In the moral and political struggle to create a future with alternative possibilities, we need to build a united front. Radicalism can co-exist with pragmatic progressivism.
Indeed, this may be the most propitious time to ask ourselves this: Is the U.S. even an actual democracy? There is plenty of evidence to contend that it is not; in fact, the U.S. was never designed to be democratic, so the obsession of the country’s political leaders, past and present, to portray the nation as the “world’s greatest democracy” should provoke laughter instead of elicit pride.
We're clearly not really a democracy either on paper or in practice. The system wasn't designed as a democracy, our voting system often results in winners who didn't secure majority support, policy outcomes don't represent majority opinion, and the rich regularly get away with buying their way out of justice.
These problems will all get worse as fascists get more access to the levers of state power.
So I feel it's important to vote for whichever candidate stands the most realistic chance of defeating the local republican. Mostly that's going to be a democrat. The two party system is part of the problem, but keeping fascists away from power is a more pressing problem.
The term pragmatic has done some heavy lifting lately. People say stuff like this and are totally fine with stuff like Cop Cities being build, Abuse on protesters and Police Budget increases. Just say you want to defeat Trumpism. Because usually any faults under Dem admins get ignored or shouted down.
Fascists end up like WWII Germany, with The Other persecuted and everyone living in fear.
Leftist extremists end up like the USSR or France right after the French Revolution.
The difference? Extreme leftism is usually auto-correcting and indiscriminate about who suffers. It can only be sustained if authoritarians trick everyone into giving them power. Fascism requires an external reset and is very methodical about the suffering.
If you have a choice between you and your enemy getting $100 OR you and your enemy getting punched in the face, the fascist choose the punch in the face while the woke chooses the $100.
This is because either the fascist is so well off that the only joy they see is other people suffering, or so bad off that the only joy they can feel is in other peoples suffering. The woke just wants to make everything better.