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RedEmmaSpeaks wrote

I don't see why it should be an either/or thing. Can't we both educate the public and carry out direct action?

I have mixed feelings on the use of violence, but even Gandhi said that if you're ever in a situation where your only options are violence or cowardice, you should choose violence. Both are sins, but cowardice is the far greater one.

But what irritates me about so many Anarchists who are obsessed with violent direct action, is that they fucking suck at strategy. We are up against the State which has massive amounts of men and resources to throw at us, so we are working with a very small margin of error. As such, we need to plan and act carefully. However satisfying Micah Xavier Johnson may have found his attack on the Dallas cops to be, the truth is strategy-wise, he didn't accomplish much. He knocked off a few cops, but there are plenty more to step up and take their place.

There is satisfaction to be found in petty revenge, but its accomplishments are short-lived; the State easily cleans up the mess and continues on as usual. Read up on strategy regarding both violent and nonviolent resistance, learn what bottlenecks are and how to exploit them to your advantage. As always, play smarter, not harder.

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