His propaganda platform isn't much larger than a B-list celebrity. Secondly, manufacturing consent or running propaganda in favor of or against foreign policy doesn't do much at all. The foreign policy of the state functions without any regard for popular opinion.

[–] PowerLurker@hexbear.net 20 points 5 days ago

b/c his propaganda platform is arguably equally important to the policies he pursues. statements like this normalize and spread a conception of socialism that plays ball with imperialism and furthers western chauvinist brainworms.

[–] SickSemper@hexbear.net 17 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

We’d rather have an international socialist than a national socialist? He can’t do anything about Israel but we still want him to be antizionist, right?. The incorrect opinion here is literally helping manufacture consent for American extrajudicial murder, and reducing it to an opinion you can be right or wrong about is minimizing that murder.

Also didn’t Bernie make Burlington Vermont into a sister city with somewhere in the Soviet Union? We can have higher expectations for elected officials than the narrow remit of their office

Turns out the city was Yaroslavl and the relationship was severed in 2022 :(

[–] Bartsbigbugbag@lemmy.ml 9 points 5 days ago

The city I grew up in has a sister city partnership with a city in Tajikistan, and they sent us an absolutely gorgeous handmade entire building. I was so proud when I found out. Even if the USSR was around today, the city wouldn’t set up that relationship now, they’re fully captured by the neoliberals, who focus on investing property values, restricting multi home development, and bending over to get companies like Google to come in and open satellite offices.

[–] casskaydee@hexbear.net 13 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Why does he need to state any opinions on these things whatsoever?

[–] queermunist@lemmy.ml 10 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Why is he helping Trump make the rhetorical case for military intervention?

[–] john_brown@hexbear.net 11 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Beyond whether or not he has the correct opinions, he demonstrates terrible judgement by continuing to humor such stupid questions. Any time he's asked about Israel, Cuba, Venezuela, whatever, his response should be that he's running for/is the mayor of NYC. He's not the president, he's not secdef, he's not an ambassador, and these questions are insulting to the people of NYC. Falling into these obvious rhetorical traps that serve absolutely no purpose is just foolish. There's nothing he can say that will satisfy zionists and western chauvinists so he shouldn't say anything and he should be aggressive in attacking anyone asking him those questions.

[–] Ram_The_Manparts@hexbear.net 2 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

He could just shut the fuck up, and especially so in this case seeing as how this is something he emailed to some podcast that literally no one who would consider voting for him were likely to have even heard of after he had already recorded an episode with them.

Also I just generally expect people who call themselves socialists to actually have socialist views, but maybe that's just me shrug-outta-hecks