Alternatively, how do I move myself towards other people who already agree with me to do this, instead of having to try to convince people who already don't really care for my company that my ideas are right? And who do I go to, to help me do that?
trying to get people to organize is like trying to breathe air while completely submerged in jello. people are content to show up to protests and leave back to the suburbs to get their fill of 'adventure' for the year. joining the dsa and stuff can make things feel less hopeless, but i see it as more of a networking tool than a 'change the world and your country' tool. will certainly be useful to know all the cool leftists when shit hits the fan
once more people are in shits creek than now things might get interesting. right now i just focus on making my circle of people more and more left wing, and whenever someone gets sick or homeless i try to help them out and just say that its what a good communist does :shrug-outta-hecks:
Who's a good communist? You're a good communist! :headpat:
But fr as a liberal that would really stick with me, that a self proclaimed commie helped me out when I needed it.
:cat-com:
edit: helped a friend out once and their grandparents helped them move in to our place for a bit and when they asked why i was helping my friend so much i said 'its what a good communist does'. apparently this grandparent recently went on a rant about the 'satanic left' and my friend mentioned that time i helped them out so much. and they were like 'look kristina doesnt count'. their grandparents apparently also say tons of transphobic stuff but took me out to dinner a lot and treat me with a lot of respect and as the gender i am despite knowing im trans :thinkin-lenin:
once more people are in shits creek than now things might get interesting
I think this is it. The people who're already in shits creek are too exhausted and alienated from each other and their communities to organize. Other members of the working class who are sympathetic to leftist views but don't have it quite so bad yet probably see themselves as having too much left to lose by agitating.
As more and more people fall from the second group into the first group, I think eventually alienation from their communities will decrease since most people will be in the same boat and solidarity can build. Once a sort of critical mass builds, things will get interesting.
In the meantime it's extremely important that those who can organize do so. When the time comes that material conditions have decayed enough that most people are willing to do something other than vote about it, those aforementioned organizations will need to be there strong enough to guide them toward socialism and away from fascism.
The alienation is real. The good news is that we've got an easier time of it to win people over. There's way more people who agree with a Marxist worldview than they might realize or can even articulate.
That gnawing feeling deep down inside you... "is this all there is to life?" No, there is so much more to the world and life holds the potential to be so much better than how it is. We need just collectively rise up and seize it.
How to do this? One comrade at a time. Find common ground and appeal to what matters to them. Healthcare sucks? Work seems meaningless and harsh? Your elected officials aren't doing what you envisioned they should be doing? We've got the answers that work. Organize and agitate.
I'm being entirely serious here, how do I get myself to somewhere wherein I can do work that is politically relevant, no matter how unsung (edit: used the wrong word)? I'm also serious when I say that (despite spending my whole life here) I don't really have any real social connections to where I live outside of my immediate family, and I want to know where I can go to become part of an organization that can tell me directly what specifically to do in order to achieve political goals.
well if you are in the USA that's leftists' biggest problem rn: we have no organization. Everything is either impotent or completely infiltrated by feds. It's a tough situation.
Good answer is finding (or starting) a local organization! If you're looking for something more specific, volunteering in local government can be a good place to start! You don't need to wear a ushanka, but you can make it clear that you're motivated by your belief in a more egalitarian community. I don't think *most * people really adhere to a strict ideology - they just want something that works. If you show up willing to help out you might be surprised at how receptive people are.
Local government is always strapped for volunteers, and if you become a regular, you can help steer action in your community towards things you'd like to see done. You know, "I'd like to see local government be more responsive to the needs of constituents." It's all about expanding the realm of possibilities that a better world is possible. With an organization, you can address community needs that aren't being met.
There is no such thing as a leftist, only members of organizations that are leftist. Gotta find one you can join and join it. If none you must start a chapter of one.
If you're not in an org, join one. Build connections between orgs by attending actions and talking to people, asking to help out. Do the work of helping out until you know how to do the planning part yourself. Actively recruit other organizations to this growing network. Have things for people to do and make sure it's happening while people are saying socialist things, not lib things. Things for people to do includes holding rallies, doing marches, mutual aid, helping others unionize, and getting a socialist elected (you should be careful about the last one because it is a lot of work with often zero payoff). Foster a left unity environment that encourages reading and respectful discussions and disagreements among comrades. Also create a space where growth is possible, since there will be lib tendencies and you should onboard them rather than wholesale rejecting them. Create a robust grievance procedure and do everything you can to create a safe and abuse-free environment, including things like buddy systems.
What is to be done?
Well, what actual things do you do with those people that you already agree with? What material concerns does that activity have that might be answered by Marxist praxis? For instance, if you have a sewing circle, do some members struggle with affording fabrics? At work, even if you can't unionise, can you get your team to act more democratically? In sport, do members need daycare or physical aids or other supplies to participate fully?
For pure propaganda, you know what works? A free BBQ, there's a reason every Christian Student org on the planet relys on it, and putting one on in a poor neighbourhood that's openly not charity but just a thing once a month or more can have a massive effect on health and finances for people on the edge. Bread and Roses, that's how you get people to listen. It can also be a good donation drive for org funds if you don't have members of means.
I'm not saying yelling about the immortal science to everyone on the internet is useless, but they will be more amenable to mass action when Marxist thought has material effects on all the little things in their life. And that is a hell of a lot easier for a few people with small or no orgs to do.
Well, what actual things do you do with those people that you already agree with?
The point is that these people don't exist for me. I do not have any social bonds with my present community outside of my sister & parents. I want to go somewhere else where I can be absorbed into a party apparatus & do drudge-work for them. How do I do that?
Ok, so you can move to a major city in the USA or elsewhere where there will be an org (usually many orgs that hate each other). Then study them and answer the questions and vetting according to watever their party line is.
Any city will do, even conservative-leaning ones. And almost any org will do to start, even if they're weird trots talking about how Kropotkin was actually a Fascist or something it's better than nothing. The easiest way to move is to go to university. Might I point out many European Universities have free programs in English and they're not so hard to get into? Otherwise you're gonna need to get a job there and unfortunately the best way to do that in the west is Lrn2cde, for values of lrn2cde that include the much easier Digital Marketing and the somewhat harder Graphic Design. The great thing is many of these jobs are remote or semi-remote so you can work everywhere.
You can also visit a Communist nation like Cuba or China under some of their party cultural exchange programs and get in touch with affiliated orgs back in your own country. English language teaching in China is also still a possibility despite the crackdown. A lot of the other methods are a bit grifty like being a token white guy in a business, but if it gets you out somewhere, fantastic.
But ultimately, you need to make friends doing things you like doing in real life. If you just join an org and make it your life you'll burn out in 3 months. There is no way around this. Communists have hobbies and skillsets and social circles and the most important thing to do is build these because those are the levers on which we pull to build action. It doesn't matter if it's the local Warhammer group, it's something. Christman is bang on point about this.
What is there that I can do that requires the least amount of functional interpersonal communication skills, doesn't require a college education, and is also practically useful?
I want to be able to do something, but I'm literally only good at low-skill industrial labor.
Like this part:
Ok, so you can move to a major city in the USA or elsewhere where there will be an org (usually many orgs that hate each other). Then study them and answer the questions and vetting according to watever their party line is.
Any city will do, even conservative-leaning ones. And almost any org will do to start, even if they’re weird trots talking about how Kropotkin was actually a Fascist or something it’s better than nothing.
Seems reasonably accomplishable, depending on exactly how big of a city we're talking about. And I do intend on moving once I can get back to work. But I don't know about the coding stuff, or trying to be some kind of international smooth-operator.
I mean, I don't want to push you into things you aren't comfortable with, but have you considered high-skill industrial labour? Germany at least has a free technical/apprenticeship program IIRC. And you'll be an immediate prize for any org that can have you.
Other things to do, join a big union and be active in its internal workings. You can do this anywhere. This doesn't require you to communicate outside of basic professional standards, but does require you to be in a lot of meetings with libs and chuds with only a faint glow of class consciousness.
Like...yes, there are some things like propaganda officer or lamplighter you can do while isolated in an org. but Socialism is...Social. At most points you gotta work with and talk to people, inside and out of the org.
right-wing political thought appeals to peoples' sense of self-righteousness
