You are so much better than these fascist oligarchs, don’t let them rule your mind.
The news cycle loves these fucks and nothing they say or do deserves a reaction TO THEM, only towards the people they hurt. People like Trump, Musk and their ilk are little whiny diaper babies who can’t differentiate between good and bad attention. It’s insane that we have to think about these people at all. Reader, I don’t know you, and I can pretty much guarantee you are a better person than those in power right now BY EVERY MEASURE. And I don’t want to invalidate your fear, especially if you’re part of a group they’re targeting or plan to target- but I do want to say that they as people do not deserve the space they take up in your brain. Even government orgs themselves don’t deserve that when you’re trying to rest or recharge.
We’re being bombarded with executive orders that will eventually make our lives or the lives of loved ones absolute hell- but there are questions to ask yourself when you feel overwhelmed by the constant barrage of bad news. Like “Can I do anything about this right now?” If not, it does not deserve your thought. Until you can think of something to actually DO about this, all it does is take up space in your brain and wear you down over time. (Sidenote, I am offering free appointments to activists and activist groups fighting this regime or serving communities in need provided scheduling works out.)
If you feel guilt over not protesting more, having time or financial constraints on what you’re able to do, not knowing how to organize, etc. Rest assured that you are not only not alone, but that your guilt is serving no one. Not yourself, not the people who are able to protest or organize, not marginalized communities, nobody. Your guilt is either a call to action or it’s worthless, depending your answer to whether you can do anything about this right now. Remember, you cannot let them beat you down in your own mind or render you helpless before you can even do anything! And small actions DO count as doing something. Sitting in community, tiny donations, volunteering your time or skills to a charity or activist org for even a few hours. Anything. Uplifting and hanging with friends even.
If the people and orgs themselves are really plaguing you, especially during your leisure time, I suggest trying the Projection Dissolving tool but with a caveat- do not bother with step 3. Your mental image of these people doesn’t need to be apologized to because these billionaire oligarchs are fucking cartoons already* and your mental image of them cannot possibly be worse than what they actually are. There’s a reason satirists do not focus on fascist individuals or orgs in particular- you can’t heighten their absurdity. And that’s what step 3 is really about- checking yourself for creating a cartoonish absurd version of the person or organization that has too much power over you or creates an unequal dynamic. In this case, the dynamic is real, they just need to get the fuck out of your head because you’re better than them.
*my ex wrote for SNL in 2015. He came home from meeting Trump ranting and pacing so fast I thought he was gonna tread a hole in the ground like a cartoon. He just kept going “HE CAN’T READ! HIS HAIR IS LIKE THE MC ESCHER PAINTING WITH THE STAIRS!”
