If you are expecting to read my usual Left Coast column, I tell you now that you will be disappointed. I write, today, from a place of horror—about the massacre unleashed against civilians in Israel this past week, and about the morally cretinous bloodlust reaction some who fashion themselves as being on the “left” seem to have experienced in its aftermath, but also in despair at the ghastly collective punishments being unleashed from the air on Gaza residents by Netanyahu’s far-right government and the Israeli military.
SEO optimized idealist media criticism focused hot take: revenge is cool and good and no west coast PMC hipster who has ever written a fucking marvel movie saying its not has ever experienced anything truly worth avenging.
lukewarm materialist take: revenge is ok in certain contexts assuming the consequences can be avoided or are beneficial to strengthening the dictatorship of the proletariat. see the chinese cultural revolution for examples.
Sure. I can see that, especially the second one. I'm just pointing out that when arguing with liberals you can easily point to Israel's heinous actions and say "What would you and your friends do? What would they want to do? Would you roll over and take it?" And further to the point about "condemning hamas", it's like condemning boiling water. You condemn the person putting the water to heat