Not This Time

There are very few redeeming qualities about the X platform these days.

Thanks to "Apartheid Clyde" Elon Musk, Nazis are running rampant. Ads overrun each and every reply making it difficult to follow the thread. The site automatically refreshes, forcing you to the top of a post during a live event you're trying to follow. There's still no edit button, something that rival apps like Spoutible have inserted with ease. Musk has provided a safe space for conspiracy theorists while simultaneously censoring some of the site's most liberal voices and supporters. Trolls, an issue that allegedly caused Musk to almost back out of his initial deal, are now more rampant than ever. And, of course, there's Musk himself, using the platform to support Putin, Trump, antisemites, and pretty much the globe's entire wretched hive of villainy all conveniently located in one place.

And yet, we Democrats endure.

But more than that, those still surviving in the post-apocalyptic hellscape that Musk has created are angry. It is a level of anger that we haven't previously seen, even during the Trump years. While Elon Musk has done everything in his power to diminish the influence of X's Democratic users, there has been a palpable resurgence over the past week due to a confluence of events. From the Hur Report to the media's embarrassing press conference performance to Jon Stewart reemerging from his cocoon, Democrats on the X platform have reached Twisted Sister levels of fed-upness. It's been slowly stewing over time but this past week has seen it boil over into the public sphere. It's the same shit we saw in 2016 frame for frame only this time, Democrats know the playbook. Democrats know what happens when we don't push back. And Democrats know what happens if social media platforms are allowed to go unchecked. 

Books will be written about the intersection of politics and social media. Most people don't realize that it's only 1 in 5 Americans who are even on the X platform. Significantly fewer than that are invested in the X politics subuniverse. But for those of us who still exist in this realm, it's critical to give pushback when the time is right. Yes, we may be preaching to the choir. But we are also disrupting Musk's algorithm that gives priority to trolls and conservative posters. Each and every time we tweet and re-tweet positive Biden accomplishments, that causes disruption in the system and eventually disperses trolls to try and course correct. There is literally no reason for someone like me to generate multiple posts that have nearly 100 comments on my current follower count. But when that happens, when Elon's overlords see my posts being liked and retweeted by what's left of Team Biden-Harris, then all of a sudden I get X user BadBiden9384573847, who joined the platform yesterday, suddenly feel the urge to share his thoughts and critiques on my post. Each comment that I successfully ignore is one less comment that the troll can make elsewhere on a user with way more social media influence than myself. The more they try to engage me, the more I simply tune them out and continue to amplify positive Democratic achievements.

At this point, it's entirely predictable. Take Jon Stewart's triumphant Daily Show return on Monday. Stewart, naturally, made it a point to use ageist arguments against Joe Biden. But Democratic X wasn't having any of it. Black Democrats observed that this is the John Stewart they've always known. Democrats who remember how Stewart treated Hillary in 2016 were unsurprised. Musk himself tried tipping the scales by weighing in and offering his support for Stewart. But the angry Democrats had spoken. And, once again, those of us who dared speak ill of Stewart all of a sudden received dozens of comments with new X users like NotABot64384729 telling us how wrong we were. Once again, we had struck a nerve because the Russian troll farmers were anticipating that Democratic Twitter would simply let Stewart waltz back in, unchallenged like he was in 2015. But this time was different. This time, we were prepared.

Fending off fascism is not something many of us thought we'd do in this lifetime. But we're here. Now. At this moment. The social media landscape has become ground zero for battling misinformation and media manipulation. It is often a slough. But for those of us wading through this battle, we can't help but be encouraged. The spark is lit. The people are full of righteous indignation. And while there is no virtual Bastille to storm, what this past week has shown us is that Democratic X is up for the fight. There is too much at stake not to push back and push back hard. The media is not our friend. Jon Stewart is not our friend. The New York Times is not our friend.  The White House press corps is certainly not our friend. We simply have to win this the old-fashioned way. By pushing back. By not giving in. By being a voice of truth and clarity among a crowd of non-believers. The 2024 presidential election will not be won or lost solely on X. But in neutering and neutralizing the opposition, we can give ourselves that much more chance for success out in the real world. 

Where the real work truly unfolds. 

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