Marine Communism

Sam, he / his

[left-reminders]

Something that will always annoy me:

How any structural critique of electoral politics is read as “don’t vote” and inevitably a bunch of liberals jump in to make sure you’re voting Democrat. Most leftists I know vote, and I don’t disagree with the idea of it as damage control of whatever, but there’s this massive Cult of the Vote™ in liberal circles that treats ballot-casting as the indispensable political act. Like, even leftists who endorse voting are still going to adamantly declare afterwards that unionizing, direct action, food drives, indigenous rights, resistance to white supremacy, community solidarity, dissemination of radical ideas, workplace democracy, prefiguration, etc. are all far more important in tilting the landscape leftward; and some liberals will concede that “sure, those other activities might be important”, but voting is still the only one that’s fetishized so strongly in these circles. Probably because “non-partisan” “rock the vote” sentiment is one of the least threatening movements in the eyes of the rich and powerful, and so it’s a sentiment that’s allowed to flourish and receive all these endorsements from celebrities and war criminals. In other words, you rarely see liberals wear shirts that say “unionize” or “restore the commons”, but you always see liberals wearing “rock the vote”-type shirts or “I just voted” stickers.

This isn’t me saying “don’t vote”. In fact, do vote. Damage control is good. But the way liberals approach this conversation perpetually shoots down any and all left-wing mobilization beyond the capitalist voting booth.

[black-geek-supremacy]

☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿☝🏿

[sixbucks]

America is Regressing into a Developing Nation for Most People

A new book by economist Peter Temin finds that the U.S. is no longer one country, but dividing into two separate economic and political worlds

[reagan-was-a-horrible-president]

This is a good article.

[karadin]

We have entered a phase of regression,and one of the easiest ways to see it is in our infrastructure: our roads and bridges look more like those in Thailand or Venezuela than the Netherlands or Japan. But it goes far deeper than that, which is why Temin uses a famous economic model created to understand developing nations to describe how far inequality has progressed in the United States. The model is the work of West Indian economist W. Arthur Lewis, the only person of African descent to win a Nobel Prize in economics. 

In the Lewis model of a dual economy, much of the low-wage sector has little influence over public policy. Check. 

The high-income sector will keep wages down in the other sector to provide cheap labor for its businesses. Check. 

Social control is used to keep the low-wage sector from challenging the policies favored by the high-income sector. Mass incarceration - check. 

The primary goal of the richest members of the high-income sector is to lower taxes. Check. 

Social and economic mobility is low. Check.

Temin says that today in the U.S., the ticket out is education, which is difficult for two reasons: you have to spend money over a long period of time, and the FTE sector is making those expenditures more and more costly by defunding public schools and making policies that increase student debt burdens.  

Even with a diploma, you will likely find that high-paying jobs come from networks of peers and relatives. Social capital, as well as economic capital, is critical, but because of America’s long history of racism and the obstacles it has created for accumulating both kinds of capital, black graduates often can only find jobs in education, social work, and government instead of higher-paying professional jobs like technology or finance— something most white people are not really aware of. Women are also held back by a long history of sexism and the burdens — made increasingly heavy — of making greater contributions to the unpaid care economy and lack of access to crucial healthcare.

How did we get this way?

What happened to America’s middle class, which rose triumphantly in the post-World War II years, buoyed by the GI bill, the victories of labor unions, and programs that gave the great mass of workers and their families health and pension benefits that provided security?

Around 1970, the productivity of workers began to get divided from their wages. Corporate attorney and later Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell galvanized the business community to lobby vigorously for its interests. Johnson’s War on Poverty was replaced by Nixon’s War on Drugs, which sectioned off many members of the low-wage sector, disproportionately black, into prisons. Politicians increasingly influenced by the FTE sector turned from public-spirited universalism to free-market individualism. As money-driven politics accelerated (a phenomenon explained by the Investment Theory of Politics, as Temin explains), leaders of the FTE sector became increasingly emboldened to ignore the needs of members of the low-wage sector, or even to actively work against them.

 Temin notes that “the desire to preserve the inferior status of blacks has motivated policies against all members of the low-wage sector.”

What can we do?

We’ve been digging ourselves into a hole for over forty years, but Temin says that we know how to stop digging.

If we spent more on domestic rather than military activities, then the middle class would not vanish as quickly. 

The effects of technological change and globalization could be altered by political actions. 

We could restore and expand education, shifting resources from policies like mass incarceration to improving the human and social capital of all Americans. 

We could upgrade infrastructure, forgive mortgage and educational debt in the low-wage sector,

 reject the notion that private entities should replace democratic government in directing society, and

 focus on embracing an integrated American population. 

We could tax not only the income of the rich, but also their capital.

 We have a structure that predetermines winners and losers. We are not getting the benefits of all the people who could contribute to the growth of the economy, to advances in medicine or science which could improve the quality of life for everyone — including some of the rich people.”

Along with Thomas Piketty, whose Capital in the Twenty-First Century examines historical and modern inequality, Temin’s book has provided a giant red flag, illustrating a trajectory that will continue to accelerate as long as the 20 percent in the FTE sector are permitted to operate a country within America’s borders solely for themselves at the expense of the majority. 

Without a robust middle class, America is not only reverting to developing-country status, it is increasingly ripe for serious social turmoil that has not been seen in generations.

In Other Words Revolution

[thepeacockangel]

Capitalism’s bad

[femmegenderbf]

I really hope i don’t see any fellow white Americans on this post talking about how we don’t deserve this because we’re “the greatest country in the world” or how “this shouldn’t be happening in America of all places”. It shouldn’t be happening ANYWHERE, it doesn’t need to be happening anymore, and the fact that it was already happening in predominantly nonwhite countries is largely the fault of white supremacy

[zanabism-deactivated20200529]

it’s the 1st of muharram today which means for the next few weeks Shia Muslims around the world will be commemorating some of the most important events in the history of Shiism. This also means Shia Muslims will be the most vulnerable to attacks from Sunni supremacist terrorist groups like ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Taliban, LeJ, SeS, Al-Shabab and so many more. 

Please pray for the safety of shias all around the world, and especially Shias living in Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bahrain, and Syria. 

[hotcommunist-deactivated2019032]

It’s sad how many self proclaimed feminists will see a woman have countless risky cosmetic procedures that leave them in agony as they recover and have high rejection rates and go “you go girl!!! If it makes you happy do it!!!” cause like if she feels so societally pressured that she goes under the knife…..she ain’t happy. y'all uglies are just enabling her papering over a crack and that shit is damaging.

[hotcommunist-deactivated2019032]

it’s even WORSE how the plastic surgery industry normalises this as well - they market it as a treat yo self thing!! treat yourself to invasive butchery I guess??? and like we need to talk about how they prey on poc who are put under blistering pressure to conform to white beauty standard lol

[autumntides]

“My uncle is a cop!” Your uncle sucks.

“My mom is a landlord!” Your mom sucks.

“My daughter is a soldier!” Your daughter sucks.

“My dad is a businessman!” Your dad sucks.

I choose to not be a cop, or a landlord, or a soldier, or in business. I also choose to not go marauding, and to not steal painkillers from hospitals, and to not kill children. We all make decisions about what opportunities are possible and which are acceptable to take. If your family, friends, loved ones, yourself are making bad ones, I don’t care to hold your hand and tell you, oh, maybe I was wrong. I am consistent. I don’t want people to suffer. If you and yours cause people to suffer, buddy,

it sucks.

[zanabism-deactivated20200529]

all these men want casual no strings attached relationships then wonder why they keep slipping into pits of like sorrow and intermittent depression in the moments they’re too sober. Like when all you’ve done is compartmentalize affection to the point where it’s just a transaction to you, or a point of maintenance you have to fulfill every few nights, you *will* suffer consequences. your heart *will* eventually feel heavy when you start to remember all your missed connections, and all the opportunities to feel genuine love for another person. like this sort of selfishness comes with a price, there’s like a debt to be paid here

[petcareawareness]

People seriously underestimate the impact the media has on notions of pet ownership and what people can handle in animals.

Books, movies, TV, and internet videos from Youtube, Instagram, and The Dodo often show animals in their best moments, or even acting because they’ve been trained to do certain tasks (or are animated as humanlike characters). The fact is that the vast majority of people, even those who already have pets, have a very low or nonexistent level of animal literacy; what they take away from that kind of media oftens turns into “I want that animal as a pet.” 

People who watched Finding Nemo created an explosion of demand for clownfish and blue tangs; Harry Potter, owls; 101 Dalmatians for dalmatians, etc etc etc. When the decision to get a pet modeled after the cute, photo-ready animals seen on a screen is made, there is zero consideration as to whether or not their needs can be met and if people can actually handle them. 

Media featuring animals inevitably creates a boom of abandonment and huge environmental impact precisely because people who were in over their heads and acted purely on a whim got their dose of reality, and it’s incredibly heartbreaking to have to see the news detailing such cases. These are just some examples: 

Yearly reminders have to be passed around telling people not to buy rabbits on Easter unless they’re committed to actually taking care of them  

Thousands of dalmatians were abandoned when families discovered that they are very energy intensive, broody work dogs that are not suited to families with small children, unlike the cuddly Perdita and Pongo

Similarly, huskies and malamutes were surrendered to shelters when people realised they are not loyal Westeros direwolves

Entire ecosystems in Europe and southern Asia lost valuable apex predators when people began poaching them to sell to fans who wanted their own Hedwigs and Errols, and again abandoning them en masse when they discovered owls are highly aggressive, loud, messy, and nocturnal

Japan imported thousands of North American raccoons after the release of the Disney movie Rascal, people let them loose in the wild, and Japan now has a problem trying to figure out what to do with their enormous pest population that has no natural predator in place to control their numbers

Pacific Reefs suffered greatly when people demanded to have clownfish and blue tangs as pets, especially considering they were caught by being stunned with sodium cyanide, which, additionally, severely damages coral as well. NatGeo estimates that up to 90% of tropical fish imported by the US are caught by way of cyanide fishing; this often ends up for naught as these fish are often flushed down the toilet or released to the wild in other ways, which is also why the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico are under threat by voracious invasive species like lionfish   

The gist is that the media perpetuates this cycle of people reading about or seeing animal characters, demand is created, people impulse buy those animals, and then leave them for shelters to care for or release them to the wild when they get a rude awakening and find they’re actually unable to deal with those animals. 

This isn’t even counting other animals like “mini” pigs, chihuahuas, snakes, foxes, etc etc etc. And we can’t exactly blame this on over enthusiastic children when it’s adults who have the purchasing power to buy a pet, and who choose to do zero research, and who choose to indulge said children or even themselves when that I Want the TV Animal as a Pet urge comes on. 

Ignoring what is essentially weaponised cuteness used for online likes is hard, especially when faced with such palatable stuff like that gif of the owl riding the tablet stylus, or the plethora of cat videos. But it costs very little effort to not only educate yourself on the needs of animals and to also not encourage a rapacious pet trade industry, but to communicate that to others so that, hopefully, we won’t have to see things like Peter Dinklage and Jo Rowling having to make statements to the news because of this problem. 

–Mod Nick

[oncelerfucker69-deactivated2019]

It’s funny when people criticize revolutions for like closing government offices and suppressing dissent or whatever because revolutions are literally about seizing power and making sure you succeed at that without a counterrevolution. That’s how feudalism was overthrown. No it’s not a process where the ruling class gets to democratically accept changes and have a vote, it’s the forceful destruction of the current system. You’re not gonna succeed at that if you let people get in the way.

[tealesbian]

the rain: makes that soft rain sound

me immediately:

[dispatchesfromtheclasswar]

[covid-69]

note that whenever I say huge amounts of wealth can’t be gained through ethical methods this is what I’m talking about

[autumntides]

To explain just a hair more, if a landlord can use someone’s rent to buy a new property, and use tenants in a new property to buy yet more property, it means every person who pays rent could have also eventually bought a property outright and not had to have such a constant drain. But, no renter could: for lack of upfront funds, for a lack of access due to racism or ableism or classism, for lack of trust given by financial institutions, etc. Put plainly, a landlord contributes no value or service but uses someone else’s funds to compound a landlord’s own riches and get more human livestock to bleed, simply because of a moment of permission granted by more powerful groups. How many people are suffering and struggling to keep an ex-nurse afloat in luxury? What is being contributed?

[stunningpicture]

So proud of my mother for doing her own research after I sent her that meme. A sign she hung in her car window.

[jettestblack-deactivated2017080]

Stay woke

[pual1010-deactivated20150723]

Is this true?

[mallninjacode-deactivated201812]

Not only is it true, it gets worse. The Susan G Komen For The Cure Foundation has actually successfully sued “competing” charities, because (paraphrasing) their “message or branding was infringing.”

You read that correctly: they took money that people had donated to cure cancer, and hired attorneys with it, to sue ANOTHER group of people trying to find a cure for cancer, who, in turn, had to us their donated money to hire their own legal counsel to defend themselves.

[redbloodedamerica]

[spacemohawks]

Yeah signal boost because not enough people know about this and seriously FUCK SUSAN G. KOMEN THEY ARE THE ACTUAL WORST

[beanmom]

Some links…

http://thinkbeforeyoupink.org/

http://www.somethingawful.com/feature-articles/for-the-cure/

http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/132728/susan_g_komen_foundation_has

(reblogged in honor of my mother, who died of breast cancer, 11/13/97)

[hello-missvixy-deactivated20160]

Reblog every time I see it. Roughly once a month.

[blockmind]

Also please never forget the pink fracking drill bit

that’s right fracking you know, a process using chemicals known to cause cancer that leech into the water supply

http://www.triplepundit.com/2014/10/baker-hughes-fights-breast-cancer-pink-fracking-drill-bits/

http://www.nbcnews.com/health/cancer/pink-drill-bits-bring-complaints-komen-tie-fracking-n223166

[alexithymia42]

It’s that time of year again, please remember Komen is the actual worst

[sofia-ciel]

Komen For The Cure is pretty much awful.

[imaginarycircus]

My mother died in 1996 from breast cancer. Most cancer charities are scams, in that people throw fancy parties and get rich off them and very little money goes into research or support for patients. Here are some vetted cancer charities that get good scores on Charity Navigator and pay medical expenses or fund research:

Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Cancer Research Institute

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

63 four star rated cancer charities on charity navigator

[spacey-sandwich]

Signal boosting this

[emmalily]

Reblogging from myself because it’s October now

[socialistexan]

Not only should all workers be given enough of a wage to sustain themselves and their families, but all people, regardless of labor output, deserves a basic minimum amount of quality of life that meets their needs and that has their human diginity respected.

That means food, water, shelter, and healthcare must all be provided for everyone, not hoarded by one single class of people.

Some of this will be fixed in a worker owned or oriented economy, as workers will receive the full value of their labor, but it does not alone fully address how the basic minimum of human diginity will be met. Simply switching the keys over to the worker won’t solve everything, we need a plan beyond even that.

[zanabism-deactivated20200529]

liberals will wear the rainbow pins and the “make racists afraid again” stickers  but at the end of the day they’ll always put corrupt visions of “civility”, “due process”, “working within the system” and “choosing the lesser evil” above the crucial needs of oppressed people  

[yekkes]

“Shia looks like a bully” for shouting at a Nazi… for shouting Nazi code. A Jew shouting at a Nazi is bullying now… the layers of liberalism.

[zanabism-deactivated20200529]

liberals: being RESPECTFUL to homophobes is more important than ending homophobia itself 

[disabilityhealth]

Don’t be a “respect is earned not given” kind of person

Be a “respect is given unless proven undeserved” kind of person

[oncelerfucker69-deactivated2019]

After looking more into the Gates Foundation, I think another reason billionaires don’t just end world hunger or poverty with their assets is because they are afraid of abandoning “meritocracy”.

On Gates’ website, the foundation talks about giving people help to lift THEMSELVES out of poverty. They’re still into that Bootstraps narrative. So even the most “generous” billionaires on Earth truly do not believe the poor are undeserving of their conditions. They see poverty not as a systematic issue, but an individual one that can be resolved with a small push.

But it hasn’t. World hunger is on the rise and climate change is taking away resources. Billionaires are aware of this, they just see poverty and hunger as necessary…because that’s what they rely on to get rich.