Well said, Minime.
I hate to even open my figurative mouth, as this thread has already been thoroughly derailed, and further comment only adds to the ridiculousness, but I can't help myself.
What a ridiculous waste these last few pages have been.
For all those who have criticisms of something AD posts (or anyone else, for that matter), said poster fails to respond to your questions or comments, consider it an invitation to prove your point without the poster there to refute anything you say. If you bring it back to bullshit like "why won't so and so respond? I'm only asking questions," you are not helping anything.
For all those who are bothered by behavior similar to that described above, just post something on topic and leave it the fuck alone. To do otherwise is not helping anything.
If the last two days of posts aren't some well-planned example of agit-prop disruption, it's a damn good example of how it can happen organically.
And Mods, who are presumably attempting to be unbiased and have an interest in maintaining this board, I encourage you to take note of how this thread may have devolved and pay attention to any observable patterns in the future in this or other threads.
With certain people hem-hawing nonstop about the slow death of this board due to lack of discussion, some seem happy to continue focusing on individuals above issues to the detriment of the discussion they claim they want.
Anyway.
The socialist response.
The first step is acknowledging socialism as a legitimate idea and something that can be identified with.
The word has been so vilified, at least in American culture, than many fear to even speak it.
For a socialist response to actually exist, people must first reclaim the word from the capitalists who have defined it for generations. Begin to associate it with worthwhile things like decent wages and living conditions, rather than the Communist nightmare the Right would present it as. Socialism will eventually have to deal with the realities of greed and corruption, since they infest any system, but for a first step, it is enough to argue for basic decency and a level playing field and the idea that it is shameful for millions to starve while the lucky few sit atop mountains of food they can throw away. Simple, decent, human things. The capitalist whores who benefit from the status quo will lie and shade and do what they do, but no one can argue against giving a starving child food without their own greed showing. Even starving adults may forgo food so a starving child may eat in their place - those with an abundance who would deny such a thing can rightfully be called greedy, and perhaps, evil.
