I’m not a fan of zero-sum thinking, and I don’t believe in hierarchical conceptions of power. It occurs to me that zero-sum approaches underly both the so-called “progressive left” and “far right” in this country, and in this respect mirror each other.

The desire to ascend hierarchy (and avoid being “replaced”), along with the Chad/Becky incel cultural fetish we see on the right, is analogous to the tendency on the left to see a dollar spent on defense as a dollar that can’t be spent on homelessness.

These are infantile tendencies that sound good on Twitter to a narrowband audience, but belie the complexity of modern economies and real-world competing priorities, and networked conceptions of power.

Importantly they impose a brutal lack of imagination that constrains our ability to solve complex problems, or to make forward progress in general. Consider that before self-righteously calling out one thing out as less worthy than another thing. We can have many priorities.

The progressive left could develop a truly winning approach by rejecting zero-sum thinking in favor of yes-and approaches that bring everyone forward, and build imagination and momentum. Zero-sum call out culture that mirrors the right/incel world is a brittle strategy.

Leave zero-sum thinking to the far-right, where it belongs. Anyone who rejects it can always outperform in the long term; networked power can always prevail over hierarchical power. Don’t be fooled into thinking otherwise. It’s a trap.

@AOC this thread was inspired by and written for you. We can win if we play the game differently. Please consider.