We are still in this together, but "this" is going to be real different in the very near future. This demands a different kind of "we."
The French Resistance during Nazi occupation played important roles delivering downed Allied airmen back to safety, supplying military intelligence, and acts of sabotage.
The Underground Railroad is estimated to have brought 100,000 freedom seekers to safety between 1810 and 1850.
It's time.
ID: AP Seattle @apseattle posted: "BREAKING: Greyhound says it will stop letting Border Patrol agents conduct routine immigration checks on its buses."
corpse @thefurrow replied: "Witnesses said a bus driver told an ICE agent to "gargle [his] balls" when the latter requested to enter the bus"
Before you all go patting Greyhound on the back for this policy:
This is from 5 years ago.
They only changed their policy after being sued by the Washington State AG.
They were forced to pay $2.2 million for violating their customers rights by allowing Border Patrol to conduct warrantless searches in the first place.
It's estimated that 57,000 people were on Greyhound busses boarded by border patrol, in Spokane alone, from 2013-2020.
Good guy bus driver
Thanks for the added info, it sucks to know but isn't surprising, but nowhere do I (or anyone else I can see E: aside from the single mention in the AP post that OP is commenting on, obviously) give props or even mention greyhound.
No worries. Yeah props to the bus driver for sure. Just seeing this post without context or even a timeframe made me think people would get the impression that Greyhound was sticking it to the current administration, when they pretty much did the opposite and fucked over their passengers.
I only came here to pat the bus driver on the balls.
Well, that's gonna be really hard because those are some massive balls.
This is Greyhound's "Russian warship, go fuck yourself!" moment.
Nope. They allowed illegal searches for years until they were sued. This news is 5 years old.
And? Did he?
Fuckin punk rock! I miss riding busses.
Poor bus driver just wanted to flirt and it escalated way too quickly into a political stand they must now support. At least it's not a total loss.
Incredible. Have one printed for the entire greyhound fleet
Yes. Love it.
This is the kind of resistance we need every American to engage in. You don’t need to set fire to anything or shoot anyone but know your enemies and make their lives as difficult as possible in any way you can.
Do not obey in advance. Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then offer themselves without being asked. A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.
Defend institutions. It is institutions that help us to preserve decency. They need our help as well. Do not speak of "our institutions" unless you make them yours by acting on their behalf. Institutions do not protect themselves. They fall one after the other unless each is defended from the beginning. So choose an institution you care about -- a court, a newspaper, a law, a labor union -- and take its side.
Beware the one-party state. The parties that remade states and suppressed rivals were not omnipotent from the start. They exploited a historic moment to make political life impossible for their opponents. So support the multiple-party system and defend the rules of democratic elections. Vote in local and state elections while you can. Consider running for office.
Take responsibility for the face of the world. The symbols of today enable the reality of tomorrow. Notice the swastikas and the other signs of hate. Do not look away, and do not get used to them. Remove them yourself and set an example for others to do so.
Remember professional ethics. When political leaders set a negative example, professional commitments to just practice become more important. It is hard to subvert a rule-of-law state without lawyers, or to hold show trials without judges. Authoritarians need obedient civil servants, and concentration camp directors seek businessmen interested in cheap labor.
Be wary of paramilitaries. When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against the system start wearing uniforms and marching with torches and pictures of a leader, the end is nigh. When the pro-leader paramilitary and the official police and military intermingle, the end has come.
Be reflective if you must be armed. If you carry a weapon in public service, may God bless you and keep you. But know that evils of the past involved policemen and soldiers finding themselves, one day, doing irregular things. Be ready to say no.
Stand out. Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.
Be kind to our language. Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying. Make an effort to separate yourself from the internet. Read books.
Believe in truth. To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.
Investigate. Figure things out for yourself. Spend more time with long articles. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns (some of which come from abroad). Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.
Make eye contact and small talk. This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust. If we enter a culture of denunciation, you will want to know the psychological landscape of your daily life.
Practice corporeal politics. Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.
Establish a private life. Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person. For the same reason, resolve any legal trouble. Tyrants seek the hook on which to hang you. Try not to have hooks.
Contribute to good causes. Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.
Learn from peers in other countries. Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.
Listen for dangerous words. Be alert to use of the words "extremism" and "terrorism." Be alive to the fatal notions of "emergency" and "exception." Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.
Be calm when the unthinkable arrives. Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, the suspension of freedom of expression, the right to a fair trial, and so on, is the oldest trick in the Hitlerian book. Do not fall for it.
Be a patriot. Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it.
Be as courageous as you can. If none of us is prepared to die for freedom, then all of us will die under tyranny.
From https://substack.com/home/post/p-155209838
The 20 lessons are from the Timothy Snyder book: On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century
A must read.
Also recording related to current events: https://substack.com/home/post/p-156483784
- Learn from peers in other countries. Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries.
On this note, I'm looking for a way to communicate with foreign (and local) friends that is relatively safe. So many people primarily use apps that I no longer trust, but I'm not sure what solution would be both safe and practical. Anyone have any suggestions?
In terms of increasing paranoia, but also obscurity:
Signal (easy, pretty secure messenger replacement)
Matrix (self-hosted, which means you control the data, but it requires good security practices on your end to be safe)
SimpleX (messenger without user IDs, makes it nigh impossible to trace who's communicating with whom)
Briar (peer to peer messenger over Tor, Bluetooth, local WiFi, or physical drives)
For Matrix "good security practices," I assume both parties of the conversation need to follow them? I've already got a VPN, but I don't think all of the people I want to communicate with have one.
Matrix is a federated system, kinda like Lemmy. If you just use an existing instance that you trust, it's basically just another e2ee messenger. But many people host their own, and for that you need to a) have access to a server or VPS and b) have that server secured, i.e. configure firewalls, certificates, etc. It's not super hard, but takes some technical knowledge. Your non-technical friends can just use your instance, tho.
The benefit is that you control your data, not some external provider. From a pure security standpoint, however, there's not a lot of benefit over, say, Signal.
Of course, that's the infrastructure aspect of security. Other things, like having strong and varied passwords, no biometric logins (or only with 2fa), not sharing personal information about yourself or friends online, those obviously everyone needs to follow.
Anything wrong with Signal?
They require a phone number, are centralized and based out of the US. So depending on your threat model it could be fine but it's had some issues.
signal
I dunno, their lives would be pretty difficult with more fire
Well… for those called to take more radical actions I am not going to comment on that but I do think that there is a bare minimum of resistance that every single person should be engaged it, that’s my overall point.
Fire tends to consume and disproportionately create other victims as well.
An estate set away from anything else that can burn, tho
Liberals won’t do it because they’re too scared/lazy and republicans won’t do it because they want all of this to happen. But that’s a beautiful idea man.
What about all those centrists out there though? Surely they'll save us
They’re out there pretending that everything is fine and telling anyone who’s actually trying that they need to calm down.
Liberals are scared of their own shadow, it might want to talk to them in person or call them on the phone. AHHH!
Apparently the conservatives intend to weed the boys from the men. And Jesus, I sure hope there are still some men standing by me after the right-wing scythe comes though.
Get armed. Lay in ammo while it's cheap. Learn safety first and foremost. Learn your local laws. Be prepared to fight. And yes, you might die, that happens in combat vs. fascists.
This is not a young-adult novel about rebellion. Fascism is here, now, today, just like 1930s Germany. Choose to lay down and take it, or choose to fight when they come to your door. Pick one.
If it isn't out there already, this thing needs its own hashtag: #garglemyballs
What a chad.
Gargleon is back bitch
Good to see the old gods didn't die of ligma afterall
Yeah don't make the bus any slower please.
Somebody watched a lot of Louis Rossman's videos
Didn't this happen a few years ago? Still great energy though