HAPPY VALENTINES DAY YALLLLL!!!!!! HOW WE DOING?. come vent, chat, or gush! as usual no crackers allowed.

  • Rojo27 [he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    5 months ago

    Had a very meh Valtentine's Day. Not that I want to put too much weight on it, but considering how dead my love life is, the last time I dated was about 5 years ago, I can't help feel the desire to be with someone on a day that's just all about that.

    Besides that I don't know that I'd call it a debate, but the cleaning lady at my job was asking me who I'm voting for in the presidential elections and I said no one. She kept telling me to vote for Trump so that he can resolve the "migrant crisis" and I said, he's not really going to resolve anything, especially not for us [workers]. Then she hit me with the "this is an important election" to which I replied, "yeah, we're told every election is the most important of our lives". I kept it light-hearted with my over the top quirky voice, but inside I was kind of pissed. I'm tired of hearing libs and conservatives blame migrants for problems that have been present forever.

      • Rojo27 [he/him]
        ·
        edit-2
        4 months ago

        Nah, she's also a POC. I think the biggest issue is just that so many people come to the US buying into the bootstraps mentality that they feel like anyone who comes here and struggles is just sapping resources from everyone else.

        It's especially prevalent with immigrants who come here by legal means. They think that the government is welcoming in illegal migrants with open arms even though that isn't true. It doesn't help that the media constantly bangs on about the migrant crisis and covers it in a way that makes most people who aren't critical of the media they consume think that their enemy are migrants rather than the ruling class.

          • Rojo27 [he/him]
            ·
            4 months ago

            I doubt it lol. She's dabbled with being a landlord in the past and she's still given thought of buying cheap property out of state to rent out. She's also part of a union, but if my memory serves me right, she didn't have a very high opinion of unions in general. Overall just very much into the capitalist mindset.

            • Lemmygradwontallowme [he/him, comrade/them]
              ·
              edit-2
              4 months ago

              On sec thoughts, if referring to this context

              Please read Masses, Elites et Rebels by Red Sails...

              Edit: essentially

              Westerners are willingly complicit in crimes because they instinctively and correctly understand that they benefit as a class (as a global bourgeois proletariat) from the exploitation enabled by their military and their propaganda (in Gramscian: organs of coercion and consent).

              In my opinion, I think the benefits come from the overwhelming exploitation of the Global South's resources nad labor used to build up the Global North/the West's economic opportunities.

              Here's a fact:

              The South’s losses outstrip their aid receipts by a factor of 30.

              So, until she has been later disenfranchised by the reality of capitalism... she would probably stick to their own status (which, I mean, understandable)

              • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
                ·
                4 months ago

                Red Sails kinda sucks and so does Roderic Day.

                You should read things critically, not just tell people to read something.

                You should explain it in your own words instead of tasking others to read what you've read.

                IMHO.

                • Rojo27 [he/him]
                  ·
                  4 months ago

                  You should explain it in your own words instead of tasking others to read what you've read.

                  Honestly this is something I've tried to an extent. Not that I really think I'm going to convince anyone, but I try to at least give a more leftist perspective on whatever it is we may be talking about.

                  • Lemmygradwontallowme [he/him, comrade/them]
                    ·
                    4 months ago

                    Aye, I think I may've been too harsh on ye... a bit too elitist, judgemental... I apologize, man.

                    Well, I think I might need to know more to be quiet before I speak....

                    • Rojo27 [he/him]
                      ·
                      4 months ago

                      Nah, you're good. I'm always open to any suggestions whenever it comes to this sort of stuff.

                  • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
                    ·
                    4 months ago

                    Awesome!

                    I also disagree with the Roderic Day article above (just saw the edit).

                    There are many BIPOC and poor people in the Western world.

                    It's not even a matter of "rights" and "disenfranchisement" and it's more accurate to say that a lot of this stuff is implicit and isn't really thought of in concrete terms by Westerners.

                    And being "proletarianized" isn't a panacea for, say, chauvinism or racism.

                    (Also, the article on brain-washing is kinda silly in general lmao)

                  • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
                    ·
                    edit-2
                    4 months ago

                    Fine, fine.

                    I do find Roderic Day overrated, but that's not the point.

                    I think people have this penchant for (sometimes) telling others to read something and having the other person go the extra mile when they could've been simply told in fewer words.

                    I get it, not everyone has the time, but at best, it results in the person being "converted" to yours or someone else's opinion (again, at best) while neglecting any counter-arguments.

                    It's a very, err, artificial way of creating a follower, if you catch my drift; it's not that organic and just sort-of creates a situation (at best, I should stress) where there's no real discussion and others can't hop in to challenge you or whoever is doing this.

                    Idk, I study communications so....

                    lol Just thought I'd explain my thinking of when I made that initial comment to you.

    • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
      ·
      4 months ago

      Yeah, I have a relative who works for DHS and she says there's lots of racism there too.

  • Othello [comrade/them, love/loves]
    hexagon
    M
    ·
    4 months ago

    Hasan “I’m white. In my real life, I am treated by white people as a white person. I have white privilege. I am white.” Hexbear users “ actually, I am extremely racist, and do not consider you to be white by my standards, which are more racist than the average person , this is an actually very progressive and leftist thing to say”

    • Othello [comrade/them, love/loves]
      hexagon
      M
      ·
      4 months ago

      “Actually, he is Muslim therefore he cannot be white because I do not consider Muslim people to be white. I am very progressive.” Or or “ he is Turkish and Turkish people cannot be white, despite Turkish people being white, this is a anti-racist statement”

      • Othello [comrade/them, love/loves]
        hexagon
        M
        ·
        4 months ago

        “ Actually, I am literally Hitler reincarnate, and my view of who is and isn’t white is the most accurate one”

          • zed_proclaimer [he/him]
            ·
            edit-2
            4 months ago

            this is the “western” struggle session over again where some users think it’s a good thing to be “white” and “western” and get offended when you point out comprador lackeys on the fringes of the white supremacist western system are not actually full on card carrying members of the evil empire, that they will be tossed aside and made “brown” and “foreign” as soon as they are no longer useful.

            • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
              ·
              4 months ago

              This is a BIPOC thread, actually.

              We're not having a struggle session.

                • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
                  ·
                  4 months ago

                  I don't think we're at the point where we're arguing either haha

                  I kinda see this as mainly a discussion.

                  At least, nobody is fighting with each other, I think.

      • theposterformerlyknownasgood
        ·
        4 months ago

        When a well to do black conservative says that racism is over and they're treated as white, do you believe them?

    • Lemmygradwontallowme [he/him, comrade/them]
      ·
      4 months ago

      Aye, my stance is, if you're considered white by most of society, I guess you're white. Just wait until they pulling out calipers and compare you to the "purer" races... and that's an oof for you...

      Whiteness is as consistent as the mutual intelligibility of all the Arabic language(s)

          • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
            ·
            4 months ago

            It's not just whatever Americans think, particularly a Turk living in America, and one with a lot of privilege.

            • Lemmygradwontallowme [he/him, comrade/them]
              ·
              4 months ago

              I'm not thinking of Americans?

              What will be considered white in Spain, will not exactly correlate with what British people would think are white, and so on with Scandinivia, Russia, Germany, U.S.A, etc

              I think my point with Arab languages, with it as a comparison, is that the national dialects within them aren't really mutually intelligible to each other...

              • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
                ·
                edit-2
                4 months ago

                Oh, no, I was referring to Hasan Piker and was making the point that it shouldn't matter what one Turk has to say (or one Arab or one Kurd, etc.), especially out of many.

                But yeah, I get what you're saying here (hopefully, I'm keeping up with the convo; sometimes I reply without seeing the full context, even in the one I'm conversing in LMAO).

                Edit: Actually, now I remember: I was also agreeing with you hahahaha

                Yeah, I think we're good.

    • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
      ·
      4 months ago

      Many Arabs and people around Arabia (Turkmen, Kurds, etc.) consider themselves white, tbh.

      I don't know if it's true in general.

      But that's where "lived experience" comes in.

  • GaveUp [she/her]M
    ·
    edit-2
    4 months ago

    Both my parents are from China and immigrated to an Anglo country. One came from a family who had a successful business in the village they lived in and they owned a single large courtyard property. The other came from a poor family where most people were selling miscellaneous goods on the streets from a cart

    The former's family got all their capital and property confiscated by the Party, and all fled to the UK where nearly all of them worked low wage jobs at restaurants or factories

    The latter's family all stayed behind except for my parent, and now they own a successful local real estate company and live in a city with standards of living far, far above the country I'm from in almost every aspect. That parent who moved mostly worked low wage factory jobs

    Really makes you think (I'm high)

  • Comp4 [she/her]
    ·
    5 months ago

    Another Valentines day alone...well not alone. Im watching Matrix with my brother later. (The new Matrix havent seen that one)

  • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    4 months ago

    Looking back, I was abused by my therapists for being non-white.

    Sigh

    I'm going to have to talk about that with my therapist today during a session...

  • Pluto [he/him, he/him]
    ·
    4 months ago

    Sometimes...

    It seems that us "mixed people" (I'm not sure what the right term is) are the lowest of the low.

    Scorned by both (or more) sides of our heritage.

    I don't like it.

  • TheDeed [he/him, comrade/them]M
    ·
    edit-2
    4 months ago

    I've been thinking a lot about conflict resolution styles and how it relates to culture. I feel like displays of strong emotion, or conflict in general are kind of punished or discouraged in American culture, strongly informed by white cultural values. Especially here in the Midwest.

    I don't really believe in conflict for conflict's sake but I also feel like the ol "keep silently eating dinner and dont address any issues" WASPy style of conflict is hugely damaging as well

    trying to balance what I know and have lived and grown up with vs what other people outside my own culture expect is infuriating.