Faine Greenwood: Pretty much. What it mostly boils down to is that most Americans really don’t have the faintest idea what living under modern authoritarian regimes actually looks like, and how it’s often at the same time way more boring and way more scary than they’d imagined.

bluesky is largely convincing itself that as soon as he is elected, trump will start drone striking people who say mean things about him online, which i think is great because maybe canalizing into this belief will get the doomerist panic mongers on bsky to stop doomspiraling themselves for a bit

that is definitely not what I’m saying on the record lol

Two Satans Theory in action: 1) Making credible threats online during an (ascendent or actual) authoritarian regime is a bad idea and a legitimate concern, and 2) there is simultaneously a moral panic that everyone is going to get drone striked and blackbagged for every comment they ever made online

Pretty much. What it mostly boils down to is that most Americans really don’t have the faintest idea what living under modern authoritarian regimes actually looks like, and how it’s often at the same time way more boring and way more scary than they’d imagined.

But all things considered, I’d rather have people be a little too freaked out than a little less freaked out than they should be, if we have to choose, and I get the sense that we pretty much do as humanity is endlessly bad at moderation

Yeah, just tend to be ineffectively freaked out rather than just over reacting

Yeah, it’s a complex line to walk.

For me, I'm turning this bad feeling into action. I'm going to learn how to call to register voters, now and later call to get them to vote. I have to do something besides doomscroll! :-)

www.turnoutpac.org/postcards/

Postcards to Swing States - Progressive Turnout Projectwww.turnoutpac.org Voters who receive handwritten postcards are significantly more likely to vote. We proved it in 2020.

Thanks. Added to my arsenal! :-)

I think this has always been the case. The claims about King George’s tyranny used to mobilize Americans to rebel were mostly absurd hyperbole

Truth

by “most Americans” here, I mean the white, straight, non-immigrant majority. it is absolutely true that many Americans, such as Black Americans, have very current experience with life under murderous authoritarian systems.

What worries me is most Americans have no idea how resilient authoritarian regimes are. Way too many ppl out here fantasizing about pendulums and tipping points and revolution when they can’t even organize a food coop, much asymmetrical warfare against a surveillance state

also to the extent they are ever fragile, that fragility often plays out in extremely arbitrary and violent ways. It fucking sucks to be in an authoritarian regime in a way most Americans (or Western Europeans) fundamentally do not, and probably cannot, comprehend

Exactly, there’s no end to a revolution’s appetite for its children

Not yet anyway

It's amazing to me that people think it would be easily fixable when for most of human history authoritarian regimes were the norm.

Also: the fascists are already heavily armed.

Perhaps libs should consider being armed then

Most people setting up authoritarian regimes also don't realize how dependent they are on the authority. Things get weird when the autocrat dies. Every time it's either: Bloody civil war, quick but violent palace coup, or appointee walking in. The third is uncommon at first.

Basically if there's the civil war, the country kills it's own people, foreign agents can weaken it more, and everyone is worse off but with a competent leader (which we know because they won the war).

If it's palace coup then the leader isn't near as good because they haven't really been tested, but they at least can build coalitions which is helpful for a country

If it's an appointee it's generally the weakest leader and if they dodge a palace coup and civil war they'll just muddle along till they die and the next one comes.

They all devolve into the last one eventually because wars and coups are hard. Then the milktoast leader flails along until the country collapses and you get... something new, hope it's good.

Seriously. Half of them can’t even organize a chores rotation with their housemates, and they think they’re gonna organize an entire revolution? Please. Start by gaining basic organizing skills by doing literally anything in the real world.

Lol when Vox ran a piece to that effect people LOST THEIR FUCKING MINDS www.vox.com/the-big-idea...

Life in authoritarian states is mostly boring and tolerablewww.vox.com Americans have an overly dramatic view what the end of democracy looks like.

I admit that I used to think this was plausible, but I no longer believe this article anymore, primarily because of both the radicalization of the Republican party and Trump, as well as there being a large opposition movement to Trump that remains after 2024, even if he wins.

Presently I am much more worried about bridges collapsing out from under me due to the shanking of the administrative state than I am about getting [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED].

There are so many things to worry about right now, really

At least recent Court precedent may get us out from under the jackbooted thugs of [checks notes] USDA meat inspectors.

Fuckin hate those meat inspectors. If I have a 50% chance of eating actual shit, that’s obviously worth it if the packing plant owner can afford %1 more political ad buys with their PAC. It’s about quality of life after all.

Yeah, health and safety are not going to be in a good position

Us white people do like to lose our shit over stuff that’s like, 1% as bad as what black Americans have often faced.

The thing is though, minorities SHOULD be freaking out more. I get it that we are kind of “well…it’s been happening to us all along…”, but some things were better for us thanks to our parents and grandparents and GGP’s. We are sliding and will be the first ones on the trains.

WP, should have been listening all along. They weren’t and that’s why they are so loud now. Let them. It’s way past due. I come from both sides, literally and the White side was little affected. (Except for my mom). They really thought things were fine. The black side KNOWS & made sure I did too.

My family lived in Franco's Spain (early 70s) & yes it was normal/boring. Unless you were gay, in which case you lived in fear of being abducted one night & imprisoned/killed. Same if you made critical comments in public. Same if you worked for someone Franco disliked. So... boring, but terrifying.

Exactly - keeps everyone at least somewhat destabilized and afraid at all times.

Hungary is not really a model i’d like to try out and if they knew they wouldn’t either.

As I noted on a local FB group, our small, white (mostly) Kansas town will not change to any appreciable degree unless you're a woman or minority. That lack of change confirms to his supporters that we're all freaking out over nothing. It's very frustrating (obviously).

It will change but more slowly for some.

We already have that here in Texas. AG Ken Paxton, Guv Abbott, Lt. Guv Dan Patrick (born Dannie S. Goeb) & our trumplican state sens & reps have created the Texas Stasi. Neighbors, et al, can spy on neighbors for the state & get paid to do so. From 7/14/21: www.bmj.com/content/374/...

Texas promises $10 000 for people who enforce the state’s new limit on abortionswww.bmj.com Abortion and civil rights campaigners in the US are challenging a law set to take effect in Texas on 1 September that bans abortions after six weeks and rewards anyone who helps to prosecute sucessful...

The floodgates are open to expand this secret police state. This is exactly how the Russian satellite GDR (East Germany) kept their boot on the necks of citizens. Have them spy on each other. Punish people who failed to spy. No one is safe. They even had grade schoolers betraying their parents.

Agree. Most people who aren't targeted settle in and exist. A tiny percentage of those who think they'll fight, do so. Some who say they'd fight end up actively supporting the regime. Fear occupies the mind of all. I don't believe anyone knows what role they'd take until it happens.

Want to add: the targeted groups will be over-represented in the resistance, too. Their anger and motivation is higher when a boring existence isn't an option. Most of the people who can live a boring life don't fight until they can't feed their families. The cost of bread led to the Arab Spring.

Out of which nothing emerged except newer dictatorships.

I remember hearing about a reporter canvasing the people in Tahrir square asking if they were going to get involved in the political process they had demanded. The answer was, "No, because we don't like political parties, and that sounds too much like a political party."

The frustrating problem is that if you have anti-institutionalists leading the revolution, they seem to then promptly decline to take a seat at the table when the opportunity presents itself.

I used to work in the PRC. It was simultaneously true of the average person that they: a) virtually never had a direct negative experience with the state, and b) constantly self-monitored to make sure they never came to the attention of the state. Both boring and nerve-wracking, at the same time.

Nevertheless there were people like us in China crossing the limit unwittingly; I was called to police questioning back then because I wrote something about accelerationists *in the United States* and triggered the keyword. Prepare for a lot of ridiculousness if things get as bad in the US

I’m in the US and still had to do b) because I talk to friends on WeChat

All you have to do to understand this is to look at how quickly and comprehensively most people have allowed themselves to be convinced that the pandemic is over

I’m a gay high school teacher. Pretty sure I’m going to get less of the “boring” part and more of the “terrifying” part.

I am also queer. I get the terror.