I wouldn't be surprised...

[Mr. Scorpio]

If these so-called "Freedom" anti-vax/anti-mask/anti-COVID mitigation protests are part of a Russian disinformation campaign to disrupt the Western allies.

Just saying...

Either that, or this white grievance apocalyptic death cult that's hell-bent on turning our societies into a huge gaggle of fucking dysfunctional morons is much bigger than I accounted for.

Or...

The Media is just simply depicting these groups of wack jobs as bigger and more influential than they actually are.

Or...

Perhaps we've generally neglected to build support mechanisms in our social contracts to help people cope with lapses in services, because of the massive inequality of wealth distribution in the world.

No matter what... We all have a lot of work to do in order to get through all of this.

Unfortunately, I have this nagging feeling that we're all now experiencing a prelude to a bigger, more dire global crisis. One that'll render a sea change in the world's balance of power down the road.

Anybody wanna talk me down?

[Wicked Blue]

1. i concur about Russian involvement nt

[Sneederbunk]

2. The Western allies can walk and chew gum at the same time.

[underpants]

3. ❤️

My last ❤️ to give away.

[BumRushDaShow]

4. All of the above

It's an all-out assault.

[Sogo]

5. This one gets my vote:

"The Media is just simply depicting these groups of wack jobs as bigger and more influential than they actually are."

[Hekate]

6. Based on what's come out over the years about FB and other social media, I agree about the Russians

They are far from the only source, but they have proven their ability to push narratives and to stir the pot.

Our American social contract has frayed and broken down. Education is breaking, and a common public education is or was part of our social contract.

The Media amplifies the loud, aggressive, hostile, ignorant minority for reasons of their own. However, a violent minority can still demolish a country.

I console myself that we Dems are in the majority. I despair that our system is as broken as it is.

I agree about the global crisis. A couple of years ago (pre-COVID) I realized there was a wave of populism sweeping across the globe, and that populists will end up voting for authoritarians in the end — a strongman to quell the chaos.

There’s a concept of historic cycles in Hinduism, called yugas. The most terrible and destructive is the Kali Yuga. I’m a mythologist, not a Hindu, so I don’t measure yugas by half-million year segments. But there I was, struck with the consideration that in the cycles of history that occur on a human scale, ours may be coming to a self-inflicted end — the climate crisis, and the rise of populism rooted in fear, anger, and ignorance. The so-called American Experiment, grounded in the mythos of the Enlightenment, may not survive. But what I see is world-wide, not just here.

As for nations that are already autocratic, what do they care? Russia and China both continually probe us for weakness — as does Iran, but I don’t know if they try to move in to our political structure the way China and Russia do. Recently I began to wonder if the way Russia is snuggling up to China might result in a pincer movement against us. (Last week, Fareed Zakaria called Putin’s Russia “a satrap of China,” which made me laugh like hell.)

I know this isn’t very cheery, but at least I’m not writing this at 1:30 a.m. at my psychological low ebb.

Haven’t seen you in awhile. Gave you a heart.