I don’t like Biden either, but anyone with half a brain knows there are two choices in the 2020 election. If we had a sane voting system, voting third party might be worth it, but as it stands, no one but you knows your favorite candidate exists and unless you want to become their campaign manager that will still be true in November. Even if you did, and even if you convinced two thirds of the people who would otherwise have voted for Biden to vote for your chosen candidate instead, Trump would still win because half the country voted for him and your guy only got a third. If you vote third party you might as well stay home.

Not voting isn’t going to stop the genocide in Gaza. The US will continue to funnel them arms no matter which candidate wins this November. Trump practically campaigns on how much he hates the Jews and he’s publicly told Israel to “finish up their war”. He’ll also make life a living hell for anyone who isn’t a straight cisgender male back here at home.

A vote for a candidate is not an endorsement of them or their policies, it’s a statement that you like their policies more than the other guy’s, and “sticking it to liberals” and “refusing to support genocide” (that’s not what voting for Biden is doing, by the way – a vote for either candidate is a vote for genocide and a vote for neither is an endorsement of both) is not more important than keeping the furthest right politician America has ever seen out of office.

How incredibly privileged do you have to be to see an entire national election as what will happen in the Middle East and ignore Trump’s campaign promises to wipe transgender Americans off the map, and further, to not realize that the same thing will happen in the Middle East regardless of which candidate wins?

I hate Biden as much as every other leftist here. But I’ll still vote for him because Trump is worse. If there’s a single bone in your body that cares about the lives of your trans friends you will too.

  • Armok: God of Blood
    52•3 months ago

    Anyone that isn’t voting for Biden is helping someone get into office that will implement wildly homophobic and transphobic policies. People in this thread are really showing their cards.

    • @[email protected]
      10•3 months ago

      I’m a disabled veteran. I know exactly what Trump thinks of us and exactly how he fucked us last time he was in office. But I will not let myself or others be held hostage for our country to support Genocide. If you think you’re helping anyone by showing politicians they have no accountability then you’re in for a rude awakening.

      • @[email protected]
        5•3 months ago

        “Support genocide” in this case means not abandoning a 70 year ally when our other allies are already worried we are fickle and support or dont support them based on whos in charge every 4 years.

        Under dump Eastern Europe gets trampled and the rest of Europe gets pulled into open war.

        We will not teach democrats accountability by throwing our democracy down the pisser to spite them and never have another chance to vote.

        • @[email protected]
          3•3 months ago

          And there it is! All this noise about choosing the lesser of two evils, but it truth, you support the genocide.

          • @[email protected]
            3•3 months ago

            Lol. Someone doesnt understand geopolitics.

            We have an open trade agreement with israel. They want to buy, we say how much. I never said i supported it, but if ur curious ive been railing against the apartheid state for 15 years now simce back before i was a leftist. Doesnt change that there is no candidate thatd be capable of ending that policy on a whim.

    • @[email protected]English
      9•3 months ago

      Anyone who doesn’t push for the Democratic Party to support policies that will convince those people to vote are actively doing the same. It takes two to tango, and moderates need to work with the left if they hate trump as much as they claim too.

      • @[email protected]English
        11•3 months ago

        It’s amazing that the vast majority of progressives always come around and vote for the lesser evil, yet we have to listen to this ranting every single time.

        You are right that they should be pushing the Democratic establishment to do better, but there is a reason they don’t. They know that progressives are willing to make compromises, but the establishment is not.

        Biden would choose Trump over a progressive candidate. We know this because he did. When the Democrats moved the first primary to South Carolina from New Hampshire, they probably threw away the NH electoral votes, and they know they will never win SC. They would rather Trump win than face another progressive challenger.

        • @[email protected]English
          7•3 months ago

          Yah, they seem real eager to scream and bash progressives and leftists for letting trump win, but are shocked and aghast when anyone suggests they didn’t do enough to push a platform and candidates that could beat trump in the election.

          • @[email protected]
            1•3 months ago

            Youre talking about neolib politicians. You should be pursuing direct action for the changes u seek. Your vote is there as damage control to ensure we can still pursue other avenues of change or mutual aid without persecution.

            • @[email protected]English
              2•3 months ago

              As I said, progressives inevitably do end up voting for the shitty neoliberal. Exit Polls have always shown that. Then when the shitty neoliberals lose,they always find a way to blame it on progressives. That’s what makes these constant “please just vote” posts especially obnoxious.

              The people in these forums are not the people you need to reach. Unlikely voters are unlikely to hang out in political discussions. If you really give a shit, phone bank, canvass, or call your representatives and tell them to quit fucking up so people won’t check out of the system.

              If you want to virtue signal and play into the neoliberal spin machine, keep doing this. All you are really doing is providing space for all the right wing trolls to try and convince people that not voting is virtuous.

              • @[email protected]
                2•3 months ago

                I disagree that having these conversations on lemmy is playing into the “neoliberal spin machine” (great term, btw). My conversation is aimed at leftists in hopes of building pan-leftist solidarity, or something of that nature. This is where plenty of leftists hang out online, so this is a reasonable place to have this discussion.

                You are spot on that phonebanking, canvassing, and harassing ur rep is more effective at getting ppl to vote for Status Quo Joe.

                • @[email protected]English
                  3•3 months ago

                  Leftists ought to see that Biden is immeasurably better than Trump and act accordingly, but there is no solidarity to be had with the Democratic establishment.

                  Neoliberalism, just like classical liberalism, is a right wing political philosophy. The left must ally with liberals as necessary, but there is no “pan-leftist solidarity” possible. The establishment has betrayed, is betraying, and will continue to betray any coalition made with the left. If Democrats fought Republicans with half the ferocity with which they fight leftists, this would be a very different country.