The brutality of the State of Israel is a brutality endemic to settler-colonialism as a whole, and reinforced by the authoritarian dimensions of the nation-state model.
The State of Israel, the United States, and *all* other states must be transcended for this brutality to end…
The ethnic nation-statism, white supremacy, theocracy, and capitalist relations that define these projects have something in common:
Hierarchy.
Only a global movement against hierarchies, and for radical/direct democracy + cooperation, can confront authoritarianism and fascism.
Now let’s be more concrete:
See the thread below for introductory ideas/methods around how we can relate to one another democratically at the intersection of the social, economic, and political.
Bandcamp has skated by with the “reputation” of being “for indie artists” on the outside while running an exploitative business model on the inside for years.
Why them selling out to Tencent makes sense…
Meanwhile, @resonatecoop – a real ethical, indie alternative – struggles.
Now is the perfect time to help make sure indie artists not only have a platform that ensures fair pay for creative labor, but that also gives them the chance to take ownership in (and control of) the distribution of their art to the world.
“Abolition” has become a buzzword in these last few years, but abolition isn’t happening without an alternative. We now have to speak to the imagination if we wish to transcend these oppressive systems, and we have to organize + BUILD on that imagination.
Manipulation of fiat currencies – self-sovereign, fed-regulated, etc. – embedded in proprietary logics focused on mere accumulation can’t define social relations that’d determine systems change.
The most it can be leveraged for are prefigurative world-building projects and tech.
Ironically, “grassroots + non-hierarchical” is nearly synonymous with “decentralized + autonomous,” and we have centuries of history showing advantages of this organization.
The issue in these times is largely related to culture + fragmentation (which new tech can help address).
Our challenge is less around “leadership,” and more around our capacity to put everyone in a position to lead themselves via directly democratic decision-making processes (governance before government).
Nostalgia (+ tradition) is indeed an enemy, though.
Some of us squander so many opportunities for good-faith discourse and education on here because we’re more concerned with looking smart for followers or going viral than appealing to the humanity of others.
Don’t be a “Leftist” absorbed by the neoliberal logic of this platform.
Anyone with a conscience should be using everything at their disposal – which includes social media and technology more broadly – for problem-solving right now, with the urgency of someone trapped in a burning building with everyone else on here and in need of an escape plan.