It’s hard to know what to do.
I’m concerned about climate change. I spent 20 years not driving, buying locally, going to protests, organizing my local political party, avoiding flights, and trying to work for NGOs.
It kinda sucked. I missed out on things. I didn’t have much money. I spent time trying to figure out how to do the right thing. I didn’t have a car, so getting around sucked. My stuff sucked because I thrifted.
When I had kids, I went mainstream. I got a car. Started traveling on my vacations. Bought stuff new. Got a job with a corporation. Life is so much easier. The only thing I miss is volunteering.
I still vote my conscience, and try to buy sustainably, but I did my time. I’m done sacrificing my quality of life while assholes are living it up.
Yeah that is the thing. Even if everyone did what you were doing, the main pollution is still not coming from people but large companies and the like. It’s like recycling. Make your life shittier but nothing really changes. Your life just sucks and you feel better about the environment even though no noticeable change happens but you did your part.
Spot on…
Time for Eco-sabotage to become mainstream.
Im doing the sacrifice thing but not really. I don’t like cars to begin with and live near transit, new things suck and I can find quality thrift stuff, the not traveling I can get but I have a lot of nice things to appreciate in my area. I don’t organize or protest though and work based on pay and perks. I have a sick wife so I have enough on my plate and if someone thinks im not doing enough they can walk a mile in my shoes and then tell me what they think. Of course I vote though as your nuts to not in a democracy. Like many things its nice to experience them while you can. (“you guys remember federal parks. oh yeah those were great. and voting. that was so cool.”)
I hope things work out with your wife.
Do what works for you and what feels right. When my kids are older, I’m going to get back into volunteering. I miss the people and shared goal - that was easily the best part of that lifestyle.
Thanks. She has a lot of things that are just not going to get better so its mostly a mitigation strategy as well as a prioritizing of medical issues. Mostly we are just appreciating the heck out of the simple things while we got them. Roof over head, food in belly, bills paid, its the bomb. Im almost glad about enshitification in the sense it makes it so easy to do this stuff. I mean I tell you im not super tempted to take a vacation involving a flight right now.
Unless you’re a billionaire or willing to shoot someone vigilante-style, there’s nothing you can do that’s going to impact anyone outside of your own neighborhood.
But if everyone brings positive effects their own neighborhood
…it’ll probably be out done 1000x by the negative effects of an industrial plant or something…
but it will still make your part of the world a nicer place to be!
But if everyone goes hunting for just one billionaire…
It’s okay to make your own neighborhood a little bit better though.
That’s kind of tautological, isn’t it? “Unless you’re willing to make the world better, there’s nothing you can do that’s going to make the world better”
I’m sure this will be an unpopular opinion but I think the idea that shooting people is the main positive contribution to be made to the world is unimaginative and incorrect
Yeah, It’s a fantasy in the same vein as punching your boss. It’s not a solution to your problems, just an end to one or two, at best. At worst it just makes everything worse.
What if I don’t like my neighborhood because its full of backwards morons?
I’m convinced most of the accounts accusing people of being “doomers” are astroturfers trying to gaslight people into complacency.
Being a doomer makes you complacent though?
If you think we’re doomed, (like I kind of do) you lose motivation to do anything.
I don’t want to be a fucking doomer I want people to convince me to stop being one and no one seems able.
You have to use the doom & gloom to motivate you into action. It’s a useful piece to differentiate between performative and productive actions.
Please unplug from the news, at least sometimes. For you own mental wellbeing
I unplugged a year ago and it has been great. Highly recommended.
I largely have as well, but I fucking hate that forced ignorance is my only path to mental and emotional regulation.
I was having a great morning until I remembered how broke i am and that I have to go to the pawn shop after work to pawn something for gas money. But hey the economy is doing great
Fuck it, Dude. Let’s go bowling.
Hey cousin, let’s go bowling
I am not following. It is not my job to change how other people feel, is it? Of course we should try to change the world, but that’s different from people feeling down.
