Last week, a “Workers Strike Back Conference” took place in Seattle. Under the banner of Fight the Rich and Their Two Parties, former Green Party candidate for President, Jill Stein, and Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Chris Hedges, among others, spoke forcefully about–what else?–the 2025 assault on the Constitution by the GOP wrecking crew, and the harsh reality of how we arrived at this seeming nadir of political cynicism. It was, needless to say, not covered by much of the general media. It was, however, a streaming event, in addition to the live audience it attracted.

Hedges, in his clearly articulated analysis, repeated his critique of the entrenched two-party structure of governing–especially over the past 45 years. Ms. Stein echoed Chris’s speaking points and gave her first-hand perspective on how the Democrat Party, in particular, went out of its way to malign her Green Party candidacy. My assumption is that virtually all in attendance or those tuning in via streaming viewership value these two voices of reason and resistance. I’m sure there were a few trolls showing up, or commenting online about how easily this event should be dismissed as some very small fish in a very large, crowded pond, and as such an egregious affront to the very small, well tended-to pond occupied by the select few, very large fish.

Of course there are trolls whose personal or professional agenda is to be so dismissive of such non-conformist voices. They have been defending the failed duopoly for decades, long before the age of live streaming events, social media or podcasts. Sadly, and clearly, they have been quite successful in relegating third party riff raff like the Greens or Hedge’s truth-telling journalism far, far, far away from the media-at-large. Even some media-at-small as well. The public-at-large has overwhelmingly, mostly unwittingly, played along with this sinister, members only mentality of credible political options. Don’t waste your vote on a third-party, is akin to the Wizard telling Dorothy pay no attention to that man behind the curtain! Thus, the Duopoly, especially from Reagan on, keeps reeling in their catch with empty rhetorical bait about making their lives better. In that crowded pond in which they should be content to live.

What supreme irony, I  say. The “catch” is then turned into dinner for the entrenched ruling class to feast on, while taking turns blaming the other party for the countless catch caught in a clear bait-and-switch game.  And right now, in 2025, no matter whom anyone chose last November to run the show, they are on the menu, “they” being all but the uber rich. That is to say, it was a lose-lose proposition in the 2024 election from the get-go, rigged for the rich only, but about 150,000,000 people thought they had made the smarter choice. The smartest choice could have been available, on the ballot, with media coverage, but that was impossible. As already explained.

The Duopoly has reached its endgame, methinks, one way or the other. One way is the ongoing demolition of the rule of law that negates constitutional guardrails, aims at taking away social safety nets, healthcare, and public education and much more, and dares anyone or anything to try and stop it. Or. The other way?: the electorate refuses to be on the menu any longer. Which leads back to the Fight the Rich, end the duopoly event in Seattle. Sure, that kind of gathering is a matter of the individual having to search for it it, rather than rely on virtually any media outlet caring (or daring) to cover it. It has only been five weeks! Certainly, in that short time span, non-oligarchs should have experienced a brutal wake-up call/reality check. And it’s not just pissing and moaning about the “winner” in the 2024 election. It’s understanding clearly and compellingly that the losing party literally allowed this dystopian funk to descend upon the masses. The creep with a bizarre, deep orange visage, absolutely should have been charged, tried and convicted of trying to overthrow the government when he lost the 2020 election. It was TELEVISED. Having not bothered to use the overwhelming evidence of such an attempted coup and honor the rule of law, we now get the 2025 coup, 2.0. That’s the Duopoly. Two sides of the same sinister coin. It has to go. How? It’s up to We the People to get rid of the rot of this System.

I know, easier said than done.

The System has been shaped by people over many decades, and in turn have become shaped by it. Third party vote is a wasted vote. Nothing to see here, Dorothy. Trust in the System. Any problems we have are because of other people who hate you, and so you need to hate them back. Blah blah. But blah blah is what works, what seeps deeply into brainpans and dictates distrust of them, not us. Blah blah defies critical thinking. Which is now a superpower, evidently.

Rise up? Fight back? An internet-led revolt? Grab your virtual torches and pitchforks, and let the System catch hell. Don’t worry about other’s feelings. It’s a revolution. You’re in or you’re out. You are either part of the potential solution or still a large part of the present problem. You are either going to become a menu item in the luxury suites of the ever-needy greedy, or you can crash that scene, slap the venison, or sea urchin, or glass of 1968 Dom, out of their hands, and throw the bums out. Out into the large pond with many biting, pissed-off fish.

It is the Duopoly’s endgame. For sure. We have bottomed out with Frick and Frack governance. The greedy will kill to protect their power status; those without much status might kill to get it. Revolution? Whatever comes, it will be televised, streamed, podcasted, Tik-Tokked, YouTubed, Red Noted. You want the truth? As with events like Fight the Rich, you need to work at finding it. As noted great thinker, Noam Chomsky said, the truth won’t be poured into your head. It has to be attained on your own.