I’m so tired of it all that I am having trouble even caring anymore, and I’m simply disheartened by every corner of the globe and with every type of people. If the few states like China who have the capacity to challenge it are so self-centered and worried about their own lineage that they allow vast populations of people to become either subjugated or eradicated without even attempting to step in, then I have no hope that our species will survive when analyzing the rest of it. It’s clear that nobody with means is really willing to do anything serious about it and at this point I feel like we’re all just watching the final consumption of the world by capitalism and people really don’t care.
Frankly I don’t think any of us will make it. Only the people the furthest under the boot really have the will, yet since they have zero means, nothing can change. People don’t really care about defeating capitalism or white supremacy, and most refuse to overlook cultural differences to collectivize strongly enough to make an impact. Further, the environment will wipe us out long before capitalism is dismantled anyway, so for all intents and purposes, it seems like it’s already over. The curse of short human lifespans means that most don’t care since they feel the inevitability of it all given the time they have, and by the time the average person even becomes conscious enough of their condition to feel the hunger for change, their biological limitations make it feel pointless. Since most see this life as the only chance they have, why throw it away on making ripples into an ocean? May as well let someone else do that and enjoy what tiny corner you’ve carved while you can, and let it burn.
This is the most difficult realization / feeling I’ve ever had, far more than any structural or systemic elucidation in my political and ideological growth. Maybe it’s just that I’m a pessimist and feel miserable today and about what’s happening to Venezuela and Cuba and Palestine and Congo and Sudan and etc. etc. But I can’t shake the feeling that this is all pointless and going nowhere. Trying to stay positive seems sisyphean. The human condition and psychological barriers seem too strong and too embedded, and I fear that no awakening is enough to really push us over the edge of real change or challenge. And the environmental catastrophe is inevitable, since capitalism spurs it.
I just can’t see a way forward and I don’t know what that makes me anymore. Maybe nothing.
Idk man its not fully about us making it but hopefully humanity making it as well.
“Trying to stay positive seems sisyphean.” Call me sisyphus cuz im bout to sisy my phus all over the world-- i mean you have to grow a thick skin if you are a socialist and kinda be a little sociopathic** cuz any amount of empathy/emotional weakness does fuck you up
**Edit for future readers I DID NOT MEAN BECOME A SOCIOPATH I MISUSED THE TERM. What I meant was have a life outside of socialism so negative events affect you less. Too much empathy and emotional weakness does incapacitate people, so take care of yourself before you go out and try to “save the world”.
Pic of kitty for example will help with depression
No, this is like the opposite of what you need. This is just toxic masculinity but with some words swapped out to make it about socialism.
I mean how do you cope with hearing about all the L’s and absolutely zero W’s? Idk about the toxic masculinity thing though, what i said was just dont let global news destroy your mental health, learn to care but not feel down 24/7. If things and people get under your skin easily you will represent the movement negatively and scare people away fron socialism. Not to mention all the side effects of depression which will also make you a very fragile and easily demotivated revolutionary. I mean thats not even the worst part of depression, take care of yourself before you act like a hero and end up harming yourself.
Picture of cat cuz funny.
Thanks for explaining your thought process more in this and the other comment. In general, yes, learning to look after ourselves and each other’s mental health is important. My reason for pushing back is I don’t want people’s takeaway to be that they should become more cold or detached as a response. It is hard to deal with all the bad news sometimes. It’s one of the reasons I appreciate the posts on the grad about China’s positive developments. It’s important that we not get lost only in one negative vector of news and lose sight of what all is happening. And yes, it is important to have more to our lives than, like, reading news and discussing it from a communist standpoint. Those who want to organize full time, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that in terms of mental health. But internet reading and posting alone does not make for a well-rounded person. Ultimately, we need sources of human connection in our lives, not just detached, academic discussion.
I think @SigmaStalin@lemmygrad.ml is saying that we shouldn’t let the situation get the better of us. Being sociopathic isn’t about cheating or manipulating people, most of the time it’s just about seeing the situation and not letting it negatively affect your emotions.
By definition, sociopathy is about being anti-social (not to be confused with being asocial, which is more just avoidant of social interaction). It is absurd to try to rewrite the definition of sociopathy into something entirely different and nice-sounding.
There are two ways I can think to look at this:
You’re describing denial/repression of emotions. Everyone has emotions and we have to learn how to regulate and process them. Denying or repressing them does not help anything.
You’re describing regulation of emotions, which has nothing to do with sociopathy and has to do with acknowledging and processing what you feel.
I didnt mean like become anti social, I meant dont let negative events affect you emotionally too much. I shouldnt have used “sociopath”, thats on me.
What I am describing isnt surpressing emotions rather having a life outside of socialism so that you dont get invested too much in the first place. I should have and could have worded it better
Being anti-social is a good thing though. I want people to be angry and see trump for what he is, a war monger with an ambition to rule the world. Yes it’s important to offer alternatives but you still have to bring down the existing political structures to achieve your aim.
I don’t believe in suppressing emotions, I mean that people should be less shocked by things especially when these shocking things happen all the time.
Nononono being anti social is not a good thing
It’s not. Opposing a system of power and being anti-social are not the same thing. Anti-social in the context of conditions where revolution can form would be, at best, adventurist and aimless violence.
The problem goes far beyond Trump. He is the current face of the western empire, but the empire has been doing horrible things long before him and will after him if it’s not stopped.
I mean, I would rather people always find brutality shocking than accept it as normal, but if you mean in the context of people acting like brutality began yesterday and has never been seen before, then sure. Liberals have a tendency to act like history began yesterday when colonialism has been going on for hundreds of years.