• Passerby6497@lemmy.world
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    6 months ago

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-fulfilling_prophecy

    If no one votes because they don’t think they can win, they’re right. Vote anyway, you never know, you might unseat a local candidate and begin making incremental progress. And to be honest, the local level is always going to be more impactful on your day to day life anyway.

    But if you don’t cast the vote, you’re going to be in the minority forever, along with everyone else who agrees with you and does the same.

    • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world
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      6 months ago

      Counter opinion.

      Win, lose, it doesn’t matter.

      Voting is a pressure release valve that allows the status quo to exist.

      It tricks the population into thinking it has an ounce of control over a country that serves it corporations

      Voting is misdirection of the masses. It’s the wrong answer to the wrong question.

      While you are directing your anger at the citizen voters on the other team, or the people not voting, the lobbyists are the people with the real greenbacked votes that actually count.

      • Passerby6497@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        So what’s your solution? Do nothing and let the fascists take over? Start a revolution that will (at best) get put down quickly and nothing changes?

        The only way to really show force is to do a general strike, but no one has the community support networks to outlast the capital class to get shit done. So for now, we either vote to keep shit from spiralling or we give in and accept the boot.

        Win, lose, it doesn’t matter.

        Spoken from a place of privilege, where the consequences of your choice don’t affect those around you. It matters to me who wins and loses, because one person winning means the rest of us lose and may not have a chance again. I have people I love who may not have rights in a year or two depending on how things play out.

        But hey, I guess that part doesn’t matter to you.

          • Passerby6497@lemmy.world
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            6 months ago

            Thanks for the heads up. Between their reply and looking through their comments, I can see you’re right.

        • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world
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          6 months ago

          So what’s your solution? Do nothing and let the fascists take over?

          Don’t fall for the misdirection. Sure, vote. But don’t belive it changes anything.

          Start a revolution that will (at best) get put down quickly and nothing changes?

          Take the occupy wall street approach, not the BLM approach.

          The only way to really show force is to do a general strike, but no one has the community support networks to outlast the capital class to get shit done.

          Yes yes yes. A one day strike. A one hour strike. A Japanese bus driver refuse fares strike (if applicable).

          So for now, we either vote to keep shit from spiralling

          My disillusion sees this as both easy to do and damaging because that’s all people do once every 4 years. Dur. I did my part, I voted.

          Spoken from a place of privilege, where the consequences of your choice don’t affect those around you.

          You don’t need privilege to observe when your vote doesn’t matter.

          It matters to me who wins and loses, because one person winning means the rest of us lose and may not have a chance again.

          It doesn’t matter who wins or loses because the corporatocracy wins if the wheel lands on red or blue.

          I have people I love who may not have rights in a year or two depending on how things play out.

          Misdirection again, although this time with serious side effects. The bigger the difference between the parties in social policies, the smaller the difference in economic policies. Corporatocracy wins either way.

      • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        Yeah this is bullshit and I question the sincerity of anyone saying this. We know empirically that areas that tend to vote left-wing have a harder experience in voting compared to areas that don’t. If voting didn’t matter there wouldn’t be a targeted effort since 1865 to make it more difficult for some groups over other groups.

        People have quite literally risked getting into sent to federal, rape in the shower, prison for decades to prevent black people from voting. You don’t do that if you think voting doesn’t matter.