Great stuff! I love how you take a moment to call out the alt-right on its stupidity and political ineptness. Your post's aesthetics are a bit weird, perhaps. Almost edgy. The thumbnail and subtitel are mildly reminiscent of a run of the mill Facebook conspiracy theory post. So I was very pleasantly surprised when I saw reasonable ideas being thrown around here.

Now, my two cents on this broad topic, is that a lot about what people know in politics, also has to do with what they think is the "crux" of politics itself, the central motor behind political change. To me, that would be material value; in other words, class struggle. Not singlehandedly, but very significantly so, and in a way that is often overlooked. It's hard to trust a system that can so easily be corrupted or influenced by money, at the same time that extremely wealthy and influential individuals exist.

I usually avoid the term "socialism" because it's so broad, and different people have very different ideas of what it entails. So what do I believe in? I believe that people should own their means of production. Not those richer than them (since that'll only lead to them getting richer); and definitely not the state (since that will only lead to centralization of power, and then subjugation, and then yet another Stalin or Mao). Where they can't own their companies, workers should unionize, so they are able to have some bargaining power to negotiate with their employers; more specifically, the ability to strike when standards of basic decency are not met. If you understand what I mean, then I will take the liberty to call myself a libertarian socialist.

That said, I'm very much pragmatic in how I think about reality and politics and the world around us. Not ideologically driven. To me, everyone has an ideology, even when they don't realize it, be it an entrepeneurial mindset, or concerns of social equity, or what have you. Capitalism itself is an ideology, it's just what we're used to and acclimatized to.

Ideology is best when it serves to help inform your decisions, not your worldview; it should serve as an useful magnifying glass to understand our reality, but not the thing being observed to draw conclusions from. That is another reason I don't like talking about my positions; it makes me sound dogmatic, when I'm not. For one, I'm definitely not a tankie.

Either way, I think the main concern right now is to curb fascism and the rise of its threats towards democratic institutions. It is happening here in Brazil (with Bolsonaro) just as it is in the US, or in Italy (with Meloni). As I understand it, it is one of the two currents that have recently risen in reaction to the onset and development of the economical crisis deriving from neoliberal (unregulated) economics.

I'm glad to be able to have this kind of conversation politely, it is important for the future of our society. I wish you a good evening.