Capitalism, sexism, racism, and authoritarianism. Four plagues. Each corrupts. Each perverts, robs, and kills. Together they impose a totality of abominably compatible oppressions. When we say, “The system sucks, Smash the system,” the word “system” is shorthand for “totality of our oppressions.”

To escape today’s system, we righteously seek peace, freedom, equity, and community. We come to know that revolution is our only comprehensive solution. But we also come to know that revolution will not be completed in twenty minutes, days, weeks, months, or perhaps even years. We know that to claim otherwise is magical thinking. This stuff takes time. Right?

You may say, “fundamental change as soon as we can achieve it.” I reply, “Absolutely.” You may say, “Don’t let current relations mutilate people one day longer than our best efforts can achieve.” I reply, “of course.” But can we also agree that between now and a new world our best efforts have many rivers to cross? Can we agree that we are not going to get a new world this coming Tuesday? And can we agree that “we” need to be a shitload more people than “‘we” are now?

Revolution is our and our planet’s only full solution. Yes, we agree that it is. But can we also agree that to carry through revolution, we can’t just assume obstacles away? We have to deal with obstacles. We have to keep our revolutionary goal in mind so we get where we want to wind up. We also have to keep our revolutionary goal flexible so we can alter it as later practice requires. We have to keep our eyes on our full prize and we have to continually update our immediate actions to move us ever more wisely forward. We have to seek our future even while we address our now. 

Not too long ago, one river back, I saw one part of our now as a dangerous, and even fearful right-wing, populist, off-the-rails excess. But I also thought it was nowhere near Fascist. One river further along, I now think Trumpism is flat-out Fascist. Trump wants Maga to goose-step to Trump’s tunes. The evidence is front and center. There’s a bad moon rising.

Trump says let’s have a new Reich so I can exact vengeance. Hello. Do we need more warning than that? Meanwhile, mainstream media debates Trump’s proclivity to nod off and fart. Even so, even with volcanos of hypocritical cowardly mainstream media madness, sufficient evidence now echoes loudly enough and streams widely enough that no advocate of fundamental change should any longer underestimate what’s happening—as I did for too long.

But how should we address Trumpist/fascist danger? Of course, we have to combat climate catastrophe, water shortage, growing misogyny, resurgent racism, raging war, and nuclear madness. If we don’t—well, we have to. 

And of course, we should do so in ways that simultaneously plant seeds for and nourish paths toward positive fundamental change. If we don’t—well, again, we have to. 

But to do all of that will not be enhanced if we underestimate the rising fascism. If we let Trump win, prospects will be incredibly grim. Even if we stop Trump, if we also watch his support persist, prospects will be incredibly grim. What to do? Stop Trump. Reduce his support. How?

Considering options, I have thought, and I still believe, that much of Trump’s support is not due to his fascistic policies and aims. We all see that Trump is berserk. This scares many of us. But others of us celebrate his berserk-ness. Others see it as more promising than continued business as usual. Most Trump supporters, I believe, support what they see as a lesser evil. Fancy that. Can we understand that while most Trump supporters are horribly wrong about Trump, they are not disgustingly vile? If we don’t understand that, whatever happens to Trump, Maga numbers and Maga anger will grow and keep heading in the wrong direction.

Many of us know that Trump isn’t a random berserker. We know Trump turns things topsy turvy, but we see that he does so to serve himself and beyond himself only others with wealth and power. We know Trump couldn’t care less about the well-being of victims of wealth and power. 

Okay, but suppose you know that, but your future already feels bleak. Suppose normal, smiling, polished, civil politicians have relentlessly screwed you and yours. Suppose you believe, indeed you rightly know, that they will do so again. And again. Couldn’t “berserk” start to feel synonymous with your mood? Couldn’t “berserk” start to seem like your better electoral bet? Couldn’t berserk start to ring your bells? Might you want Trump to make a mess to erase ills? Might you want to help him to bury business as usual? Couldn’t Maga start to feel to you like a movement that could convey to you belongingness, possibility, and even dignity? 

Suppose as that starts to seem even a little plausible to you, down the other fork in the road you see only many folks who call you dumb and degenerate. They laugh at you. They curse and dismiss you. They bend and mutilate you and yours. Might you start to lean more Trumpward? 

Yes, Trump lies, you might think, but who doesn’t? Yes, Trump is uncouth, you might think, but so what? Trump seems to like you, so you begin to like him. And then, when you are attacked and ridiculed for saying you will vote for Trump, pissed off yet again, dissed and denigrated yet again, might you double down to lean further Trumpward? And when attacked still more, might you lean still further? And if all this were to happen to you, would you be seeking out a rabbit hole to climb in or would you have been pushed into one? Might the hole you slide toward feel more welcoming, more promising, than passively enduring business as usual? Might you want to get others to join you in the hole that calls to together yell out loud, hooray for our side?

The others outside your new residence tell you Trump is the devil, but who are they? The others outside say Trump lies, but what do they do? The others glaring with disdain say Trump is a fascist and if you support him, you are in a cult. But they aren’t? Your town is collapsing. You drift rightward.

Okay, now consider the real you who hasn’t drifted rightward. Imagine you talk to a worker on a picket line for a half hour and you find that you agree with her regarding her strike. You agree with her about her boss. You agree with her about her hard times, her fear of war, her fear of climate collapse, and her fear of whatever else comes up. Your minds happily meet. But suppose this new worker then answers your query “Who do you expect to vote for” by replying, “Why, Donald, of course.” Taken aback, you ask, “Why”? 

She answers, “Donald says whatever he wants. Donald dissents. Donald will shake everything up.” You mumble, surprised, “But Donald is a rapist liar. Donald is a racist thug. Donald is a broke billionaire exploiter, a strike breaker, and a loose cannon on a nuclear stage. How can you support him?” 

And she replies, “Yes, okay. Of course he is. But we are all sinners. Is the stuff that Trump does so different from what your guy does other than that unlike your guy, Trump is a berserker, untamed, and untamable. Trump hears me. Trump is devout. Your Democrats ridicule me. They are faithless.” 

You try again. “But Trump will gut our democracy.” She answers, “What democracy? Do you have any real say? I don’t.” You persist, “but Trump will unleash repression. He will lie and lynch.” She replies, “So you say, but Trump is the one being repressed. Trump is the one legally lynched. Trump won’t do that to me.” And then maybe it goes on: “Your guy is a fascist.” “No, your guy is a fascist.” 

Calmly talking on the picket line, you feel grounds for communication with the Trump supporter. You agree on so much. Good lord, you think you are meeting a new friend. She thinks so too. And indeed, you start to feel communication is possible for radical leftists and many, many Trump supporters. But then comes a misstep. Gloves come off. Fists get clenched. What the fuck? 

Okay, back to now. Do you doubt, as you read this, that successfully addressing today’s many existential crises will be infinitely more difficult if not impossible with Trump and Trump-like leaders in place? Indeed, even if Trump and Trump-like leaders are beaten at the polls, do you doubt that if Trump’s voters retain allegiance to Maga, it will be vastly harder for you and others to address existential threats? If that is indeed our current predicament, what current agenda makes sense?

For some, and perhaps for you too, and I can understand the sentiment and even empathize closely with it, “Fuck Maga and everyone wearing those damn hats, but ‘Never Biden’,” feels right. It smoothly flows off the tongue. But does it actually make sense?

Okay, that is the end of my preamble. So what is my point? It is that “Never Biden” and “Fuck Maga and everyone wearing those damn hats,” do not, in fact, make sense. 

As to Biden, “critique Biden,” “bash Biden,” “battle Biden,” each make sense. ‘Not Biden in any state where Trump is a sure loser,” also makes sense. But “never Biden” goes a step too far. It includes “not Biden” in swing states. It includes “not Biden” in closely contested states. “Never Biden” aids Trump’s chances in states he might win. But our preamble, above, argued that for Trump to win would subvert every revolutionary, radical, progressive, and even just not fascist sentiment you, I, or anyone may feel. It argued that to stop Trump where he might win a state’s electoral votes matters more to every current cause to aid people in need more than the discomfort and even the nausea that pulling a lever for Biden in swing states would inflict for that one moment on me or on you. Is that true, or did my preamble miss something?

And now, for what may feel like an even harder case to acknowledge, what about Maga and those wearing the damn hats? The preamble above said if their allegiances don’t change, the battle against existential threats much less the battle to win new societies will be crippled.

“Fuck Maga and everyone wearing those damn hats,” writes off and will indeed further alienate and antagonize tens of millions of good people who should be natural allies. “Fuck Maga and everyone wearing those damn hats,” is the opposite of organizing. It is the opposite of being strategic. It says don’t listen. It says curse half the population. It eliminates the responsibility to communicate.

So I wonder, do we want to elevate not listening? Do we want to jettison the responsibility to communicate? Do we want to alienate? My question is, does to say no misunderstand something about what we now need? If you think it does, I hope you will let me know what that might be.

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