I’ve been trying to navigate political insanity (in the US). To do so, I want to have some principles to lean on in any outcome to focus on what matters and is within my control – while balancing mental health. I’ve come up with these 3:
- Fascism is Bad (Tolerance Paradox)
- Acknowledge My Own Insignificance… and Still Vote
- Community is Power
Fascism is Bad (Tolerance Paradox)
Call it what you want: tyranny, authoritarianism, dictatorships etc. It’s the cruelty and dominance over others. Fighting it is the number one goal of any democratic, free society – and it is like a weed that always grows and needs to be cut down consistently for a culture to breathe. I don’t want me or anyone I know to live in constant fear.
To combat this, there is one key principle: the Tolerance Paradox. That is, “In order to maintain a tolerant society, the society must be intolerant of intolerance” (Karl Popper). Basically, if you see a minority-targeted -ism or -phobia (e.g. racism, sexism, antisemitism, islamophobia, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, etc): you name it, shame it, and fight it if need be. Like being on a playground, if someone in power is bullying a small minority group member, if you don’t call it out, you are effectively condoning it. Granted, sometimes you have to survive, but it’s usually not that dire – and if you call it out, you’d be surprised how often others will join you.
“In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up for me.” (Martin Niemöller).
The principle of fascism is power through creating a controlled ‘in-group’ and an enemy ‘out-group’. That is, “Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.” (Frank Wilhoit). Fascism needs an ‘out-group’ to blame and focus on, always, and the purpose is to unify the in-group with fear in order to consolidate power. Fascism is very, very bad.
Acknowledge My Own Insignificance… and Still Vote
Yes, fascism is scary, and there is little we as individuals can do about it directly. I often feel helpless. Sometimes the time to step up comes, but often it’s just waiting around / trying not to get overwhelmed and surviving daily for a cause. We are often largely at the whims of narcissistic politicians and occasional fanatics at the national level level. Of rich men passing laws around controlling poor women’s bodies, white folks passing laws for black folks, etc.
The important thing is to accept some weakness, fear of the unknown, and let go of some old fears. Ultimately we don’t know how things will turn out, but we do know many, many people died for us to be able to vote today (just like people died for weekends, and people died for a 40 hour work week). Voting, and the power voting entails IS democracy. All moves to silence voices in it is anti-democracy (Gerrymandering, Citizens United, etc). This has been ongoing for a long, long time – and is a decades long battle of many fronts – things almost never change overnight. While we have very little impact individually, the worst thing we can do is entirely give up. Hopelessness is exactly what fascists wants in their out-groups. Oddly, like most areas, often the fight is within ourselves.
Community is Power
If I was a fascist seeking power, my first thought would be to try to split up my opposition. To play two sides against each other. Russia has been successfully doing this with social media propaganda for over a decade now – finding areas where Americans are most divided and pushing in a wedge: diversity around race (e.g. police brutality), age (e.g. millennials vs boomers), and religion (e.g. abortion). The thing is, they play up both sides – and online you never know if you’re speaking to or reading from a bot or foreign agent (you really, really don’t). Social media just gave Russia a way to resume the Cold War that never really ended – and sow division better than dropping pamphlets. The main thing I’ve learned in the past few years online is “don’t feed the trolls” (i.e. try to spend more time talking to people in your community you actually know).
“Never argue with an idiot. They will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.” (Mark Twain)
Effectively, though, the disgust American’s have for each other is always there below the surface, Trump just brought it out in the open. The opposite is also true. There are so many people living in America who I love so, so dearly. Our diversity gives us challenges to align, but it gives us so many strengths. The weakness of fascism is that the world becomes black and white (powerful, but narrow), whereas with diversity, the world is much more colorful. The opposite of fascism is true, deep, and trusting friendship (blog post). That combined with community and quality time connecting breeds survival, and in the game of power, survival is the primary rule. You cannot fight a future battle if you are not around. So… worried about fascism? Go hang out with a friend! Talk about it! Don’t hold it in and explode or go insane and fall into a cult or conspiracy theories please. And don’t let the bastards get you down.
Daeus Jorento 