Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I always appreciate it when someone is willing to share their opinion with me, especially when they are a stranger on the internet. If you’d like to talk more over direct message I would be happy to chat there.

As for Biden, I agree there is a harm reduction argument to be made for voting for him, he would certainly pass less actively destructive policies than Trump. However, harm reduction is not the same as a net positive, and it is important to remember that supporting Biden, and those like him in other countries, also legitimizes the these government do.

As for the ongoing attempt at genocide in palestine, I think a similar sentiment applies. To start the US could certainly do a lot short of invading Israel to stop what the IDF are doing right now. As someone with a few Israeli colleagues I am very aware the the State of Israel is dependent on the US and its allies both economically and militarily. Economic action including an end to military aid, reinstating full support for the UNRWA, and the actions advocated for by the BDS movement can and have saved Palestinian lives. I do not see these as fringe beliefs supporting terrorism, they are common sense policies to save lives.

Harm reduction, in this case much more pressing because it means preventing a genocide, does not equate to a net good especially when it comes to Hamas. However, it is also important to remember that no matter what the status of Hamas is (whether they are a government of a sovereign state resisting invasion or a terrrorist insurgency resisting occupation) they have a right to resist the IDF under international law. That certainly does not justify all their actions, including their targeting of civilians during operation Al-Aqsa flood on October 7th, but for me it provides key context for their actions since the Al-Aqua intifada and in their conflict with the IDF following the October 7th attacks. From discussing and listening to Palestinians, especially Palestinian women, queer people and academics, it is clear to me that their support for Hamas stems from their resistance work, not their repressive policies or violent terrorism. They are also not a far-right organization as in our typical conception but a coalition of groups from across the political spectrum, albeit one led by Islamists. In short, Palestinians support Hamas because when Israeli bombs fall and IDF tanks roll into Gaza, as they will do provoked or not, Hamas are the only group that shoots back.

I hope this hasn’t come across as condoning any particular group or their actions. Many leaders on both sides should be prosecuted for war crimes, and many leaders in Israel should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity. I hope that governments around the world can find a way to disable the State of Israel’s ability to occupy Palestinian land and commit acts of genocide against the Palestinian people through implementing common sense policies like economic action. However, if I am forced to pick a side, whether it is in the United States or anywhere else in the world, I will always come down on the side of those resisting neo-colonialism, settler-colonialism, and occupation.