this post was submitted on 02 Oct 2025
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United States | News & Politics

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[โ€“] WatDabney@sopuli.xyz 67 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

If they want to keep the government open, all they have to do is to agree not to take healthcare away from millions of poor Americans.

Yet they refuse.

[โ€“] unmagical@lemmy.ml 21 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Providing healthcare is unfortunately not encompassed in "feeding, fueling, and clothing." ๐Ÿ˜ž

[โ€“] Maeve@kbin.earth 13 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Neither is ballroom construction but apparently it's ongoing.

It's a bare necessity for the unwashed masses. They yearn for their emperor to live in posh luxury.

[โ€“] WatDabney@sopuli.xyz 1 points 2 weeks ago

Well, y'know, except insofar as not providing it leads to death, which makes those other things irrelevant.

But other than that...

[โ€“] halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world 48 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Posting political propaganda on government websites should be illegal. The websites should solely be for providing information and support for and about those departments.

[โ€“] TheRedSpade@lemmy.world 33 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Illegal doesn't stop them.

[โ€“] halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I wasn't talking about any particular administration. I'm talking in general, regardless of who's in charge.

If there's anything we've learned the last couple decades, it's that we need to actually set rules with consequences and not rely on old gentleman's agreements and convention to run the government.

Even if that's being done after a third world war instigated by the dipshits and the US as it is collapsing.

[โ€“] causepix@lemmy.ml 6 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

What we've learned is that no politician is ever going to hold themselves or their class members to account, even if it comes at a great cost to their constituents, unless it's for cynical reasons. We have to organize at the grassroots level in order to make sure our representatives are representing our interests. They just aren't going to do that for us, despite all the money that goes into making us think that elections alone could ever fix this.

[โ€“] krashmo@lemmy.world 3 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

That's the same kind of lame duck attitude that got us into this mess. Organizing doesn't accomplish anything. Grassroots movements get demonized and subverted. Rules get changed or not enforced to benefit those in power. They do these things not because we haven't expressed our opposition, they do them because our avenues of expressing opposition are toothless and ineffectual by design. We need to make them fear what will happen to them if they ignore us. Not a potential loss of support or popularity but actual, primal fear of physical consequences.

[โ€“] causepix@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

We need to make them fear what will happen to them if they ignore us. Not a potential loss of support or popularity but actual, primal fear of physical consequences.

How do you do this without the organization to lead a coordinated effort? One guy with a gun here and there is an acceptable risk to them, and a useful tool in manufacturing consent.

They do these things not because we haven't expressed our opposition, they do them because our avenues of expressing opposition are toothless and ineffectual by design.

It's not about merely "expressing our opposition" it's about wielding the full collective power of our class in order to enforce our interests. There's nothing "lame duck" about that.

Their tactics of subversion are merely disillusionment tactics; they want us to think organizing doesn't work, because without organization we have no way to pose a legitimate challenge to their power. There are ways around their tactics. People have organized and won significant gains under more oppressive conditions, even within our own country.

Slaves could not have won their freedom without organization, nor women the right to vote, nor workers the 40-hour work week and social security, nor could blacks have defeated jim crow... I could go on. Those in power teach us their own perspective version of history that gives them undue credit for these advancements, minimizing the role played by organized resistance, in order to convince us that we don't need to organize to make change. We must study history from the people's perspective in order to learn what truly works and what doesn't.

[โ€“] krashmo@lemmy.world 0 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Luigi allegedly made healthcare CEOs very afraid all on his own. Coordination with others in these things is a liability, not a strength. All the examples you listed required violence or the threat of violence to overwhelm the violence projected by the state. There's always only a few dozen people directing the state's violence. I'm sure you can see the shortcut to the same ending.

[โ€“] causepix@lemmy.ml 1 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Luigi allegedly made healthcare CEOs very afraid all on his own.

How long did that last?

Coordination with others in these things is a liability, not a strength.

Based on what evidence?

There's always only a few dozen people directing the state's violence.

How do you expect to outsmart or overwhelm the state mechanisms of violence protecting those people, or the people that will take those people's places, without coordination? How do you expect your resistance to go on indefinitely, and not fizzle out as soon as the state gives away the smallest concession, without an organized struggle to spread and sustain it?

[โ€“] DaTingGoBrrr@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago

https://lemmy.world/post/36726070

It's a response to a message left by a disgruntled government employee

[โ€“] phdepressed@sh.itjust.works 18 points 2 weeks ago

Yes, this is likely a hatch act violation. However, as republicans have proven more and more blatantly is they dont care about legality and they don't get any meaningful consequences from disregarding the law.

[โ€“] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 weeks ago

Propaganda isn't inherently a bad thing. A government website trying to convince the readers of the positives of good climate policy is both good and is propaganda. The subject of this post is bad and propaganda, whether or not it's good or bad isn't related to being propaganda but the contents and positions of the propaganda.

[โ€“] HiddenLayer555@lemmy.ml 30 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (2 children)

I often wonder what Nazi rethoric sounded like to German speakers. Was it this stupid sounding?

[โ€“] CitizenKong@lemmy.world 16 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Yep, Hitler was ridiculed as a weird looking idiot with strange hair. Sound familiar?

[โ€“] bizzle@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Hahahahahaha is that true?

[โ€“] DrivebyHaiku@lemmy.ca 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Actually yes. Nazis had a very anti-intellectualist slant and they used a lot of verbal imagery and bunk beliefs that in period would have seemed kind of like listening to flat earthers or Q-anon conspiracy theories.

Maybe not Trump levels of crass baby diction but close enough.

[โ€“] bizzle@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago

History rhymes. That sucks.

[โ€“] ki9@lemmy.gf4.pw 1 points 2 weeks ago

Nazi propoganda regularly referred to jews and other "undesireables" as "vermin". So, stupid but in a vintage style.

Also, people who agree first and foremost don't ask themselves whether it makes sense.

[โ€“] DancingBear@midwest.social 24 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (2 children)

So radical ๐Ÿ˜ฎ Calling weak ass Schumer radical is whatโ€™s radical

[โ€“] supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz 13 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Chuck Schumer is one the Ignoble Gases on the Periodic Table Of Politicians, there is no radical potential whatsoever in his outer shell (ok exception for new stocks, I meant just no new bonds if you catch my drift, there is always room for more stocks and major campaign donations!).

[โ€“] DancingBear@midwest.social 8 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

In my opinion, the whole idea of the government being shut down is really stupid, no matter which side is doing it, but I also like the idea that they can, like a slap in the face kind of to get over the hangover and pay attention to the peopleโ€ฆ

They donโ€™t have enough money because they havenโ€™t approved printing more. Itโ€™s dumb, but I also think the dems are in the right for making the country gasp, or at least fart

If we have all of this wealth, but not everyone has enough, it means (and can only mean) that the wealthy have too much.

[โ€“] unphazed@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago

Unless you sleep with your sticky-paged copy of Mein Kamph, or recite the 14 words, you are a radical now apparently.

[โ€“] JamBandFan1996@lemmy.ml 20 points 2 weeks ago

What an absolute fucking loser

[โ€“] PanArab@lemmy.ml 12 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Radical Left

Democrats

I wish

[โ€“] eldavi@lemmy.ml 4 points 2 weeks ago

calling them the radical left shows how little awareness they have.

[โ€“] DrPop@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago

They also sent all government employees an email blaming the democrats for the shut down. I responded to that email with the Hatch Act.

[โ€“] BlameTheAntifa@lemmy.world 8 points 2 weeks ago

The Hatch Act, like the Constitution, is merely a figment of our collective imagination.

[โ€“] HubertManne@piefed.social 6 points 2 weeks ago

The rehetoric about rehetoric causing violence. When a government does not follow its own laws you see violence. Go back to any revolution and you will always see in the manifesto things about the government not following its own rules or the rules not applying to them.

[โ€“] Corridor8031@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

would it not at this point be better for democrates to actually just shut down the goverment? (half joking) But let me guess, stuff like ICE are not part of what is shut down is it?

[โ€“] queermunist@lemmy.ml 4 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

My understanding is that the shutdown doesn't necessarily stop the government from functioning, it just delays paychecks until after the shutdown and then they'll get backpay. ICE can still operate, though some people might quit because they aren't being paid for the next few weeks (or however long the shutdown is).

[โ€“] errer@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago

Itโ€™s interesting that this department has such a partisan message but several others do not. I guess they didnโ€™t get the fascist memo?

[โ€“] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 1 points 2 weeks ago

I starting to think that Trump does not represent all americans. /s