No busses even go along the street where we want to be. We're pissed off that the 34 line has been discontinued, and we know there has been corruption in that decision. Powerful people made sure that the 20 line is the only thing that heads even remotely in that direction because it stops everywhere they want people to be. They say it's because no one wants to go where the 34 goes, but we know a lot of people would take it if it existed. It's really that they don't want people on that street because it would hurt their interests. So we end up on the right end of town but you still have to walk a mile and a half up and over. It sucks.
But the 117 goes the other way. It puts us on the wrong side of town. If we end up on the 117, we'd have to walk 20 miles just to get back where we were, nevermind make progress towards our destination.
We know working with the bus lines to get the 34 back running won't work. The bus management is corrupt and all about money. We have to generate overwhelming demand. But everyone who wants the 34 running is over at that end of town. You don't want to take the bus at all because it's supporting a corrupt system. The drivers are racist. The stops are exploitative. The bus consumes so much gas that it has to suppress people to keep the price down.
We don't stay where we are and yell at everyone that they are terrible if they don't want the 34, calling them sellouts for taking the bus as far as they can and then making the best of it. We might look askance at people who think the 34 is all we should ever need, but they probably need to be convinced, not treated like enemies. We don't gather up people who want a 34 and complain that there's no 20 and do literally nothing else—that won't change a thing. And we don't wait for a miracle of some minivan to pull up that'll happen to take us just exactly where we want to go--it's not coming; it's NEVER coming. We could start walking from HERE in protest, but it's a lot further, and in this metaphor, we have to take one bus, so if we don't get on the 20, someone's going to PUT US on the 117, and then we'll have to walk 20 miles just to get back to where we started and then further still.
So we take the bus as far as it'll take us and when it drops us off we walk. Or we crawl. Or we show the determination to get where the 34 goes that we claim we had from the beginning. But whatever we do, we roll up our sleeves and do the work from as close as the deeply flawed system that we've GOT will get us to where we want to go. And we work for a world where the busses go further. And maybe there's even a 34 line again.
I hope you vote. If you don't, I'm not going to agree with you, but at this point, I'll assume you have your reasons that are deeply considered. But I hope you do.
Even if you vote in local or state elections that will affect your lives VERY directly. Even if you hold your nose and vote against the brand of naked overt fascism Trump has promised to bring us. Even if you spend the other 364 days a year deeply involved in parallel infrastructure and leftist anarchy (and you're just doing so to make everything you're trying to achieve a little easier). Even if you're doing it because there's one party that hasn't all but promised to hurt LGBTQ+ folks, immigrants, and even BIPOC who step out of line. Even if it's because only one party will even talk about easing off rampant militarism and mass incarcerations.
Even if it's just so you don't lose your health care.
Even if you're like me, and the "bus" only gets you vaguely in the direction you want to go on a few issues.
Because I know what happens if you don't vote. And I would love to tell you it's "nothing." But it isn't nothing. Someone else will decide for you who will govern you. It's a nightmare slide of SCOTUS rulings and overton window that we've been living. And it might not get better, but it can ALWAYS get worse.
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