Yeah, people were joking that the media outlets were afraid of Mamdani getting elected because he would fail as a mayor of one of the largest cities in the world. But what they were actually afraid of is him succeeding using socialist policies.

I love Mamdani, and his existence in office gives me hope for the world, but it's not just because he's helping New Yorkers.

He also demonstrates proof of concept:

1. Socialist policies are popular: people like him.
2. Socialist policies are electable: he got voted in.
3. Socialist policies work: people are materially benefitting, and NYC's finances have quantifiably improved.
4. Anti-socialist propaganda has been bullshit from the start: he's not some shady two-faced evil maniac like the pigs from animal farm (those are the capitalists). He literally means what he says and puts his money where his mouth is, and you can see it every day by his actions.

Altogether, this can encourage more people to run on socialist policies, especially for local offices in progressive strongholds, but it can seep outward as it catches on.

It can also encourage the DNC (especially with the new chairman) and elected democrats to support/endorse candidates who run on a progressive agenda. No more hesitancy over whether that's an electable platform: clearly it is.

Lastly, it can encourage voters to support these candidates because instead of fearing the big scary "Socialism" word, they can see what it actually is and what it does and they think "Gee, I want what NYC has in my city/town."

Taken alongside the upcoming election which will be absolutely punishing to republicans, and people's disenchantment with establishment Dems and their corporatist policies, this can honestly represent a sea-change in the political landscape of the US, which as we know bleeds out into the rest of the world.

What we're experiencing now with the resurgence of fascism is like the birthing pains of a new era: "The old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born."

That dying old world is putting up a vicious fight, but it's like an injured leopard: dangerous, to be sure, and doubly-so in its desperation; but it won't be long before it perishes.

Those robber billionaires might not realize that yet, but people like Mamdani are going to save their lives by nibbling at their looted fortune.

You know, if I was a billionaire, I would quite literally want democratic socialists in charge because I'd feel safer if the entire goddamn population didn't have a reason to kill me for my monies.

It's not so much that we don't have inequality in Europe, but in most countries, even if you work minimum wage and barely get by, you can get sick, have to go to a hospital for treatment, pay nearly nothing out of pocket, and your time off work is also compensated.

People are a lot less desperate for change when a single health issue won't derail their entire lives. When people are less desperate, they're less likely to shoot rich people too. Let's not forget that Luigi, who may or may not have killed that UHC CEO, had chronic back pain requiring surgery. In his 20s. He came from a well-off family, but chances are his condition is/was going to cost him hundreds of thousands over his lifetime WITH insurance anyway.

Idolize the actions, not the person. No one is perfect. And people who have the skills to win elections are much more often "flawed". If the flaw ends up being something really bad and gets out, all the progress will be for naught. But if we idolize the actions, they can be separated from the person if need be.