cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/59378754
The calls for a nationwide (US) shutdown this Friday (Jan 30) are growing louder
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/59378754
The calls for a nationwide (US) shutdown this Friday (Jan 30) are growing louder
Yeah, not going to be effective. Make it a week, and you might turn some heads a tad.
Consider it practice.
To be effective a general strike needs to be open ended, indefinite, until demands are met. We are not there yet, organizing some smaller ones is a good practice run perhaps, but just preparing for the real one.
In 500 bc, then 350 bc or so, the plebians of Rome had general strikes, decamping to a hill and refusing work until demands were met. One was a written set of laws as the rich were just making shit up as they went. Another was getting tribunes, every tribe got one and they could veto the senate, offer sanctuary, were sacrosanct, elected to one year terms. The second general strike expanded the tribunate.
The Peoples’ tribunes are the only reason their republic lasted for 500 years. Until the imperial boomerang came back on them as well, the tactics they used warring with other peoples were brought home by their own politicians.
Some people are going to stock up the day before, completely defeating the purpose
Just saw a thing yesterday about what china calls the “kill line” it’s basically how most people are paycheck to paycheck and one expense can topple people into poverty and homeless. I’m thinking the tariffs goal was to move that line so less people can take action.
I roll my eyes that these all are on Fridays 🙄
I mean, it’s fine. Go ahead, it will help, but it’s not really a general strike. It’s a day of protest. Come on America, you don’t really get how this works. You can’t use your PTO to challenge authority. It’s the same as protesting a company by buying their product to destroy like MAGA does.
Turns out it’s hard to orchestrate hundreds of millions of people spread out over 9 millions square kilometers isn’t exactly easy to do, but I’m sure you have a better strat
FTFY
Yes that is part of the difficulty of organizing them—that and theres many millions of those people and they are spread out. How do you reach them over such vast distances and impact them? Would love to hear how you would have achieved it?
My original comment was only to clarify that a friday protest isn’t remotely a “general strike” so I wish that outlets, forumgoers and media would stop using the term because it’s reducing the power behind the word. Actual general strikes have been performed in our modern world and have crushed governments. This isn’t doing that, and I fear too many naive people are going to think that a couple friday marches on PTO are going to make anyone in seats of power cry.
I never said it’s bad to march and protest, it IS having an impact, but by itself it won’t move anything because the people in power don’t actually care about the will of the people, if all you’re doing is saying you’re unhappy, well great. They WANT you unhappy.
I don’t know how to get hundreds of millions of Americans to understand this, neither do you. None of us do, but we can keep trying and we can keep making sure that our language isn’t getting watered down because we want to believe in things that aren’t real. This is all going to get worse before it gets better, and people will point to it and say “See? General strikes don’t work!” when we haven’t even done one yet.
Are the semantics really a hill you are gonna die on? Alright guys, go get the organizers to change all the banners to reword it so this guy is satisfied—sorry but that’s what’s needed in this moment!
I’m being snarky, but what’s your desired goal? What does success look like to you here, if people listened to you instead of calling it a 1-day general strike?
Some day in the future:
“Hey guys, we’re going to do an indefinite general strike!”
“What’s that?”
“Remember that one day thing you all did on Jan 30? It’s nothing like that!”
“Sweet! I’ll go to work then!”
I don’t think you agree that the above scenario is your intended goal, so enlighten us with a corrected conversation
Nah, you’re too reactionary, I’ll pass.
You care too much about semantics, got it. Not a bad thing, just isn’t useful atm. Have a great day. Time and place for that is in a few years from now, not right now
Then make it a week. It starts with someone. It could start with you.
Don’t ask for a Superman. They don’t exist.
We do things as a community and a collective, its the only way it works.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a Pretti Good idea/start. But, there needs to be more, like a definded list of demands. Otherwise, it’s just an ignorable protest.
Organizations like the PSL do have lists of demands and are actively building a movement around this to gain momentum. You should check them out :)
It can start with any one of us. I’ve started, but seems easy for me, if everyone puts in a little effort, and some of us put in a lot, we can make an impact.
It’s this, or bloodshed.
Either way, our comforts are lost. I’d rather suffer on my terms, than theirs.
That’s not a strike, that’s just called being unemployed.