I'm just sick of it
The power hungry rule politics and the media boost them. Can't they just leave us alone? We all have better things to do.
Please just stop. I've given up my citizenship to escape this. I can’t even read any news in any country without the irrelevant political race showing up. Errant thoughts keep coming to mind and I keep reflecting on the importance of something that is completely meaningless. I’m writing this to try and get all those thoughts out of my head.
Disclaimer - this is meant as a rough, rambling and informal rant. If you prefer more reasoned writing, skip this one.
It's two (equally) old, white men caught in some obsession with their dicks; unable to accept the fact that the world has moved on. A picture-perfect example of useless people with institutional lock-in. They know so many people with power that they can't help themselves but live up to my worst expectations. The topic is so overwhelming that it penetrates my news-isolated, Substack bubble-bunker. Globally we are civilian casualties to a political “war of spite” between those with privilege enough to take part. People in that country that can vote do so to spite the other cult of personality instead of some tangible belief in a better tomorrow. And the media loves it. It’s real-life “reality” TV better than anything available; made better due to the money pouring into creating absolutely nothing of value.
A sizable percentage of the world seems happy to lap-up this spectacle from the water bowl of distraction. Somehow this political spectacle distracts us all from doing meaningful things like watching endless Netflix and replying to another important email or WhatsApp or Instagram or Tick or… Does it even matter anymore? We all desire to dull the pain of reality. A reality that is increasingly visible, confusing, complex, and completely and utterly outside of our control. Waking up every day to have the meaninglessness of our lives rubbed in our faces. The universe and time are effectively infinite, making my life insignificant. Much better to escape into an important argument between kings over new clothing.
It doesn’t matter. It shouldn’t matter.
Politics in so many places is loud and obnoxious because it doesn't matter anymore. It takes a special kind of power hunger to want to be a politician and once you are one you expect that people will take you seriously. When they don’t, start screaming! They scream louder than anyone else to quiet the tiny voice telling them inside that their life is a joke and everyone is laughing at them. Well… Not exactly ‘everyone.’ There are a lot of loyal zombies who will wear their hats and fantasize about making love to their effigies. But do those people really count? If someone says they love you because of the sound of your voice and the look on your face but don’t understand a single thing that you say…
And I'm sick of it. It makes me feel horrible to watch people scream at each other and cook up justifications for nonsense and their ego. The only glimmer of comfort that I can hide behind is that it all really doesn’t matter. All the stuff we see is a distraction from the real conversations happening. People reach out and solve problems like they always have throughout the thousands of years of human history (reminder: we will not live to see it!). Is this a necessity? The screaming distracts people long enough for other important stuff to get done. Occasionally, politics helps move things along faster. But mostly governments, companies and people get things done despite politicians.
Humanity at its worst.
We see the worst examples of horrible people. People who enjoy bullying enjoy lying because it is how they have always gotten what they wanted. And power, power, power. But even that, it’s all part of the show, right? The drama doesn’t make sense unless it’s got some good-vs-evil. It's boring to just talk about things as they are. Let’s make it more fun!
It’s just exhausting. How many years of this shit? I can't make them shut up. No one can. Their actions are perfectly predictable. Every event, shooting or rant will be received and responded to. A new spin each day, but always downwards.
I want to scream at them and the long line of other entitled (mostly men) who just standup and scream for their own ejaculation of power. Knowing full well what they are doing. Doing it because it’s fun. Two of a parade of entitled old men obsessed with power and whom we owe nothing to. Once elected to office, any of their accomplishments are tied directly to accidental hiring of competent people who got things done despite their vocal vomit. Who knows? Maybe because of the show, those competent people can have space to tinker. If the politicians were competent people might pay attention to the actual policies… No… That is hoping for a world that we simply do not live in.
It won’t solve all the problems.
This all comes from an illusionary belief that if we just did this other thing, we could solve all the problems. Which is a lie. The problems won’t be solved that easily. Nothing will be solved quickly by switching sides other than a reassurance to our egos. It's dangerous that we are sold this imaginary belief because it’s an axe hovering over the neck of the next group that replaces the earlier group. Everyone is holding each other to impossible standards.
I stopped being American long before I gave up my citizenship. I was disillusioned by the disconnect between the political discourse and the living reality of most people. And the complete disinterest by those in power to change things. That is also my own problem. I got too caught up in the drama, still insisting it was real. Yet hopefully a majority have already internalized that it’s just a show (a lot of people don’t even bother to vote). All lies and fakery. Two sides of different moral and institutional corruption. Just make your choice and enjoy the ride.
Amazing things happen worldwide at a local, community level despite the disfunction systemic in our political systems. It's just a reality of any human system. The more people, the more layers, and the more opportunity for rot and disfunction. Then it's only a matter of time before rot overwhelms. In the best outcomes, the rot at the top distracts enough that people can build better things at the bottom. I’m just sick of the show. The drama that always ends the same. I want to talk about other things.
One play at the lottery.
We live in a world of unequal odds determined at birth. We pretend that there is equal opportunity. Another lie in the political theater. A lie that we all willingly believe and yet don’t believe. That is the magic of human cognition to live in an imagined story, enjoy it, feel its emotions, while knowing it is a dream.
In life we get one play at the lottery wheel when we are born, and our odds are set from there on out. A micro percentage of us get a second roll and those examples are rubbed in our faces constantly to justify why our lives could change if only we worked harder. Why are you wasting time reading this? Work harder! Or we all just need a rich dad… Certainly, we can fix that if we just try again?
This illusion is powerful. It's easy to manipulate anyone with a desire for a better life. Politics has learned more from multilevel marketing and Ponzi schemes than any other area. Multilevel marketing for the obsessive compulsive need to sell a world view for your own self benefit and Ponzi schemes for the illusion that your donations are going to be returned multiple times over. Politics is just another episode in the religion of entertainment that we live in.
Politicians fly first class, take favors from businesses, and hobnob with the stars with your cash donations. It's all a big scam and we subject ourselves to it directly. The disease of politics corrupts every conversation it touches, turning well-meaning individuals into birds regurgitating half-eaten junk and screaming at each other fighting for a bite of the bile.
And the horrible truth is it all doesn't matter. Whichever party wins the other side will keep everything locked. These problems won't be solved in our lifetimes by politicians who individually represent less than .01% of the population of any country. They will die. We will die. The problems will remain. And slowly over hundreds of years things will get incrementally better as people do insignificant things, together.
Angry? Let’s play a different game.
This makes you angry? Go work for government. Go help your schools and local community. Recognize that real change happens on an individual and local level. Recognize any meaningful change you desire will take years and coalitions of people. The biggest issues in society won’t be solved during our lifetimes. You can impact people and test your views and theories. National politics is just a distraction and a comedy show. If you are thinking whether to play that game, you have already lost. It's rigged. When you know the game is rigged you can join in and try to cheat. Or you can leave. Play another game. Make your own game.
I left America for many reasons including a complete disillusionment with national politics and institutional corruption. Even as a Singaporean I cannot escape it - American politics corrupts everything. But I can do one thing. I can walk away. I can play a different game. My own game.
The world will die. I will die. I should spend the time I have left making a difference. If one politician could ruin the world, humanity wouldn't reach the point that we are at today. The disfunction is sometimes reassuring. If we were too efficient, we would have found a way to kill everyone long ago.
It’s like watching a YouTube video of two chickens fighting that leaves you feeling uncomfortable and uncertain about how to talk with the person who shared it. The only difference is that the video is surrounded by people screaming at you about how this fight is critical to the survival of humans. But it's not. It's just a cock fight. A sad, old cock fight that ends the same way every time.