The post was just another circle jerk about moral purity, someone asked honestly if op thought anyone who had been in the military could be redeemed and the op stated boldly that no veteran should ever be allowed a “position of power” in the movement. I had always felt that a true socialist movement for revolution was about building class solidarity and fraternity. I very much disliked this exclusionary position.
I wrote a response that I thought demonstrated how damaging the idea that only those who could arrive at the truth of class consciousness perfectly were deserving leadership was contrary to the very idea of class rule. How poisonous it was to equate those who by benefit of birth or luck had a path to socialism laid out before them; for whom every weed was pulled free, and every branch broke back. Who never struggled under the system, or starved for truth in its schools, led blindly by those they trusted into a life they hardly understood. Only those lucky few could be trusted to lead a movement made up of all the people, to speak with every voice, even those they clearly do not respect or understand.
It was at this point that I signed off to feed goats and stack some fresh hay bales, expecting (naively) to come back to spirited discussion. Instead, I learned I’d been banned for violation of rule 4: No capitalist apologia, anti-socialism, or liberalism. I couldn’t see how anything I’d said was anything I was being accused of, but there was no appeal. My critique of OPs moral purity gatekeeping was deleted, and I was permanently silenced.
That means I can’t go on to share what I planned to say next. I can’t tell OP why I disagreed with them so strongly. How just four days ago, and not for the first time mind you but once again recently I had the opportunity to talk a young man out of joining the service. I didn’t accuse him of wanting to kill babies, that would be the wrong approach as his father served and I’d just be attacking his respect for his father. And I didn’t throw Capital at him either; he’s just not ready for that. I simply shared my experiences of what it was really like to be owned by the state. How the recruiters lied about everything, about how even getting an “easy” post was a lie, how every post led to mental damage, disfigurment, or death. About how they will do medical experiments on you, untested vaccines and more, and how those who refused were punished severely and jailed for refusing orders. It was my opportunity to bend back that branch, to pull that weed and guide someone towards a better future.
But that isn’t all I have to offer, right? Sure, I keep my rifle clean and my kit stocked, but I’m an old man now and my experience is in managing logistics and teams, in running a business, and using my empathy, experience, and politic to coordinate with other people and interests. Is it true that in the current zeitgeist all I can ever hope to do is serve under someone else's boot? If that is the case, then perhaps this isn’t the class struggle I thought it was.
Is this a shitpost? I don’t know, please feel free to tell me what a piece of shit I am and how I'm unredeemable or whatever. I’m tired boss.