this post was submitted on 01 Jul 2025
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United States | News & Politics

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Relevant rant:
📺 Why the Democratic Party CANNOT and WILL NOT be Reformed
Democrats would rather lose to a Republican, to a conservative, to a fascist, to Trump, than address the material conditions of the American people.

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[–] [email protected] 44 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (30 children)

The fact that liberals refuse to read just 100 pages of State and Revolution while insisting that they are having new ideas or that the political environment has somehow changed is by far the most frustrating thing about Lemmy comment sections. I'm an anarchist, someone smeared by Lenin in that book but at least I read it and understand. My disagreement is with the vision and form of the dictatorship of the proletariat and how we can build a new commune, not the need for revolution or insisting that somehow, some way after 175 years of the same discussion voting for reform will work.

I swear Americans have never read a book that wasn't Harry Potter in their lives.

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[–] [email protected] 69 points 6 days ago (6 children)
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[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago (6 children)

This is evidence that the US political system does not function.

There are two paths forward;

  • Burn down the entire thing (which Trump and frenemies are currently doing).
  • rebuild and reform the existing system (which can happen by voters voting for progressive centralist candidates in local and state representatives en-mass (like in NYC).

I would not call Zohran Mandani a socialist. I would call him a progressive rational centralist.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 6 days ago (3 children)

The existing system cannot be fixed, it depends on imperialism and as such has hollowed out industrialization in favor of finance capital. Mamdani is a "boot of the neck" candidate, someone to show a bit of what's possible with a properly run economy, but even electing progressives elsewhere can't bring about socialism. Revolution is still necessary.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 6 days ago

Counter point, the system is functioning as intended

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[–] [email protected] 36 points 6 days ago (8 children)

Ah yes the Corbyn technique.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 6 days ago (1 children)

They tried the Corbyn technique in the primaries. It didn’t stick, and that’s why they’re freaking out right now.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 6 days ago (2 children)

I pray for his victory. The establishment centrists and their Zionist allies replaced Corbyn with a neoliberal empty suit. It has been a catastrophe for the left and killed any hope of radical change.

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[–] [email protected] 32 points 6 days ago (8 children)

The Democrats are afraid Democratic Socialism as it is the anti MAGA—and they should be, the sellouts.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 6 days ago (9 children)

To be clear, all socialism is democratic. "Democratic Socialism" is just for reformist socialism, and I'd argue Mamdani is just to give New Yorkers a taste of what a better world could look like. You can't actually change capitalism by working within it, though, revolution remains necessary. Mamdani could prove beneficial in normalizing socialism.

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 6 days ago

The left threatens power. MAGA doesn't.

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 6 days ago (3 children)

Which is why we need a Democrat socialist party. Unfortunately, voters are incapable of voting for anything other than red or blue.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 6 days ago (1 children)

The Party for Socialism and Liberation already exists, though all socialism is democratic, it just stands for reformist socialism. PSL is revolutionary, but also runs candidates.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Do they run candidates? I'm curious where. I know they do presidential campaigns but how many local races do they really run in?

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 6 days ago (2 children)

It's not the voters fault. If you split the Democratic vote, you will only get a permanent Republican government. And that doesn't help anyone.

Politicians like Mamdani are the only way forward. We need more people like him to run for local government like this, and move their way up from there...making way for more like them to take their places, as they go. You can't change things at the top, without laying the foundation for that change, first.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago (2 children)

What about when democrats are the ones splitting the ticket?

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 6 days ago (12 children)

You can't really change the system from within into a fundamentally opposed one. That's why revolution is still necessary.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 6 days ago

I think I was wrong. I think both sides maybe are the same...

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