I know, I've ranted on here before. But after taking a break from that topic to focus on Ukraine stuff, I ended up going back there, only to end up facing a bunch of people who don't seem to get the point of the subreddit.
Look, when the sub says anti work...we mean ANTI WORK. As in, against all work. Now, this takes many forms, and there are many ideological debates on this subject, which I've taken a part of in the past. Some of us are anarchists and want to burn it all down and go back to nature, which i see as unhelpful. Some are communists who think a centrally planned economy will meet all our needs and make work more voluntary. And me? I'm a capitalist who believes in UBI and M4A as ways to free people from the coercion to labor while still maintaining a market system.
And...there is a lot of infighting between those groups, some of which i've discussed here. A lot of leftists LOVE to gatekeep the movement and argue the problem is capitalism and you cant be anti work without being anti capitalism. I disagree. If anything I believe capitalism (well...markets, market socialism is a possibility too) is the best way to achieve an anti work world. Because I believe markets afford people the freedom and flexibility to choose their lot in life. The only issue with markets is the wage slavery issue. Marxists will talk all day about exploitation and owning the means of production, but eh, I see those as tangental issues at best. But I'm getting side tracked here. This is a tangent to my point.
The point is, despite there being clear divisions in how to achieve an anti work world, in the past, i felt like those on that sub agreed that an anti work world was the goal. There might be different camps of people with different means to approach the problem, but we all agreed to varying extents that the goal was to be against work.
I feel like, post Doreen Ford leaving, the sub is losing its way. The new, more casual, moderate posters seem to be winning the ideological battle. And that's bad. Because a lot of them balk at the idea of trying to abolish or eliminate work. But in doing so, that betrays the purpose of the subreddit. Sure, maybe Doreen wasn't the BEST spokesperson. I mean, her lack of social skills and tact in the fox news interview WAS a problem and her messaging and optics was bad...but it seems like the people who ran her out were more offended at her being anti work in principle than just being a bad messenger. And that's concerning.
As I said before here, I'm ANTI WORK. I wouldnt normally use those terms outside of that subreddit and possibly on here due to optical issues with that framing, but let's face it, that is what I am. Maybe in dealing with normies advocating for "human centered capitalism" is a better approach, as there are many reasons to support such goals such as UBI and M4A that arent STRICTLY anti work. But, for the record, I want to maintain that, I do believe that that sub should be about abolishing work, and there are ways to accomplish it, many of which i've previously discussed on here. We could reduce hours, we could have a UBI and M4A, and I've shown exactly how all of these things CAN be done in the past. So let's not act like I believe in unrealistic strawmen here. THIS IS FEASIBLE. We CAN live with a lower GDP and work less. We CAN have a UBI with a minimal loss in overall societal productivity. THESE THINGS CAN BE DONE, AND ARE WORTH DOING.
Idk, I just aspire to better things than just more humane overlords and slightly better pay and working conditions. I mean, such reforms are nice, dont get me wrong. But they're band aids to me. They're not the core concern, and I simply seek a better world that is possible but that doesnt currently exist in this particular timeline in the multiverse. Ya know?
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