A bit of attention has been given to this document discussing "Stopping the Coup", which assumes the election will be so close that Trump will refuse to accept defeat, and the left must disrupt the society in response. Reading through it, I see a lot of Marxist, anarchist rhetoric that will leave all but academics muttering, "What are you talking about?"
Your spheres of influence are the areas in your life that you inhabit and can affect personally. We might not all be able to get the governor on the phone, but we can organize with those around us to create change. When we think about our spheres of influence, we need to ask “how can I organize with those closest to me for the most impact?” Your spheres of influence might include your workplace, your church, or a collective you are a part of. If we are really facing a coup, some of the usual apolitical institutions like PTAs and Little Leagues might suddenly be politicized. So think broadly about any space you have a stake in where you come into contact with others.
We can think about our spheres of influence in three ways. First, and most simply, it can be a way for us to think about organizing actual people into formations that can be useful. For example, getting our friends together to form a crew that can talk to the organizers planning street actions and offer to take up a role.
Oh yeah, the local Little League as a source of street activists!
We must know who’s in power, and how to pull the levers of power to make those powerful people bend to the will of the people. Power mapping helps you understand your context, who the various players are, and what leverage points you might have with them. We traditionally think of power maps as documenting those in power who can support or are opposed to our campaign or movement. They can help us identify those who we need to target. Local mayors, legislators, city council people, and business leaders are all potential players that can be moved or focused on.There are few actual useful plans, some of which will likely upset even most Biden voters.
Power exists within individual power holders but also flows along geographic lines. We can demand change and embody non-compliance by shutting down physical areas like highways, urban districts, or individual buildings. Last summer Shut Down DC used multiple affinity groups to organize actions at multiple intersections across the city, effectively halting operations across a wide region. If our goal is to truly interrupt business-as-usual as an act of resistance to a coup, then we should know how business flows. What intersections in your town make sense to coordinate to take over and hold? Are there major highways that act as regional conduits for traffic and commerce that can be sites for actions? Are there relevant institutions that could be permanently occupied that would stop the functioning of business and/or political processes?
Yes, people who are not telecommuting cannot get to work, food supplies into big cities end, Amazon cannot deliver the stuff that many have grown used to buying during lockdown: this will win them over, right? These leftists are suffering the same failing as the Weather Underground and similar leftists in the 1960s and 1970s: they live in bubbles (often the faculty lounge) where everyone thinks like them; therefore a large minority of Americans share their Marxist goal. Even many young socialists will get upset about such a disruption, even if their masters at Instagram and TikTok tell them this is good. They will also give President Trump legitimate reason to invoke the Insurrection Act if governors refuse to enforce the law.
The only realistic scenarios are:
1. Trump handily wins the election, and by sufficient margin that the Democrats realize that they will sound like sore losers again. I consider this most likely.
2. Biden wins easily, at which point Trump will Tweet about election fraud and leaves office having given us a four year respite. I consider this least likely.
3. The results are unclear, and between election day and Dec. 14, when the Electoral College meets, the Democrats "find" millions of votes. This will have to be so massive that Trump refuses to recognize this fraud. The Democrats use their ownership of many Obama's generals to call for a military coup d'etat, likely branding them as fascists for a generation. If Trump is smart, he will federalize National Guard units in friendly states, and call up the unorganized militia. I think several million armed Trump supporters could be in DC in a day to prevent such a regular military coup. Many lower-ranking officers and enlisted men would refuse their orders and perhaps even switch sides as happened during the 1877 railroad strikes, where organized state militias refused to open fire on strikers, and in some cases changed sides. This is a doomsday scenario, with tanks and aircraft following the Commander-in-Chief's orders against Army units loyal to the DNC.
This leads to civil war. A mixture of responsible adults and likely some lunatic fringe groups set up free fire zones around federal government buildings to stop federal law enforcement. Few bureaucrats or office workers will risk death from snipers to go to work.
As I said, I am expecting the Shy Trump voters to give Trump a clear victory, more so than last time. I am talking to people who really hate Trump who are considering voting for him, and a Bernie supporter from 2016 who will not be voting for Biden.
A majority of Americans find themselves better off under President Trump than they were four years ago, according to a new poll.
Fifty-six percent of registered voters say they’re better off now, while 32 percent said they’re worse off, Gallup found in a survey out this week.
The number is a vast improvement compared to 2012 under the Obama administration, when 45 percent of voters said they were better off than in 2008.
And yes, because the Post is clearly pro-Trump, I verified that the Gallup survey found this. I doubt people who are better off will vote for Biden. And Biden's response was really hilarious. 10/13/20 Fox News:
The former VP appeared surprised by the Gallup poll but cited the stat incorrectly.
"They think- 54 percent of the American people believe they're better off economically today than they were under our administration? Well, their memory is not very good, quite frankly," Biden told Inskeep. "And in addition to that, we have a president who doesn't share the values of most Americans. He's not very honest with people. He's flouting the conventions relative to public safety in terms of even now- not wearing a mask, a guy who has been a super spreader. But look, whatever they believe they should go out and vote. People should vote. Period."
"He's flouting the conventions relative to public safety in terms of even now- not wearing a mask."
ReplyDeleteIs that the best the denizen of Joe's Basement can give as an example of "a president who doesn't share the values of most Americans"?
And if he can't be specific about his dishonesty with people, is that a knock on PDJT or on Dopey Joe? In the law, if one of your claims is that the defendant defrauded you, you have to plead WITH SPECIFICITY what the fraudulent claims were, and not only that you relied on them, but exactly how you relied on them.