I think making us purchase happy, while indeed very beneficial to the owning class, is still just a side effect (E: of the length of the work day, not capitalism in general) to the real reason (and why the 8 hour work day is a compromise people had to fight, and die, for) - keeping us tired and hungry (and not only for indulgence) and at risk of losing it all if we don’t go to work tomorrow keeps us from having the time, energy, and community (because capitalism encourages crab mentality) to organise and revolt against them, and their oppressive systems.

We have the Bolsheviks to thank for it! (E: to be clear, and as will be evident by the links I shared, I am not a Leninist lol)

My summation of the concept is obviously superficial, here are some good places to start getting a better idea of what it is and where we might start:

https://www.weareplanc.org/modules/wtf-is-dual-power/

https://medium.com/@anarchist.environmentalist/an-anarchist-dual-power-e911edf66ad7

https://blog.pmpress.org/2019/09/02/alternative-institutions-or-dual-power/

https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/petr-kropotkin-mutual-aid-a-factor-of-evolution

https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/the-anarchist-faq-editorial-collective-an-anarchist-faq-full (there isn’t a specific dual power bullet point, but it does come up, and in general this document is worth looking through)

And would gladly work on a project like this to kill the time.

It’s not a “project” it’s a way of life, and it’s not something you should ever engage in to “kill time” but because you believ it is possible to create a better society.

I worry that they’ll just roll over us with their tanks and drones unless the oligarchy is actually destroyed in the revolution.

They are going to do that at some point anyway, your options are to lie down and take it, or to try and create an alternative (yes, abolishing the current systems that control our lives will require violence, a tiny percentage of that they inflict on us, but you don’t free yourself from oppression by asking nicely).

And I just don’t see how that can happen with the majority of people looking left or right instead of up.

That’s the whole entire point of building community and solidarity.

Lol thanks, I have my moments… 😳😂

That’s why instead of grasping at the existing system until its dying breath and focusing on electioneering* and playing within the rules they’ve set out for us, and eventually just wait around for them to fight it out for power over us, it’s more important to focus on building up our communities and creating alternatives to the existing systems, or “dual power” (from communal fridges and pantries, to libraries for everything from books to tools to sewing patterns to seeds, communal child care, educational clubs, agitprop groups, and so on and on and on) so that when things inevitably collapse (because that’s where capitalism concludes), we have existing networks and frameworks and solidarity to build on, from the bottom up.

*Before the libs derail like they always do - I never said don’t vote, but focusing the amount of energy that you do on doing the bare minimum within the rules set out to you by your oppressors doesn’t make you antifascist freedom fighters.

our trans brothers and sisters.

Just a tip, while we’re at it - “siblings” is more inclusive, since not everyone fits in a binary! Same goes for using “folks” (or one of several other alternatives) instead of “ladies ad gentlemen”.

Also, I’ve definitely seen that joke made before in that context, so you can feel relief that the idea is out there lol

We aren’t devolving into libertarianism where everyone hires private security.

The fact that that’s the only option you can imagine (and that you’ve clearly refused to further educate yourself about other options that definitely do exist, by reading any of the links provided, some of which address your specific brand of bullshit, or any other relevant information that is freely available to you, because they challenge said bullshit) is down to you, not a reflection of reality.

The problem will fix itself in months.

Lmmfao, sorry, not that I was, but I doubly can’t take you seriously if you honestly believe this, since it removes any last shred of doubt about your wilful ignorance…

Maybe a progressive, grass roots “infiltration” of the police is doomed to fail, I dunno. But I’m not sure we’ll ever find out.

You not wanting to find out doesn’t mean it hasn’t been confirmed, over and over and over and over again.

but is what we’re currently doing really working?

No, that’s literally why people who say ACAB also want to abolish the police.

https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/officer-a-cab-confessions-of-a-former-bastard-cop

https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/anonymous-manifesto-for-the-abolition-of-the-police

https://inthesetimes.com/article/police-and-poor-people

https://web.archive.org/web/20220128000248/https://www.enainstitute.org/en/publication/mark-neocleous-capitalism-was-created-by-the-police-power-interview-at-ena-institute/

They aren’t “lost”, because they were never yours to be “fighting” in the first place…

Have you considered checking your privilege and/or remaining informed about current events even if you think they don’t impact you personally (but definitely do, as well as everyone else around you)?

https://www.donotpanic.news/p/why-covid-can-never-be-just-a-cold

lol, managed to completely miss that, makes sense though 😂

The missing piece came up on my feed like 3 posts bellow this, courtesy of [email protected] :

(ID: drawing of a possum with a knife tied to their back, a person presents them as “Shanklin the stab possum! Part pet, part assassin - the perfect weapon!”)