I know it's a gradual process for most people, but I assume most of you had a decisive moment of "yeah I am no longer a liberal, fuck liberals."

I'll share mine.

Occupy Wall Street. Yeah, I was idealistic enough to really believe in that movement, and more than that, in the idea that it was going somewhere, that there would be a Civil Rights Act style moment of legislative change that would make things seem (emphasis seem) sane again since post-9/11 madness. Again, like I said, liberal at that point.

Then I saw how many useless liberals nodded along to "too big to fail." I saw all the useless liberal comedians and other opinion leaders call for absolutely nothing but spectator smugness. I saw some of the key organizers sell out entirely to the suits, one in particular outright joining Google and then calling for Google's CEO to become an enlightened dictator for life of the United States.

Then I read this.

https://thebaffler.com/latest/mouthbreathing-machiavellis

I finally understood at a gut level how conveniently and easily liberals could become cryptofascists, a term that I didn't even know at the time. I started to see and understand how capitalism under pressure much prefers fascism to even a slight reduction in the rate of the rich becoming richer, no matter what. I learned that the Democratic Party, when it is not being paid opposition, really doesn't stand for anything different than the GOP at a material level except more performative inclusiveness in the corporate police state.

I stopped calling myself a liberal. You can call me a liberal especially if I have a bad take, but at least I stopped identifying with the label intentionally.

What's your story?

  • GreenTeaRedFlag [any]
    ·
    2 years ago

    I always called myself a socialist, but for most of my life I was really just some kind of dem suc that thought the government owning every business would be cool(no plan as to what happened to the business owners in this scenario, they just kinda accepted it). Then I started toying with further left ideas when Bernie looked like he had a shot, watching some breadtube and learning there was more possible than I imagined. Then Bernie got screwed over, submitted to the DNC and the racist neoliberal Joe like a dog, and I realized liberals were at best too stupid to let me and others make things better, and would be in many cases my enemies who would actively oppose my ideals. So I became a big-boy leftist, sorted my way through ideas, and settled on Marxism-Leninism, because I like winners. I like people that get things done, and Lenin got the job done.

    • UlyssesT [he/him]
      ·
      2 years ago

      :lenin-laugh: I consent.

      :mao-wave: I consent.

      :trot-shining: I don't.

      Forgetting someone? :troll:

    • LeninWeave [none/use name]
      ·
      2 years ago

      So I became a big-boy leftist, sorted my way through ideas, and settled on Marxism-Leninism, because I like winners. I like people that get things done, and Lenin got the job done.

      :stuff: Are you me?