When national politics goes to hell, think about your local community. If you and many of the people around you can do okay in your lives, that’s not so bad.

Another thing is to consider the comparison point. How are you doing compared with the average person living in Mali or Vietnam or Switzerland? Billions of people all over the world survive in situations that are definitely not ideal, and many of them are happy with their lives some of the time.

Tone down social media use and do a little prepping. Learn how to use mylar bags and properly store away rice, beans, lentils, pastas, etc.

Prep as if the internet is going down for a prolonged time, maybe even electricity in general.

You can stress about things after you’ve gotten your shit together for a prolonged emergency.

Understand that this isn’t the end of the world, just the end of the world as we know it. Humans are notoriously lazy and selfish, it will take a worldwide calamity before we get our collective shit together and do what’s right.

The people in charge have failed us for their own selfish interests. There’s nothing else to do except prep and make a better tomorrow.

Fuck doomerism.

Not much but snark

Spite and a need to see people get their just desserts

Curiosity, so I observe. I believe we have control over nothing and that free will is an illusion. Consciousness is a mystery, as much my own as the one I suppose others have. In the middle of the chaos, I sometimes see glimpses of beauty, in many forms: music, images, people’s behaviour, fiction, maths, nature… So I observe , I try to find patterns, to understand how things work, why others do what they do. I have found beauty in the very little things, what used to be chores I now enjoy, they were chores because “I thought I had better more important things to do”, I wanted to be “later” but now I know what matters is to live in the moment, and I’ll be living the next moment later.

Social media, the news, they are trying to grab your attention and project you to the future, what is the next threat, when are you likely to die or suffer. The truth is: we are all going to be dead eventually, it can be for many reasons, it can be in the next hour, or in thousands of years, we cannot know when, but we all know it will happen, doesn’t really help to worry too much about it.

Don’t waste your life trying to prevent your inevitable death. Enjoy it while you can. The rest is mostly out of your control anyway.

Hope? I have none. I continue on through the power of avoidance and denial. If I stop to think about things it turns into suicidal thoughts, so I just do my damnedest not to think.

Spite.

I have no hope, only fantasies that people will come to their senses someday. Hope? Nah.

What’s hope got to do with it? You survive. That’s it.

But for real, because my people have endured persecution before. As I look at our incoming persecution I see that we got further this time than in a long time and so we must endure and survive and go further again.

But no matter what you survive

I wouldn’t say I’m completely hopeful or doomed, the world is filled with terror and beauty. There are no gods or kings it’s just people. Historic and scientific education can help reduce anxiety about the unknown, change your own beliefs and behaviors to improve the situation locally before joining organizations looking to make broader changes. Learn what your fears are and face them, otherwise it will cloud your judgement and influence your decision making process.

Why not?

Honestly? I have no idea. Probably spite. Why should I kill myself? It’s the world that sucks.

Gaming with the homies. I ought to be able to get a couple dogs one day. I’m getting better at cooking. I meet new and amazing people every now and then.

I do my best to steer the world in the direction I’d like to see it go, and I try take pride in the effort, not in the results. The destination might look dark now but you can still enjoy the journey. I hope that makes sense.

My Factorio engineer can’t keep the thing going without me.