The only thing that makes an evil “lesser” is that there is less energy going towards supporting it. By putting it into power you make it the greater evil. “Lesser evil” shit is something everyone has to unlearn if they are ever going to help anyone. How far capitalists and the state are willing to go is as far as they think they can get away with. If any capitalist or politician is being held back by morals, they will be replaced by ones that aren’t. If there is a profit margin to squeeze, anyone willing to squeeze it gains that power. People can get away with a lot more with less scrutiny, so the lesser you think their evil is, the more of it they can get away with.

The “lesser” fascist is still a fascist, and fascists spend much more of their time attacking us than attacking each other, and on top of that even if they do attack each other it’s through attacking us.

  • Chloyster [she/her]@beehaw.org
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    3 months ago

    “Lesser evil” shit is something everyone has to unlearn if they are ever going to help anyone.

    I don’t agree with the assertions you put forward here, but this one in particular I feel strongly about.

    I feel this implies there are other better options available. And this is not always the case.

    Harm reduction is something I believe in. Picture a person who is currently addicted to drugs. Their options in life have led them to a crossroads. They need to take something, otherwise risk having painful and potentially deadly withdrawal symptoms. However they know if they keep using, death is likely at the other end as well at some point in the future. In front of them they have 2 choices. A person offering needles. They know this person has been known to provide unclean needles, and using one could have dire consequences. The other choice is using a safe injection site that has been set up. One that can ensure they get as safe and clean of an injection as they can get right now.

    While you never explicitly mention the presidential election that is looming, I would like to bring it to that as I feel that is the most relevant application to “lesser of two evils” that we are facing at the moment.

    I agree that capitalism is a drug that will eventually get us all killed. The desire to squeeze everything out of something with no regard to how it ends up is where capitalism will get us to. However in this situation, I feel Harris/Walz is the safe injection site. I know I won’t immediately get a disease / be labeled a child predator and be given the death penalty. Trump / Vance is the other option. They are the dirty diseased needle that will accelerate death and pain greatly. You may say you can just not pick either, but I disagree with this. Withdrawal will kill us. With the election we don’t get the benefit of not choosing either. One of the choices will be made whether we like it or not.

    The part you may disagree with the most and where I make my own assertions: I feel the general presidential election is not the place for the withdrawal option. This election is always such a focus, for obvious reasons tbf. But there is so much more than that. Withholding support at this level will not help things. It is so much bigger than us. Why not focus on local level things that can actually make an impact. Get socialists elected to local positions. A thing you can have a tangible effect on.

    Focusing on the things you can change is what will get us out of this drug addiction that will one day kill us. Withdrawal and the dirty needle will kill us right now. But the safe injection site will give us the time we need to keep living and try and get out of the situation we’re in.

    I don’t usually write long messages like this so I apologize if it comes off incoherent. I have ideas in my head but have trouble expressing them occasionally