When are folks going to realize that mocking the rise of Nazism is not an effective strategy? How serious does it have to get before you'll take it seriously?
Comments
Log in with your Bluesky account to leave a comment
I keep mtelling people, "If you tell a Fascist they are breaking the law they look at you, lift the bat off thier shoulder, brandish it and say "Talk to the bat". We need to be prepared.
I mock Nazis but not fascism, and I'm just patiently waiting until it becomes commonplace to... Let's say "mark" Nazis so they're easy to identify later. Like in this movie I saw...
I mean, yes but what else can we do it this moment…online? To know that a hatred has taken root in this country and is growing. to to know that these people feel such a vulnerability that they try to the dark side is shocking. The ugliness is worse than any horror movie I’ve seen.
They're clowns waving guns around. Respect the threat. Not the clown.
Most of what I read... I think that's what's going on. Undercut the authority of the clowns. Demonstrate why they shouldn't be followed in to the abyss - that they're not serious and don't know what they're dong.
I fought neo nazi skinheads & privileged racist white frat boys in & around Medusas in Chicago in the early 90's
I was woke & broke in Lathrop Homes in the 80's
I'm ahead of the class war & waiting on white people to get their shit together
I have also prevented spousal abuse & a kidnapping
Yes, but the change we face busts all paradigms. Those cracking jokes are also making their serious plans. A point hits when a person can no longer stomach the levity, but we all reach that point at a different pace, depending on what else we’re dealing with in life and general levels of anxiety.
We are so terminally online that half of us think that following YouTubers and podcasters that make fun of Trump and Musk and are profiting off of the legitimate fear and trauma of marginalized Americans is making some kind of a difference. Like I really give a shit if a group of white boys 1/
Have the number one podcast and are making a shit ton of money with sensationalist headlines and have a cult following. Our president is still a Russian asset who is destroying the basic foundation of our democracy, nazis ate everywhere, the richest man in the world has his hands in our treasury 2/
Building back doors into our security infrastructure. This entire cabinet is full of ill equipped, unqualified, ignorant Trump loyalists but sure, making YouTubers famous is really sticking it to the man. I’m angry tonight. I apologize. 3/3
We are living in horrible times. That said, humor keeps us human and teaches us that the tyrants are also only human. Which gives us the courage to resist. We need to both understand the seriousness of this and to find joy and laughter to sustain us.
Mocking Nazis gets under their skin, they want to be taken seriously, they want to be threats, they want to be feared, they want to be cool, they don't want to be mocked and have their asses beat for being Nazis.
They have to realize that it does, in fact, affect them personally. The only thing to shake McConnell his entire life, as a survivor of polio, is the appointment of the brain worm puppet that hates the polio vaccine.
I started sounding the warning in 2015. People told me I was a fearmonger. Nope. I was right. We are the Fascist States of America now. We definitely aren't united, nor should we unite with Nazis. #FuckNazis
Nazis only understand violence. Cowards empower Nazis. Punch every Nazi you see. If that doesn't work, go harder. Get creative. Dth2Nzs and all their allies.
Yeah among other things it genuinely flusters them and throws them off their game… their game… they’re trying to normalize Nazism again and both mocking it and downright attacking it should be done . Like make fun of them always and also do physical harm in mine craft if you can
Hi Mary. Some of us are trans, or disabled, or undocumented, and are trying to keep out the thoughts of ourselves and our children being detained or 💀 by Nazis with little jokey jokes so we can keep working and feeing our kids instead of having mental breakdowns.
Umm fire doesn’t have emotions, Paul. They turn into cry babies when you call them weird. Their power is you taking them “seriously”. You can be serious and still call them a joke.
All in good time. The Find Out stage will inevitably come some time in late 2025 once it becomes clear even to the maga dopes that we’re now a failed state
The people who sacrificed so much for us would wonder why we are not doing more to honour their sacrifices. We will not doom scroll, meme, or document our democracy back into existence 👇👇👇
As I've said elsewhere, dictatorship does not always come dressed in a Hugo Boss uniform. In my lifetime, I remember dictators in Greece, Portugal, Argentina and Russia. None were Nazis.
"The devil...the prowde spirited...cannot endure to be mocked."
Thomas Moore (via C. S. Lewis)
While we're not quite at the scalping Nazis phase, yet, there is value in mocking the power.
Charlie Chaplin's 'The Great Dictator ' is still relevant. today
This lady breaks it down pretty well. Short of violence, which would be horrendous and what they are hoping for, this is the only option that doesn’t get thousands of people killed or imprisoned. But it will by no means be easy.
Thank you this is it! Powerful and direct! What it’s going to take! I love when she said protesters went and the brown shirts said you can’t come in, and they said oh and walked away!
Time to overwhelm them in numbers
Are you guys buying guns and ammo and training for combat? Are you organizing militias in your town? You ready to spend months, maybe years in jail? You ready to lay your lives and the lives of your families on the line? Cause that’s what it’s gonna take. Y’all got it in you?
I guess to add to that: you (general you) see people saying "when are people gonna do something?" Saying people, trying to get others to do the dirty work that is gonna be deadly. Of course most likely not advertising any militia forming movements
Oh yea but it can get annoying seeing everyone else saying "you need to get out and do something!" Yet I never or rarely see those people physically in the streets or doing what they are asking for. If they want it then they should start it.
It is an unprecedented time and no one in the US has gone through this.
Those interested in resisting can and should do so in the ways they can. They all won’t be big and loud, most will be silent and unseen, but it is all essential none the less.
Exactly. Thats why I try not to judge or criticize anyone for resisting in whatever way works for them. It will take all kinds of people through many different methods to stop this shit. And if ridiculing Nazi’s and making them feel stupid is all one can do, hey, that’s fine too. I can use the laugh
Oh no don’t misunderstand me buddy. I am collecting guns and ammo. I do have buddies that don’t like what we’re seeing and ready to do something about it.
I’m just letting you guys know what’s required of you.
Yep. I’m no stranger to violence or going to jail, I grew with gang stuff my whole life and always having to look over my shoulder, so nothing new really. I just thought all that stuff was behind me now. If I gotta get dirty again oh well, but obviously I would like to see some other options lol
What’s with all the Stalin love here? Stalin was more than happy to divvy up Europe with his best buddy until hitler had delusions of grandeur and decided to invade Russia. Stalin killed more innocent people than the Nazi’s did. Don’t be trying to make him out as some kind of hero
There are far too many people on social media whose first response to something awful is to think of something “witty” to say to get people to like and respond. Everyone thinks they’re a fucking podcaster.
Humor is a part of resistance. It helps decrease the fear that an average citizen would normally have of authority and standing up to it. Humor and mockery have been used as forms of resistance for thousands of years.
it's going to require violence. Unfortunately, orange turd and xhitbrains are going to use the time to prepare... when an appropriate event occurs, they'll start being violent. After that... who knows... I keep hoping the govs will step up.
Some people are going to stare at a monolith of evil and crack jokes because their brains can not comprehend the fear they are feeling. Shame isn't going to snap them out of it
The only way to deal w fascism is thru mockery, but that ONLY applies to individuals making fascist arguments.
The institutions themselves require thoughtful, strategic, and. PERSISTENT interference.
I get it. I have anxiety about that and the russians.
No one is understanding the fascist virus has spread without a vaccine. No one thought it would happen here. Hell, I didn't. I'm a daughter of immigrants forced from their land by russians. They told us horror stories. Somehow we need to educate
It’s been my experience that people will only fight back when they’ve been personally hurt or threatened. Then the far right people infiltrating positions of authority will coordinate to attack the people fighting back.
I stupidly thought we'd be done with The Snark after January 6, but y'all are still here... downplaying a deadly threat cause you're too chicken shit to accept reality, much less to change it.
Well said. It's simply a disservice to those affected to not take evident horrors such ideology has and will bring seriously. It won't always be "just fine."
Maybe you're not psychic so you can't tell the difference between internet strangers making jokes to cope and making jokes to make light of a situation.
To be clear, they are a bunch of losers, but they ARE dangerous. The J6ers have built their own little community of like-minded people who believe they are innocent and correct because the President of the United States keeps telling them that. It's a very very bad situation and it's not over.
Theyre losers because they generally don't have healthy social lives and are unpleasant people and because their ideology is self destructive
Doesn't mean they aren't dangerous or that they can't hurt us
Definitely losers. They have lost their dignity. They have lost any respect they may have had before this. They have lost the ability to see the truth and respond accordingly. They have lost half of america who aren't standing with them. They are losers of the most extreme nature.
This basically what I was getting at-Lord knows you don’t wanna be them-but also that what they believe they’ve won is irrelevant. They’ve only won if you feel like it’s over, and I just don’t.
Ho ho, I've observed yet another absurdity or hypocrisy in your beliefs. It won't be long until you buckle under the weight of my overwhelming moral advantage.
What’s your solution? It’s easy to criticize but are you in the arena doing the something you offensively call on others to do? Maybe you are. If so, say it.
Sometimes I feel like I'm screaming into the void, but last night I was on a town hall call with my Congressman who was asked point blank by another constituent what he was doing to stop our descent into Nazi Germany. He took the question as deadly serious as it was asked. No snark to be found.
I think people are mostly mocking their ineptitude.
Mocking doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t take it seriously and it definitely doesn’t mean you aren’t using other strategies beyond mockery.
Also, mockery and trolling is how trump and his nazis got so much support. 1/2
2/2 The sooner leftists stop this whole “we have to take the high road” BS the sooner we can more effectively combat them.
It lost us one election already because the messaging just isn’t effective.
Also:
The left's messaging is NEVER effective. The right is expert at using words as weapons, as legal leverage, as things that move the media in the direction they want. We see them weaponize the merely implied "too" at the end of Black Lives Matter and follow up with "Defund the Police."
Taking it very seriously notice they are being placed in cabinet discreetly. How long before Patels brown arse is booted for example? If it quacks like a Nazi, talks like a Nazi, chances are it's not a duck.
I agree in part with the initial premise, but if everyone on this thread can try not to implicate yourselves in any future assaults/murders that would be great.
Mockery is one line of attack, which alone is not enough. But as Timothy Snyder noyltes, it is effective and is something the opposition should continue doing in sustained effort to diminish the perceived power of Trump and his toadies.
Nothing. Nothing works. At this point in a fascist collapse, a country is committed to turning their military on their populace, economic collapse, and getting involved in a world war which our government has very clearly signaled it intends to win.
Been trying to warn folks with supporting evidence since 2015. "Godwin's Law" got thrown at me until very recently. Americans are thick-headed, ignorant, narcissists for the most part. Sadly the intelligent and informed people are far outnumbered by jackasses that believe propaganda first.
Sorry lady, this is the Internet which means caring about anything or taking anything seriously is cringe. negative aura, no rizz, this taken wasn't even socially engineered by 4channers that don't shower.
You aren't scoring any fake internet points with this take. You gotta pathetic-max more.
I just watched a video that included that point. Mock Nazis? Sure! But that doesn't DO anything. If that's all you got you might as well be a Democrat or a Liberal.
I don’t think anyone is mocking without serious intent. Pointing out the how ridiculous and vile this obsession with LOSERS like Nazis and Confederates actually is— is a tool to wake people up. You can’t reason with fascists, but you can stir the complacent into action.
Humor is a natural response to trauma. When people are experiencing trauma, they will cope in different ways. Those aren't differences fully dictated by choice. I've seen people laugh at the most inappropriate times who didn't think things were funny. They were having a trauma response.
I have an (the only) effective strategy that makes people angry that they have to actually take action and be uncomfortable, rather than post on social media.
They think nazis were only in Germany and naziism was defeated unequivocally in 1945. Naziism survived because the US gave nazi scientists a free pass in the space and nuclear arms race and Argentina sheltered runaway nazi officers. Plus nazis hiding behind “free speech” in the US.
It’s deadly serious and has horrific consequences, but at the same time everyone is struggling and looking for some sort of outlet and often times dark humor is what’s needed - while at the same time trying to stomp out some nazi mf’ers.
We laugh to make them ridiculous, to undermine their support, to make it harder to agree with them.
But we do not laugh when they tell us to. When they tell us “it’s just a joke. He’s not serious.” When they try to laugh off their horrors, then we are serious.
I do it to let off steam but I am dead serious about resisting and educating others about what's actually happening. The thing that drives me crazy is people reposting the evil crap verbatim. That's exactly what they want. Any publicity is good publicity.
Comments
Also, whatever it is we are doing about it, mocking nazis should be a part of that strategy. We can multitask.
Sometimes it helps, says https://cps.ceu.edu/article/2020-09-16/blog-how-laugh-away-far-right-lessons-germany
Fascists make humor a crime, says, https://www.history.ac.uk/events/making-fun-fascists-humour-against-leader-cult-fascist-italy-and-vichy-france-1922-1945
And sometimes, you're right, it makes banal the atrocity, says https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/08/20/fascists-know-how-to-turn-mockery-into-power/
Most of what I read... I think that's what's going on. Undercut the authority of the clowns. Demonstrate why they shouldn't be followed in to the abyss - that they're not serious and don't know what they're dong.
And dangerous
I was woke & broke in Lathrop Homes in the 80's
I'm ahead of the class war & waiting on white people to get their shit together
I have also prevented spousal abuse & a kidnapping
That was where the line was crossed for me
The reliance on "gotcha" scenarios to trick MAGA into saying something stupid.... Isn't really a great strategy.
Unfortunately, it will get much, much worse before people actually decide to join a real resistance.
“Hope is not a strategy.”
Why?
What do you suggest we do?
Humor has historically been used a tool to fight fascism.
Here’s a good article describing this: https://creativepool.com/magazine/inspiration/calexit-why-humour-is-still-the-best-weapon-creatives-have-against-fascism.32193
It takes a tremendous amount of force, often an outside force, to stop fascism.
People aren’t even marching in the streets by the millions yet while Medicaid, Education, air safety, and public health are all being dismantled.
"Hitler has only got one ball,
The other, is in the Albert Hall,
Himmler has something simmlar...
Dedededodededodededo"
Trumper has only got one ball,
The other is in the Kremlin Hall,
Mu-usk has Putin's lu-ust...
Dedededodededodededo
When will we learn?
We need to do something...
TAKE ACTION!
How many Nazis have you actually punched, beyond sharing a meme.
Maybe don't tone police victims.
Take the threat seriously, protect your family, act against the regime.
When Nazis are near you though, laugh in their face. Make them feel small and insignificant. Run them out of town.
Hitler and the Nazis were ridiculed constantly. That did a lot of hood too.
https://youtu.be/gJx8xmLJw44
The left have been far too lax for far too long.
The more i hear from Colbert et. al., the more pissed off i get
Thomas Moore (via C. S. Lewis)
While we're not quite at the scalping Nazis phase, yet, there is value in mocking the power.
Charlie Chaplin's 'The Great Dictator ' is still relevant. today
This lady breaks it down pretty well. Short of violence, which would be horrendous and what they are hoping for, this is the only option that doesn’t get thousands of people killed or imprisoned. But it will by no means be easy.
Time to overwhelm them in numbers
But that’s what courage is for. No one is coming to save us as a country, no one is coming to save us as individuals.
The sooner your body and brain can accept and process that, the better chance you may have.
Those interested in resisting can and should do so in the ways they can. They all won’t be big and loud, most will be silent and unseen, but it is all essential none the less.
Revolution has many faces.
I’m just letting you guys know what’s required of you.
https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahkendzior/p/your-questions-answered-were-already?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=48l15
most folks don't care enough to educate themselves on basics
getting super passionate about the wrong idea just to sound smart to themselves
weimar dems were smug too until they weren't
The institutions themselves require thoughtful, strategic, and. PERSISTENT interference.
And: Keep in mind, authoritarians thirst to make us afraid. Everything in the past month has been about terrorizing us.
Humor is a way to reduce fear and expose the monsters for the imbeciles they are.
No one is understanding the fascist virus has spread without a vaccine. No one thought it would happen here. Hell, I didn't. I'm a daughter of immigrants forced from their land by russians. They told us horror stories. Somehow we need to educate
We obviously don’t live up to your grand expectations so what do you suggest we do?
Be specific.
And don’t tell us what we shouldn’t do.
Tell us what we should be doing.
Just a thought.
Let's be very clear, the use of loser here, is a categorical, moral condemnation.
These people are losers, inherently. And that's why we must destroy them and remove them from power.
Doesn't mean they aren't dangerous or that they can't hurt us
Mocking doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t take it seriously and it definitely doesn’t mean you aren’t using other strategies beyond mockery.
Also, mockery and trolling is how trump and his nazis got so much support. 1/2
It lost us one election already because the messaging just isn’t effective.
Also:
Nothing. Nothing works. At this point in a fascist collapse, a country is committed to turning their military on their populace, economic collapse, and getting involved in a world war which our government has very clearly signaled it intends to win.
You aren't scoring any fake internet points with this take. You gotta pathetic-max more.
https://youtu.be/sBhjkjhcft8?si=9BPONOyMwPqDeHrL
OPSEC is important.
Progress always requires discomfort.
Check my profile.
We laugh to make them ridiculous, to undermine their support, to make it harder to agree with them.
But we do not laugh when they tell us to. When they tell us “it’s just a joke. He’s not serious.” When they try to laugh off their horrors, then we are serious.
We now have two choices. Live free or kneel to your MAGA king like a slave.
Color? Gender? Race? Immigrant? Rural? Urban? Worker? Boss? Poor? Rich? Red? Blue? Your flag is one of these.
I know which one is mine.
The whole country should be on the streets.