this post was submitted on 15 Dec 2024
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Summary

Senator Bernie Sanders is intensifying his fight against U.S. oligarchy, targeting wealthy individuals like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg.

Sanders argues that these billionaires manipulate the global economy, influence elections, and control the government, hindering democracy and exacerbating global inequality.

He believes this issue is crucial, impacting various aspects of society, including climate change, healthcare, worker protections, and poverty.

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[–] Skiluros@sh.itjust.works 201 points 1 week ago (18 children)

As someone not from the US (but who has lived/worked/studied in the US), Sanders seems like the only member of the US upper house that is willing to speak honestly and engage in haram speech that goes against local provincial orthodoxy.

I was particularly intrigued by an article that claimed that Sanders was the only "outsider" in the US upper house and that all other senators were more or less on friendly terms (with the implication being that their polemics are a ruse). Unfortunately I can't find the article.

[–] TheDemonBuer@lemmy.world 111 points 1 week ago

Sanders seems like the only member of the US upper house that is willing to speak honestly and engage in haram speech that goes against local provincial orthodoxy.

He is, and he's loved by millions of Americans for it, and also hated by essentially the entire political establishment for it.

[–] octopus_ink@lemmy.ml 59 points 1 week ago (2 children)

As someone not from the US (but who has lived/worked/studied in the US), Sanders seems like the only member of the US upper house that is willing to speak honestly and engage in haram speech that goes against local provincial orthodoxy.

As someone from the US, Sanders seems exactly like this to me, also.

Apologies if you already know this, but Sanders is not a Democrat. He caucuses with them and runs as a Democrat, but he's not a member of the Democratic Party. Depending on the article they may have been referring to that. (IMO this is one of many reasons the DNC ensured he couldn't get the nomination in 2016 and 2020.)

[–] Skiluros@sh.itjust.works 30 points 1 week ago (2 children)

It's honestly too bad he is not in his 40s. At the risk of being overly presumptuous, I will speculate that he would be a good leader for the US and the "free world".

[–] christhebaker@lemmy.world 19 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Who are the younger politicians he is mentoring to carry the torch? I wish my home country had someone like him to follow and support.

[–] lennybird@lemmy.world 49 points 1 week ago (2 children)

AOC. She entered Congress in 2018 and was inspired by Sanders and shares his philosophy. She is the next iteration of him for sure.

[–] Viking_Hippie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 25 points 1 week ago (2 children)

The rest of the squad too, to varying degrees. He's also been stumping for and both officially and unofficially advising many state and local level progressive hopefuls.

And that's not even counting how many he's simply inspired to run for office or otherwise help improve things with his "Not me, us" campaigns that almost succeeded in overturning the relentless propaganda machine of what's probably the richest political party in the world when not counting one party states.

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[–] kreskin@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

It'd be helpful for AOC to walk this back now that Harris is gone. And not repeat it if she wants to be president someday: https://electronicintifada.net/content/aoc-votes-back-israel-lobbys-bogus-anti-semitism-definition/50066

[–] whotookkarl@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

The progressive caucus, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Progressive_Caucus

Because of the two party system each party is composed of a coalition of political caucuses. Progressive policy is popular among the US working class when not packaged as an ism or ist, so it has a strong position in the house and basically no support in the senate.

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[–] Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world 18 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Apologies if you already know this, but Sanders is not a Democrat.

Yeah, that's still a sore spot since it was one of the justifications given by centrists for how they were fine with him getting ratfucked in 2016.

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[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 33 points 1 week ago

all other senators were more or less on friendly terms

This is true for the parties as a whole. They are far too comfortable trading positions of power between themselves because they're all interested in keeping themselves in the ranks of the privileged. Neither party is willing to make any serious changes that would risk upsetting the balance for the greater good. They don't want change. Not actual meaningful change.

They have their elections and one party rules for a while before switching to the other, but the poor remain poor and the powerless remain powerless. Meanwhile they keep (or expand) their wealth and influence.

They may oppose each other in some ideologies, but make no mistake that they're on the same side when it comes to their own privilege.

Bernie is on the outside of this, which is why they will keep him down at all costs. He's a threat to their power structure.

[–] idiomaddict@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

all other senators were more or less on friendly terms

Except for Ted Cruz. Everyone hates Ted Cruz.

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[–] CharlesDarwin@lemmy.world 143 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I love Bernie, but it's hard not to just feel utterly hopeless when you see how Elon basically bought the government and we see the other oligarchs flying down to mar-a-swampo to kiss donvict's ring.

Putin's oligarchy is here.

[–] Eatspancakes84@lemmy.world 50 points 1 week ago (2 children)

It is amazing how quickly the elite is closing ranks around the Trump government this time around. This includes essentially all major media, billionaires and even some Democrats. Completely different from the first term when we immediately saw a major resistance movement.

Realistically he will end the Ukraine war (since Ukraine has to cede land without US support), and it’s likely that investment will skyrocket (as tariffs make it too costly to import). The same will happen to inflation and inequality (but we won’t see that in the media). Let’s not even think about minorities and women. My worst fear of competently-looking facism may well be on the way.

[–] CleoTheWizard@lemmy.world 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Tariffs will not significantly increase domestic investment. The US is at its maximum employment and that’s without deporting people. Who will even work in those factories?

Not to mention American labor means that products made here are at least double the price. So no it’s smarter to just raise your prices 20-30% than build a factory that will also have raw material costs 20-30% higher anyways.

[–] spector@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 week ago

There's some fictional reality where young people yearn for the factories. Ignoring the second half of the story where that actual generation dreamed of a world where their children didn't have toil in manufacturing.

Also ignoring the fact that wages have been going up for lowest earners.

Ukraine has to cede land without US support

Seems like that's going to be the best-case scenario for Ukraine. Worst case is the US starts supporting Putin instead.

[–] GrammarPolice@lemmy.world 11 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Guess we know what to do now. Shoot his jet down

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[–] whotookkarl@lemmy.world 78 points 1 week ago (1 children)

It seems to me he should continue to work with labor and student unions to organize a general strike for explicit, specific goals by a given deadline. The best tool the working class has to take power back from oligarchs is to coordinate stop working at the same time until demands are met, and it requires politicians and labor leaders like Sanders and Sean Fain to build and coordinate alliances across the workforce.

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[–] ramsorge@discuss.online 69 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Yeah, Bernie just said Depose.

[–] Grimy@lemmy.world 30 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Looks like it's up to us to Defend

[–] ramsorge@discuss.online 26 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I can’t Deny that. but, how do we get within 50 yards?

[–] ubergeek@lemmy.today 14 points 1 week ago (6 children)
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[–] PixellatedDave@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago (6 children)

50 yards isn't far. Neither is 100 yards.

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[–] sumguyonline@lemmy.world 43 points 1 week ago

You don't defeat oligarchs by protesting alone. You also don't break their power hold by forcing them into concessions. The position of oligarch must be eliminated entirely, and anyone with links to the position they held is either removed from the planet, or imprisoned where they never have human contact to try and manipulate their way out.

[–] pelespirit@sh.itjust.works 31 points 1 week ago

Jon Stewart & Bernie Sanders on Rebuilding Trust & Efficacy in the Government | The Weekly Show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4vtiiIo_Bc

[–] pfr@lemmy.sdf.org 28 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] skeezix@lemmy.world 14 points 1 week ago

“Awesome. What’s on tv tonight?” -America

[–] JustZ@lemmy.world 27 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Sometimes Bernie is wrong (rarely) but he's always honest.

[–] WeirdGoesPro@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 1 week ago (9 children)
[–] JustZ@lemmy.world 18 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I'm a two-time Bernie for President alum and believe without hesitation that he would have been a transformative president for America and the world.

Honestly I can only name two things on which Bernie and I disagree, and it's unsurprising because they are two things on which a lot of people disagree and highly nuanced, and it's heavy policy wonk differences on gun safety and certain middle east policy. I don't want to go into them in detail here. They're both issues on which our views have changed over time.

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If we ever take control of government again, we need to do a "Defensive Democracy" approach. Rich people need to be banned from politics.

[–] octopus_ink@lemmy.ml 19 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] Xanthrax@lemmy.world 9 points 1 week ago

It started off with rich, white cultists who took over disease ridden, Native American ghost towns. Close enough, though.

[–] cabron_offsets@lemmy.world 14 points 1 week ago

Right again.

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