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‘We will never use them’: the California universities stockpiling AR-15s, grenades and submachine guns (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 2 months ago by to c/news@lemmy.world
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[–] 8 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Don't freak out, we're on the same side and I think we're both seeing and saying the same thing, but I'm going to keep staying calm about it and talking in measured tones while I work methodically against it. You are of course welcome to react to this situation however you see fit, but I do think it's important to realize that lashing out with aimless but ultimately impotent rage isn't going to help anything and potentially even serves their purposes. If their fascist system has already grown dangerously strong, then we must grow our own efforts into an even stronger system to be capable of fighting it and ultimately winning against it. Part of that is reaching out to and educating people who are still on the fence or don't fully understand the situation, I don't think you're my target audience for this kind of comment, so I hope you're not taking my suggestions personally.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    while I work methodically against it.

    That’s my struggle. There’s a big difference between methodologically and opportunistically, unless the method is opportunity.

    What methods do you have?

    So often, it feels like there’s nothing to do. I don’t have a method but I do have an open mind for opportunities. Such as the protests, which I’ve attended. What more, though?

    There’s not enough organized opposition, not enough groups with goals to align oneself with. There’s nobody who can employ concerned citizens under the common cause of fighting back. There’s no secret groups working in the shadows on a long term plan to hit back. There’s just the fucking mess we’ve had for the past decade.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago* (1 child)

    What methods do you have?

    Yapping on Lemmy is about all I've got. j/k

    Seriously though, I think getting involved and active locally is the absolute best thing anyone can do. No matter where you are, what your situation is, the answer lies in other people like you. Talk to everyone you can. Support local businesses. Get involved in local politics. Hang out at your local library. Build a resilient local community. Volunteer with local youth. Yeah, it's cliche, no it won't solve all the problems we're facing at this actual moment but that's where the grass grows from, it starts at the grassroots. It's not demonstrative, it's participative. We've been robbed of our sense of community, sabotaged from building neighborhoods, told that talking about politics is a mortal sin and convinced that it is dangerous. That undermines actually finding any common ground with our neighbors and that's really where it all started going wrong. In an increasingly interconnected world, our physical neighbors are not less important, they are more important, they are our anchor to the real world that we all actually live in no matter how much we may try to hide from it virtually. They have divided us, and now they are conquering. We need to stop being divided and start to connect with all the other human beings around us again.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago

    Also just to add, these grassroots movements can feel like they aren't big enough when the fascists seem to be kicking all the dominos down simultaneously. But dont give up. Stay with your community and remember what Gandalf said, its the small acts of kindness that keep the darkness at bay. I've seen a lot of grassroots movements quickly swell and then fall over because people thought it would be instant change.

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