What are tankies? What does sea-lioning mean?
What are tankies? What does sea-lioning mean?
I've run across these terms several times, but without enough context to figure out what they mean. Could someone help me out, please?
ETA All of you are amazing! A huge thank you to everyone who responded, and an extra thank you to those who have provided links or explanations to further and/or related information. I am learning so much by reading all of these comments!
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Hakim explains: https://youtu.be/LcJ5NrJtQ8g
Vijay Prashad (regularly works with Chomsky) explains: https://youtu.be/tsqE9kEsDVY
The Deprogram explains: https://youtu.be/YVYVBOFYJco
In short, "tankie" is a thought-terminating phrase thrown into any conversations where people want to get others to terminate all thought coming from people to their left. It gets thrown at communists by other communists, it gets thrown at communists by anarchists, it gets thrown at all of the above by socdems, it gets thrown at all of the above by liberals, and it gets thrown at all of the above including liberals by fascists.
Its function in actual practice is that it moves discourse and spaces rightwards. Anyone using the phrase should be completely disregarded as a person that wants you to keep your brain closed.
That top down explanation is pretty funny and accurate. Everyone is a Tankie to fascists.