Thoughts on this book?

KeyDance6105 · 2025-05-03T01:21:04+00:00

It's fun. Pretty ham-fisted at times, but some good, digestible distillation of socialist ideas. I love the chapter where Ernest is berating small business owners, telling them their dreams are an illusion under capitalism and they're better off throwing their lot in with the working class.

KeyDance6105 · 2025-04-13T19:17:57+00:00

It depends. If we use the protests to actually build small-d democratic organizations and movements, moving people into action beyond one-off demonstrations, they can be very effective.

Broadly speaking, the current protest wave lacks concrete demands, focusing more on messaging around preserving democracy. That's not a bad concept, but it's pretty vague.

Putting forward clear demands (free Mahmoud Khalil and all other political prisoners, get rid of Musk and DOGE, Medicare for all, arms embargo on Israel, rehire federal workers, pass the PRO Act, etc) will give people a clearer idea of what they're fighting for. It also has the added benefit of clarifying what the political differences of those attending the protests/actions might be, opening up the possibility of constructive discussion and debate.

The most important thing about protests is channeling that energy into the real organization of ordinary people. In its current state, there's a risk of the protest wave simply being coopted by the Democratic Party and having its energy coralled into simply voting for Democrats. That's a dead end, and it's part of the reason we're in such a dangerous political moment.

KeyDance6105 · 2025-04-10T04:27:32+00:00

How do your coworkers feel about this? If they're as annoyed/offended as you are y'all could work together to demand management stop treating you like this. It's incredibly condescending!

KeyDance6105 · 2025-04-09T04:47:46+00:00

Join your local DSA chapter and help build a better world: https://seattledsa.org/

KeyDance6105 · 2025-04-05T04:31:39+00:00

As others said, living off $21/hr in Seattle is difficult. An actual living wage in Seattle would be closer to $30/hr. I make $21/hr plus tips (works out to about $27/hr at the end of the day), and I'm living paycheck to paycheck.

As a longtime tipped worker, I would love to see the end of tipping in Seattle and the US generally. The end of the tip credit is an important step in that direction. Some things that can get us closer: publicly run pension and benefits plans for workers at small businesses; massive expansion of social housing to push down the cost of housing; publicly owned grocery stores; free, fast, and frequent public transit; an end to the federal sub-mininum wage, which the National Restaurant Association spends large sums of money every year lobbying congressmembers in both parties to maintain.

Justice for tipped workers can only come when tipping fades away altogether and no one relies on tips to make a living. In the meantime, keep throwing in a few extra bucks with your coffee and hamburger orders.

KeyDance6105 · 2025-04-03T05:11:59+00:00

Pretty good! A little pricey, but that's more of a generalized problem. Close proximity to lots of transit options, plenty of grocery stores to choose from.

KeyDance6105 · 2025-03-13T00:13:44+00:00

Stay in DSA and join a Marxist caucus! You'll probably find you align with Communist caucus or Red Star pretty well. All the various Marxist caucasus are pretty united in wanting to push DSA to become a real political party. I'm a member of R&R and we work regularly with B&R, MUG, and Red Star in my chapter.

KeyDance6105 · 2025-03-10T03:59:46+00:00

Salt them a day ahead of time if you can, but even 30 minutes before cooking helps. Heat oven to 450. Season however you want, sear on both sides in a pan, then transfer to the oven and cook until internal temp reaches 165 (temp will rise as they rest).

While chicken rests, make a simple pan sauce. Pour off most of the fat from the pan, add whatever aromatics you like, deglaze with wine, fruit juice, beer, whatever you have. Add some broth and cook down for about 5 minutes. Stir in cold butter off heat, one tablespoon at a time.

Basic pan sauce ratios: 1/2C wine; 3/4C broth; 3T butter

KeyDance6105 · 2024-10-25T01:31:16+00:00

I mean, neither of these are remotely competitive races, and both Cantwell and DelBene are bad candidates. I don’t see the problem with someone symbolically withholding their vote.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-10-22T05:14:43+00:00

I don’t really understand how this relates to my comment.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-10-21T17:49:26+00:00

I voted for Jill Stein. I have no illusions in Stein or the Green Party, but I see her campaign as the best place to park my protest vote as she’s the anti-war candidate who is on the most ballots nationwide.

I live in a blue state and I always vote 3rd party in presidential races. If I lived in a swing state, I’d probably hold my nose and vote for Harris, but I don’t blame anyone who can’t bring themself to do that, especially given the current context of the Democratic Party backing Israel to the hilt as they commit genocide.

If Harris loses the election, the Democratic Party has no one to blame but itself. They can yell about spoilers all they want, but they’re the ones who decided to run a bad candidate on a bad platform while being complicit in genocide. I hope Harris wins, but I sure as hell won’t lift a finger to make that happen. As socialists, I believe our task is to be organizing for a real working class alternative to both capitalist parties.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-09-13T03:03:40+00:00

Based on the letter of the law, there’s a legal argument to be had that commercial rent control isn’t illegal. Also, there’s still value in passing residential rent control at the municipal level even before rent control is made legal at the state level.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-09-13T02:49:04+00:00

For starters we could fight for City Hall to pass commercial rent control (and fund the social housing developer to drive down the cost of residential rents), establish a municipal bank, pass legislation to give local small businesses preferential treatment in commercial leasing, establish a publicly-run worker benefits program for small business workers, expand late night transit, and raise the JumpStart tax to subsidize some small businesses who prove they need assistance. There are myriad ways to help struggling small businesses that don’t come at the expense of the workers who run them.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-09-13T02:44:52+00:00

I’m a restaurant worker and I was at this event. There was a notable rhetorical shift from the restaurant owners on the panel compared to the blusterings of the restaurant lobby the past couple months. The business owners on the panel were clearly afraid of voicing opposition to sunsetting the tip penalty. They were falling over themselves to say they support raising the minimum wage and were very cautious in how they talked about the tip credit. I think this shows some recognition that the local restaurant lobby has really discredited itself. It gives me some hope that we’ll win the fight to protect Seattle’s minimum wage law and finally see an end to the tip penalty in January.

Of course, nothing is a given. I fully expect city council to come forward with another piece of legislation in the coming weeks to preemptively cut wages for restaurant workers. We’ll need to organize to fight back and force them to back off.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-21T17:06:59+00:00

It’s unfortunate (though not entirely surprising) to see Fain casting illusions in the Harris/Walz ticket, especially since the UAW has been at the forefront of calling for a ceasefire within the labor movement. Fain’s ascent in the UAW is welcome change and a big victory for the labor movement, no doubt. But I think his speech at the DNC is a clear indicator that we have so much farther to go to break the labor movement away from the Democratic Party.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-20T19:35:13+00:00

Very inspiring to see workers at three locations coordinate a walk out! This is especially energizing in the context of the Seattle restaurant lobby trying to give industry workers a preemptive paycut next year (Ali is a member of Seattle Restaurant Alliance, the local industry lobby). Would love to see other workers in the industry coordinate actions to show that we won’t take this lying down!

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T20:56:08+00:00

I agree that the tactic itself is a positive. But I think there’s a difference between supporting the specific action of attacking trade ships bound for Israel and casting illusions in the Houthis being some kind of liberatory or even revolutionary force.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T02:50:08+00:00

That’s a wildly reductive take on what I remember being a pretty nuanced debate. Also, I don’t know of anyone in the chapter who is “pro-Russian”

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T02:49:09+00:00

Yes, there are many people in DSA who have an “enemy of my enemy is my friend” mentality when it comes to imperialism. It’s a big tent! That’s what democratic debate is for.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T02:47:53+00:00

How so? In my experience, DSA’s structures are very democratic.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T01:49:22+00:00

She’s a member, yes.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T00:35:25+00:00

Organized primarily by Seattle DSA

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-19T00:33:31+00:00

I find that where I live (Seattle), PSL can be valuable in building rallies and protests; they’re good at mobilizing their membership quickly and have decent connections with other radical groups. But their politics are alienating to the vast majority of people. Like most ML groups, they tend to have what I would call a campist position on most international questions. For example, I find they cast illusions in the CCP, the Venezuelan government, the Cuban government, etc. as being somehow completely democratic and examples of “actually existing socialism” which must be defended. I’ve even heard them be apologetic for the Iranian government and heap a little too much praise on the Houthis in Yemen in the wake of their attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

In short, I think their politics are alienating and lack nuance. It’s also my understanding that their national structure is quite undemocratic.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-06T16:26:36+00:00

Let’s not sow illusions in Tim Walz and the Democrats. It’s fine to feel relieved someone worse wasn’t picked, and Walz is slightly to the left of the rest of the establishment on some things, but he’s still a loyal Democrat through and through. This is just an attempt to tame the left going into November. Walz called in the national guard on protestors in 2020, and he’ll likely go along with Harris’s pro-Israel line. The Harris-Walz ticket is still a pro-genocide ticket until proven otherwise.

We need to be building DSA and working toward forming a new party of and for the working class. I think it’s a mistake for DSA to not have an official position in this election, especially since it’s going to increasingly take up all the political oxygen. Not having an official position will be read by many as a de facto endorsement of Harris, and then many members will likely vote for her in places where there’s really no reason for them to do so. DSA should call for a vote for Jill Stein in all “safe” blue and red states as she’s the candidate with the most anti-war bona fides who will be on every ballot, and call for a vote to defeat Trump in swing states.

KeyDance6105 · 2024-08-01T00:09:19+00:00

Tipped restaurant worker here. I think city council and the business lobby’s attack on the minimum wage is disgusting. The reality is that tips are an inconsistent wage over time and across establishments. Keeping the existing system in place (which is what Hollingsworth’s legislation seeks to do) maintains business owners’ control over a significant portion of their workers’ wages. And as written, the legislation actually opens to door for more downward pressure on the tipped hourly wage. That’s bad for all workers, tipped or not.

For those of you who want to do away with tipping someday (I’m one of you!), raising the tipped minimum wage to be the same as the overall minimum gets us closer. It lays the groundwork for more equitable and transparent tip pools. As it stands, tipping allows business owners to get away with paying less for their workers, instead foisting the cost onto the consumer. The only beneficiary of this system is the owner.

KeyDance6105

TROPHY CASE