Really? I've seen a protest a week since Oct 6

Yep, not to mention somewhere about 60-70% of Americans disapprove of Israel's genocide. But the Uncommitted Movement just endorsed Kamala Harris. UAW had endorsed Joe Biden months ago after no concessions wrt Gaza. The distance between where western leftists lie and the radical actions that are actually necessary to stop the genocide of the Palestinian people, COVID, and climate collapse is immense. What do you think happens to that 60-70% figure when you break down the effects of the collapse of American empire? Do you think anywhere more than a miniscule number of Americans currently stand in solidarity with the aims of the Axis of Resistance of complete eradication of the Zionist entity and American presence from Western Asia? Or are they just sad because they saw Palestinians being murdered, but will just as easily become outraged by whatever propaganda tells them to be angry about China or Russia next?

What does this tell us about COVID? Upthread there is already criticism of the individualistic approach of criticizing non-mask-wearers and prescription of new measures for the COVID conscious community to demand. HEPA filters, better ventilation, etc. But the thing these issues have in common with the failure of western anti imperialism, is that if we can't even get the basic knowledge across to a critical mass of people, as to make them make changes in their ordinary routines and daily behavior, then we obviously have a nearly impossible task ahead of us when tackling systems that have defence mechanisms built into them, much hardee defence mechanisms than simple force of habit.

Does that mean that the most effective strategy is to scream at people until they change their minds about the small stuff, then get together to scream about the big stuff? Obviously not, that strategy is ineffective on its own and I agree with you there. But when immunocompromised comrades' lives are on the line, of couse I'll scream at people who should get it because it's patently absurd that I have to explain basic facts that we already understood a couple months into the pandemic to people that are supposed to be materialists.

Clearly systemic approaches are the appropriate response to a pandemic. But our capitalist system has utterly failed to address this problem or put forth the most basic of solutions. So we must collectively work to protect one another in spite of their actions. Nobody is immune to Covid. Even as somebody who has gotten every vaccine the moment I could, I am susceptible to an infection, just much less so than somebody without the vaccines. Even if I got lucky and it was asymptomatic for me, I can act as a vector to spread it to somebody who is more at risk or just less lucky and who has major health outcomes for it. I’d much rather stick out in a crowd for masking than be the person responsible for passing the virus

It’s not about ‘viewing the world as a threat’ or ‘living in fear’ or whatever. It’s about community protection and mitigating the fallout of the ruling class’ selfish policies. The response of any revolutionary to systemic failures which are harming us should be collective action and education, and masks are a large part of that in the current climate of an ongoing pandemic. I wouldn’t look at the fact that millions of Americans vote for dems and repubs and conclude “the people want capitalism, I may as well give up on socialism.” Same principle should apply here

I don’t think calling the vast majority of people rats is as good of a look as you think it is,

You obviously don't know me then, I don't give the first fuck about optics in the eyes of crackers. I care about protecting the people I chose; and those who willingly carry pathogens and plagues in their faces are a tacit danger to me and my family.

I hope you have to live with the kind of lung scarring that my partner has to because crackers in my where wouldn't mask. I hope you have to live with the kind of brainfog that my grandfather has to exist in if he tries to exert himself in the ways he used to before the pandemic.

I curse you with that.