Willz Weekly Writeup - Gaza Ceasefire, Taylor Swift, and ICE & Street Theater

3 Reflections From a Week in Empire

(!Listen to the Voiceover it has more stuff in it!)

This week started with the flotilla and ended with a ceasefire. I argued with internet comments about Taylor Swift, International Law, and what a Democracy was. There is no chance I can fit everything I want to in this, so I wrote three short reflections.

The first is on the ceasefire and the hostage exchange, which I think can be characterized as tepid principled optimism, and a short style guide on how to address it. The second is regarding Taylor Swift providing my yet unsolicited opinion on her album, and my notably more solicited opinion on her position in politics (bad). The third is on ICE and the Portland toad, I think Street Theater is rightfully criticized but wrongfully rejected. Read in any order, or enjoy the little reading of it I do for you on top.

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The Ceasefire and Hostage Exchange -

Hamas and its allies such as the leftist PFLP has achieved its stated military aim: the release of 2000 illegally detained hostages by the occupying force. This follows two years of “Israel” , funded by the american empire ,wildly escalating their genocide, and comes amidst the same occupying Force massively expanding their illegal settlements in the West Bank.

That is the headline that should be on every single screen today. But it is not, almost every media outlet fails to mention Israel's refusal to get their hostages back for two years in exchange for Palestinian hostages and a ceasefire, an offer that Hamas made on October 8th. Almost every outlet sidelines the ongoing apartheid in “Israel proper” and the ongoing ethnic cleansing in the West Bank. This is unacceptable but unsurprising.

As to the details of the deal that is better reported elsewhere, as I am neither a negotiations expert nor a deeply confident commentator that this deal will go through as written. What can be said is the genocidal violence seems to have de-escalated in Gaza, hostages being held by Hamas are being returned, as are hostages held by Israel. These are all good things, and following the lead of the Palestinians in Gaza my first reaction is joy in the humanity being respected with these actions.

My next reaction as almost always is cynicism: Why did this happen? What did the Resistance give up? What did it cost us? How long will it last? I don't know and it wouldn't be helpful to guess, but what I do know is that the best thing we can do is keep up pressure. If this truly is a ceasefire, Independent Media should be allowed to return, unlimited humanitarian aid should be allowed to return, independent and expert observers should be there to document the past two years of war crimes. And we must be ready and able to mobilize using the information they discover, and in opposition to any barriers they face.

Justice is not served until every war criminal faces the Hague, every unwilling martyr is mourned and every human life is respected. Tiocfaidh ár lá.

(sudden and abrupt tone shift :))

Taylor Swift - Did y’all see she released an album? Was it good? Are her Politics?

Taylor Swift released an album call the fucking press. I must admit as a self-identified former Swiftie, who still has the disease of enjoying her music, I have a lot to say on this but not a whole lot that's new. So lets start with the basics: fuck no she's not doing enough, her actions are causing active harm, and the new album is deeply disappointing.

Good Album? Ehh (Skip if thinking abt Taylor's music makes you gag)

Okay I'm going to enter my swiftie Persona and if you don't like it you are homophobic - my Swift albums that I actually listen to are by far Evermore Midnights and Speak Now. Evermore is a genuinely fantastic album and it's relationship with folklore is amazing. Midnight is almost perfectly created it has some failures but it also has some bangers and together it's beautiful and is what Red tried to be but I think in a more cohesive mature way. And speak now is just like her best album from her early years, its what debut should have been. So where does that leave life of a showgirl? Damn near the bottom.

From my count there are three listenable songs on life of a showgirl the fate of Ophelia, Opalite, and Life of a Showgirl (guys we got to stop naming songs album titles). I cannot listen to anything else, I vitriolically hate the song wood (not because I'm a prude I'm literally a nudist, but because it is not good) and everything else is just kind of mid. I think as an album it is better than tortured poets, and it is possibly better than debut. It's sonically sounds very similar to midnights, but midnight had goodish lyrics. I'm not going to go into actually judging the music of this these are my personal tastes but if you like the song Wish List I question your sanity.

The Politics of it all - Defenses and Offenses of Taylor Swift -

I think the phrase there's “no ethical billionaire” is a really good starting point for a 5 second video online, but risks undermining actual critiques that are made by hyperfocusing on a number. We should be deeply disinterested in how much money someone has and the positive obligations that gives them, and more interested in how they 1 - got that money and 2 - chose to use it.

In my view this is because most Americans are deeply individualistic, and starting with the positive obligations that only makes sense if we are living in community doesn't ring true to a lot of Americans. Pointing out direct harm caused by their position in the system and how their wealth necessitates them continuing that harm, is a lot more in line with the libertarianism that has been beaten into most Americans.

So lets do that, once again there is enough fodder online for you to know why Taylor Swift is a deeply unethical billionaire, listed simply - jet burning planet, merch burning planet, politics mid when she endorses Kamala but doesn't speak on genocide, did racism sometimes, co-ops feminism to self victimize and avoid accountability. I'm not litigating these if you want a better defense of them, go watch people that give a fuck. What I am going to do is respond to the stupid defenses that are levied against them -

“but her art is not political”

I have to take two perspectives here crazy leftist and normal person.

Crazy leftist response: all art is political, at least because it all has a position in the social framework. Politics is not just affirmative statements about policies, but creating the Aesthetics that are leveraged to push narratives and ideologies. When she idealizes marriage, suburban living, or even the somewhat self-scandalizing way she speaks about sex is very clearly maintaining the ideal that WASPs actuate. None of that is saying we're making affirmative or negatory statements about the policies of WASPs, but that this ideal has a relationship with that ideology.

Normal person response: you're just fucking wrong even on your own definition. Ms.Americana is all about her understanding why silence is not acceptable. “You need to calm down” is clearly an openly political because she donated to GLAAD as well. She explicitly endorsed Kamala Harris. She has been engaged in politics , and it is unfortunately a Pandora's Box that the second you speak on politics the liberal delusion of “ neutral art” no longer applies to you.

“but her speaking on politics puts her and her fans in danger” -

There are so many ways that this is wrong.

Firstly, as a big named pop star she is already in danger, there was a bomb threat at one of her concerts. Second, why was this not a concern when she endorsed Kamala? When she released Miss America? when she made “you need to calm down”? HMMMM? Last time I checked homophobes have been pretty violent. Third, her not speaking on politics puts everyone being brutalized attacked or killed at the hands of American imperialism and fascism at more danger. And this is not merely a request of selflessness, remaining silent about that puts her own fans in danger and at some point will threaten her power.

It's logically incoherent because it's not clear it puts her at more danger, and it's openly irreverent to the violence and brutality that is living in America right now. That's because it didn't come from a place of first principal justification it is a reactive defense of someone you have a parasocial relationship with.

“What do you want her to do” -

Donate 500 million to the PFLP¹

ICE (Alright stop, collaborate and listen)

I realize I've made a disappointingly limited amount of content about ICE and how this ready-made fascist military is being mobilized to do the dirty work of of the visually incompetent but technically effective regime. This is because I have not been on the ground organizing work against it nor am I highly in community with those being affected by it, if you would like people that are I strongly suggest following the immigrant defence project, and its local organizers wherever relevant to you. Who I follow to get on the ground updates is Rachel Cohen, based in Chicago and has a background in law. This said I want to talk about the toad.

Street Theater is Back Babyyyyy -

The fucking toad. If you haven't seen the toad in Portland, go check them out, because they're now is a large Brigade of people in inflatable costumes going to protest against ICE. This has a few narrative effects, and a long history behind it. So forgive me for doing the sin of comedy and explaining a joke.

Firstly, this plays into two really important rhetorical effects one of which I think is more important than the other. The first is that it makes protests look approachable human and fun. They are not faceless nameless people with signs that look dreary and unhappy to be there, but they are real humans with the whole range of emotions being affected and caring. They are earnest enough to laugh. Tactically this means more people will come out and they will stay longer.

Secondly, this diffuses the narratives that seek to animalize protesters. The classic meme of showing images of this titled “portland burning” or something to that effect, directly satirizes Trump's idea that people are burning and killing and dying in these citys where the biggest threat to the peace is a polycule determining where to eat that night.

“This is serious and should be treated seriously“

The knee-jerk reaction to the first narrative effect is that it is undermining the seriousness of the issue. If we are talking about people being disappeared or attacked and separated from their families, most people are only used to these being addressed in serious somber tones. This is a real criticism, and is similar in Vibe as when people question me for doing thirst traps for Palestine and i’ll offer the same response. I’m very open to criticism correction and conversation, but my current line is that it is not disrespectful to the communities this work is working to protect to call on every tactic and rhetoric to do so

First addressing this towards external rhetoric: how do we get people that are not mobilized to engage and be informed? There is a risk that people do not take what is happening seriously enough, but there is also a risk that those who have privilege to cannot deal with being sad and somber so they turn off. Presenting the literal information in a way that will not cause the amygdala hijack is a genuinely helpful thing, that should not be undermined. Presenting it through comedy or satire or whimsy allows information to enter the jaded white liberal’s brain, and the narrative to be accepted in a way that does not trigger cognitive dissonance

Secondly addressing this in terms of internal tactics: How do we maintain the people we have mobilized and ensure efficacy? To me this is obviously defensible, because being infinitely somber and sad in an organizing space is a easy way to burn out or become disenchanted, whereas being able to celebrate with the community built to defend against fascist violence is what fuels and rejuvenates a movement. There is a beautiful quotation from the AIDS epidemic that grounds me when I am thinking about this - “We buried our friends in the morning, we protested in the afternoon, and we danced all night. The dance kept us in the fight because the dance was what we were fighting for”. I believe the same here is true.²

The Risk of Undermining Effective Action -

The next risk is that if the focus on Peaceful Whimsical and comedic resistance is too high then there will become resistance to genuine self-defense that does not look as whimsical. If the narrative is “Look how peaceful portland is”, when the time comes that ice escalates to the point that self-defense is necessary, people will be shy about engaging in not so whimsical direct action.

This to me is the most serious concern, and so while I maintain my pro-street theater stance, I think it must be consumed as content and performed as activism with the awareness that it is not enough and it is a cynical messaging tool. Those in toad costumes are there to protect those in black bloc. Jimmy Kimmel is highlighting the Toads because he is unwilling to highlight the Panthers. This does not mean that either are less valuable or necessary but it does mean that in highlighting one we risk devaluing the other, and so when doing so we must do so consciously.

Conclusion on ICE & Street Theater

From alter globalization movements throughout the Imperial core and Global South to leftist and anarchist marches from London to Berlin to New York Street theater has a long history. It is an effective way to humanize protesters and highlight the extraordinary disproportionate State violence that is put against them. It is effective in mobilizing people that are prone to cognitive dissonance due to their privilege. It does come with the risk of co-optation by opportunists and careerists, and in my view the more important risk of undermining effective self-defense actions. So we must be careful and cognizant when leveraging it along with all other political tools. But we should also be earnest in our efforts to laugh in the faces of fascists.

CONCLUSION ON THE WEEK -

What a fucking wild week, the goal of this newsletter is not to peak your cortisol but it must be recognized that Texan National Guard has entered Illinois against the protests of the governor of Illinois, and has begun brutalizing this citizens of Chicago. An illegal occupation and ethnic cleansing is ongoing in occupied Palestine, even with a ceasefire in Gaza. Campaigns of genocide and brutal ethnic cleansing are ongoing in Sudan and Congo, funded and orchestrated by America and our allies in the United Arab Emirates.

Empire and its consequences will continue getting worse, and we must be prepared to build community and resilience in that community if we want to work against it and build something better. That is why my eternal call to action is find Mutual Aid groups to build infrastructure to engage in direct action and Community self-defense.

Thanks for reading y'all, please let me know what you would like these newsletters to look like or to highlight.

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1. This is a joke that I'm not entirely sure I can legally make, but if you are reading this in a court document, like and subscribe :)

2. It is important to note, this works if we are in community with each other but does not if we are not. If there are opportunists or careerists that are attempting to co-op the movement to make it just about comedy or just about entertainment the same line of argumentation doesn't work and the very real reaction to maintain seriousness and focus is well placed.