Definitely seems that way.

Lol

Living is fun and I have people I love and care for deeply, that make me see the world through alternative angles that deepen my appreciation.

Hooray!

That’s sickeningly tragic. End the genocide.

Physical helps me remember better when I write it down, and I love sketching tasks, but it makes no difference when crossing them off.

Would like to know too! I use a proprietary OS for now and want to jump ship with my next phone.

Good.

I would say by that definition, every system is authoritarian to different degrees, and as such we all just pick whatever degree we are okay with. It’s vibes based, not metrics based.

Communism is classless, yes, but Communism must be built, as it is the eventual elimination of contradictions. You may wish to read Critique of the Gotha Programme, where Marx makes a good critique of a bad Socialist program and advocates for a different Socialist method of reaching Communism.

Unsurprising.

I like to think I am.

Reading, hiking, backpacking, cooking, brewing, fixing, loving, caring, dreaming, building, gaming, growing, learning, teaching.

Not sure underrated, but Swans is fantastic. Brutal, oppressive, horrifyingly beautiful sound.

Big Thief is the pure opposite, it’s like a comforting hug and warm coffee.

A Socialist Republic would be better than a Capitalist Republic, yes. Human rights would be better represented if the profit motive was abolished and production was run democratically, rather than by competing warlords in Capitalism.

Spoiler - they won’t.

This is how democracy works in any Capitalist system where the bourgeoisie have an outsized influence on the state and the proletariat have an undersized influence.

I generally don’t.

I don’t believe social democracy or democratic socialism are enough, but if they are baby steps against Imperialism then I think it’s a good move, if only to later hope for a Marxist revolution. That’s really my core point, I suppose.

Thanks for the discussion!

I want to start this off by reponding to your closer, I agree entirely, this is a good-faith convo I appreciate among fellow Marxist comrades, and I do enjoy it!

I ageee that it isn’t ideal to pick between the lesser of two evils, but I believe one can support a lesser of two evils between 2 evils while supporting good revolutionary or corrective movements within.

As for the bit on Social Democracy within the periphery, I know it isn’t Socialism and will never be Socialism, but third world Social Democracies do help focus on domestic nationalization and throw off Imperialism from the Global North. Those movements against Imperialism in my opinion are much better than going along with it, as they increase the revolutionary potential in their neighbors and former Imperialists.

It’s like a multi-layered level of support, there are very few truly hard-line Marxist movements, so we have to work with what exists presently. We can advocate for better while also critically supporting movements that would better allow better movements later.

Kinda like supporting Palestine. Even if Hamas is reactionary, Palestine will never move forward socially until it throws off its oppressors, which is why supporting Palestinian Liberation is straightforward.

I appreciate your thoughts!

So it seems to me that we are in agreement that the PRC is certainly not full Socialism, and definitely has more internal than external funding. In this instance, in a contradiction between US and PRC hegemony, would the Global South be better off with the PRC or US as the global superpower? I understand that we do not fully support the PRC, as it is revisionist in many ways and does enact some level of Imperialism, but in contrast to the US it focuses on Peace and internal development, rather than forever wars.

I guess if we can both agree that neither are good that’s a step forward, but I see the PRC as a lesser evil in the global context. It certainly isn’t a strong ally for the Global South, but seems to present fewer challenges for the Global South to throw off the reigns of Imperialism themselves and transition to a Social Democracy, or even Socialism outright.

I really do think that’s the point here with the PRC vs the US.

What are your thoughts on that?