Constantly trying to thread the needle of "my target audience is not other communists but “vibes based” leftists, punks, skaters, goths, etc.
Yet I am definitely not afraid to speak my mind, to be openly and unapologetically political. Yet I fear this will only end up alienating more than it will agitate or educate. We lack time, we lack will, so we need space, we can’t build will without space. Space means culture, culture has been entirely co-opted by the system, thus you need to create a line of flight to the space (Deleuze), we can do this by working towards deterritorizing the “underground” (counter culture). In this way the ‘brand’ super structure itself can be detourned, re-worked into a rhizome, ergo “HOUDINI”.
But thats all pretty heavy shit and I worry that the openly political nature of the detournément will alienate before the rhizome can grow. For example someone I consider to be one of the most important voices in the gaming space as it relates to the medium as an art form, that person offered to write some articles for the brand, to grow the rhizome so to speak.
This person is not openly political and I wonder to myself, does he not see the level of political discourse I attempt to engage in? If not, will learning of that push him away, limiting the growth and shrinking the space, thereby lowering the will?
Whenever I meet a new person I spend at least 30min telling them about the deterritorializing force of capital and how we need to build ourselves a body without organs. While explaining this I typically draw several diagrams on the closest wall, insult Lacan repeatedly, and then hand them a photograph of Marx with cat ears. It usually works well.
“Hiding your power level” is the…15th? Kind of liberalism. You should be open and honest about the things you believe, don’t hide what you think is important for society. Passion convinces people, not skulduggery. That said, you don’t need to use the scary “Socialism” and “Communism” words to describe your ideas. Be honest about the ideas you believe, but you don’t have to use the words that a century of anti-communist indoctrination have poisoned. Just talk about “ideas for society” and don’t talk about “politics” or “communism” at first, most people are receptive to communist ideas as long as you don’t talk about them as “communism” or “politics.” let the ideas stand on their own, let the person digest and analyse them and then continue conversations in the future. There’ll never be one bit conversations that “converts” someone into a communist, it is a lifelong slow, steady process where you just provide ideas for them to think about and discuss with you.
Don’t hide it, explain dialectical materialism and if they react negatively than mark them down because they’re probably irredeemable. Remember: People don’t change and if the idea of applying science to politics is poison to them there’s a very good reason for that.
You can give them a chance after, just don’t be surprised-pikachu-face when they all of a sudden start behaving like a nazi out of the blue.
I think this is a very misguided approach to communist politics. I’m not saying that you should not be tactful when approaching people to talk politics but there is a reason why Marx said “the Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims”. We should be open about what our views are while at the same time meeting people where they are at and not treating them condescendingly.
That’s not to say that you can’t lie to bourgeois authorities to protect yourself and your comrades, but when your first instinct is to start by tricking regular everyday people that you are hoping to convince over to your side that shows that you don’t respect them enough to trust them to make their own judgements when faced with an honest explanation of your ideological position and your world view. It is condescending and elitist.
That kind of tactic of deception suits fascists (they are the ones who popularized the “hiding your power level” meme) but it is completely contrary to what we as communists believe about the masses and their revolutionary potential. Of course you should not come right out of the gate with the most aggressive rhetoric possible that would have you come off as unhinged, violent, bloodthirsty, etc., but you also should not lie to someone if your intention is for them to eventually join your cause.
I will repeat this because it’s so important: always strive to meet people where they are at. Ascertain their current views and their material situation and work from there. Above all be humble and know when to listen, don’t just preach. And don’t look down on people because they can tell when you do that.
Less about deception and more about toning down the more aggressive political stuff ie actual calls for armed revolution or more aggressive meme, not posting these isn’t deception, but at attempt to, like you said, meet people where they are.
Like you can go on my site and most of the articles are about Palestine, I’ve called for a revolution, etc.
Have you ever read those Maoist video game reviews from the early 2000s? They are very off-putting and would probably only serve to alienate non-Maoist individuals from the movement. (Something Maoists love to do, but I get it)
While I’m not saying I want to deceive people, I am saying that in order to build space (and thus will) you need to control the spectacle, engage and meet people where they are, and not be off putting about it. Its those things I worry I struggle with.
On the whole i agree with that. I think that is also what I tried to express in my comment when i said you should be tactful, not come off as irrationally aggressive, and meet people where they are at (on their path to radicalization). I don’t see this as hiding anything but as knowing how to be diplomatic and how to effectively reach people.
Well, I don’t want anyone to think that my goal is to deceive anybody. That’s not what I mean by, quote-unquote, high on your power level. It’s more or less… The things that I believe in are probably more extremist than even some of the people on the server, or whatever it’s called. So, how are you going to try to appeal to people who are… who don’t know anything about politics at all, are not politically active, are not politically minded, but they do know that they like a certain kind of music. And sure, the music has been co-opted almost entirely by capitalism, with milquetoast non-political rebellion. But at the same time, why are those people attracted to that rebellious image, that gutter-punk image? It’s because the system’s fucked. At the end of the day, you can neoliberalize it. You can take all the rappers and all the punk bands and make them apolitical, and they just stand for being a rebel, for being a rebellion’s sake. But it doesn’t change the way that people feel. The problem is, if I come at it, and I go, hey, we should throw acid on transphobes, people are going to look at me like I’m fucking crazy. Even if I really do believe that, you see what I’m saying? To me, it’s trying to appeal to the person who is apolitical, who is, I don’t have a political belief, but also is someone who’s already kind of pliable to the left. I make no qualms about the fact that I’m a communist, and I have no problem telling people that, but I don’t want people to think that communism is some crazy, repressive, fucking malice cult or something. That’s why I don’t tell people I’m a malice, despite fully believing that a PPW is absolutely required to dismantle the settler state, most other ppl don"t.
Well you shouldn’t be advocating for throwing acid on transphobes anyway because that doesn’t solve the problem, we learned about the ineffectiveness of individual acts of violence from the failure of 19th century anarchist tactics. What is needed is collective and organized action by the working masses and their vanguard. It also doesn’t make much sense to talk of PPW in the current conditions in the imperial core (yet), and we always have to be careful to not fall into adventurist tendencies.
In that sense it is correct to not talk about these things with the people you are trying to persuade because these are not the tasks that we are facing at present or in the immediate future. You should focus on making sure that they can begin to develop an understanding of the problem which is capitalism itself and the system of exploitation that is built up around it and which leads to the steady deterioration of the conditions of the working class.
Then you should introduce them to the idea that solutions do exist that involvd the social and economic reorganization of society and that one doesn’t need to simply continue to accept this status quo as immutable. Only once you understand the problem and understand the solution that you are aiming toward can you begin to discuss the variety of methods that can be employed in the struggle to get there, and more importantly learn to identify which circumstances are appropriate for which methods of struggle.
We know that time plus space equals will, but the problem is, I mean, just on the barest minimum, there’s an act of genocide going on and climate change. We lack the time to build the space, to build the will. And this is a fundamental issue, because when you lack the time, then you start thinking rash. You start thinking, well, how can we rapidly establish certain things and leapfrog to certain things? And like you said, that just becomes, that’s a slippery slope to adventurism. Adventurism should be what it all costs, because ultimately, I think adventurism is detrimental to the movement.
That isn’t to say that certain tactics can’t be powerful. In the moment. I would consider what Aaron did to be propaganda of the deed, which makes sense. He was an anarchist, so that’s going to be his root philosophy. And I think that what he did was a very powerful propaganda win. We’ve seen people resign from the State Department and mention his name specifically because they don’t want to be part of this genocide. So I think it’s all about threading that needle. Because we can’t all do what Aaron did, because then there would be nothing left. You see what I’m saying? We have to just take a bigger picture approach, I guess. I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like I’m in over my head.
Don’t hide your “power level”. We communists don’t have the privilege of deceiving and hiding. We have to be more honest, more open.
I understand there is still this collective trauma in the west of being openly leftists (I mean my country had a very violent anti-communist dictatorship for decades, my parents grew up and became full blown adults within it), but the fear, making us skitter into hiding, that’s exactly why the past few decades were so rough for us. They want us to hide. To be afraid of being honest.
And when that happens, when we “hide our power levels”, when we appear deceitful and shady, the right uses that to say we are untrustworthy. We are hiding something.
We don’t have that privilege comrade. Be honest about what you believe in.
I focus on the philosophical framework, dialectical materialism. Communism, marxism, socialism, etc… are all words that have been demonized by decades of anti-communist propaganda and they have been stripped from meaning, meanwhile dialectical materialism has not been touched upon because fortunately the architects of the propaganda never actually read the theory.
It’s not hiding your power level but just having a different approach to it, you first have to set up the bases. You can’t talk about communism, an advanced stage of development, when people see things as static you first have to teach people to see things as a process.
Fascists don’t want whats best for everyone. That is why they need to hide their power level.
If you explain what you mean they’ll be like “oh no this person wants society to meet the needs of people instead of the greed of the rich people that are clearly awful for our society.” At worst they’ll see you as power hungry. Let people see who you are as a decent compassionate individual that is also a communist. People will see that representation and look more into communism.
I just act like a normal person and choose my words carefully depending on someone’s perceived level of correct political education. Just try and be funny and likeable and people will be more inclined to agree with one I think.
i mean, too much water kills the flower, it’s good imo start with some questioning on the status quo using not so overtly marxist lingo, and go increasingly more scientific, unless you’re revealed as a communist, so i think a balance of giving some lessons and break reactionary “arguments” are a good idea to start
I have found that leaning into being openly what and who I am has worked to at bare minimum create a softening effect on opinions. Wearing a “Mao hat” most of the time while out and about, and have a hammer and sickle pin that says “Equality, Brotherhood, and Liberty” while at work (I work at a big box electronics retail/services national chain where I fix computers). Being really honest and most importantly I try to be as helpful while interacting with customers and try to take time when they need it.
They often don’t see the pin right away, and already see how much I actually try to fix or explain in less technical ways where possible. Even folks that have some kind of American flag on are maybe a bit puzzled at actually interacting with a communist in a positive way. If asked about the pin (or the hat for that matter), I first say that I am extremely pro-worker and try to just feel out the interaction. Not going out of my way to push anything outside of saying that I stand with regular ass people and even take very light jabs at libs if the person is obviously conservative. I have even helped one guy that is not at all very tech literate over the past few years here and there. Dude is still a conservative, but one day he came in after I started wearing the hat and pin. He said the hat was nice, and asked about it. I said I am very pro-worker and a socialist, and just really hate how little working people get. Dude even asked if I ever get flack from my co-workers for it in a actual concerned way like he was willing to step-in and chew them out. So not only has he actually started trying to learn modern stuff like his PC, but is excited to tell me how he now uses some streaming apps. But he knows I am a real person that likes to help.
My reasoning (aside from liking them) for being visibly open about being a socialist/communist is that the majority of people haven’t physically met one of us in person. All they know is what they have been told via media and political leaders or whatever. Which is all that we are evil, hate freedom, want to take all their shit, idiots, and/or the peak versions of all the worst parts of US liberals (since they are also taught that Dems are actually somehow communists). It is extremely easy to hate/fear something/someone if you never actually are in a position to interact with the thing/person. Which I took from hearing multiple instances of former WW2 and Vietnam vets when saying how they only first met a POC after enlisting or while deployed. And how spending time with them showed how all the shit they were told about them was wrong. That they are just regular people just trying to live.
It also helps that I do truly try my best to find things that we might agree on to some level as a starting point when a conversation starts up with co-workers. It is only through being willing to actually talk with people and find how they best communicate by actually showing empathy and listening to them. Then you can find out how to convey what is and isn’t socialism. Because they don’t actually know what it is and what is actually bourgeoisie liberal capitalism (liberal liberal or conservative liberal) or fascism for that matter. Shit is not always easy and can get beyond heated. But it is needed and can help you see where you might need to learn more about if unsure in the moment. Major thing is to do everything to show that you are speaking in good-faith and hearing them.
On a less “softening to have a better opinion of socialism” and more just fun level. The hat has also been really interesting for random interactions. I have gotten into very positive conversations with US/US allied Vietnam vets that are jazzed to see it. One guy that was in the Thai military for the war almost scared me with his getting my attention to tell me he liked it and had saved one to keep from back then. There was some language barrier, but I believe he was on the US allied side. But was just very excited to see it and ask me if it was Soviet or Chinese. Even just interacting in Asian restaurants gets older folks excited to say they like it. Not really about changing their minds about communism. But still really nice to have interactions I wouldn’t have had.
My reasoning (aside from liking them) for being visibly open about being a socialist/communist is that the majority of people haven’t physically met one of us in person. All they know is what they have been told via media and political leaders or whatever.
This is my reasoning for being extremely open, I like to think I’m one cool cat, and if I’m open about my principles, that makes it easier for others to be like “damn bro is a commie? kinda based actually”. Not going to compromise my principles in the face of the abyss
I stopped hiding it really. I think a big part of normalizing communist thought is people like you and me showing what we believe. It becomes harder for people to demonize communism when it’s no longer the scary propaganda stuff they link it with, but rather their friend who they have a beer with, go on holidays with, have hikes with etc. I’m not ashamed to be a communist.
Yeah I’m not ashamed to be a communist either, more about maintaining a level of nuiance I guess?
People somehow figure it out eventually, I don’t bother. Speak to immediate concerns, if people hear their concerns being addressed I’ve found they dgaf what verbiage it uses as long as they can follow along somewhat. Be casual, but beyond that don’t worry about how political or not you come off. The whole lacks hindrance is the driving force behind collaboration-cooperation.
Think about how you learned things throughout your entire existence. Honestly, do you remember how you learned to speak your first words? You were surrounded by people speaking around you, sometimes they sat you down and intentionally tried to teach you how to pronounce a word and what it referred to but most of the time you just absorbed things as a sea sponge filters out food from the ocean.
You keep doing your thing, keep having your political conversations, keep pointing out to people when their “its just common sense” statements are bullshit (you can be polite about it), and that’s all you can do. You’re just a pebble in the stream of another person’s life. Alone you aren’t making much of a difference but your continued presence affects them. If a few others do the same as you, and a few more, and a few more… all those pebbles can change the course of a stream.
Unless you physically are not safe, you don’t need to hide your power level.
