Voting During the Genocide

Summary

The transcript discusses the dilemma of voting in the US presidential election, particularly the moral conflict when the current administration is implicated in the Gaza genocide. It criticizes the Biden-Harris government's complicity and challenges the narrative that voting for them could stop the violence. The speaker argues against unconditional support for Democrats and calls for voters to use their political power responsibly, suggesting they should withhold votes until the genocide ends.

Takeaways

• 🗳️ The speaker advocates for voting in elections even if the options are unsatisfactory, viewing it as a civic duty.
• 🏺 The US government, led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, is accused of being deeply involved in the Gaza conflict.
• 🚫 The speaker criticizes the US government for their public statements against the conflict while continuing to support it materially.
• 📢 There's a call to not support or advocate for candidates but to simply vote for the 'least bad' option if one has the time.
• 🤔 The speaker questions the sincerity of those who claim to reluctantly vote for certain candidates but then actively support them.
• 😡 The speaker expresses frustration with people who create positive narratives around politicians involved in the Gaza conflict.
• 👀 There's a critique on the Western perception that fails to see the US government's role in the conflict as monstrous.
• 🌎 The speaker points out the hypocrisy of those who claim to support the Palestinian cause but still support the US government.
• 🙅‍♀️ The speaker suggests that voting for a party that is currently perpetrating genocide is complicit and encourages withholding votes until the genocide ends.
• 💡 The speaker proposes using the power of the vote as leverage to demand an end to the genocide before voting for any candidate.

Q & A

What is the speaker's general stance on voting in elections?

The speaker believes that if one doesn't have any other pressing commitments, they might as well go and vote for the candidate they consider to be the least bad, without spending time advocating for them.

What is the 'ongoing Gaza genocide' mentioned in the script?

The 'ongoing Gaza genocide' refers to the conflict involving Gaza, where the speaker accuses the current US government, led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, of being deeply implicated.

Why does the speaker believe that occasional public pronouncements from the US administration do not indicate genuine opposition to the genocide?

The speaker thinks these pronouncements are public relations exercises without practical material effect, meant to give supporters something to point to while ignoring the material support the US government provides to Israel.

What is the speaker's view on the Democratic party's support for Israel?

The speaker views the Democratic party's support for Israel as longstanding and consistent, accusing both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris of having a history of supporting Israel's actions, including the current conflict.

Why does the speaker criticize those who claim to be reluctantly voting for Biden and Harris?

The speaker criticizes them because they believe these supporters are not actually reluctant but are instead creating positive propaganda and cheering for the candidates, which contradicts their claim of voting out of necessity rather than genuine support.

What does the speaker suggest is the problem with the western perception of its own political figures?

The speaker suggests that westerners have a problem conceiving of their own political figures as monsters, comparing the perception of figures like Joe Biden to that of others like Slobodan Milošević or Adolf Hitler.

What does the speaker propose as a condition for voting for the Democratic party?

The speaker proposes that they will vote for the Democratic party only if they end the genocide in Gaza first.

Why does the speaker argue that voting for the Democrats without demanding an end to the genocide is effectively complicit?

The speaker argues that by pledging votes unconditionally, one gives the Democrats a free pass to continue the genocide, making one complicit in the act.

What is the speaker's opinion on the argument that not voting could lead to worse outcomes?

The speaker dismisses this argument, stating that if people take a principled stance against genocide and the Democrats lose, it would be the Democrats' fault for not addressing the issue, not the voters'.

What is the speaker's final appeal to the American voters?

The speaker appeals to American voters to at least refuse to reward the Democrats with their vote if they continue the genocide, urging them to break the cycle of voting for the same party without receiving any meaningful change.

Outlines

00:00

🗳️ Voting Dilemma in US Presidential Election

The speaker discusses the dilemma of voting in the US presidential election, particularly when all the candidates seem undesirable. They suggest voting for the 'least bad' option if one has no other commitments, but discourage advocating for or supporting the candidates. The speaker then focuses on the US government's involvement in the Gaza conflict, criticizing the Biden-Harris administration for their role and questioning the sincerity of their occasional public statements against the genocide. The paragraph highlights the administration's material and diplomatic support for Israel and the public's misguided perception of their leaders as benevolent figures rather than complicit in war crimes.

05:00

🤔 Perception of Western Leaders vs. Reality

This paragraph addresses the discrepancy between how Western leaders are perceived and the reality of their actions. The speaker points out the public's willingness to view figures like Putin as villains while failing to see the same in leaders like Biden and Harris, who are complicit in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. The paragraph criticizes the media's role in creating a narrative that these leaders are less evil than they actually are and discusses the public's complicity in genocide when they continue to support such leaders. It also touches on the lack of consistency in applying the 'lesser evil' principle to other geopolitical contexts and the tendency to justify American actions from a supposedly left perspective.

10:01

🚫 The Risk of Unconditional Support for Genocide

The speaker argues against unconditionally supporting a political party or candidate, especially when they are perpetrating genocide. They suggest that by pledging votes without contingencies, voters give politicians a free pass to commit any atrocities. The paragraph discusses the idea of using one's vote as leverage to demand an end to the genocide, emphasizing the importance of taking a stand and the potential risks involved in not challenging the status quo. It also addresses the hypothetical scenario where not voting for the Democrats could lead to Trump's victory, placing the blame on the Democrats for not earning the voters' support by ending the genocide.

15:02

📢 Demanding Accountability from Politicians

In this paragraph, the speaker calls on voters to demand an immediate end to the genocide as a condition for their votes. They argue that politicians should be held accountable for their actions and that voters have the power to influence change through their electoral choices. The speaker emphasizes that it is not enough to make empty statements or proposals; actual action to stop the genocide is required. They also discuss the potential consequences of not voting for the Democrats if they do not meet these demands and the importance of breaking the cycle of complacency in the face of ongoing atrocities.

Keywords

💡Voting

Voting refers to the act of expressing one's choice, typically in a formal election, by casting a ballot or other official means. In the video's context, voting is discussed as a civic duty but also as a complex decision influenced by the moral implications of the candidates' actions. The speaker critiques the notion of voting for the 'lesser evil' and suggests that voters should consider the ongoing genocide in Gaza when deciding whether to vote.

💡Genocide

Genocide is the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group. The video emphasizes the ongoing Gaza genocide as a critical factor influencing the speaker's perspective on the US presidential election. The term is used to highlight the severity of the situation and to argue that voting for a candidate complicit in such actions makes one complicit as well.

💡Joe Biden

Joe Biden is the 46th President of the United States. In the script, Biden is criticized for his administration's involvement in the Gaza genocide, illustrating the point that voting for a candidate with a direct role in ongoing atrocities is morally questionable. His name is used to personify the US government's actions.

💡Kamala Harris

Kamala Harris is the Vice President of the United States. The video discusses her as the second-highest official in the US government and thus partly responsible for the policies leading to the Gaza genocide. Her role is used to argue against voting for the Democratic Party without demanding an end to the atrocities.

💡Political Power

Political power refers to the ability to influence the decisions, actions, and policies of government through various means, including voting. The video suggests that by voting unconditionally for a party or candidate, one may be abdicating their political power without receiving any meaningful change or action in return.

💡Complicity

Complicity denotes involvement in a wrongdoing by actively participating or failing to prevent it. In the video, the speaker argues that by voting for candidates who support or do not actively prevent genocide, one becomes complicit in their actions.

💡Election

An election is a formal process by which people choose their representatives or leaders. The video discusses the dilemma of voting in an election where both candidates have problematic records, particularly regarding the Gaza genocide.

💡Less Bad

The phrase 'less bad' is used to describe the strategy of voting for the candidate perceived as less harmful compared to the alternative. The video challenges this approach by questioning the morality of voting for someone still engaged in severe wrongdoings.

💡Partisanship

Partisanship refers to strong, often blind, support for a political party. The video criticizes the partisanship of those who continue to support the Democratic Party despite its involvement in the Gaza genocide, suggesting that true supporters of the Palestinian cause should not be so forgiving.

💡Imperialism

Imperialism is the policy of extending a country's power and influence through colonization, use of military force, or other means. The video connects US imperialism to the Gaza genocide and argues that American voters have a responsibility to consider the global impact of their government's actions.

💡Political Action

Political action encompasses various activities through which people attempt to influence government policies and actions. The video encourages viewers to use their vote as a form of political action by withholding it unless the genocide is ended.

Highlights

Discussion on voting in the upcoming US presidential election

Author's stance on voting when all options are unsatisfactory

Critique of advocating for or supporting candidates

The ongoing Gaza conflict and the US government's involvement

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris's responsibility in the genocide

The narrative that Biden and Harris are against the genocide

Historical US support for Israel and its impact on the genocide

The public's reaction to the US government's actions

The portrayal of Biden and Harris as reformed figures

Critique of the 'lesser evil' argument for voting

The role of partisanship in shaping public opinion

The perception of Western leaders versus other world leaders

The moral dilemma faced by left-leaning American voters

The argument for not voting or using the vote as leverage

The hypothetical scenario of Trump winning due to voter stance

The responsibility of the Democrats if they lose votes over genocide

The call to action for voters to demand an end to genocide before voting

The importance of taking a stand against the status quo

The appeal to end the cycle of complacency in US politics

Transcripts

hey let's talk about voting specifically

in regards to the ongoing discussions

regarding voting in the upcoming US

presidential election you know the exact

same discussion from 2016 and 2020 now

in general my stance on elections where

all the options suck is that if you

don't have any other more pressing

commitments on the day you might as well

just head down to the polls and vote

just spend a couple of hours voting for

whoever it is that you consider to be

the least bad don't waste any of your

time actually advocating for or

supporting the candidates or anything

like that rather just show up and vote

if you're able to cuz you know why not

I'm not going to break your balls over

it if you don't though but this time

around in regards to the US election

there's another Factor the ongoing Gaza

genocide the present US Government led

by Joe Biden and Carmela Harris is very

deeply implicated in this genocide to

far beyond the level of criminal

responsibility of course we all know

that they are very unlikely to face the

consequences that they very much deserve

but in a just world we would not be

talking about Harris's election bid

right now we'll be talking about whether

it'll be 500 or 5,000 life sentences

there is this reality denying narrative

being pedal though where it's pointed

out that on occasion Biden and Harris

have said stuff like oh G whiz G

willikers that Netanyahu fell seems to

be going a bit too far and that's being

Tred out as like Smoking Gun evidence

that they are actually against the

genocide and hence you should vote for

them because they will stop it but the

US has backed this genocide from the

very beginning like who are you guys

fooling they've done everything possible

to further it both materially and

diplomatically the administration's

occasional public pronouncements that

appear to send a different message a

public relations exercises with no

actual practical material effect the

entire point of them saying that stuff

is to give their supporters a little bit

of ammo so that they can point to it and

say hey look Harris said the right

series of words she's actually against

the genocide you have no excuse not to

vote for her now while they ignore the

10 shipments of American bombs that left

port for Israel that very day sent by

the very government that she is the

second in command of when the US wants

to force a much smaller and weaker

country undergoing a military action

that disapproves of interchanging its

course it doesn't look like this it

looks like this in every way that

actually matters Joe Biden and Cara

Harris are themselves active

participants in this genocide with clear

command responsibility as the leaders of

the very country that is primarily

responsible for propping Israel up in

the first place and this is precisely

what you would have expected of them

it's not like their support for Israel

is something new they both have long and

storied histories of supporting it in

all kinds of its crimes long before this

specific and particularly severe one

began I mean Netanyahu just toured the

US capital to rapturous bipartisan

Applause who is it that you guys think

you're fooling here and while we're on

the topic of these ridiculous partisans

for Biden and Harris they often like to

frame themselves as merely reluctantly

voting for for these candidates because

they are the least bad of the two on

offer and they simply have no option but

to vote for them you know it's not that

they actually support them for real or

anything it's actually really lamentable

and sad they're basically being forced

at gunpoint to vote for child killing

Kamala this is incredibly hard to square

with the way they actually treat these

candidates though take those who claim

to be reluctantly voting for Biden back

in 2020 as an example even before the

present G of genocide existed as a

factor it became very clear after to the

election that they weren't simply

casting a reluctant vote for a war

criminal segregationist rapist simply

because the alternative was even worse

with the somber tone that you would

expect coming from people in a situation

like that who are supposedly being

backed into a corner and practically

forced to vote for the guy rather they

outright took to creating positive

propaganda to support him and cheered

his supposed accomplishments because

they were supporters all along who had

strategically pretended otherwise I have

to try and sway undecided voters to

their cand it or in the case of content

creators cuz it wouldn't be cool or

profitable enough for them to Simply own

what they actually believe so they

instead chose to frame themselves as far

more radical than they actually are for

the election cycle it's the same thing

again here and from the exact same

people too the same sort of support

coming from the same supposedly

reluctant Democrat supporters except

this time around it really doesn't quite

hit the same to make epic memes out of

the democratic party leaders when

everyone in their dog knows that they

are the government while the government

is doing genocide this speaks to

something of a problem of perception in

the western world where westerners seem

unable to properly conceive of their

monsters as the monsters who they

actually are they would have no issues

seeing say slobber ad mosovich as

unequivocally The Butcher of Bosnia

practically is little more than an

animal driven by nothing but Instinct

yet Joe Biden guilty of even worse

crimes is more likely to be perceived as

some sort of oish lovable Grandpa type

guy someone who's just genuinely trying

to do his best for everyone who

occasionally messes up rather than the

mass murdering genocidal monster who he

actually is they have no problem seeing

Vladimir Putin as a cartoonish villain

yet even many people who seem to believe

that they are genuinely supporters of

the Palestinian cause are totally fine

mify Kamala Harris who is again the vice

president of the country that is

presently backing the worst genocide

that the world has seen in around 30

years she is the American who out of all

Americans is the second most responsible

for what is happening in Gaza the fact

that there are now thousands of videos

all over social media of the mangled

corpses of Palestinian children and

babies is in large part on her anyway

have you guys seen the latest dark

Kamala meme Have You Seen Her epic laser

eyes God she's so cool if you see

someone posting a video of Kamala Harris

dancing or Joe Biden with sunglasses

epically eating ice cream you should

have the same sort of visceral reaction

that you would have if you saw someone

posting like a wholesome Adolf Hitler

loves dogs meme one more

thing they're going to love that you're

welcome you're welcome twitch KLA is

brat but unfortunately many people have

problems conceiving of Palestinians as

equal human beings hence it's actually

quite rare to see anyone treat their

butchers as The Butchers who they

actually are another obvious Point

against the sort of people who I'm

talking about here having anything

resembling honest intentions is that

they wouldn't be scolding the voters for

their voting intention rather than you

know the people actually carrying out

the genocide themselves if they were

really on the side of the people being

genocided because at the end of the day

if you had a hard at all and someone

said to you no I don't want to vote for

them because they're doing genocide the

only real reaction to that that you

could possibly have would be okay that's

that's totally fair I understand not to

give them a condescending lecture also

very revealing is the fact that they

never actually apply this supposed

lesser evil principle that they hold to

any other circumstances aside from local

elections if they were actually all

about that then you would expect them to

say strategically support Iran or China

or any one of the USA's other

geopolitical rivals in many if not most

or all of their conflicts with the us

but what you actually tend to get from

them is the exact opposite they actually

like to try and justify American

geopolitical positions from a supposedly

left perspective because they don't

actually believe what they're saying at

all and when you don't really have any

principles or beliefs to uphold it's

really easy to just adapt your narrative

for the situation to try and gar a

support for your party if you're not

actually a Democratic party shill if

you're someone with actual convictions

rather than just a soulless husk that'll

do or say anything to benefit the party

as it massacr scores of people you would

be holding their feet to the fire for

you know doing genocide but these sorts

of people do the exact opposite instead

they scream and yell they get so enraged

at people who even express like an ounce

of possible intentions and not vote they

tell them that they're privileged for

not wanting to Pokémon go to the polls

to vote for the modern day Hinrich kler

what started out back in 2016 as vote

blue no matter who is now in

2024 vote blue no matter what they do

we're well past any notion of plausible

deniability here if this is anything it

is an OP intentional or not to drive

support for the Democrats now let's put

those dishonest denist disgusting

cynical shills aside for a second here

and deal more directly with the Dilemma

that many left leaning American voters

are currently facing your candidates a

perpetrator of an ongoing genocide or

Donald [ __ ] Trump so what the hell do

you do it's a very complicated situation

right well no it's actually not at all

complicated because genocide never is

regardless of any unfalsifiable

hypotheticals about who would be less

bad in the future the fact of the matter

is that the Democrats are in power now

the genocide started while the Democrats

were in power they have enabled it and

supported it the whole way through and

again this is happening right now the

mangled corpses of hundreds of thousands

of Palestinians at least who have been

massacred since October 7th lie firmly

at their feet not at Trump's he's not

the one who has been in power while

they've been doing this what message

does this send exactly to the victims of

genocide in Gaza to American politicians

and really just the people of the world

in general if you're going to just shrug

and vote for the genocide is anyway now

of course electoralism is not exactly a

very potent Road and Americans

definitely owe far more to the rest of

the world than just voting or not voting

as the action that they take or don't

take in support of the people of Gaza

but your vote small as it may be is

still a tiny little morsel of political

power political power that you hold and

that you can use and what happens when

you pledge to unconditionally give your

political power I.E that vote to a

certain party or candidate no matter

what what happens when you tell them

beforehand I'm going to vote blue no

matter who then you're giving them a

free pass to do absolutely anything

that's already a horrible idea even

under normal circumstances as they have

absolutely no incentive to do anything

for people whose vote they already know

they're going to win no matter what but

it's worse here because these are not

normal circumstances they are currently

doing genocide and guess what partly

allowed them to so freely help out with

this genocide in the first place the

fact that they believe they can count on

so many people voting for them anyway to

Pledge Your vote to them here without

making a contingent on them immediately

ending the genocide is to rubber stamp

the genocide yourself it's to sign off

on it yourself it is a conscious active

choice that you will have made that

easily makes you pass any sort of

reasonable threshold into being

complicit in it yourself so what the

hell do you do then well there are two

reasonable stances here one is just to

not vote I wouldn't blame you and anyone

worth listening to wouldn't blame you

either but the other option which I

prefer is to actually try to make use of

that little bit of power that your vote

gives you tell them I'll vote for you

but only if you end the genocide first

now obviously you're just one person and

you need to do this with a bunch of

other people to exert the necessary

pressure to make them actually even

think about doing something but it's

still really the least thing you can do

as an American to simply not vote for

the genocides while they do genocide to

take a tiny little modim of political

action and at least attempt to affect

some sort of change on the course that

your government is taking now how about

we imagine the nightmare scenario that

is constantly being put forth and

weaponized by the Die Hard Democrat

Party genocide supporters and that is

what they are regardless of what they

say who seem to spend all their time

scolding people for not wanting to vote

for the genocides what if a bunch of

people do this the Democrats refuse to

end the genocide so they don't vote for

them and then Donald Trump wins well the

most realistic answer to that is that

there is simply no way that Americans

taking a principled stance against

genocide are insufficient number that

they could ever really have any sort of

deciding influence on the election

Americans unfortunately by and large

Seem to either love or being different

to genocide but setting that aside and

entertaining this dumb hypothetical

anyway that would clearly then be the

fault of the Democrats for refusing to

end the genocide to win those people's

vote then wouldn't it not the fault of

the voters for refusing to go along with

the genocide like how depraved are you

people to even make arguments like this

as scores of children are being massed

every Day by these people nonetheless

clearly there is at least some element

of risk however small it may be in

comparison to the risk that every single

gazin is living every single day thanks

to the actions of the government that

you guys are debating voting for or not

to the wellbeing of at least some

Americans if Trump wins but all real

political change only comes with risk it

only comes with putting something that

you have on the line either for your own

benefit or the benefit of others and if

you're not even willing to take this

really tiny

minuscule really honestly not risky at

all risk for the people of Gaza then I

think it's safe to say that in all

meaningful respects you don't actually

want anything to change you are fine

with the status quo occasional genocide

and all provided that it doesn't arrive

to affect you personally you know you

get a relatively at least compared to

the way that people in other countries

live good deal out of your country's

imperialism so why would you put

anything that you or your friends have

on the line even a tiny little bit for

the benefit of some babies being

slaughtered on the other side of the

world right that's how a lot of people

tend to think that they would never dare

actually admit it so you can be like

that or you can finally say that the

buck stops with you or at least you can

try to make it stop with you you can

stop election after election doing the

same exact thing and allowing yourself

to be scolded into voting for the

Democrats without even being assured of

getting anything back in return because

that this election is being contested by

the Vice President of genocide and a

scile fascist reality TV star is itself

the end result of nearly a decade of

Americans being scolded into doing

exactly that and look where it's got on

you right back to square one except this

time with an ongoing genocide tacked on

in 2016 you have to vote blue no matter

who to stop the fascist danger in 2020

you have to vote blue no matter who to

stop the fascist danger it's 2024 the

ones who are supposedly going to stop

the fascist danger are again in an

election against the same fascist and

they have proven that they are hardly

much different to the fascist Anyway by

carrying out a Holocaust in Gaza there's

a point where you simply have to say

enough is enough we got to do something

else and take some level of risk to

potentially enact some level of change

to better things in the long term both

for yourself and for others take some

tiny potential risk with your own

short-term comfort and put pressure in

those who are currently violating the

comfort of millions of others by blowing

them to smithin so quite simply tell

them if they want your vote they have to

end the genocide no if send or butts

about it they have to end it now they're

in power now it can't be a post elction

thinging they have to do it now and I

mean end it not just meaningless

actionless statements no more cuddling

the Israeli narrative no more fake

[ __ ] ceasefire proposals an end

pulling support doing everything

possible to stop it and if those in

power don't heed your warning and

continue their course regardless then

don't vote for them that they do not do

enough to earn your votes by ceasing to

commit genocide would never be anyone's

fault but theirs regardless of the

narrative that their disgusting

genocidal denialist supporter is like to

go with if stopping Donald Trump from

becoming president is really such an

overwhelmingly important goal as they

like to say then they should be willing

to stop the genocide to get the votes

that they need to defeat him and if they

don't consider your vote to be

consequential enough that they're

unwilling to do that in order to win it

then it really shouldn't bother at all

if you stay home on Election Day they

really have no good response to that no

one's asking you to do anything crazy

all I'm asking you is to make a credible

threat to withhold your votes from the

people doing genocide right now unless

they stop it really they genocid is even

if they stop the genocide they don't

deserve your vote you're already giving

them far far far far far more than

they've earned from you by even saying

that you'll vote for them if they stop

it it's really nothing it's pretty clear

by now that Americans aren't going to do

anything of any greater consequence so

please at least [ __ ] do this the only

way to end this cycle of the same thing

happening over and over and over again

is to stop doing the same thing over and

over and over again the more you delay

it the worse it's going to get both in

the short term for the Palestinians

presently being blown to smithin and in

the long term where the consequences of

just constantly seeding whatever little

political power you have while getting

nothing in return in the name of staving

off some supposedly greater threat

should be very clear for everyone to see

by this point both in the shattered and

burned bodies of the martys of Gaza and

the fact that the USA is having the

exact same election for the third time

in a row the world already didn't have

time for this ship back in 2016 and we

especially don't have time for it now I

shouldn't have to talk about the USA and

your politics but unfortunately your

country's imperialism kind of makes it

impossible so please I appeal to you all

because I have to do something it really

needs to be way more than just

protesting in electoral politics you

really owe the rest of the people of the

world so much more than that but in lie

of that at least refuse to reward the

Democrat if they continue to do genocide

with your vote and if you're not willing

to even do that then please at least

give us the courtesy of ending this

charade where you pretend that you're on

the side of the MS of Palestine when you

are so clearly and so firmly on the side

of those who are genociding them own

your beliefs you cowardly [ __ ] you

are the uncritical cultish genocidal

partisan hacks that you always accuse

supposed tankies of being it is a zero

SU game between your interest and the

interest of your victims and I choose

your victims you're an enemy to be

fought against not a comrade to have a

mere respectful difference of opinion

with and I'm tired of entertaining any

idea otherwise