this post was submitted on 27 Jul 2026
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GenZedong

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[–] Marat@lemmygrad.ml 9 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

Sorry to vague post a little bit, but I hate "half denouncement." [Term by me].

What I mean is when people will rage so vehemently against something, but won't actually rage against the implications of said thing.

As much as I hate to bring the topic up, US veterans are a good example here. Here and other places like the deprogram subreddit will rage against veterans and take the BE position on things. This comment isn't to debate that position, I think it's an understandable one even if I have a few disagreements.

But in none of these discussions no one ever criticizes, for instance, the PSL that holds what I'll term the "old line." The PSL is very explicitly in the camp of what people criticize, and yet I very rarely see it brought up. Either in discussions on veterans or on the PSL. Not saying it has to be every time, just that it feels like a blind spot

This goes for other things too, but I just wanted to put this out here for rn while I was thinking about it

Edit: another example is Russia. Again, not here to actually debate a position, but both r/communismmemes and the deprogram subreddits took an inter imperialist war position on the conflict. However, when the DPRK has taken a much more pro-russian position, I feel like that criticism kinda got blind spotted by a lot of people

[–] o_d@lemmygrad.ml 4 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Can you elaborate on what you mean by the "old line"? Are you referring to how PSL/Breakthrough will platform anti-imperialist veterans like Mike Prysner and Anthony Aguilar despite their past service of empire?

[–] Marat@lemmygrad.ml 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] o_d@lemmygrad.ml 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I struggle with this too. While I think there's value in telling these stories from the Yankee perspective in order to agitate against enlistment, it certainly feels very dehumanizing for the author to completely exclude any mention of how much more those on the other side of imperialist aggression are suffering.

Also, this paragraph seems to drastically contradict itself.

Melonie grew up in South Georgia in extreme poverty where food scarcity was a common experience for her. Her father served in the Air Force, and in her household, the military wasn’t just a job — it was the clearest path to stability.

^emphasis mine^

Then there's this.

While she never deployed, she was responsible for intelligence that “ended up with a man dead.”

“I felt responsible for a human being’s death,” she said.

The imperialist death machine is creating death. How surprising.

[–] Marat@lemmygrad.ml 4 points 1 day ago

Tbf my great grandpa and great grandma were in the army [ww2, infantry and logistics respectively] and while my family isn't like, destitutenand homeless, it's not like we got generational wealth from that [but idk how much has changed in pay and benefits and stuff since then]

[–] Makan@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Mike Prysner was also involved in torture and is apart of the PSL

[–] into_highest_invite@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

what's your take on prysner as a whole? i haven't heard of him beyond the hexbear guys who think of him as "the only good veteran". more relevant, what's the implication w.r.t. psl?

[–] Makan@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago)

I may be biased because I was apart of an org that is basically a rival with PSL (though I think I hate both now).

But Mark Prysner having any leadership roles given his history is bad.

He could even be an infiltrator or saboteur of some sort.

IMHO

But I don't know.

It's possible he's genuine.

But if you're a military veteran, especially one that did torture or was involved in interrogation, then you would be upfront about it at first, tell everyone how you "saw the light" at the end of it all, and then get in the good graces of people in that org and climb up the leadership ranks.

That's how one cop informant in the early 2000s did it with a friend of mine that started a trans mutual aid group (that also had firearms training) around the South.

[–] Makan@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 day ago

Yeah, I never really liked the Decolonized Buffalo podcast host saying "I joined the military BECAUSE I WAS POOR" (he always emphasizes that last part whenever he says it)

It's so... annoying...

After a while, you're stuck thinking to yourself "Yeah, but you were still there and still carried water for operations there, common, dawg..."