You’re right, I’ve definitely been doomscrolling way too much.
I think the biggest thing holding me back is the idea that it is too late to do anything because my life could effectively be over in less than a few months. I see lots of people dooming about fascist purges and the end of societal function and think, “Well, how do I know for sure that they’re wrong? I don’t know enough about society to make a solid prediction either way.”
And so my brain thinks “There is a reasonable chance that my life is over (or at least the ladder to make any life progress gets pulled up) in a few months. If everything I do is all for naught, then why bother?” It’s a belief that I have no long-term agency.
I think that in order to move forward, I have to disprove the idea of me being targeted in a fascist purge and complete economic collapse happening anytime soon with reasonable certainty. Are those sound predictions, or are they just nightmares dreamt up by a bunch of armchair historian doomers exaggerating how quickly these things happen? Is the theory that the “day one mass deportations” include all known political dissidents actually possible, or are the logistics too insane to work? That’s what I have to figure out, or else I will likely continue to believe that I am helpless.
In other words, I think it’s quite plausible that I’m reading misinformation, but the fact that I don’t know it for sure is preventing me from dismissing it outright.
Thank you for the thoughtful reply!
Thanks for the suggestion! I’ll definitely consider it.
Yeah, I’m never going to vote for any Republicans or spoiler candidates. I will say though, the complex labyrinthine mess of lies and ideologies that only exist to entrench the power of those at the top at everyone else’s peril is impressive.
I was raised by emotionally abusive right-wingers and had to spend my entire childhood fighting antisocial bullshit theories about how I shouldn’t be allowed to show emotions or kindness and I should treat the opposite gender like trash.
I literally hated myself for years until someone sincerely complimented me for said kindness, as much as I tried to hide it. It was so surprising to me that I opened up to her about my insecurities. She shattered my entire worldview and gently told me to stop listening to the dummies who convinced me to hate myself, because they themselves were miserable people who would only drag me down with them.
The level of stupidity from the GOP kept rising (the COVID conspiracies were among the dumbest things I had ever seen) and I realized that she was right. These people were promoting utter nonsense, and I had been conned. There was no reason for any of these norms; they were just carried by generational inertia and promoted by grifters.
In the years following, I developed strong left-wing values and learned that all of the dumb social hierarchy stuff just serves those in power. They promote hatred and bigotry for their own gain. They are the reason for my childhood being shitty. Their entire movement is one big scam.
I aspire to be a total sweetheart and a supportive, loving friend, because that’s what I truly want. Billionaires HATE it when you help people for free. Giving people things to fulfill their needs, doing favors out of love and compassion, being there in times of emotional need…
I mean, could you imagine how terrible it would be for billionaires if those ideas became widespread? They wouldn’t like that. Nooo! Don’t work together! Keep fighting each other! Uh, here, read this news article based on a single ragebait Twitter post that PROVES your neighbors hate you! And look, here’s a tweet from billionaire genius Elon Musk saying your attitude is destroying the country! We NEED artificial scarcity! Don’t you want to go to Mars? STOP HELPING EACH OTHER!!
Whatever I end up doing, I hope I can touch a lot of hearts and minds while doing so. After all, it only took one person’s kindness to literally change my life.