Lebanon’s health minister has said what is happening in his country is “carnage”, as hospitals struggle to cope with the number of casualties from two days of widespread Israeli air strikes targeting the armed group Hezbollah.

Dr Firass Abiad told the BBC it was “clear” that many of the 550 people killed in Monday’s attacks were civilians, including children and women.

  • AfricanExpansionist@lemmy.ml
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    2 months ago

    Not voting for is the best strategy. If everyone who was dissatisfied would stop voting, there would be more progress than continuing to choose the “lesser of two evils” (who happily enable and cheer for genocide, BTW)

    • GraniteM@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      That is one of the stupidest takes I have ever seen, and I’ve been on the internet since AOL chatrooms.

      Not voting makes politicians less accountable to you. If you somehow organized everyone who thought like you do, regardless of your agenda, and convinced every single one of them to not vote, then you would achieve the lofty political goal of… absolutely ensuring that no politician would ever try to pursue your goals.

      Voting, by definition, is what makes politicians give a shit about your cause. There’s a reason why the Greek word meaning “one who does not take part in public affairs” is the root of the modern word “idiot.”

      • AfricanExpansionist@lemmy.ml
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        2 months ago

        I wish anybody would pay me!

        If enough people stop voting it would force the government to legitimize itself. It would show how many people are actually dissatisfied and empower all of us. It could lead to more people refusing to vote in future, further eroding the appearance of legitimacy of the current arrangement

        • FlowVoid@lemmy.world
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          2 months ago

          it would force the government to legitimize itself

          LOL, no. It wouldn’t force the government to do anything.

          Since you’ve never seen a ballot, try googling one. You’ll see a bunch of downballot races in which very few people vote. Those races all have winners, and those winners always have and always will give zero fucks about legitimizing themselves to nonvoters.

            • FlowVoid@lemmy.world
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              2 months ago

              It’s not the same result. Politicians have to appeal to voters, they are free to ignore nonvoters.

              If you’re not voting, then you’re not voting for Trump as well as not voting for Harris. Are you surprised that Trump isn’t courting your vote? You shouldn’t be.

              But Harris has no more reason to court your vote than Trump does. You’re a nonvoter, so they are both ignoring you.

              • AfricanExpansionist@lemmy.ml
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                2 months ago

                OK I don’t understand your logic. They spend billions of dollars to get people to vote. Door knockers are there to get people like me to vote. Do you not understand how elections work?

                • FlowVoid@lemmy.world
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                  2 months ago

                  No, they are trying to reach people who are not sure if they are going to vote.

                  They are not trying to reach people like you, who have decided not to vote.

    • FlowVoid@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      “The best strategy is to stay silent on Gaza. Because if everyone is silent on Gaza, then politicians would be forced to ask us: Hey, what are you thinking about Gaza?”

      Of course the Silent Treatment strategy won’t work. Refusing to vote is the same strategy.

      • AfricanExpansionist@lemmy.ml
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        2 months ago

        OK well tell me about Michigan Arabs and how much power they are holding in this election.

        If not voting is so powerless then why are you all so upset about the idea of people not voting?