I saw on Mastodon someone say something kinda like this: good people don’t feel the need to dominate others.
Evil isn’t “winning” as much as it is “on top.” If you look around, talk to your neighbours and such, you’ll see that good and reasonable people are everywhere; good is the overwhelming majority.
That being said, positions of power are chased and coveted by those obsessed with power, and those aren’t good people. Good people need to take charge, but it’s — in a way — against their nature to do so.
Let the overwhelming centrist majority in 1930’s Germany tell you otherwise. People who peacefully ignore evil, even if it’s preserve their own safety, are not good at heart. People just don’t want trouble or disturbance, that’s why people are naturally kind from day to day. But ignoring the piles of bodies while saying “no politics at the dinner table” is literally how the holocaust happened - the majority failed to act.
1930’s Germany at least had the excuse of limited information/education, all they had was radio from which only Hitler’s voice was present. 100 years later with the worlds knowledge at our fingertips, ignorance to politics is a choice. Might I say an evil one, all things considered.
I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice […]
I’ve been lied to, gaslit, and blamed by my self-proclaimed “centrist” family my whole life, been called alarmist my whole life when i’ve been pointing at these very same things coming from a mile away. There are tons of others that did the same, at least alt-right MAGA freaks give you the time of day to argue. Centrists though? They’re the first to say they “dont really care much about politics” yet hold their heads high with masturbatory egotism and confidently proclaim “both sides are wrong, I disagree with extremists of any kind.” They’re betting their childrens lives and future on their own malicious ignorance, like that joke with the priest who denies life saving medication because “Don’t worry, God will take care of me,” but replace God with the Markets and you have the modern day peasant that’ll rat you out to soldiers for “heresy” and have you hung, disembowled, or burned at the stake. A person of self-interest is not a person of reason.
“Centrist” is often a word for unscrupulous fence-sitter… It’s a shame you’ve experienced that. I despise self-proclaimed centrists as much as the next guy.
Do you think they are the majority, though? Maybe it’s my echo-chambers, but that doesn’t feel like it’s the case. I’m not American, mind you.
Pretty much my entire family fit under this category, plus at least 75% of the people i’ve met in my entire life, including schoolmates and work colleagues. Of the 25% that are barely conscious, 80% of them are (somehow and unfortunately) MAGA while 20% have moved into a tiny home or cabin somewhere to grow their own food. The MAGA crowd are at least looking around going “wtf, workers need to seize the means of production” meanwhile the centrist liberals are the ones going “things would’ve been better with Hillary or Kamala.”
MAGA, those voting for a privatizing fascist cutting taxes for the rich working with the richest people in the world to further the goals of the owner-class, are looking around going “wtf, workers need to seize the means of production?” Are you sure?
Yeah, those MAGA. The ones you typically see on youtube videos or twitter aren’t your average MAGA supporter, if you actually talk to one and ask them what they want, they start going off on things that even the most far-left Star Trek commie eutopianist could agree with, only to right at the end blame “the libtards!” or “DEI” or “immigrants” etc. They’re uneducated, they’re seeing things aren’t good and rightfully so, but they’re tricked into scapegoating before coming to the right conclusions.
Centrists? They say “You shouldn’t pay attention to these things.”
The major problem—one of the major problems, for there are several—one of the many major problems with governing people is that of whom you get to do it; or rather of who manages to get people to let them do it to them.
To summarize: it is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it.
To summarize the summary: anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.
Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, #2)
I saw on Mastodon someone say something kinda like this: good people don’t feel the need to dominate others.
Evil isn’t “winning” as much as it is “on top.” If you look around, talk to your neighbours and such, you’ll see that good and reasonable people are everywhere; good is the overwhelming majority.
That being said, positions of power are chased and coveted by those obsessed with power, and those aren’t good people. Good people need to take charge, but it’s — in a way — against their nature to do so.
I worry this is just rationalizing ones passivity as just an inherent part of ones assumed “goodness.”
Let the overwhelming centrist majority in 1930’s Germany tell you otherwise. People who peacefully ignore evil, even if it’s preserve their own safety, are not good at heart. People just don’t want trouble or disturbance, that’s why people are naturally kind from day to day. But ignoring the piles of bodies while saying “no politics at the dinner table” is literally how the holocaust happened - the majority failed to act.
1930’s Germany at least had the excuse of limited information/education, all they had was radio from which only Hitler’s voice was present. 100 years later with the worlds knowledge at our fingertips, ignorance to politics is a choice. Might I say an evil one, all things considered.
I agree, people understimate the amount of assholes in the world
That’s not a very generous interpretation of people… Though I can’t exactly contradict you.
-MLK Jr. in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail
This depresses me beyond belief.
I’ve been lied to, gaslit, and blamed by my self-proclaimed “centrist” family my whole life, been called alarmist my whole life when i’ve been pointing at these very same things coming from a mile away. There are tons of others that did the same, at least alt-right MAGA freaks give you the time of day to argue. Centrists though? They’re the first to say they “dont really care much about politics” yet hold their heads high with masturbatory egotism and confidently proclaim “both sides are wrong, I disagree with extremists of any kind.” They’re betting their childrens lives and future on their own malicious ignorance, like that joke with the priest who denies life saving medication because “Don’t worry, God will take care of me,” but replace God with the Markets and you have the modern day peasant that’ll rat you out to soldiers for “heresy” and have you hung, disembowled, or burned at the stake. A person of self-interest is not a person of reason.
“Centrist” is often a word for unscrupulous fence-sitter… It’s a shame you’ve experienced that. I despise self-proclaimed centrists as much as the next guy.
Do you think they are the majority, though? Maybe it’s my echo-chambers, but that doesn’t feel like it’s the case. I’m not American, mind you.
Pretty much my entire family fit under this category, plus at least 75% of the people i’ve met in my entire life, including schoolmates and work colleagues. Of the 25% that are barely conscious, 80% of them are (somehow and unfortunately) MAGA while 20% have moved into a tiny home or cabin somewhere to grow their own food. The MAGA crowd are at least looking around going “wtf, workers need to seize the means of production” meanwhile the centrist liberals are the ones going “things would’ve been better with Hillary or Kamala.”
I was with you until that last statement, I haven’t met a single centrist that supported (voted for) Hillary or Kamala
I haven’t met a single centrist that
supported(votedfor) Hillary or Kamalalet alone attended a protest or demonstration.MAGA, those voting for a privatizing fascist cutting taxes for the rich working with the richest people in the world to further the goals of the owner-class, are looking around going “wtf, workers need to seize the means of production?” Are you sure?
I can’t tell if you’re joking…
Yeah, those MAGA. The ones you typically see on youtube videos or twitter aren’t your average MAGA supporter, if you actually talk to one and ask them what they want, they start going off on things that even the most far-left Star Trek commie eutopianist could agree with, only to right at the end blame “the libtards!” or “DEI” or “immigrants” etc. They’re uneducated, they’re seeing things aren’t good and rightfully so, but they’re tricked into scapegoating before coming to the right conclusions.
Centrists? They say “You shouldn’t pay attention to these things.”
Doubt I’ll ever get the opportunity, but I’ll take it if it presents itself.
Fuck…
Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, #2)
I’ve heard this before, but I had no idea it came from the Hitchhiker’s Guide… Cool :D