50501 General

Have you ever asked yourself, “Why don’t any GenZ-ers come to these things?”

As a GenZer, I’ve noticed that many of my peers feel like these protests aren’t specific enough to accomplish anything. Our generation is tired of political statements that feel more performative than substantive.

This isn’t to disparage the incredible work we’ve been doing in 50501. You all rock, and I’m especially grateful to all the wonderful friends I’ve gotten to meet through this group.

But, we need to tweak our strategy to make our movement as effective as possible.

It’s common sense that making our demands more specific will lower the threshold for how many people a successful protest requires. “Impeaching Trump” might require 4% of the population, while “Stopping the SAVE act” might require 2%. What will keep this movement going is clear results and a clear direction. Victories in specific areas will inspire other specific, clearly defined victories. So, introducing a specific set of demands for our next protest only makes sense.

Admin might say: “But we don’t want to scare people off with unpopular issues.” We might be tempted to reply that it won’t matter how many people we have if we never define a goal clearly enough to reach it. And this is a valid objection. But a more constructive response might be: “then let’s find an issue everyone agrees on.”

I’ve linked a secure, anonymous poll where you can indicate the 1-3 issues you feel pose a greatest threat to our democracy. (I predict that almost everyone will choose the same one). This will give us the data we need to convince mods to tailor our next protest (and hopefully our future protests) to the same specific issue(s).

https://strawpoll.com/e7ZJaDBqKg3

(You are more than welcome to comment or DM me if you’d prefer for security reasons).

My personal take? We should be devoting all our marches to stopping Trump from deporting political dissidents to El Salvador.

• It sets a terrifying precedent for violating democratic norms, since it’s in denial of a direct Supreme Court order and constitutional protections. If we don’t remind him IMMEDIATELY that he has to respect our rights, then he’ll trample over them for the next four years.
• It’s a salient issue that’s relatively easy for the Trump administration to back out of. So, he actually do it if we shut down society enough (as opposed to fixing trade alliances that he’s permanently severed). Especially considering that tensions with El Salvador are rising (due to ES wanting assurances that people are actually guilty), the time is ripe.
• There are particularly horrific details that we can’t just sit by and watch. Four year old kids with cancer are being deported. People with tattoos for autism awareness are getting carted off. People who aren’t on lists but HAPPEN TO NOT BE WHITE are getting thrown in ICE vans. There’s so little oversight in this that eight women got thrown in the plane to the El Salvadoran men’s prison and had to be shoved off last minute.
• Deporting undesirables to camps is the closest we’ve come (so far) to a full-on fascist regime, and we have to hold the line here.
• This issue unites many other concerns on our list. Targeting judges, overthrowing birthright citizenship, and violating court orders are all bound up in Trump’s campaign against immigrants, students, and political dissidents

However, I want to read everyone else’s thoughts about the most important issues.

I believe in this community, and I’m confident that everybody wants the best for this movement and will work their ass off to make sure we succeed. Let’s keep up the great work as we approach the next march!!

https://talk.50501.chat/

If you prefer a forum style of communication, this is for you. The link wasn't posted on general, so I'm doing it now.

Posted to Facebook yesterday, but I only saw it now. Seems to be worth sharing, as the Senator also requested.

Last night in the Senate, something really important happened. Republicans forced us to debate their billionaire bailout budget framework. We started voting at 6 PM because they knew doing it in the dark of night would minimize media coverage. And they do not want the American people to see how blatant their handover of our government to the billionaire class is.

So I want to explain what happened last night and what we did to fight back. The apex of Republicans’ plan to turn over our government to their wealthy cronies is a giant tax cut for billionaires and corporations. And they plan to pay for it with cuts to programs that working people rely on. Popular and necessary programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP, are all being targeted. In order to pass the tax cut, Republicans have to go through a series of procedural steps. Last night, they took the first step which requires them to pass an outline of their plan, but with it, any senator can offer as many amendments as we want. So my Democratic colleagues and I did just that.

Now, we knew that Republicans would largely unanimously oppose them, but we had two objectives here. One, Republicans were forced to put their opinion on record — many for the first time — on the most corrupt parts of Trump and Musk’s agenda. Two, as I’ve been saying, I am going to make every process and procedure as slow and painful as possible for as long as my colleagues choose to ignore the constitutional crisis happening before our eyes.

So what did we propose? We proposed no tax cuts for anyone who makes a billion dollars a year. We made them vote on whether or not Elon Musk and DOGE should have limitless access to Americans’ personal data. We made them vote on whether to protect IVF and require insurers to cover it. Every single amendment Democrats proposed was shot down. On almost every single amendment, Republicans universally opposed it. Every Republican voted against our proposal to prevent more tax cuts for billionaires. The corruption and theft is happening in the open here.

The whole game for Republicans is taking your money and giving it to the wealthiest corporations and billionaires — even if it means kicking your parents out of a nursing home or turning off Medicaid for the poorest children. They know what they are doing is deeply unpopular. They are offering a tax cut to the most wealthy that is 850 times larger than what they are offering working people. Oh and by the way, any tax cuts for working people are going to be washed out by higher costs for basic necessities, like health care and food. It’s a fundamental injustice.

Thanks to your pressure and support, many of my Democratic colleagues have joined my effort to do everything we can to make sure they cannot destroy democracy and steal your money in the dark of the night. We are being loud about what is happening. I’m going to continue to grind the gears of Congress down as much as possible to make it that much harder and slower to get away with this corruption. That’s why the votes lasted until nearly 5 AM.

This is a five-alarm fire. I don’t think we have two years to plan and fight back. I think we have months. It’s still in our power to stop the destruction of our democracy with mass mobilization and effective opposition from elected officials. So we can’t miss any opportunity to take advantage of opportunities to put Republicans on the record and shine a light on what is happening.

And you have a role to play in this as well. I need you to amplify what’s happening, support the leaders who are fighting for you to make sure they can continue speaking truth to power against Musk and Trump’s billionaire cronies, and show up at rallies and town halls. Use every tool at your disposal to send a message loud and clear about how you expect my colleagues to lead and fight in this moment.

Every best wish,

US Senator Chris Murphy

Looks like 50501 has been infiltrated by the opposition. I don't know what's true here, but it sounds like some fuckery.

Please read the linked PDF called Project Unity. It is a thoughtful examination of our current situation, how to solve as many of our problems with 4 solutions. I would propose we assimilate our goals outlined in our PDF and displayed here.

SHARED TRUTHS SUMMARY We all feel our world is off kilter Wealth inequality in systems causes violence Our system is experiencing that Deregulated media does not talk about how to rebalance our system Memories saved from learning environments, like news sources, lacking critical thinking, and remembered during topics of conversation leads to disunity and lack critical thinking open-mindedness. Disunity harms relationships, like the violent rhetoric and difficulty seeking the truth together politically, spiritually, rather than “winning.” Lower taxes on wealthy and corporations isn't working, hence our 40 years of the shrinking middle classes resources, the need for both parents to work and sacrifice their relationships, mental health, physical health, and is why we aren't raising families. There are forces at work to divide us, we choose a Pantheon, inclusive, sustainable organization.

Shared Goals Resource reallocation New Fairness Doctrine Reverse Citizens United and “Tips” for corrupting politics Sustainable Practices

Shared Spiritual Goals (ShHEE): Shared Happiness Shared Experiences Shared Expressions

By aligning our movement with goals like the above, we more broadly impact all of us, including those we may not see eye to eye, like friend, family, neighbors, misled over time.

https://substack.com/@savvii/note/p-162234097?r=50f2n5

he productivity of the industrial revolution was enormous, if the productivity from computers in the early information age being allocated disproportionately created oligarchs which are demolishing democracy slowly, but ramping up speed more recently, the need to begin resource reallocation to save and evolve our democracy is ever more important. How little ideas, voices, American dreams will we have with an exponentially larger increase in productivity with AI, robotics, and automation, as it matures, if it continues to be allocated inequitably? What kind of world do we strive for our kids?

If inequality in a system causes violence, and we're already experiencing leading indicators of violence with our current level of inequity, how bad can it get with the growth, and inequitable allocation, with the continued maturation of AI, automation, and robotics?

This is the only way to directly block bad stuff from going through. I assume we can talk about stuff like this on Lemmy. People will get fired and arrested. That's how things like this go. Some anonymous people should try to do simple sabotage. No, it's not legal. It's considered property damage or something like that. Nobody needs to go full luiji or anything like that. Just flush a sponge down the toilet at an important facility or something. Park in front of the door to stop people from entering. Not obvious vandalism like with the Teslas. It has to degrade the function of the executive branch. It obviously should be inconspicuous. If anybody has networking skills, they can use that to their advantage. Don't be afraid of getting into trouble. Just say you are unaffiliated with the movement, and that it was an accident. Act stupid. More secure communication will need to be done in person, at a local meeting or something.

This message will be removed in 24 hours or less.

I made this simple PDF to be straightforward and appeal to the more moderate people. I hope this sends a good message and encourages people to join the movement. Feel free to spread this wherever. Let’s inspire people to join the fight! https://qrco.de/bfwJxq

A few mods got kicked off, and its locked. Whats happening?

Trump has cut budgets, laid off employees, and pressured universities. Now Norway wants to attract researchers who have poor conditions abroad.

The Research Council prioritizes and allocates funds on behalf of the state.

Now they are allocating 100 million kroner to attract foreign researchers to Norway.

The Managing Director of the Research Council, Mari Sundli Tveit, is clear about the backdrop.

– It is particularly related to the situation in the USA. Academic freedom is under pressure and funding is being cut, says Tveit.

The new scheme allows Norwegian institutions to apply for support to bring in international researchers.

The work around the new scheme was both expanded and expedited when the Trump administration introduced significant cuts to American research in March.

Tveit emphasizes that the arrangement will not be reserved for researchers from the USA.

According to Tveit, many of those who have been laid off in the USA are researching areas such as climate, health, and the Arctic.

– These are areas where it is extremely important for us to ensure that the activity continues. And connecting the researchers to us is a very, very good idea, says Tveit.

Lists with "illegal words"

She is concerned about what she sees as an attack on research in the USA. Among other things, in the form of restrictions on specific research topics.

– There are lists of forbidden words, that is, prohibited words that cannot be included in research applications, says Tveit.

She points to words like "woman," "black," and "climate change."

In addition, the Research Council is concerned about a lot of important research data that is stored in the USA. This includes important research data and results on climate change and health.

– If there is a breach in that data, it will cause irreparable damage. And we are very concerned about that. Right now, we are looking for ways to move data to store it safely elsewhere, says Tveit.

Great need for expertise

Research and Education Minister Sigrun Aasland (Ap) has been a driving force behind the new scheme.

– In Norway, we have a great need for expertise in the coming years, including in research, Aasland explains.

She makes it clear, like Tveit, that the scheme should not be limited to researchers from the USA.

As the situation stands now, Aasland believes there is an increased need for such schemes.

– But is it wise to launch this scheme in the same week that Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg are set to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House?

– This is not an American scheme, but a global one. Also, an important reason why we are so focused on collaboration with the USA in research is that they are an outstanding research nation. They account for a significant amount of the world's knowledge about health, climate, and energy, Aasland responds and adds:

– We have extensive collaboration with American researchers, and we want to continue that.

Positive for Norwegian research

The Research Council estimates that the funds can cover 30 to 50 research positions. The researchers will be recruited to both colleges and universities in Norway.

The rector of UiO, Svein Stølen, is positive about the new arrangement.

– This is very interesting. It can bring us truly top researchers from other countries, says Stølen.

The rector believes this could have a significant impact on Norwegian and European research.

– We see that there are challenges in the USA, where China is advancing. The fact that Europe is stepping up is important, continues Stølen.

The rector of the University of Bergen, Margareth Hagen, is also positive about the new arrangement.

– The consequences for us are significant. It concerns the fact that about 22 percent of the research at UiB is conducted in collaboration with American researchers. So it is clear that what is happening in the USA affects us quite immediately, says Hagen.

She points out that the collaboration with American research environments spans the entire breadth of UiB's academic fields.

– UiB is particularly known for strong climate research and also for a lot of research on global health, where Americans are at the forefront.

(Translated by Kagi)

Anyone know what is going on?

How long it will remain closed?

Keeping track of counter protesters on Twitter. A common complaint seen is that people bring Palestine/Israel flags to protests. I have no comment on this.

Support Black Lives Matter. Support defending the police. Support ending racial policing. Support prison reform. Support protecting civil rights.

50501 will be far more successful if we start paying rightful attention to Black Americans. For all the shit going on right now, they have suffered more and continue to suffer more than the rest of us.

https://www.usps.com/business/every-door-direct-mail.htm You would also be supporting the postal system, which they plan to privatize.

Idea by https://www.reddit.com/r/50501/comments/1jrlp2n/the_usps_is_our_solution_to_defeating_the_social/

Where is the Law Team? Activists and professionals focused on law and security related issues.