Howdy! The other day my husband asked me the above question and it was a struggle not to roll my eyes. I'd seen it asked before, online, but generally by social media accounts who loudly advocate for voting "blue, no matter who." Meaning, people who don't just limit themselves to voting for the lesser evil, but who demand actual leftists reject their principles and do likewise. Or claim their candidates don't need to earn leftists' votes, then blaming third-party-voting leftists' for their candidates' losses. My husband is not a Democrat. He's not aligned with any one party, doesn't get his news from TV, and is generally someone both capable of critical thinking, and prone to complaining when others are going off of headlines alone. And now I'm seeing this question from leftist-leaning independent Twitter accounts. I thought the answer was obvious but evidently not.

Why aren't "they," anti-genocide, pro-Palestinian, activists, protesting the Republican National Convention? First off, the Republican National Convention was in July and there were protests there. However, I understand that questioners don't literally mean the convention itself, but rather, why aren't activists targeting Republican leaders like they are Democrats? The easy answer is the Democrats are in power. Donald Trump, regardless of what he and his followers tell themselves, is not the current President.

But it's more than that. Yes, leadership of both sides of the duopoly are bought and owned by the foreign lobbyist group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). However, the Democratic base doesn't lean Islamophobic. They take pride in not being bigoted nor racist. There is the potential to appeal to Democrat Party voter sympathies to demand a permanent ceasefire to end the Israeli genocide of Palestinians. Whereas Republicans, Trump loyalists specifically, lean Islamophobic, and don't have the same pressure to conceal and deny racist, xenophobic, or bigoted attitudes. As always, there are exceptions, but my point is that activists working towards ending this genocide direct their efforts where likely to be most impactful. The Democrat Party's base can be successfully appealed to whereas the Republican Party's base would be much more difficult to sway via sympathy. Is there an economic angle? Arguably, but only for those voters whose religion doesn't dictate the genocide must continue.

What I think these questioners fail to grasp is that anti-genocide, pro-Palestinian, activists are not a homogenous blob, just like the duopoly parties voter bases aren't a hive mind. Many activist groups are currently demonstrating at the Democratic National Convention because that's the best use of their resources and efforts right this second. Other groups are protesting differently. Boycott Divest Sanction (BDS), for instance, has been protesting outside of weapons manufacturing companies, factories, and even banks, who've profited from Israel's continued human rights abuses. Student groups have been, and will continue to, protest Israeli funded leadership of their campuses. A multitude of groups have taken to directly confronting politicians and business leaders who've expressed support for more carnage. People have been organizing direct aid in order to transport Palestinians from the line of fire. Etc. There are many groups currently working in tandem to force Kamala Harris' hand in the hopes that she can be convinced to demand a permanent ceasefire, but they're a subset of a massive, worldwide, movement.

The next person who asks me why they aren't protesting the RNC, I'm going to reiterate these points, of course, but then suggest they organize their own Republican-targeted protest if they truly believe that's the best use of their efforts. The more activists working towards this common goal, the better.

Anyway, I drop a new blog post every Monday. Toodles!

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Howdy! I'm still editing my paranormal women's fiction novel, Soul Walker. It's slow going but I'm getting much closer to being able to query it. Again. While it would have been nice to have been contracted for three books right out of the gate, I'm grateful Tea With Coffee Media (and everyone else) rejected it. The story was fine but now it can be good.

I'm currently reading The Unbearable Lightness Of Being by Milan Kundera. It's a favorite novel of a friend, and from the title, I guessed it would offer inspiration like that of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, or maybe that of The Alchemist. I'm ~120 pages in and thus far the story is fast paced but there are low stakes and I'm not invested in a single character. It reads like a list of minor life events, revolving around a handful of people, meant to prove a philosophy. I'm not quite halfway through though so this is an early judgement.

I'm hoping to get some woodburning done later this week. I went frame shopping over the weekend so little watercolors would work too.

Thanks for stopping by! I drop a newsletter every Monday! Toodles!