Why Mainstreaming Politics is Crap

Common sense “fake” news and #mainstreaming propaganda fuel division, confusion, and empower reactionary forces, this rise of fascism isn’t a random phenomenon, it’s a direct result of the failures of our crap #mainstreaming politics. Corrupt elitists, indifferent politicians, and sell-out parties abandoned people, creating a vacuum that far-right forces are all too eager to fill.

Yet, most people still cling to the idea that these broken institutions will somehow save us. That’s the oxymoron. The path that created the problem won’t be the one to fix it. We need to step outside this collapsing framework, build grassroots alternatives, and reclaim power through more collective action.

Today’s left-wing politics, represented by figures like Biden, Stammer and Macron, has long ago devolved into centrism that tries to balance market interests with bureaucratic oversight. This blend of mess results in policies that are neither here nor there, failing to inspire or facilitate any genuine change and challenge. The only real appeal of this kind of politics is that it’s “better than the alternative,” often perceived as extreme right-wing or fascist ideologies.

This centrist approach, can now be seen as the “extreme centre” which is fundamentally immoderate. That moderates, and centrist politicians, lack positive arguments and real vision. They focus on pragmatism and compromise, reducing politics to a series of performative acts rather than any democratic outcomes. This lack of compelling vision makes centrism unappealing and devoid of substantive change.

Figures like Obama and Tony Blear were “successful” because they projected an image of visionary leadership, though, in reality, their vision was about maintaining the status quo through right wing pragmatism and compromise. This kind of leadership is a performance of having a vision rather than the actual implementation of transformative ideas we need.

There is a symbiotic relationship between centrist politicians and right-wing populists. Right-wing leaders like Trump, Farage and Johnson adopt a persona of being a “yokel” or an “idiot,” which elicits scorn from the educated classes. This dynamic appeals to those who resent the cultural #mainstreaming, creating an “us vs. them” mentality. Voters feeling marginalized by the #mainstreaming mess and disdain to find solace in supporting these populist figures as a #blinded form of “rebellion”.

Right-wing populists perform a caricature of fascism or idiocy to appeal to their base, while centrist politicians push a veneer of moral superiority. This dynamic creates a dichotomy, where voters feel compelled to choose between two unappealing options. Both sides thrive on this manufactured conflict, ensuring their ongoing mutual dominance in the political paths.

The media plays a significant role in this broken system. The upcoming UK election demonstrates that this mainstream media is not a reliable ally for the public. There is a pressing need for alternative media that amplifies real diverse voices to present genuine political options outside the false dichotomy of centrism and right-wing populism.

Mainstream politics today, dominated by a centrist approach, lacking vision and substance, is inherently flawed. The symbiotic relationship between centrist politicians and right-wing populists creates a political landscape that stifles any progress and any needed change and challenge. To compost this mess, it is crucial to grow alternative media like the #OMN alongside social and political movements that offer real, transformative paths and solutions.

https://opencollective.com/open-media-network

We must reckon with the consequences of our past decisions

One thing we can all now likely agree is that we have made a complete mess of our society, ecology and tech paths. The intertwining of #postmodernist social thinking and #neoliberal economic ideology over the past four decades has laid the groundwork for the turbulent state of contemporary politics and the social chaos evident in our digital ecosystems (#dotcons)

This marriage of ideologies led to a fracturing of political values and an obscuring of ideological divides, resulting in the polarization and dysfunction we witness in both right and left-wing politics. In the realm of technology, this has resulted in the proliferation of centralized platforms and the erosion of community.

“From the outset of the industrial revolution, what is nostalgically called “laissez-faire” was in fact a system of continuing state intervention to subsidize accumulation, guarantee privilege, and maintain work discipline.”
— Kevin Carson

For forty years, we’ve marched down this dark path, “unwittingly” shaping the current “human nature” through the failed dogmatic #blinded collective choices and actions. Now, as we confront the existential threats growing #climatechaos and ecological degradation, we must reckon with the consequences of our decisions.

The next four decades will be marked by hardship, suffering, and loss as we grapple with the consequences of our past actions. As a first step, it’s very useful we acknowledge our role in shaping this grim reality and take responsibility for charting a new course forward.

It’s time to reject the poisoned philosophies and economic doctrines that have brought us to this precipice. We must reclaim agency over our collective future and commit to a path of social healing, reconciliation, and renewal.

Acknowledging our complicity in creating this mess is the first step towards redemption. The path I am outlining to do this is to embrace the power of #openweb collective action and solidarity, working together to build a more just, equitable, and sustainable world for generations to come.

One of the strong #blocking of this is to see this social thinking as simply an individualistic moral judgment, this would be using the current mess to judge the current mess. An all too common, hopeless path to walk down, and would only lead to the pushing of more mess. Please try not to take this path, thanks.

Let point out a glaringly obverse statement, I am not saying that these ways of thinking are not working as intended, they obviously are. Postmodernism has been used to disintegrate social norms that bind society together, it has done this. Neoliberalism has been used to divide the rich and the poor, it has done this. The moral judgment is not in the effectiveness of these paths but in our choice of path.

These too dead philosophy together push social disintegration that lubricated the pushing of the divide between the rich and the poor to the extremes that are growing today. It’s important not to simple see this as a moral judgment, as it’s a natural outcome of the path we have chosen to walk over the last 40 years, the moral judgment is on the path we have chosen.

#dontbeaprat is a positive statement of what’s next?

In activism (and interestingly less so in #mainstreaming life now) #stupidindividualism is a constant poison. With #blinded, people treat critical social thinking as ONLY personal criticism. This has the effect of #blocking that spreads mess over the very needed social change and challenge. Am increasingly using the  #dontbeaprat hashtag to communicate on this problem.

I think another useful hashtag on this behaviour is #blinded, which is in part self-inflicted and in part a general social outcome of the last 40 years of worshipping #postmodernism and #neoliberalism. The hashtag #deathcult is a useful “uncomfortable” way of expressing this.

Why is this such an issue, people are directly responsible for this mess making, as both of these ideologies are actually dead themselves now. It’s an intellectual zombie block.

So #dontbeaprat is a positive statement of what’s next?

Please #dontbeaprat on this, thanks.