A Marxist politely told why I was wrong about almost everything and told me to read Marx.

It probably helps that I already had the same broad political goals, I just thought they could be achieved through liberalism and voting. They calmly and respectfully highlighted the contradictions in that way of thinking until I said, 'But how can we achieve any progress, then, if none of it is possible in capitalism?' 💡

A real lightbulb moment! Now read Marx, young redtea, he has the answers you're looking for.

So it took a while to get my head in the right space, where I needed to know the Marxist perspective on everything. Then I gorged on Marxist texts until I had re-educated myself.

I found r/GenZeDong through r/Sino. And I first heard of r/Sino from some Vietnamese gusano on r/AsianMasculinity (liberal brainrot sub) complaining that the sub is "becoming r/Sino." I was in these pro-Asian subs like AsianMasculinity and AznIdentity because of the spike in anti-Asian/anti-Chinese racism in 2020.

'Identity politics,' as some Marxists like to pejoratively put it, was what put me on this path and is what still keeps me here. I reckon a lot of the more dogmatic Marxists out there won't like this, but fuck them... I worry the fuck out of what will happen to me or Chinese people in general within the next few years.

I am not really sure how I became a communist like equality was always pretty important to me and I guess communism is just part of that but I found genzedong somwhere after r/chapotraphouse got banned and I made my lemmygrad account when genzedong got quarentined

Basically I started to have left-wing beliefs like anti-capitalism and LGBT tolerance during my edgy neocon days.

I've always hold sympathies for leftist causes. It is not that I was a red diaper as they say, but I was raised by my mother to help others and be compassionate. I think it is fair to say that her interpretations of Christianity and catholisism also had an effect in that, although I've never been too keen on the church. Even as a kid I admired Hugo Chavez, because while I didn't understand everything he said at the time, I knew he was talking and acting in favor of the working people in Venezuela. As an adult with class consciousness today I realize that growing up in a world where there's no Soviet Union has been quite fucked up and feel hopeful thanks to China's rise.

I feel I was primed to turn left in my politics since childhood and being a biologist the appreciation I gained for life in the planet was also a huge influence, but the pandemic was the turning point where I realized all the lies and the capitalist system as the driving force behind the crisis more than the virus. Marxism and dialectical materialism have exactly both the scientific outlook I always look for and the call to action that reminds me the world can be changed for better. Also, one day a colleague posted a video on facebook about K-pop's late stage capitalism and it was a rabbit hole from then on due to my ADHD making me hyperfixate on it.

I don't even remember how I found GenZedong, but I think it was through BayArea415. Damn, I miss him.

I wanted to find out what "socialism" meant

I've written out long-form versions of my radicalization journey. But I'm realizing that I may have always leaned towards the political left, and simply needed an awakening moment to know it.

When I learned about the atrocities that were committed by the British Empire, especially in India (I'm of Indian descent so that was of particular interest to me). I needed an outlet for my hatred of Anglos and I somehow discovered Genzedong. The memes were hilarious and simultaneously enlightening. One thing lead to another and I found myself supporting AES and eventually reading theory.

I was previously on the path to anarchism so I'm really glad I found GZD before I became a baby-brained idealist.

The rest is history.