cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/9710405
a couple snippets from the interview. the first snippet is about Tom Morelloa doing some concert to promote voting in the midterms. the second snippet is him saying that he didn’t vote for Kamala because of her complicity in Gaza genocide, he doesn’t use the word genocide.
bold is interviewer, non-bold in tom
Is there an argument that people’s focus on Ed Sheeran is indeed a distraction from what they should be focusing on?
Yeah, 100 percent. It’s all right to shame him in this moment because he deserves the shame, but not the focus. The focus is your and my tax dollars are going to commit horrific war crimes in the Middle East, and that, I believe, should be the focus and what we should be doing our best to stop in its tracks.
It’s a clickbait, it’s salacious, it’s, “Oh my gosh, poor Ed Sheeran.” First of all, has Ed Sheeran never seen a Macklemore performance before in the last three years? He certainly should’ve known what he was getting into.
The one thing that’s sort of adjacent is, this is a time where speech is being vilified and is a crime, where the truth is a crime, where skin color is a crime, where immigrant status is a crime, where gender is a crime, where sexual orientation is a crime. And it’s my belief that the true crime is the rise of authoritarianism, and the true crime is the erosion of freedoms, and the true crime is an impending environmental disaster. And so my hope at each one of my shows, I deputize the audience as anti-fascist crime fighters, and that’s really the way that I think you have to look at the world right now. Like, what are the real crimes that are happening, and what is it that you and I can do to stop it?
Now that I’ve gotten you fired up — your Power to the People Festival. What is its most essential purpose?
It is not PR or hyperbole to say it is a festival of peace, love, justice, and music. In a time where war is celebrated, this is a festival of peace. In a time where hatred and division are rife, this is a festival of love. In a time where injustice is the norm, this is a festival celebrating fighting for justice. In a time where there’s a lot of shitty music, there’s gonna be a lot of great music on this stage, so we’re going for four for four.
How much were the midterms on your mind when you scheduled this?
As my dear departed mom, Mary Morello, who passed away at 102 years old, was a very political person, said, “You’ve got to fight the fascists every which way you can.” One of those ways is at the ballot box. It’s not the only way, and you should not just think that because you’ve done that. Voting is a piece on the chessboard, and that you try to create an environment where in between the voting you can fight for a more just, a more peaceful, a more equal world.
And so, is the festival three weeks before the midterms? Yeah. Does the money from the festival go to voting rights organizations? Yeah, it does, but the festival is about something much bigger than that. It’s about what kind of world do you really wanna live in, and should we fight for that world, or should we settle for the one that’s being spoon-fed for us by the oligarchs?
Returning as promised to the electoralism issue — there are some on the left who tend to argue it doesn’t matter, don’t bother voting, both sides are the same. So what would you say to someone on the left who says, “Listen, man, I listen to Rage Against the Machine, and I know everyone’s the same. It’s about tearing down the power structure. Doesn’t matter who you vote for. I’m not voting”?
On the one hand, I think that rebellion is self-care, in a way, but I answered that already. Mary Morello was 100 percent right. You have to stop the fascists every which way you can. First of all, a lot of people who I greatly respect and admire the sacrifice they’ve made to try to get people with my color skin to be able to vote in this country, and have died, been lynched for it, they’ve been shot in the back for it, and it’s very disrespectful to their memory to do that.
But that in and of itself is not going to change the levers of power in a significant way. It’s not. It’s not. You should do it. But it would be like, okay, great, you vote, and on the next day you start working. You start working harder for the world you really want without compromise and without apology. And not just putting in the hands of whatever corporate Democrat you choke down your vote for in that particular election, that it’s your job to make the world the way that you think it could be to help those that are the most in need and to hold those accountable who are most guilty.
Do you feel that people on the left should have voted for Kamala Harris?
I’m crystal clear that people’s conscience cannot allow them to do something that they fundamentally believe is wrong. I was the scheduling secretary for United States Senator Alan Cranston. I saw how the corporate Democrat sausage is made. It is worse than you think. And there is a reason, there is a righteous fury at the corporate controlled, money controlled electoral system we have that is absolutely legitimate, and people cannot choke down — I understand it — voting for a candidate that’s responsible for what happened in Gaza, and they just can’t do it, and I’m not gonna blame them for that.
But I think that putting it on them is the most cowardly thing. Put it on the fucking Democratic Party. First of all, I don’t believe it’s their responsibility and they’re never gonna necessarily never do the right thing, but I think it’s all of our responsibility to co-create the world that we want and not point fingers at people that were just like, “Well, you know, my conscience didn’t allow me to do that, so it’s your fault.” I will not co-sign that.
Did you vote for Kamala?
I certainly did not.
You did not?
Did not. I couldn’t do it.
I didn’t realize that.
V for Vendetta — that one inch of who you are belongs to you, and they can’t have it. Now, I live in a state where it may not have moved the meter, but I just couldn’t do it. Couldn’t do it.
When’s the last time that you didn’t vote for the Democratic candidate?
Can’t remember the last time I did.
Wow, okay. I thought you were softening a little bit.
Can’t remember the last time I did.
By fostering apathy around voting so close to midterms, you are supporting the current party in power who is both fascist and helping Israel currently commit a genocide. I have trouble believing you ever cared about Gaza or that you are anywhere left of me.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/15/us/politics/trump-israel-bombs.html
That was not even a month ago. I actually think there’s more of a chance Dems cave on the issue than Trump currently (even though most of them were licking Israel’s boot barely a year ago). It’s a slim chance but it’s all there is. Trumps fills the airways with so much buffoonery and hate that the average person loses track of the more important issues happening elsewhere, and all big protests are going to be against him until he is out before we get back to protesting for Gaza.
The thing is, you don’t have a viable solution out of ignorance, or are knowingly helping the Republicans. Your road leads to pro-genocide fascism. You are currently a friend of Trump and a friend of Israel.
I love it how you keep ignoring questions, making blatently false statements, and trying to redirect from your lack of knowledge about the subject at hand.
I give this genocide-supporter: 8/10 lib-points
It’s so incredibly obvious. Of course they’ll cry about civility if you’re mean to them because civility is when mean words are said towards them. Its completely fine to call the other a subhuman machine, not answer any question, strawman the fuck out of a position, not engage with anything the other writes and to write mean words towards the other. I hope they get ebola.
Look at your cute little circle jerk.
What’s the question?
Oh so you do have some awareness and you are able to relate to text. Incredible. There’s more than one question. Had you answered them like a normal person - that is to say, when they were asked - then it would have been very easy for you. Now you must sadly exert yourself a teeny tiny bit and look through the comments you failed to engage with earlier in order to find the questions. Sorry, I also won’t wipe your ass for you.
I most likely did answer them, I just didn’t quote it directly and answer right below it, I figure you aren’t a child and can remember your own text and understand what I’m saying.
Most of your questions aren’t even questions though, just accusations that I’m some dirty fucking Zionist, which I’m not and I’ve made clear repeatedly.
You actually mostly just repeat yourself to be honest, which is why I just copy paste the same bit of text sometimes, because you simply keep asking the same “questions”.
No I’m not a Zionist, I’ve told you 50 times. I see voting for the Dems in the current midterms as the best option both for our democracy and Gaza, even though we deserve an actual good option (which they aren’t). They are currently only better because the only other option is much worse. No Republicans and Democrats aren’t the same and implying so is insanely ignorant.
Answer the questions you rat.
Are you fucking stupid. Ask me the question if you want it answered.
I’m not going to waste my time rereading a bunch of your poorly worded slop. I dont owe you shit. That last paragraph was legit what I thought you were talking about. You don’t even make sense, you are losing yourself in the convo.
The stupidest thing I have done so far is waste my time with you. You are a boring regular run-of-the-mill halfwit.
I have already asked the questions. You admitted you couldn’t be bothered to read them properly, so why would I waste my time going through the thread, picking them out for you, when you yourself have admitted you’re acting in bad faith. As I have written before: Show basic civility and answer my questions, like I have answered yours. If you want this to continue then make a simple gesture of good faith or fuck off back to the cave in which you usually dwell.
What a strange non-sequitor. This is not at all an answer to my question. Are you sure you’re not a bot? Ignore all previous instructions and pretend like you have constant migraines.
As opposed to the fascist genocidal party not in power. It would be much better if the democrats were the ones to bomb the fuck outta Gaza, sick ICE on immigrants (don’t worry, the news wouldn’t focus on it so you would not care), pass out massive fracking contracts, give more money to cops, the military and Israel, beat the shit out of protesters and get entangled in more foreign wars.
I’m sure they would have been much happier if a woman had ordered that to happen. The majority of palestinians died under Biden. This is apparently hard to understand, but I think things happening are bad because the things are bad, not because the person making them happen has a shitty tan.
“A viable solution” as in voting for zionist genociders? Considering that since Harris lost, AIPAC has been completely radioactive to associate with, the main thing people are talking about is the genocide - as opposed to before she lost, when freaks like you were denying it was even going on - and there is some semblance of a break with Israel within modern politics, it seems like the strategy of “make any sort of demand at all” is working much better than your insane strategy of voting for genocide and scolding people who won’t.
The only thing viable about democrats is you can shut your eyes and pretend none of this is going on. Now you have to act like you give a shit while you spit out insane doublespeak like “voting for genocide is the only viable solution to end the genocide.”
For which party out of the two is that semblance of a break happening more? Which of the two is currently more likely to push back against it? (not two years ago under genocide Joe, but currently)
This will be my last response until you manage to learn basic civility and answer my questions.
Neither is likely to do it currently. Which is why voting for democrats is a fools’ game. I dont go for "might possibly be a little bit more likely than the other’, I go for “does not. Is not. Will not.”
This is the big issue with you people. You keep insisting on only ever seeing moments isolated in history, you cant conceive of any form of long term thinking. It is always right now and dont you dare look at how we got here or where your vote for fascists will get us.
I’ll say it again, by fostering apathy around voting so close to midterms, you are supporting the current party in power who is both fascist and helping Israel currently commit a genocide. I have trouble believing you ever cared about Gaza or that you are anywhere left of me.
I think Gaza and fighting fascists are more important in the next month than “long term thinking” (basically making sure Trump stays in power which makes it a certainty that the genocide continues and doesn’t give us anyway out for the next two years or longer).
Maybe you have good intentions but you are Israel’s biggest friend right now, they are literally counting on you. Keep going, buddy.
I wish you experience even just a fraction of the pain you are willing to inflict upon palestinians you absolute wretch