#organizing

#Repost @gogreensavegreen

You might be more than one. You might be different ones at different times. 🫶🏽🫶🏽 you might not be one of these. There are more roles 💪🏽 but this is an amazing intro.

You can’t just like the idea and envision yourself in one of these roles you have to figure out how to be about it ♥️🫶🏽

So first of all the title is a bit misleading. There are actually two different kinds of political debates, and I can only help you with the second one. This is NOT advice on how to settle arguments with your friends; these are hostile tactics, meant to be used only on enemies, and if whoever u use it on wasn't your enemy before then they sure as hell will be when you're done. Anyway.

First off, you have to know ahead of time what kind of debate you're in. The two kinds of political debate are internal and public, and they have to be approached very differently because they're very different animals. The internal debate is a dialectical fact-finding process wherein some people resolve contradictions within their group by discussing the relative strengths and weaknesses of various positions; the internal debate should be respected, and the only way to win one of those is to have a good and well-presented argument. Good luck w/ that one.

Then there's the public debate. The public debate--and this remains true whether it takes place on a fancy stage or in the comments section of a youtube video--is a circus. More to the point, it's your circus, and you are the ringmaster.

The true target of a public debate is not the opponent, but the audience. You are not acting as a political worker educating a potential contact, but rather as a performer putting on a show for the audience. The object is not to win over your opponent; the object is to leave any observers with the impression that your side is reasonable and intellectual while their side is silly and histrionic. Always keep this in mind.

Try to avoid addressing your opponent's points directly, except to ridicule them. Instead, use phrases like "But what about--" and "Oh, so you're just going to ignore--" in order to keep bringing up additional points of your own, thereby monopolizing the conversation for your point of view and preventing your opponent from organizing a coherent counterargument.

Take any opportunity to imply that your opponent's arguments are foolish without saying so overtly. Keep an ear out for any lines of argument or turns of phrase that might sound peculiar to the general public, such as cumbersome academic jargon or obscure subcultural metaphors, and roll your eyes while repeating them back to your opponent in a condescending tone.

If you find yourself unprepared or otherwise caught out by a question, just refuse to answer it. Or refuse to elaborate. Imply that your opponent is being foolish by even bothering to ask such a question. "It's not my fault you don't already know about XYZ, someone who'd done any research on the topic would already know about XYZ and wouldn't need me to explain it to them. Anyway, have you considered--" You're never ever refusing to answer or elaborate because you don't have an answer, no, you simply refuse to embarrass yourself by condescending to answer such silly questions. Come on.

If at all possible, try to bait your opponent into getting angry or otherwise distraught. How to accomplish this will vary from person to person, but your pretentiousness and aloof indifference should get you about halfway there on its own. Remember, however, to try not to resort to overt personal attacks unless you're absolutely sure they're going to land; you're meant to look like the voice of reason dispensing sage wisdom while they're meant to look like an angry, blathering jackass. If you can so get under your opponent's skin, it's pretty much over. You can aloofly (and infuriatingly) dismiss whatever else they have to say as a baseless appeal to emotion and proceed to "Anyway, have you considered--" your way into using the debate floor as a soapbox from which to preach to the audience.

Keep these tips and tricks in your back pocket and you'll never, ever lose, as long as you define "winning" as your opponent giving up and storming out of the venue.

And now you're one step further on your journey to becoming a rat fuck! More to come. Quote to think on:

"The core message from Minneapolis is that people everywhere need to prepare for this. This isn’t the last time this is going to happen. Unless communities are talking to each other about how to protect each other from this kind of invasion, they’re going to be on their backfoot and caught unaware.

I encourage people across the country to organize on their blocks, know their neighbors. Because that has been, far and away, the thing that has kept people safe. What it’s meant is family after family hasn’t been torn apart.

I'm a member of Ohio Valley Mutual Aid, based in Wheeling WV. The city announced several weeks ago that the city's one legal homeless encampment would be closed on December 1st. That weekend, OVMA tried to both postpone the closure and help our unhoused neighbors prepare for it. The evening of Dec 1st, we were told that the city was delaying the closure, so we went to the camp to tell people. Later, we found out that information was wrong. The next morning, members went back to the camp to try to help people move their stuff before the bulldozers came. My friend was arrested for warning the residents of the camp. She's out now. We're raising money for her legal fees if folks can help.

OVMA has been around for about a year. We started with community events, cooking together, and gender-affirming clothing swaps. In June 2025, we responded to a devastating flash flood that killed 9 people and damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes. We also help local people with bills to keep light and water on or pay rent.

We'd appreciate any support:

If you're in the local area, sign up for our upcoming DIY Space Heater workshop. Coming to a public event is the best way to join our group!

Follow us on FB and Insta and share our posts

Donate! If you want it to go for legal fees put "legal" in note or put a "⛺" for unhoused outreach and support or leave it blank to let us use it however!

Black Panther Party member Kathleen Cleaver on non-violence. [source]