CO-VIDs: the gandhi trap
Added 2020-06-22 12:32:14 +0000 UTCNew CO-VID. Sorry for the delay; the world was already exploding when I started this series and in the last few weeks it exploded further. Had to figure out how to work under even more stress than before.
This is the first expressly political CO-VID, and my first attempt to address breaking news on my channel. Script started out big and sprawling, then finally got whittled down to one, primary point as I decided it was better to say something well than to be timely. The bits I hacked off will make their way into a future, traditionally-researched video that looks more broadly at the ethics of political violence.
Starting with this video, CO-VIDs will be monetized through YouTube ads and 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Critical Resistance, a police and prison abolition group co-founded by Angela Davis. YouTube's CPM being what it is, it'd have more impact if even a small handful of people donated directly.
This is the heaviest CO-VID that will probably ever come out. I felt I couldn't keep on with the fun stuff without getting some of these thoughts out of my head. The next one's gonna be about an adventure game.
-I
Comments
Great video, Ian. Thank you.
Gabi Ghita
2020-06-23 17:58:00 +0000 UTCdamn...
Gabi Ghita
2020-06-23 17:57:13 +0000 UTCoh, and lemme leave THIS here. it is a terrifying and detailed battle plan by armed and militant white nationalists (people so far to the right of Trump they hate him for his "weakness" against the left and minorities) fueled by the great replacement fallacy and intent on overthrowing the united states government. among other choice excerpts, it includes their plan to go "full Al-Qaeda" by "covering the interstate in IEDs". Terrifiyng. I want someone with an actual audience on the left to talk about this shit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vn9oWJJkUjo
Dragons In Dungeons
2020-06-23 02:04:35 +0000 UTCWhen I saw the title "the Gandhi trap" I assumed you were talking about how pacifism was a trap for progressives seeking change. That is how much the efficacy of peaceful protest is in question. There are no fucking words for how goddamn tired I am of the cryptofascist "xyz was no angel" brand of apologia. Someone does not to be FREE OF SIN to be the victim of police brutality and/or murder, and I don't understand why so many kind-of-centry-normies don't understand this. (I think the actual circumstances of the state-on-citizen violence are more important. Rayshard Brooks fought two cops to the ground, got one of their tasers, and fired it at them before he was shot in the back. Hell no I don't think his death was justified or necessary but to me it does not belong in the same list as George Floyd, a man who offered no resistance beyond politely asking the police to please stop murdering him for the better part of eight fucking minutes and change until he no longer could because they had FINISHED murdering him.) 6:30-6:35 I will say what Ian doesn't feel morally comfortable saying here: it may well be the case that as the tactic of nonviolence has been effectively neutralized by dishonest corporate media, we are going to need to burn some fucking shit down to change the system. At 6:58, I wish you'd dwelt a little bit more on the quote from Mahatma Gandhi that appears on the right side of the screen. To paraphrase, Gandhi's essentially saying: "I keep telling you people that if you cannot passively receive state violence for the cause, I encourage you to violently deal with your oppressors" which, the second half anyway, sounds more like a Malcolm X quote. I agree with Gandhi here but I had no idea he ever said anything of this sort and I'm sure I'm not even close to the only one. Good video.
Dragons In Dungeons
2020-06-23 02:01:40 +0000 UTCThank you, Ian.
2020-06-22 19:32:17 +0000 UTCExcellent. I am interested to hear opinions on if we will continue to see mid-fascism tactics like deliberate slowdowns and logistic attacks against supply lines for police. There is also the possibility the peaceful protests could switch medium of protest and we'd see more cyber behavior as people feel their voice isn't heard and the personal violence encountered is too great.
Jonathan Palmer
2020-06-22 17:20:03 +0000 UTCOof. Powerful and with good insight. I wish I knew what the answer was, too. Thanks for putting our current situation into historical context.
2020-06-22 16:46:20 +0000 UTCThis is SHARP. Thank you. Yes. It's too complicated to even presume there are 'two sides' and ultimately, the realization of justice and liberation under systems built to deny both is impossible. So imagining a future possibility means using a lot of different strategies to see which ones move us toward the justice we seek. And anyone armchair commenting is as good as complicity in injustice.
Kait Hatch
2020-06-22 16:01:45 +0000 UTCDespite your protests about not being exhaustively researched, this was an excellent distillation of your insights into a heavily nuanced topic(s). Ty sir.
Eric Hula
2020-06-22 14:36:08 +0000 UTC
