Couple of things, first of all "just lifestyleism" is a dismissive way of describing the very necessary coping that goes on in communities like this. Even the lefty infighting that happens is, at least to some extent, a relief from liberal hegemony. We're all in hell all the time, most of us don't even have families that agree with us, we only have each other.

The other thing is, we don't "feel" too impotent, we are too impotent. This isn't a movie, it isn't about grit and determination and chutzpah, it's about material conditions. All of us understand viscerally how precarious we and all our coworkers are. I spend my breaks at the restaurant steering conversations toward capitalism and it's flaws, and most people are very interested and prone to agree, but I couldn't organize the place if I wanted to. I've been there for 5 years, people come and go extremely quickly, most are working more than one job, unionizing is just not feasible. I don't have any answers, but I wouldn't be so quick write off online activity, whether it's relieving stress by shitposting here, or tweeting and reddit posting, as completely useless.

As always, solidarity comrade

General P.P. Balls

:large-adult-son:

“U claim 2 want socialism and yet are not actively fighting a protracted people’s war, curius”

Defeatism is punishable with death under Stalinism.

Real though, don't knock a 10k sized board. Cultural hegemony isn't won in a day.

Sure all of us should organize and such, but rather let's do it with 'yes, and...' so that we stay alive

Well someone doesn't believe in meme magic 🙄

While "go outside and talk to people" is always good advice, the internet is the modern-day public square and superficially silly stuff like memes are modern-day agitprop. To do anything we need to grow the left, to grow the left we need to convince people of our ideas, and the way to convince people of our ideas in a heavily-propagandized and heavily-online world is through creating our own online propaganda. Forums like this do that work, and while that work isn't the whole puzzle, it's at least one necessary piece.

People change their minds based on what they read on the internet all the time -- that needs to work in our favor.

We need to have real answers to their questions, and have a real platform, so that they would join us.

To add to this excellent point:

1. If we're going to tell people not to vote, or tell them that electoralism doesn't matter, we need a specific alternative to that. "Do direct action" is not a specific alternative; it doesn't give you the who, what, where, when, why, or how you'd need to take any sort of concrete step. Even "go to this protest at this place and time" is not good enough; we still have to connect that to some meaningful end result. The 2020 BLM protests are doing a better job of that than the 2015 BLM protests (or Occupy Wall Street), but we still have a lot of work to do on that point.
2. More broadly, we need to be presenting socialist alternatives at least as often as we're criticizing capitalism. There's no better defense of capitalism than "hey, it's the best we can do," and there's no better critique of capitalism than "look at how every other developed country handles healthcare and how those non-capitalist alternatives are superior in every way to the shit we have." Dunking on late capitalism pissing down its leg all over the planet is fun, but it doesn't convince anyone that a better world is possible.

love to angrily assume no 1 is organizing irl when posting to chapo dot chat

:galaxy-brain:

we feel too impotent or we are afraid of sticking our necks out.

Record scratch, freeze frame yep that's me. Also crippling social anxiety and depression.

Clocking in for work. Someone plz continue cyberbullying OP for their weak ass liberal attempt at kink shaming the people of ChapoChat.

:crazy-frog-trans:

we are afraid of sticking our necks out

begging you 2 go to a protest or volunteer 4 a food bank or donate 2 a bail fund.

OH FUK I FIGURED IT OUT

op ain’t doing shit and is blaming us chapos for that instead of their honkie bourgeoisie material comfort

I DONT HAVE THE LUXURY OF DOING JACK SHIT YOU LIBERAL GAMER

EVERYONE THIS IS V IMPORTANTE: we must bully OP so that they stop trying 2 b a tuff killjoy

u ain’t even a doomer rn, just cringe. I go on here to talk shit between doing shit in meatspace (mmm meat 🥵).

DONT TALK SHIT ABOUT ME BEING IMPOTENT I MAKE BOIS BOUNCE ON MA STRAP ON’S D 4 HOURS AFTER WE BASH PIGS

almost as if a new approach entirely is required.

Between all of us, if we took this as serious as a job and gave it as many hours as we could a week, we would be a smallish think tank/political campaign. with no budget to speak of.

edit. in my opinion, we should focus on building up resources and our own community. there are lots of comrades here that need material help. after that, expand. imo

edit. i guess even that is basically meaningless

@InternetLefty - I have declared a cyberbullying fatwah on u:

if you edit your post to denounce killjoy liberalism and personally thank me, PartyMonster, for bringing you back to leftism and Chapo thought then I will declare this sacred jihad accomplished.

Edit: I will even send you an enticing picture of a critter. It is a rare picture, perhaps of a possum. This deal is a real firesale OP, act now

well if it's online only it really means next to nothing

Ok honkie 👌

go doomer in the corner, we’re building a coalition here :AyyyyyOC-big:

Edit: honkie mad lol 😂