numbers gerrymandering won't mater. (Of course this is hard in 2 part system,but just sayin)
It's the same two options we gave factory and business owners when negotiating workers rights throughout the 19th century... we either drag them out of their mansions, beat them in front of their families, and quite possibly decide to weigh their heads or they can decide that Citizens United doesn't need to exist and lobbyists have a much lower or non existent spending cap along with politicians having a cap on any donations so money can no longer be leveraged to buy policies.
Anarchism 101. The only way to bring change in a political system is by participating in it. The people can never rely on the incumbent to vote against their own interests. Therefore the only way for meaningful reform in government is through making it fail.
We can start a super pac and lobbist for the middle class, please send me all your donations and I'll set it up, together we can beat those corporate bastards at their own game...
1st step is to stop only electing the people who spend the most on their campaign. It's not the ONLY step by any means, but it's a start. Having enough un-'sponsored' (non-corporate-owned) representatives COULD result in the placement of legislation to make lobbying and campaign donations and PACs illegal alongside insider trading by Congress. Gut Congressional pensions and healthcare to only what is available to the people and Congress will make OURS acceptable.
WTH???? ***ONE ALWAYS HAS OPTIONS!!!!*** THIS PERVASIVE PASSIVITY & HELPLESSNESS BS NEEDS TO STOP! Find other people & orgs who have their acts together & join them in common causes.
I said almost this very thing when my friends went and protested last year. What has happened? Nothing. I mean I didn't do anything either, but I certainly didn't waste my time standing on the sidewalk. It did nothing and it will do nothing given the current regime and I think that we all know it. I do not have any answers but I know that this isn't a solution - it's virtue signaling.
Can... can we make a lobby group for the middle class? You know like we all pay in a little bit of money for someone to go to Washington and advocate for our interests?.. wait...
First thing to do is ensure proper elections. The Electoral college needs to go. Gerrymandering needs to be tossed into a dung heap, and third-party organizations need to handle redistricting with other third-party orgs that hold them accountable. Holes in the Constitution that give fodder allowing the possibility of Unitary Executive Theory need to be buttoned up. Fuck consolidation of power.
The electoral college needs to go, but there's a more local solution that we can all pressure our state officials to pursue if not already in place in your state: the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. It's an agreement that all of your states electoral votes go to whoever wins the popular vote at the national level. If enough states agree to this, we effectively have a popular vote, even with the electoral college. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Popular_Vote_Interstate_Compact
So, for a long time the idea was that we had an educated electorate and if you made all these corporate donors disclose their donations, people would SEE who bought their politicians, and if they didn't like that company, they could vote for the other party (or the other primary cabdidate).
Ballot intitiatives in local elections. Add a constitutional amendment that prohibits dark money in politics or by reversing “Citizens United”. It’s not easy but it starts locally.
Local elections. If you change your city, you start to effect change through the state and then the country
But we should have done that 40 years ago when the Republicans started this whole thing. We didn't. We can try now but realistically? It's probably going to be a bloody bloody revolution first
Change your deductions so you pay no taxes. Put it into an escrow if you must, but the amount of money PAC's contribute is *nothing* compared to the Feds weekly paycheck. Think the IRS will come after you? THEIR FUNDING HAS BEEN SLASHED. When the voters for Harris change their withhold status to zero how long can the government last with their paycheck cut by a third? (Abour 3 weeks) Or we can keep on doing what we've been doing, because it's been working so well.
Support politicians Who are in favor of getting the money out of politics, e.g. reverse “Citizens United”. There are no Republicans who favor this, and only a handful of Democrats, who fit this description: Raskin, Slotkin and Sanders come to mind
Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been pointing this out for decades, but none of them ever actually do anything about it. She probably won't either, btw.
Reverse citizens united decision that gives corporations the same rights as individuals. Reverse decisions that say money donation is the same as free speech.
Agreed, but from outside the US, how do you suggest that happen when a large majority of your government is compromised by taking bribes? It seems like only a very small minority of either side has integrity and isn't corrupted by donations and insider trading.
You are totally correct. It will require more representatives with integrity (like AOC and Bernie) to fill seats, and vote for a course correction. I dont know how to make that happen, but the goal remains the same, we must abolish corporate influence.
Well ye behold, if you call your health insurance provider and threaten to Luigi their CEO and board, you've got a coin flip. Either they'll give in and actually do their purported duty, or they'll get the government to deport you. Outcome depends on epidermal melanin content.
Patience, child, patience. We only get internet a few days a month up here. And yes, we use it to troll conservatives on the internet because it's fun and the sleuth of grizzlies that have taken over our front yard love eating cops for some reason.
Yeah and that's done what exactly? Besides make him famous. Seriously, what's changed since that incident? How has your life improved? How have the rich changed? Besides increasing their personal security?
Motherfucker I ate the new United CEO as shish kebabs last Thursday. I now get free healthcare for life because the health insurance industry knows I'll do it again and the feds won't do jack shit about it because I'm whiter than sour cream.
Try checking out the history of France. Its pretty key to our modern ideas of democracy. Sometimes society needs help getting back into balance. I prefer using the tax system myself, but you've gotta use what's available
Ok. I was looking for any other options. When people ask me what we can do and I say "violence" I'm usually dismissed. Sadly I can't think of a better answer at this point.
Vote 3rd party? Make sure enough people vote in the primaries so you have a slim chance of getting someone not backed by the DNC on the democratic ticket? Pray to Santa Claus? :-)
Unfortunately, we need to vote for the lesser of two evils until a 3 party system is viable. This means being an adult and actually seeing that republicans are straight fukin evil; and the democrats, with all their faults, are our only option out of this.
It just sounds futile. No 3rd party would every win at this point. The country is too polarized to vote out of the 2 for fear of the other party. I wish it were possible.
Wikipedia contains a list of nonviolent revolutions. Maybe it's not very common, but it does happen. No authoritarian holds power without people supporting that power. When a nonviolent movements turns enough of these supporters away from the authoritarian, then the despot cannot hold power any longer. They won't give up power peacefully, but it can be taken from them peacefully.
Bowtie8bit
How about taking the money and then not protecting those industries? Protect the citizen with the money donated by the evil rich people.
calenti
They're the first to tell you the game is rigged, but silent on how to un-rig it because then they'd have to work for a living.
cheeriossuckbecause7
What do we do about it? Simple. Question the F out of new candidates for office, on who they will take money from and what specific things they will do to fix healthcare. And refuse point blank to vote for incumbents. Make it clear that if that incumbent, no matter which party, didm't lead the charge to fix healthcare, they don't get your vote. No matter what. No matter what bullshit excuses they make. If they weren't personally pushing legislation to fix things - out on their ass.
plickt
Is there even a metaphor for when a person who is actually complicit in the crime is highlighting it like they're breaking news? What fucked up level of capitalism is this?
GozerTheGozerian
What middle-class? There's just "working class", "working poor", and the utterly impoverished and the previous two experiencing their own steady impoverishment heading in the same direction as the last. The US sacrificed the middle-class to its oligarchy.
SeriousIy
The taxes we pay are the damn super pac
aliceinwonderbra
Then does she takes money from Aipac and approves money for israel every year?
https://www.trackaipac.com/states/michigan?rq=Slotkin
Doubtthedevout
Cand you dm me to show how this site works? Bout to book mark it.
beerkrump
Sure, she's talking for the middle class, but what about the lower class?
RNeao
She's CIA, against m4a, pro-israel, says Mamdani's "giving away free stuff" (Breaking Points interview),grandad got wealthy founding Hygrade
RNeao
Voted for Laken Riley Act with 11 other Dems, helping strip due process from immigrants. "Must get past petty partisanship" by helping Reps.
PurpleMoonFlower
We're at a point where each person needs to ask themselves when they are willing to risk all to resist.
They're sending people to concentration camps now, they are planning another coup, they are building a Gestapo. We know what is coming.
How far down the poem are we going to get before enough of us stop waiting for someone else to save us?
SchmotGuys
Becker37
Talk is cheap
SomebodythatIusedtonope
The longer we wait, the worse it will get. It’s not a fairy tale that with money you can buy everything, and with that disproportionate power now accumulated in a few hands, things are already worrying. A private army would be a catastrophe, oh..wait
lostwalllet
I wish they would stop using “Class” and instead use more real terms like “hard-working people,” “those barely making ends meet,” “families who worry about rising prices,” etc. Class always sounds too synthetic and no one knows what class they are in anymore.
RocknRootRanchcuzallwegotisrocksandrootsandafewtrees
We need to elect representatives who won't take PAC money! I'm actively campaigning for one in western Montana who won't take a dime of PAC money and the national DNC is running someone who lives in another district against him because of that. This is the fucking problem with the Democratic party!
rbudrick
Denicratic politicians: "No, I like money and a ridiculously cushy and easy job doing barely anything."
rbudrick
Grr, I swear I spellchecked.
dixxienormus
Execute it, then gut it and hang it up to dry. Then lightly smoke it and slice and dice it before cremating and dumping the remains into the Mariana Trench to make sure it never comes back again.
keystotheairlock
@OP, who may we ask is speaking?
Ikwilstroopwaffels
What about actual poor people? There is no "Middle Class" anymore.
WooNeat
I dunno about that, the definition just changed a bit... I'd argue middle class are people who have to work but can still save money and retire, where as upper class doesn't have to work at all, and lower class is fucked churning the wheel to try and stay afloat if they can even float
ontarioOT
There never was a middle class. It was another social construct / invention of those in power to divide the working class into smaller pieces that could be pitted against each other.
wejustdontknow
It got working class people thinking they were in the same circle as the wealthy so they'd vote against other working class people they felt were beneath them.
euphoricopportunity
Eh. "Middle class" in the US means "working class, but embarrassed about it."
euphoricopportunity
Well, and "not precarious".
sofako41404
Just slightly less precarious.
nero4ty2
It’s literally half of the population
Shpielers
Maybe in the 50's it was, been steadily eroded for a long time now
nero4ty2
Slightly lower than the 50s but still roughly half of the population in the us
Shpielers
Had to google. Technically correct, but sweet baby gilbert - the range for a family of 3 is $54k-$161k. Anyone making 54k with a family feeling middle class these days?
Donfolstar
It's easy to believe that, because that's what they want you to believe through changing definitions. If you look at how middle class was defined in the 70s/80s, maybe 20% of the USA in 2026 is middle class- maybe. But they lowered the bar so more people could feel like they're part of the buffer between the poors and the owners.
nero4ty2
It’s generally defined as households that 2-3 times the median income, and that still hovers around 50%
Donfolstar
Yes, 50% of households make 2-3 times median. No notes.
Shpielers
I had to look it up. Buying power lower, larger gap. But...yeah, the %s are right.
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/04/20/how-the-american-middle-class-has-changed-in-the-past-five-decades/
Donfolstar
Yes, if we just step outside of our literal minds and go along with changing the definition of middle class to include less buying power, less stability, and fewer opportunities (you know, the things that defined the middle class) then half the country is still middle class! Best economy ever!!!1!!
givemepickles
Do you mean, like— wait—are the wars on trans people and wars on immigrants (and maybe even wars on drugs, because why are police so hell bent on arresting nonviolent offenders and ignoring violent crime?) are almost like…. Wait for it… is…is there a term for it….
Scapegoats?
And distractions?
And deflections?
GullahGullahIslander
Elissa Slotkin, from Michigan. Proud to have her here
CallMeMcGyver
Be·hold·en (adjective) /bəˈhōld(ə)n/ : being under obligation for a favor or gift, "owned and operated by" | The entirety of the Republican Party is Beholden to the various foreign and corporate entities that bribe and blackmail them.
marsilies
To be fair to the Republican Party, they'd do a lot of this heinous shit even without the foreign and corporate backing, because it's what they WANT to do. They're not corrupted by the money, because they were corrupt to begin with.
StewedTomaters
It can be both things. Think about the money Russia dropped on the right-wing YouTubers to just keep doing what they were doing - whataboutism. They are absolutely corrupted by the money, because the money is a prime motivator
SquirtVonnegut
She's a corporate Zionist CIA agent. Fuck her.
RaekinTheBored
I mean, duh. Zohran won by focusing on actual issues New Yorkers were dealing with. Even Trump voters voted for him.
Harris lost by trying to respond to Republican framing (bringing around Liz Cheney, agreeing to build “the wall”, talking about small business loans, etc). And idiots like Ezra Klein think we should run Democrats that are “pro-life” and “anti-trans”. We, don’t need to concede on culture war issues. We need to focus on class issues like healthcare, child care, social services etc
DandyLion23
Looking at you 'TurboTax and the mysterious disappearance of Free Filing'
WowThatUsernameIsSoOriginal
wouldn't the current scotus need to be gone for that to happen, even in the unlikely case that all the other branches of government were controlled progressive dems?
sleepinggreenidea
Not just the current SCOTUS, the current legal institutions that gave us that SCOTUS. Money = speech dates back to Buckley v. Valeo in 1976, and the idea that buying & selling influence is just what you get to do when you have money and/or gov't office is pretty widely accepted - look forex at this lovely 8-0 ruling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_v._United_States . The rot goes very deep and will be very hard to root out (although court reform is definitely the first step necessary)
OperatorWay
FukcTedCruz
Ironic coming from someone who refuses to say she will no longer accept money from AIPAC and still believes Israel is defending itself
Cbouch4rd
Maybe she's telling on herself as well? Sometimes people with a conscience blow the whistle from the inside to let the public know that their leadership is compromised.
bobbersonbob
I was thinking the same exact thing, scratching my head the entire time she was talking.
thewiggins
you can be wrong on some things and right about others. When they get it right tell them, when they get it wrong, tell them, but louder.
SirLantsBojangles
You aren't allowed to be wrong on Gaza and also expect me to believe everything you say isn't lies. There is a bar and it is very very low.
thewiggins
if you believe any, ANY politician you get what you deserve. Don't trust them, but don't throw away victories, build on them and crush the bastards
FukcTedCruz
I agree but we also have to expect elected officials to have some principles. Otherwise what significance do their statements have regarding other politicians if they do the same exact thing. I would probably take a bullet for Bernie Sanders but if he started taking money from AIPAC and/or big corporations, I'm not sure his message would have much credibility anymore.
SolarJoel
Okay, fine. So what do we *do* about it? I've been noodging my representatives since they got into office; *they're* on my side, but they don't know what to do either.
TheElliotPage
*cough* 2A to remove dictators via Charlie Kirking *cough*
OhIfIMust
She said something about gutting...
AzgarOgly
Do they vote for a change?
SebastianCrab
End Citizen United. Make it illegal for corporations to donate billions toward super pacs. Make it illegal for representatives/senators to trade stocks. Enact ranked choice voting. All of these would force representatives to do their jobs and represent their constituents.
textilelover
HOW?! What do WE do to make that happen? We know what has to happen, we are at a loss on how to make it happen. What do we actually DO that will affect that change? There are not enough people with nothing to lose to actually revolt.
Redoneter593
Message your state representatives about what you want done. Do it clearly and concisely.
A message every 3-9 weeks that's not talking down to them or being hateful, that keeps repeating the request for want you want done, although worded a little differently each time.
You keep the sending the message to them, effectively annoying the heck out of them with how often you keep asking about it and what they're doing to work towards said goal until they respond in a way that moves toward such
textilelover
I live in a royal blue state. My reps at least give lip service to the things I want done.
erinaceus
thats a decent question. i live in 6th district ohio. my representatives sneer at me.i know what needs to be done, but my they are invested in not doing it because they like it as it is. am i supposed to just go down and shoot people?
SebastianCrab
They still need your vote. Get involved in primaries. Get as many people as you know voting in every election. After that protests. After that, well... revolt.
textilelover
Do that. Have done that. Donate, protest, vote. Not actually revolting until enough of the population is willing to show up for it to actually have some slim chance of success.
SolarJoel
Myself also, and I also think there are alternatives to revolt -- *if* we can get some people off their butts and doing something. I've been doing the best I can on that score, but people willing to take actions and accept consequences are hard to find. Please do hit me up if you happen to be one of them.
pandemicmodedad
After Jan 1 there's 20 million now with nothing to loose. Give it a few months and anyone relying on daycare will have nothing left to loose.
Letstrythisonemotime
So what do we do? It seems like we have zero options to stop this from happening as the people making money are the ones who are in power and have the ability to make it stop.
ninjafartball
These ex and current military currently in the public eye should run for office. How about a 3rd party, like the People's Rights Party, or Party for Working America.
Cranbananarama
A million people surround those in power, who do you blame when they're found in a heap after the million disperse?
JRSYJAY
2A and a bunch of martyrs, to jump start the population, are the only thing that can bring back any semblance of a republic.
killergrooves85
Well, so far in the last 2 years, there have been several countries where the people rose up and overthrew the government. And quite frankly, there was an attempt in the US in 2021 that failed, but it was directed by the wrong people. So the energy is there in the US, but it’s currently being co-opted by a cult which is drastically imploding. And when the economy nearly collapsed in 2008, we damn near got universal healthcare, an idea which is way more popular today.
The right moment is coming.
Cthulhuonabike
https://media2.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1aTN6Zzl2eWFkczU4bHF5b2c0bG1uMTgzajUwNTNna2NrYjg1N2E4MSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/XBoYoCVQNBpJe/200w.webp
freemab
Direct Action is the next step after voting. Protests are one example of DA. The Montgomery bus boycott is an example of DA that was more than just demonstrating. We learned about it in college, after just getting the soft version in high school. Several groups came together in the 1960s and we need that again.
IxnayOnTheOttenRay
I know what I've done! I have GIVEN UP! Sure the dems will still get my vote, but I needed to have a hope-ectomy after my fellow 'muricans shouted loud & proud for Trump, TWICE.
JokerFrown
Vote/Focus socialist not democrat(a center, not left party), since people are too afraid of using violence the way the government uses violence on the people.
bobbersonbob
The voting electorate need the fear around boogieman words like “socialism” dissolved. The past examples of socialism that are pushed by the Right are always authoritarian regimes first, and socialist second. There are plenty of social democracies and democratic socialist examples of today that serve as better examples of healthy and burgeoning societies. Start electing candidates that are outside of the norm and to the Left.
Salticido
This is important. We need to reject the idea of only voting for "electable" candidates. "I like so-and-so, but they'll never win." Not if you don't fucking vote for them! If we keep voting for people, even in primaries, who are like people who've won in the past, why would we expect anything to change?
GloveFullaVaseline
Yep. We have no power.
bobbersonbob
The Overton window has shifted so far that our current two-party system is for the most part housed under the Right wing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abdk4-7778Q
kosherpork
Dems need to break off into 3rd party. Rebrand as the middle class patriot party. (Need simple messaging) It'll be new, control the narrative, and get people to vote in such high numbers gerrymandering won't mater. (Of course this is hard in 2 part system,but just sayin)
StellarJay77
It's the same two options we gave factory and business owners when negotiating workers rights throughout the 19th century... we either drag them out of their mansions, beat them in front of their families, and quite possibly decide to weigh their heads or they can decide that Citizens United doesn't need to exist and lobbyists have a much lower or non existent spending cap along with politicians having a cap on any donations so money can no longer be leveraged to buy policies.
Lutki
Anarchism 101. The only way to bring change in a political system is by participating in it. The people can never rely on the incumbent to vote against their own interests. Therefore the only way for meaningful reform in government is through making it fail.
TheWombatStrikesAgain
I think they already have a party for that.
Sh1tMovieGroup
We can start a super pac and lobbist for the middle class, please send me all your donations and I'll set it up, together we can beat those corporate bastards at their own game...
oldguyexlurker
1st step is to stop only electing the people who spend the most on their campaign. It's not the ONLY step by any means, but it's a start. Having enough un-'sponsored' (non-corporate-owned) representatives COULD result in the placement of legislation to make lobbying and campaign donations and PACs illegal alongside insider trading by Congress. Gut Congressional pensions and healthcare to only what is available to the people and Congress will make OURS acceptable.
morninggloryshade777
WTH???? ***ONE ALWAYS HAS OPTIONS!!!!*** THIS PERVASIVE PASSIVITY & HELPLESSNESS BS NEEDS TO STOP! Find other people & orgs who have their acts together & join them in common causes.
PurpleMoonFlower
Organize, obstruct, and resist. Google Nepal.
kmikl
BLUE SHELL THE CEOS.
pareidoliaperson
Nazis hated flyers A LOT!
rmx256
I said almost this very thing when my friends went and protested last year. What has happened? Nothing. I mean I didn't do anything either, but I certainly didn't waste my time standing on the sidewalk. It did nothing and it will do nothing given the current regime and I think that we all know it. I do not have any answers but I know that this isn't a solution - it's virtue signaling.
historycat
Do your research for the most anti corporate PAC candidate, and volunteer to help them all the way from before the primary through general election.
Donate to them so they can advertise and pay campaign staff.
Bernie doesn't take corporate money. He relies on volunteers to get the word out.
phoenix0path
Only vote for candidates that vow to end Citizens United.
Only vote for candidates that will end First Past the Post voting in favor of Ranked Choice or similar.
If they do not support both, they should not get any votes. That will do more than anything else to end corporatism and the two-party system.
Without those two changes, nothing changes.
manditoryusername
Can... can we make a lobby group for the middle class? You know like we all pay in a little bit of money for someone to go to Washington and advocate for our interests?.. wait...
KillingTlme
https://media2.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1enE0ZnA1ZzR6Y2R5ZmQyeHduaHcxd283aWtveGl6OWtlMGR4cm9nNSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/XBoYoCVQNBpJe/200w.webp
threepotatoesinatrenchcoat
It sounds like we need to start a middle class PAC
PolitiCat
There is literally a constitutional amendment designed to topple these tyrants, elected, bought or buying.
bobbersonbob
First thing to do is ensure proper elections. The Electoral college needs to go. Gerrymandering needs to be tossed into a dung heap, and third-party organizations need to handle redistricting with other third-party orgs that hold them accountable. Holes in the Constitution that give fodder allowing the possibility of Unitary Executive Theory need to be buttoned up. Fuck consolidation of power.
Salticido
The electoral college needs to go, but there's a more local solution that we can all pressure our state officials to pursue if not already in place in your state: the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. It's an agreement that all of your states electoral votes go to whoever wins the popular vote at the national level. If enough states agree to this, we effectively have a popular vote, even with the electoral college. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Popular_Vote_Interstate_Compact
crazyspelling
So, for a long time the idea was that we had an educated electorate and if you made all these corporate donors disclose their donations, people would SEE who bought their politicians, and if they didn't like that company, they could vote for the other party (or the other primary cabdidate).
Gibleteousjack
https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1NXB1bjA5dHd2amNnb3RqejY0MTgzaGg3dmVkOWR3djJqNDlpa3ZtcyZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/aJJWLOqtohbO4sq5sY/200w.webp
KerryCoder
I was part of a few reform groups that tried to make real, significant change in campaign finance reform from 2013-2016.
We were making headway. But then Trump came along, and people chose hating other people over solving the problems.
I live in Ireland now.
molotovity
Ballot intitiatives in local elections. Add a constitutional amendment that prohibits dark money in politics or by reversing “Citizens United”. It’s not easy but it starts locally.
Wolf-pac.com
Lynkfox
Local elections. If you change your city, you start to effect change through the state and then the country
But we should have done that 40 years ago when the Republicans started this whole thing. We didn't. We can try now but realistically? It's probably going to be a bloody bloody revolution first
WholeWheatBunnyHugger
Change your deductions so you pay no taxes. Put it into an escrow if you must, but the amount of money PAC's contribute is *nothing* compared to the Feds weekly paycheck. Think the IRS will come after you? THEIR FUNDING HAS BEEN SLASHED. When the voters for Harris change their withhold status to zero how long can the government last with their paycheck cut by a third? (Abour 3 weeks)
Or we can keep on doing what we've been doing, because it's been working so well.
DelCorazon
Support politicians Who are in favor of getting the money out of politics, e.g. reverse “Citizens United”.
There are no Republicans who favor this, and only a handful of Democrats, who fit this description: Raskin, Slotkin and Sanders come to mind
rossimus
Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been pointing this out for decades, but none of them ever actually do anything about it. She probably won't either, btw.
whatsisname
whoatherebigfella
This is your savior? He’s in prison? Got a plan B?
PurpleMoonFlower
https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1djV6OGJueDh1b2p6MXpqNGgwbjAydnBiNWVwdzFsMmdyMm04bDU3OCZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/i2rNOf3b7vJgk/200w.webp
BeachsideBarghest
I think you miss the point.
Fett2oo5
Reverse citizens united decision that gives corporations the same rights as individuals. Reverse decisions that say money donation is the same as free speech.
Lovingimpaler
Thank you!
Cbouch4rd
Agreed, but from outside the US, how do you suggest that happen when a large majority of your government is compromised by taking bribes? It seems like only a very small minority of either side has integrity and isn't corrupted by donations and insider trading.
Fett2oo5
You are totally correct. It will require more representatives with integrity (like AOC and Bernie) to fill seats, and vote for a course correction. I dont know how to make that happen, but the goal remains the same, we must abolish corporate influence.
Cisco1608
BifPib
French voting machine.
MadamPuddifoot
K let's go with something realistic.
Xolarix
Trying to play the game while they design the rules in their favor is never going to work.
ParrotHat
Warune
https://media4.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1c3d2eWQ0cWoxcnUwZDNjN2h3anpqODZob3NmcTgxMjg0MXFnZHR1NCZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/KUQwtiFm9FszHD6IfE/200w.webp
MadamPuddifoot
You fuckers can downvote me all you want, but nobody has answered me. 😒
ParrotHat
Well ye behold, if you call your health insurance provider and threaten to Luigi their CEO and board, you've got a coin flip. Either they'll give in and actually do their purported duty, or they'll get the government to deport you. Outcome depends on epidermal melanin content.
MadamPuddifoot
That's what I thought. Radio silence.
ParrotHat
Patience, child, patience. We only get internet a few days a month up here. And yes, we use it to troll conservatives on the internet because it's fun and the sleuth of grizzlies that have taken over our front yard love eating cops for some reason.
MadamPuddifoot
Yeah and that's done what exactly? Besides make him famous. Seriously, what's changed since that incident? How has your life improved? How have the rich changed? Besides increasing their personal security?
Answer that, please.
ParrotHat
Motherfucker I ate the new United CEO as shish kebabs last Thursday. I now get free healthcare for life because the health insurance industry knows I'll do it again and the feds won't do jack shit about it because I'm whiter than sour cream.
Anfalicious
Its proven technology
MadamPuddifoot
That's what I thought. No answer, cuz you know I'm right.
Anfalicious
No, I'm just also watching stranger things so I have better things to do than give history lessons to randoms on the internet.
MadamPuddifoot
What has it changed? Tell me. What's different and better because of it?
Anfalicious
Try checking out the history of France. Its pretty key to our modern ideas of democracy. Sometimes society needs help getting back into balance. I prefer using the tax system myself, but you've gotta use what's available
taez555
Realistically.... things get worse to the point of a bloody revolution.
StarmineRendezvous
Yep. Things didn't get this bad by the system being functional. It gets this bad because it is truly broken in a way that resists fixing it.
mham7611
A revolution is needed to overhaul this whole 2 party system
Polymathena
Redoneter593
Such a festive neck splitter!
ishouldprobablybeplayingpokemonATM
Every minute that passes the ensuing revolution get bloodier
Letstrythisonemotime
Ok. I was looking for any other options. When people ask me what we can do and I say "violence" I'm usually dismissed. Sadly I can't think of a better answer at this point.
taez555
Vote 3rd party? Make sure enough people vote in the primaries so you have a slim chance of getting someone not backed by the DNC on the democratic ticket? Pray to Santa Claus? :-)
Purrmageddon
Troll asshat.
OriginalAndWitty
Unfortunately, we need to vote for the lesser of two evils until a 3 party system is viable. This means being an adult and actually seeing that republicans are straight fukin evil; and the democrats, with all their faults, are our only option out of this.
Letstrythisonemotime
It just sounds futile. No 3rd party would every win at this point. The country is too polarized to vote out of the 2 for fear of the other party. I wish it were possible.
anarchoFeline
oppressive systems have never once given up power peacefully
kleinheiko
Wikipedia contains a list of nonviolent revolutions. Maybe it's not very common, but it does happen. No authoritarian holds power without people supporting that power. When a nonviolent movements turns enough of these supporters away from the authoritarian, then the despot cannot hold power any longer. They won't give up power peacefully, but it can be taken from them peacefully.
taez555
I'm curious what the ratio is.