TEASER - Ignore the Edgelords. Build Political Power

04/26/25 • 30 min

1 Listener

There’s a reason the loudest voices online are often the least helpful. The edgelords, those who posture with performative rage, contrarian hot takes, and a cynical flair for nihilism, aren’t trying to build anything. Their goal isn’t liberation. It’s clout.

But we don’t have time for clout. We’re living through a coordinated, well-funded, global assault on democracy. In the U.S., basic freedoms are under attack, from reproductive rights to the ability to teach honest history in schools. While the edgelords are busy fighting each other for likes and retweets, authoritarians are organizing, legislating, and winning.

We need to focus.

Real change happens when people organize, not just online, but in communities, city councils, state legislatures, and the courts. Building political power means showing up to vote, yes, because not voting is voting, but also recruiting candidates, knocking on doors, demanding judicial accountability, and refusing to be distracted by culture war bait.

Want to know who to trust in the influencer economy’s crowded marketplace of ideas? Prioritize the voices who are brave and smart by pointing out the obvious truth: the only way out is by building political power. The far-right knows that, which is why they work so hard to suppress the vote. Political power is what taxes the rich, enforces the good laws we have, repeals the bad ones, and forces accountability. You cannot do those things unless you are in power.

So ignore the noise. Turn down the doomscrolling and tune in to your community. Find the people doing the work: mutual aid organizers, voting rights advocates, school board watchdogs, and back them up.

Ignore the edgelords. Build political power. It’s the only way we win.

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Show Notes:

Opening Clip: Pat Bondi pretends to care about the rule of law: https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3lnnprevixu2y

Bella Ciao by Pink Martini https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ksj5lCh-JSo

Terrell Starr’s Black Diplomats Podcast and Substack: https://terrellstarr.com/

FBI arrests Milwaukee judge, alleging she interfered in immigration operation https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/fbi-arrests-milwaukee-judge-alleging-interfered-immigration-operation-rcna203006

Former New Mexico judge and wife arrested on charges of tampering with evidence linked to suspected Tren de Aragua member https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/25/us/new-mexico-judge-arrested-tren-de-aragua/index.html

EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION:

April 28 4pm ET – Book club discussion of Octavia Butler’s The Parable of the Sower
Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.
Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.
Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet?
Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

We need to focus.

Ignore the edgelords. Build political power. It’s the only way we win.

Show Notes:

Opening Clip: Pat Bondi pretends to care about the rule of law: https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3lnnprevixu2y

Bella Ciao by Pink Martini https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ksj5lCh-JSo

Terrell Starr’s Black Diplomats Podcast and Substack: https://terrellstarr.com/

EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION:

April 28 4pm ET – Book club discussion of Octavia Butler’s The Parable of the Sower
Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.
Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.
Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet?
Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

Previous Episode

Impeach Him

Welcome to Gaslit Nation, where the firestorm of corruption meets the firehose of resistance. Terrell Starr of the Black Diplomats Podcast and Substack, recently home from Ukraine–the frontline of showing the world how to stand up and fight, joins Andrea to discuss how good Democrats, and We the People they serve, have a lot of power, if we remain defiant.

Senator Chris Van Hollen provided an urgent reminder of this as he warned El Salvador’s wannabe strongman Nayib Bukele: the U.S. isn’t the only power player in the world, and the international community is watching. This came after Van Hollen was denied access to the Maryland man, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, abducted by Trump’s agents, wrongfully deported, and sent illegally to El Salvador’s notorious gulag. Yet Van Hollen didn't back down. Even with the White House under occupation by a Russian asset, we still wield power.

The energy in the country is shifting. Over 1,500 “Hands Off!” marches just shook the ground in all 50 states, powered by everyone from labor unions to LGBTQ+ activists to veterans' groups. One Southern white man waved a giant American flag with a giant Ukrainian flag at a protest in Virginia, while wearing a MAGA-looking red cap that said: “My Grandpa Killed Nazis.”

Trump’s approval is slipping. The push for impeachment is gaining steam thanks to the grassroots movement CitizensImpeachment.com. And while spineless Republicans like Lisa Murkowski make excuses instead of calling for the impeachment of a lawless would-be dictator, people are waking up. We’re in a fight for accountability, truth, and justice, and we will win. Don’t let disillusionment or complacency stop you from building a world that’s fair, just, and truly livable for everyone.

We’re not just witnessing history. We’re shaping it. So let’s keep pushing. Join a Tesla Takedown protest near you, demand your reps in the House call for impeachment, help good people run for office and primary Do-Nothing Dems, ignore the cynical edge lords, and stay creative and defiant as we shine our collective light.

Show Notes:

CitizensImpeachment.com – track which members of Congress are calling for impeachment and how to pressure others to join the movement for accountability and justice: https://citizensimpeachment.com/

Terrell Starr's Black Diplomats Podcast and Substack: https://terrellstarr.substack.com/

Sen. Chris Van Hollen says Salvadoran government "tried really hard" to prevent him from seeing Kilmar Abrego Garcia https://www.cbsnews.com/news/chris-van-hollen-interview-kilmar-abrego-garcia-visit/

Opening clip: Senator Chris Van Hollen’s press conference in El Salvador https://x.com/tify330/status/1913040416611455142?t=W4mDUace_uXsVWOdt8de7A&s=19

US paying El Salvador $6M to jail hundreds of Venezuela gang suspects: ‘Pennies on the dollar’ https://nypost.com/2025/03/17/us-news/us-paying-el-salvador-6m-to-jail-venezuela-gang-suspects-pennies-on-the-dollar/

Anti-Trump rallies held across the U.S. to protest administration's policies https://www.cbsnews.com/news/anti-trump-rallies-hands-off-administration-washington-new-york-boston/

Financial Times on Trump trying to stay in powe foreverr: https://x.com/bennpeifert/status/1913040600791945568?t=j0g7J1AFiX9hSKFXDSskbg&s=19

Trump’s illegal kidnapping of peopl and sending them to El Salvador using tax payer money is highly illegal: https://x.com/ReichlinMelnick/status/1912960051326623796?t=AZSVz6PSyCN4TkPbh6vdYg&s=19

FSU student and Parkland survivor describes experiencing second school shooting: "This is America" https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fsu-student-parkland-survivor-school-shooting/

Schiff and Raskin push for accountability: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElEVeJA-byE

Resistance video by the South Korean Activist: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1043733301107315

Stacey Abrams on how is taking your medicine https://w...

Next Episode

Canada Did It. Now It’s NYC’s Turn. Elbows Up!

This week, Canadians didn’t just politely shuffle into voting booths: they kicked the door down and destroyed Conservative leader and longtime MAGA fanboy Pierre Poilievre, who lost his seat to Bruce Fanjoy (who we’re now, quite literally, major fans of. More on him in this episode!)

Meanwhile, here in the U.S., specifically kleptocrat-besieged New York City, we’ve got our own political swamp to drain. Mayor Eric Adams, who once likened himself to Biden, now seems more Nixonian, dodging Department of Justice corruption charges by reportedly cozying up to Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson. The result? NYC turned into an ICE command center for Trump’s creeping authoritarianism, part of a wannabe-gulag stretching from New York to El Salvador.

On this week’s Gaslit Nation, Andrea and Terrell Starr of the Black Diplomats Podcast and Substack celebrate Canada’s heroic stand and urge the world to focus on NYC’s upcoming Democratic mayoral primary June 24, one of the most pivotal fronts in the global fight against kleptocracy and for the soul of America.

The Left must reclaim “socialism” as quality of life advocacy, building better schools, healthcare that won’t bankrupt you, and a social safety net for all, not just those who can afford one. We highlight two standout challengers: Comptroller Brad Lander, a fierce Ukraine supporter who led the effort to divest the City’s pension from Russian investments, and Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, who led a hunger strike for taxi driver debt relief.

The question isn’t just who can beat Adams, who’s running as an independent, and predator Andrew Cuomo, desperate for a comeback. It’s who has the record to lead New York in resisting Trump and dismantling the oligarchy.

Show Notes:

Opening clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahh0jINl-PU

Canadian election: https://bsky.app/profile/youranoncentral.bsky.social/post/3lnwgjxcnk22l

Bruce Fanjoy’s Green House: This big blue house runs green and clean https://www.nationalobserver.com/2023/08/28/news/big-blue-house-runs-green-and-clean

Here’s who’s running for New York City mayor in 2025 Get to know the candidates in a wide, weird and unsettled field.

https://www.cityandstateny.com/politics/2025/04/heres-whos-running-new-york-city-mayor-2025/401994/

Ukraine is the front line in the battle against oligarchic capitalism: The war in Ukraine is not just a fight for sovereignty, but a battle against the global rise of oligarchical capitalism, with the future of democracy and economic justice at stake. https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-is-the-front-line-in-the-battle-against-oligarchic-capitalism/

Adams to skip New York City’s Democratic primary, run for reelection on nonpartisan line: The mayor has been at odds with his party and wants time to recover from now-dismissed federal charges. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/03/eric-adams-reelection-independent-00267865

Judge Ends Eric Adams Case, but Sharply Criticizes Trump’s Justice Dept. Judge Dale E. Ho refused to let the government leave open the prospect of reinstating charges against the mayor. But he acknowledged the president’s power to determine the fate of prosecutions.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/nyregion/eric-adams-case-dismissed.html?unlocked_article_code=1.DU8.N7E9.W-opYY3A0W4N&smid=url-share

Adams Doubles Down on Trump Alliance, Praising F.B.I. Director’s Book: In the mayor’s first comments after a judge ordered corruption charges against him dropped, he urged New Yorkers to read a book by the Trump administration’s F.B.I. director.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/nyregion/eric-adams-kash-patel-book.html?unlocked_article_code=1.DU8.FskD.fhDP-pm2rpfe&smid=url-share

Incumbents are losing around the world, not just the U.S. https://www.marketplace.org/story/2024/11/14/incumbents-are-lo...