I see bumper stickers around that say “resist.” I see new Facebook pages popping up with cute little Guy Fawkes images and clever sayings, I see performative protests with signs saying resist, what I don’t see is any actual resistance.
There is a slim chance that somewhere, someone is doing some resisting, but I’m not seeing it.
There are lots of articles on how to resist, there is the Deep Green Resistance movement, there are lots of ideas, but not much follow through.
Real follow through would be disruptions of business as usual that would become so blatant that not even the bought and sold media could ignore it,
Real follow through wouldn’t be celebrating little victories, but would be promoting ever more strident attacks on a system that is doing everything in its power to oppress us.
The predicament we’re in is bad enough and when you add in a large percentage of the population bending over and saying, “More, please sir,” then you get what we have, a placid, defeated, and compliant group that will never take a stand against anything that might make them a little uncomfortable.
Luvvie Ajayi Jones said, “get comfortable with being uncomfortable,” and that is what we have to do.
I’m as guilty, as anyone, of wanting to stay comfortable, I like my house, I like the things I have in my house, I like having my own space, and I like being alone. What I don’t like is the one thing that might make an actual difference, giving it all up.
I fantasize about having everything I own fit in the back of a car, I fantasize about engaging in acts of real resistance, I fantasize about starting a group of people who will set the standard for resistance and fight for at least a modicum of dignity, but I don’t do it.
I am comfortable, albeit financially insecure, with my life and I think a lot of us are in the same situation.
Comfort is an addiction that is harder to break than almost anything else. Knowingly putting yourself in an uncomfortable position is like knowingly hitting yourself in the head with a hammer.
The world is a mean, ugly, unforgiving place, and it is getting exponentially worse with each passing day, so it makes sense to want to hold on to whatever little comforts we have left. What doesn’t make sense is thinking that we are doing our part by engaging in performative acts of resistance.
Little acts like not using Amazon, or going to Starbucks, or signing petitions, or going to protests, or not participating in some exploitative behavior are all well and good, but they are nothing more than feel good actions approved by the very forces that we claim to be fighting against.
Physically engaging in acts designed to stop the machine is resistance, anything less is performing for your friends.
“Do, or not do, Luke Skywalker. There is no try.”
A big heartfelt thanks to Marcy Donelson for the contribution. I appreciate it more than I can say.
I’m inching toward having the money to get a newish car since my old one died. I’m including this link so you can send me a small contribution if you can. You will earn my undying gratitude. You can also become a paying subscriber, which will be greatly appreciated.
Basically, After waking up politically and being outraged over the Viet-Nam debacle, I have been on a personal, private rebellion against the capitalistic dictatorship since the mid-nineteen sixties. My existence has been a lifetime of poverty and despair but I am glad that I have stuck to my own personal principles in a sea of Murkan fascistic, bourgeoise conformity, complacency and compliance. The fascistic ideological underpinnings of Murka are finally beginning to destroy her from the inside out. I think that we will all be forced into the mayhem when Murka's disastrous collapse finally comes. After a lifetime of deprivation, I'm not in any hurry to cast aside my hard earned comforts and be locked in a NAZI gulag somewhere. The massive wheels of history will turn no matter what I do. Death looms ever closer, why rush things?
This is the unfortunate truth. A few people are willing to stand up and physically resist but most, not so much.
I won't go out and actively seek to do violence against the government by myself as that just invites misery. What I will do, is resist using online platforms for now, until I see enough other people standing up to also resist. Safety in numbers is a good plan to avoid serious problems with the SS troops. If anyone knows of any good resistance groups in my area that want to create a little mayhem against the shock troops, let me know. Any groups will need to be larger than a handful of whiney souls who just want to hang out and complain about the government though. I'm thinking more along the lines of the french, norwegian, and dutch resistance groups of WWII. Until then????