mekkaokereke

mekkaokereke OP , 21 hours ago

There's a statistical lie that the US tells itself:

"Poor white people are more racist than rich white people!"

This is objectively, demonstrably, false. It's been shown over and over. But we still cling to it. We use lies like: "college educated white people are less likely to vote GOP!"

First of all there's not a 1:1 correlation between racism and GOP. Second, business owners are richer than employees, and most US business owners didn't go to college.

2/N

mekkaokereke OP , 21 hours ago

1. The most accurate indicator of Trump support, is racism. The 2nd most accurate, is sexism. Not "economic anxiety." The only anxiety that they have, is that Black people might have some money.

https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/112509146141942999

2. Most Trump voters, were not working class.

https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/109876824739991841

3. Most Jan 6 participants, were rich.

https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/109880485930219870

4. Venture Capital, is the most racist part of the US financial/capital allocation system, by far.

https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/109982115166606787

3/N

mekkaokereke OP , 21 hours ago

Most of the people in Silicon Valley, vote Dem.

But most of the money in Silicon Valley, votes GOP.

Some of these VCs sit around in online chat rooms with alt-right reactionaries and real life nazis. Some of them hold little public meetings, where they talk about ending democracy and great replacement theory. Some of them write books on why diversity is bad, and should be avoided. Most of them cheer on Elon's anti-woke, fashy push.

And y''all are surprised that they support Trump?

4/N

mekkaokereke OP , 20 hours ago

When you hear "college educated white folk," picture:

• A barista at a Starbucks in Portland
• Pam and Jim from The Office
• Military officers
• Teachers

None of these people are making bank.🤷🏿‍♂️ They're slightly pro-Trump or pro-Biden, depending on the region.

When you hear "non college educated white folk," picture:

• Tech startup founders that drop out of college
• Trades business owners (plumber, electrician, etc)
• 70% of real estate agents
• 77% of sheriffs

Rich. Very Trumpy, everywhere.

mekkaokereke OP , 19 hours ago

Shout out to all the people just now learning that a US Sheriff, whose job is statistically safer than being a gardener, carpenter, or taxi driver, and that barely graduated high school, and whose job is mainly harassing and beating unarmed Black and Brown people... gets paid between 3X and 6X the salary of an active duty Navy Seal with 2 Masters degrees, on deployment in an active war zone.🙂🙃

6X. Not a typo.

Many of those sheriffs took time off of work to go act out at Jan 6. No SEALs did. 🤷🏿‍♂️

mekkaokereke OP , 5 days ago

Way back when I went to idyllic Pomona College, people couldn't understand why I refused to rock with so many of the Porsche driving frat boys, but happily spent time off campus in Pomona, Long Beach, Riverside, Compton, etc.

Why I had very little patience for rich kids playing college drug dealer, but went out of my way to help older students who had gang indictments, knife wounds, and violent felonies on their record, trying to reset their lives and get a liberal arts degree at 34.

2/N

mekkaokereke OP , 5 days ago

A good rule of thumb to make, is to assume that pretty much every Black person that you know in the United States, knows at least one person that was unfairly convicted of a felony. And every Black man that you know, has had an incident where they were unfairly detained by police, and possibly arrested, and charged.

No, this doesn't make Black people relate to Trump. That's one of the most ignorant things that I hear people say.

But how you talk about felons? Black people hear that.

3/N

mekkaokereke , 6 days ago

@wdlindsy

Their primary objective is not to blame and subjugate women. That's an intermediate goal. Their primary goal is what they say it is: white supremacy, and the creation of whites-only ethnostates. They've written this down, and talk about it in their little chat rooms.

They are rolling back progress made by women, and ending women's bodily autonomy. Because if women have a choice, sometimes they choose not to have kids. Or they choose to have kids with a non-white person.

mekkaokereke , 5 days ago

@wdlindsy

Yes, every country is a little bit (a lot but) sexist. But that's not what we're talking about. We're specifically talking about why these dudes are so pronatalist. It has to do with great replacement theory.

Which country that is not predominantly white, is bringing back child marriage, rolling back reproductive rights, attacking the right to divorce, and supporting rising racism and fascism, as part of an explicit movement whose written and stated goals, are racial supremacy?

mekkaokereke OP , 10 days ago

• progressive DAs have been recalled, and NYC has 1000s of more cops than it had before.

• Entire DEI programs have been shut down at major universities.

• The FBI basically rebooted COINTELPRO, labelling and surveilling young black people who participated in the BLM protests as "Black identity extremists."

• There has been no meaningful legislation passed to identify cops like Chauvin before they commit murder, and remove them from service. There's been no meaningful change in accountability

mekkaokereke OP , 10 days ago

Folks didn't understand at the time, but they'll understand me now: Every "racial equity commitment" I was involved in, was built to last and to sustain beyond the short term emotions of folk. I don't do hashtags, or chalk on the street, or anything that's impermanent. Because I didn't believe that the emotions would last.🤷🏿‍♂️

Now the hashtags are gone, and the chalk has washed away.

Like I said, I don't know what a "racial equity moment" is. I was Black last year. I'll be Black next year.

mekkaokereke OP , 16 days ago

Most white folk in this country will vote for Trump.🤷🏿‍♂️

So when you type on the internet that Trump is a fascist, and that "we" must do everything to stop him, that's weird to me. Because most of y'all know that most of your family will be voting for him. And your relatives that plan to vote for him, will vote harder than the ones that think he's a fascist.🙂🙃

How selfish do you have to be, to expect Black folk that suffer from the racism that you demand, to save you from your own family?

mekkaokereke OP , 16 days ago

The call is literally coming from inside the house. Your house.

Get off the internet, go downstairs, talk to your racist mom. Don't try to curse me out over TCP/IP, if you wouldn't have that same energy if you saw me in 3D.

If you don't have a friend that was shot to death by police? If you haven't been in the car with me when I've been pulled over? If you've never paid the lawyer's retainer of someone that was falsely accused and sitting on Rikers? Then don't try to tell me what I must do.

mekkaokereke OP , 16 days ago

@Judmarc

I hear you on the encouragement thing, but no. Not for me.

I'm not here to encourage any white person to vote. If at this point you don't want to vote, I'm not here to cheerlead for you.

And if you have racist family members, I'm not here to tiptoe around that so you feel good about yourself. It's not an insult to point it out. Those of you with racist family members, know that you have racist family members.

On the "convert" or "turnout" question, that one's easy. Turnout, 100%.

mekkaokereke OP , 16 days ago

@Judmarc

I donate to Debra Cleaver and she does voter turnout, at scale, in a race blind, gender blind, political party blind way. That results in a net shift towards Dems, because if we have 100% turnout Dems win.

But Debra doesn't target and say "White people that aren't fascists should vote more than white people that are fascists." That's not her role. She registers everyone.

The job of encouraging white folk who aren't fascists to turnout more than those who are? Should be on community.

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

If a man asks a woman out, saying that he's "a nice guy," the woman might still politely decline. She might start to explain why she's not comfortable giving her phone number to men on the street. If the "nice guy," suddenly calls the woman a stupid ****, and tells her "Chad is worse!" and "Have fun getting hit! You deserve what happens to you!" we see that he was never a nice guy.

Pretend that you do understand this, but that you don't understand why "Trump is worse!" is so ineffective.🤡

2/N

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

I don't care if Black men vote 100% for Biden.

Or 90% for Biden.

Or 80% for Biden.

Or 70% for Biden.

Or 60% for Biden.

If Biden doesn't win, it will be the fault of people who vote more than 50% for Trump. Stop expecting Black people to save you. That's not what we're here for. We exist outside of the world of being a voting block every 4 years.

Your "democracy" only works if Black people vote 90% plus for a candidate whose policies exposed them to genocide levels of harm. That's garbage.

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

The problem isn't Black voters.

The problem isn't Trump.

The problem isn't even Biden.

The problem is you, the Dem voter. Yes, you.

Your willingness to ignore the suffering of Black people, and to expect us to continue to vote against our self-interest, has brought us to this point.

Even now, for the brink of disaster, more of you are angry at me for typing this, than angry at yourself for never listening to Black people.

I swear at least one person is typing a "Trump is worse!" reply.

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

Yes, Black folk have much more to lose under Trump than white people. No, Trump and Biden are not the same.

But a person closer to rock bottom is more willing to let the whole ship sink, than a person with everything to lose.

Think of it this way: Your "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness" score might be 70% under Biden, but 49% under Trump. A Black man brutalized by racism his whole life, might be 30% under Biden, but 2% under Trump.

The Black man clearly has more to lose!

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

This whole silly conversation can be summed up as white people trying to explain to Black men, that 2% is less than 30%, and that a drop of 28% is more than a drop of 21%, while Black men try to explain to everyone that 30% is not enough.

I guess we''re all going to continue not listening to each other until Trump is elected. 🤷🏿‍♂️

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

@Elucidating @hyenagirl64

My "plan" if Trump wins, is exactly the same as what my plan would be if Biden wins: keep working every day to lessen racism, sexism, transphobia, xenophobia, islamophobia, antisemitism, and all the other forms of hate so prevalent in the United States.

I have more resilience and fortitude than most self-described liberals or dems.

Biden winning will be better. Trump winning will be worse. But neither will be "Yay we solved racism!" Or "We're all doomed forever!"

mekkaokereke OP , 21 days ago

@joeinwynnewood

"Except I do listen" and then you proceed to list a bunch of things that you think are helpful, but that don't address a single thing that I brought up in this thread. Nowhere do you mention calling out Biden for any of the things I mentioned. You didn't even listen in this thread. 🤷🏿‍♂️

"I am equally tired!" No. No you're not. Not by a long shot. You just feel like you are, because you don't know how deep the well of pain goes.

mekkaokereke OP , 20 days ago

@joeinwynnewood

Have you ever even considered writing a letter to Biden, expressing your complete disappointment in his harmful, racist, policing strategy? At any point before, during, or after an election? Have you ever told him that you will not support him in future, if he doesn't change? OK, letters are more work. How about a phone call?

Easier: Same as above, but for your Senator or Representative?

Easiest: OK, how about your mayor? An ombudsperson? School board member?

Anyone?

mekkaokereke OP , 19 days ago

@joeinwynnewood

I don't believe you. I do believe you've written your senator or representative, but I don't believe that you made the very specific point that I made above: If you don't change your support of these policies that are so harmful to Black people, that I will stop supporting you.

In short, your Senator or Representative can safely ignore these pesky Black issues.

Am I wrong? I'd be very happy to be wrong! But I've poked on this a lot over the past 6 years and haven't missed yet

mekkaokereke OP , 24 days ago

The US hasn't even tried to make an ultra affordable EV. Not even an attempt!

Instead, we make Cybertrucks that no one wants, and then work the refs to kneecap better, smarter companies, to try and prevent anyone else from being successful at doing it.

Every day, I hear people prattle on about how the US Venture Capital industry is so innovative and forward-looking. Yet of all the billions spent (wasted), none of them were smart enough to fund a company making ultra low cost EVs.

mekkaokereke OP , 24 days ago

Ultra low cost EVs will be the vast majority of all cars sold in the world by 2060. Look at how big the global auto industry is! That's a huge opportunity! And almost every US VC passed on it! 🤡

Warren Buffett was smart enough to see where this was all headed, and invested heavily in BYD back in the day. But Berkshire Hathaway is more of a private equity / diversified holding company, than a VC.

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@WeeDramAtic @CelloMomOnCars

🤦🏿‍♂️Attribution bias.

Most Americans aren't rich. Most Americans could not afford a Cybertruck or Model S, even if they wanted one.

Consider a 22 year old woman that needs to buy a car to work. She only has a budget of $15K to buy a car. She's scared of used cars, because she's lost a job before when her car needed expensive repairs that she couldn't afford. Which car should she buy?

In Australia or Brazil, she could buy a new EV. In the US, she can't.

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

There's no data that you can show many US folks to convince them the Chinese cars are safe. They start from a prejudiced position that Chinese cars are lower safety standard, and US cars are high safety standard.

There's no data that you can show them about how safe top selling BYD cars are that they will believe. They stay at the assumption that low cost BYD cars must have cut safety corners and be like 2 stars.

https://www.byd.com/us/news-list/BYD-SEAL-and-BYD-DOLPHIN-awarded-5-stars-in-Euro-NCAP-Safety-Tests.html

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

Chevy Bolt sold in EU for $55K.

BYD Dolphin is selling in EU for $30K.

I'm genuinely not sure what point you're trying to make?

My point is that the BYD car has comparable features, at a much lower price, in the market segment where customers are the most sensitive to price. And BYD is not cheaper because they cut safety corners. And BYD cars can pass Western safety standards, without needing to be fully Western priced.

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

🤔 OK, now you're trolling me. You have to be. No one is this confidently wrong about so many things.

BYD already has a plant in the US. In California. And it's a union shop. And it pays good wages and has union guarantees.

Tesla has US plants too. They're not union. They treat their workers very badly. They've been sued for it multiple times. They just had a massive layoff triggered by a mercurial boss.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=piNW_9fClhI

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

Your prediction is wrong, because it's not based on any facts or knowledge of the topic.

You have a laundry list of easily debunkable prejudiced beliefs about Chinese people, that you've strung together into what you think is going to happen. But you're wrong.

Here's a better prediction, based on more knowledge and less prejudice:

1. US gets more protectionist

Or

2. BYD cars will start outselling Tesla here too

3. Tesla prices drop

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

You haven't been easy going and patient. You've been incredibly offensive to Chinese people. The fact that Chinese people have probably never called you out on this your whole life, may lead you to feel like it's completely OK to declare these stereotypes, and have others politely and gently walk you back to common sense.

Sinophobia is why there are so many Chinese people working in US tech, but so few promoted to senior leadership.

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

I don't care if you like dumplings. Dumplings are objectively delicious. Preemptively, I also don't care who you date or find attractive, so don't take it there either.

I care if you say unfounded "Chinese people can't build quality stuff," or "Chinese people copy, Americans create and innovate," garbage. These types of statements and beliefs cause real harm to people I care about.

So don't say those types of things around me.

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@John @Laplantgenetics @martinvermeer @CelloMomOnCars

Oh I accept the red flags! I'm not always gentle.

🚩👨🏿🚩

But look. It's Mother's day. I baked a cake with my kids, and have to do the buttercream frosting before brunch.

So let's just conclude with what we agree on:

• BYD cars are not cheaper because they cut safety corners
• BYD employs union labor in the US
• People outside the US have more low cost EV options
• We've both spent a decade+ living in Southern California
• Sinophobia is bad

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@NanoBookReview

If what you said were true, then they wouldn't be so afraid of letting those cars into the market. Because people would just choose the Western cars. Free market and all that.

But what you said is not true.

And we know that, because we see what happens in markets where both Chinese and Western EVs are available for sale. People at the entry level choose the Chinese cars.

And the BYD Dolphin has a higher EU safety rating than the BMW 5 series.

https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/112428503861892994

mekkaokereke OP , 23 days ago

@NanoBookReview

And Teslas are subsidized too, just not as much as the Chinese EVs. And no one's EV industry is subsidized as much as the US auto+fossil fuel industry. No one's. And it's not particularly close.

Hey, their government is making better, more future proof, more climate friendly decisions than ours. How is that their fault? No one is stopping us from also subsidizing EV manufacturers and car buyers. That's on us.

mekkaokereke OP , 22 days ago

@NanoBookReview

Great point.

I agree on the "more bikes and trains, fewer cars, safer, more walkable cities, shorter commutes," point. The only question is how to get there. I don't think tariffs on cheaper EVs is part of the solution.

mekkaokereke OP , 25 days ago

And the mid 90s was a quarter century ago! Open Source leadership is better now.

That's not to say that bigotry or lack of inclusion don't happen in open source today.

That's to say that the most relevant open source projects today, are very different than the ones from the mid 90s. 🤷🏿‍♂️

2/N.

mekkaokereke OP , 25 days ago

Hateful people are usually much louder then the rest of us, so it can seem like there are many times more of them than there really are. And they can do a lot of lasting damage. I don't want to understate their harm.

But...

By number, there are a lot more good people than hateful people.