Ally vs. Friend & Why the Distinction Matters

The ruling class has no problem forming unlikely alliances

Americans don't seem to know the difference between a political ally and a friend, and this can have dire consequences both at the local level and when it comes to electing a president, whom they often choose for entirely the wrong reasons.  Let me break it down:  

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Ally:  Someone who stands together with you to accomplish a specific goal based on a shared interest.  They need not agree with you about anything else or be someone you'd want to sit down and have a beer with--the only qualification is having a shared political or social goal.  You may love, like or hate them on a personal level, but that's irrelevant.  The relationship is a practical alliance, not (necessarily) a deep or lasting connection.  

Friend:  Someone you'd want to sit down and have a beer with.  Usually shares more than one position or viewpoint with you.  Someone you vibe with; a person whose company you enjoy.  (You should NOT choose a president you would in theory like to "have a beer with," as this is both irrelevant to their ability to do the job and not gonna fucking happen). 

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Class war often requires uncomfortable ally-ship.  

When people try to equate "TERFs" (aka women with the gall to say "no") with the conservative Christian types who also oppose gender identity nonsense, I have to remind them of this.  Yes, we stand together on this one issue.  No, we don't share views on literally anything else.  We're not friends in real life.  We don't even agree on the trans stuff for the same reasons, but that's beside the point.  Women know we can't afford to engage in ideological puritanism because we'll get nowhere.  If we let people get us distracted by our differences, nothing but infighting will happen.  The mantra with any political movement must be:  Stay focused, get the job done, shake hands and go your separate ways when it's over.  This becomes even more important when your allies have such opposite beliefs from you.

This is a lesson the Left and, as a whole, the entire U.S. could really stand to learn.  I recall during the SAG/AFTRA strikes of 2023, there was an attempt to divert attention by bringing up the issue of Israel/Palestine, claiming that people like Fran Drescher weren't doing enough to take a stance on the matter.  Kathy Griffin recently was accosted with similar allegations.  This is patently ridiculous considering A.)  They're both actors/comedians, and B.)  They're both beloved human rights' activists who lean heavily to the Left, meaning they're ON YOUR SIDE.  Also:  this has nothing whatsoever to do with the reasons they were striking.  It's a totally separate issue worthy of attention, but not when they're already in the midst of another fight.  This raises the question:  who's really behind these nitpicky ideological purity tests that always seem to be dividing the Left into 50 warring, ineffective factions? 

It's not the job of entertainers to take a stand against ANY social issue--that's on our elected representatives who are literally paid to make laws, create budgets and do other political tasks.  If performers choose to take a public stance, great.  But you can't "force" them to.  And if they lend their name, image, time and effort to a movement or social cause that has civil rights implications, be grateful and stand with them.  Even if you disagree with their personal lives or other political views.  Stay focused on the goal at hand and don't let informants and disinformation agents stir up shit.  The Powers That Be know that our strength is in numbers, thus they'll always try to cause division and break up large movements like Occupy Wall Street, the No DAPL movement, the Black Power Movement, Anti-Nuclear Movement & Boycott, Divest, Sanctions (BDS).  Any time a social movement gets increased funding or visibility, it's a good thing.  But that also means it's now a prime target for those who wish to sew dissent & discord among its supporters, hence the need to stay focused & remember what differentiates a friend from an ally.