This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
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This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
@inthehands Yeah, I think doing these sorts of tactics about the ICE stuff now will make us even more ready later on if it has to happen closer to the elections.
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Yes, I would be more aggressive and say let’s get to the business of a shut down right now. It seems like the work stoppage not long ago made corporation squirm
@GhostOnTheHalfShell
One of the lessons of Jan 23 is that “ASAP” is not a plan. You really have to pick something specific in the future — a data, or a trigger — and do sustained planning around it. -
Yes, I would be more aggressive and say let’s get to the business of a shut down right now. It seems like the work stoppage not long ago made corporation squirm
@GhostOnTheHalfShell @inthehands The slogan is simple. “Out Now!”
We want ICE OUT.
We want Trump OUT.
We want every Trump political appointee OUT.
We want every Republican in Congress OUT.
We want corrupt Trump judges from traffic court to the Supreme Court OUT.
We want MAGA OUT of our schools, local and state governments.WE WANT THE 1% TO KEEP THEIR MONEY OUT OF POLITICS
If that’s not enough of a start, we can surely crank up the demands.
And you, VP Vance, you better just sit on your hands now and later.
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The Jan 23 MN strike was the most successful such effort in the US in…decades, maybe almost a century? And it was baby-sized compared to what we’re talking about here.
I don’t know who needs to get on board to make a national strike a real possibility. But I do know that we should all be thinking about it now.
/end
@inthehands i think enough people across the country could ready by the call for action on friday, may 1 (may day).
https://globalmayday.net/2026/02/08/gmd26-meeting2/
it might be tight, but the next meaningful day would be juneteenth... then independence day weekend then... labor day. four excellent culturally significant days between may and september that leaders can lean on, i believe in us and our broad tent rainbow coalition of neighbor's being neighborly.
the line has been crossed (for me long ago) for many. in san diego the otay mesa concentration camp actions are getting stronger. you all in minneapolis are pushing back hard. the epstein files advocates push, and bad bunny's push... i expect the 3% to be ready long before november.
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This part is especially important (emphasis added):
“If we have to destroy the stock market to save democracy, we need to accept that and, more importantly, •••the richest and the most powerful people in the world and in this country need to understand that that is a real possibility.••• There is no economic stability without democratic stability. If you take away our democratic stability, we will take away the economic stability.”
2/
@inthehands @jwz yeah, “economic stability trumps (no pun – he can’t achieve this himself) every other consideration” feels really stale to me after COVID.
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This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
@inthehands Finally
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I consider the Jan 23 general strike in Minnesota to be fairly successful. It didn’t happen overnight, and it didn’t just happen because people posted about it a lot. There was a •lot• of consensus-building via social networks new and old. Unions got on board, lead the charge. Local businesses goaded each other into participating until •not• participating became a sort of black eye.
4/
@inthehands So to the point about local businesses... Part of me thinks that those *shouldn't* shut down in a strike because if people use those businesses that's money not going to the billionaires.
I'm interested to know how other folks think about it though because I honestly don't know what strategies make the most sense toward the objective of pressuring folks with their hands on the levers of power to take action.
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This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
Now, no if/when.
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The Jan 23 MN strike was the most successful such effort in the US in…decades, maybe almost a century? And it was baby-sized compared to what we’re talking about here.
I don’t know who needs to get on board to make a national strike a real possibility. But I do know that we should all be thinking about it now.
/end
@inthehands There have been murmurings of one for may 1st ( https://paydayreport.com/labor-leaders-warm-to-general-strike-nationwide-on-may-1st/ ),
The timing is a bit slower, but, to organize a national general strike at scale, it's going to be a bit of a pain to put together.
Pressuring union/labour leaders, and other community members//leaders - your church, friends, coven, polycule, D&D group, whatever - to participate, and to pressure their people to participate, increases the odds of it happening, ofc. -
This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
@inthehands If the billionaires complain - remind them how hungry people can get... this strike is preferrable to alternatives that are not completely off the table yet
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This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
It seems like only yesterday that I was screaming at Sen. Gallego for voting for Trump cabinet nominees.
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This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
1/
@inthehands I’d rather that we find a better solution to this and that it happens BEFORE the election.
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It seems like only yesterday that I was screaming at Sen. Gallego for voting for Trump cabinet nominees.
@edwilk
That’s the wild thing here: not that someone is taking about it, but that a once-centrist-ish Dem is taking about it. This idea is becoming mainstream. -
@inthehands I’d rather that we find a better solution to this and that it happens BEFORE the election.
@ELS
That’s the point. See downthread. -
I consider the Jan 23 general strike in Minnesota to be fairly successful. It didn’t happen overnight, and it didn’t just happen because people posted about it a lot. There was a •lot• of consensus-building via social networks new and old. Unions got on board, lead the charge. Local businesses goaded each other into participating until •not• participating became a sort of black eye.
4/
@inthehands ONE good day for it would be
JUNE 14 - the unPresident's B-day, Flag Day, the day that the White House is to be further defiled with a WWE fight -
@inthehands So to the point about local businesses... Part of me thinks that those *shouldn't* shut down in a strike because if people use those businesses that's money not going to the billionaires.
I'm interested to know how other folks think about it though because I honestly don't know what strategies make the most sense toward the objective of pressuring folks with their hands on the levers of power to take action.
@nanobri @inthehands I agree that local businesses should be exempt - but they should be truly local, not just some fake local owned by hedge fnd.
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@inthehands So to the point about local businesses... Part of me thinks that those *shouldn't* shut down in a strike because if people use those businesses that's money not going to the billionaires.
I'm interested to know how other folks think about it though because I honestly don't know what strategies make the most sense toward the objective of pressuring folks with their hands on the levers of power to take action.
You may be thinking of a boycott instead of a strike.
Here in Minneapolis, local businesses helped lead the charge — and I’d venture that they benefitted from it, from the community seeing them support the cause and feeling a sense of connection with the people behind them.
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@inthehands If the billionaires complain - remind them how hungry people can get... this strike is preferrable to alternatives that are not completely off the table yet
@decapitae @inthehands I get cranky
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@inthehands There have been murmurings of one for may 1st ( https://paydayreport.com/labor-leaders-warm-to-general-strike-nationwide-on-may-1st/ ),
The timing is a bit slower, but, to organize a national general strike at scale, it's going to be a bit of a pain to put together.
Pressuring union/labour leaders, and other community members//leaders - your church, friends, coven, polycule, D&D group, whatever - to participate, and to pressure their people to participate, increases the odds of it happening, ofc.This is the first time I have seen Payday Report pop up on the Masto circle!
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@inthehands So to the point about local businesses... Part of me thinks that those *shouldn't* shut down in a strike because if people use those businesses that's money not going to the billionaires.
I'm interested to know how other folks think about it though because I honestly don't know what strategies make the most sense toward the objective of pressuring folks with their hands on the levers of power to take action.
@nanobri @inthehands The whole idea of business *owners* deciding whether to strike is really weird to me, very American, and just feels wrong. The *workers* should decide, and the business *owner* should have no choice but to close because he has no workers that day; they have all called in sick.
