As an anxiety-reduction exercise--I got this from a therapist, once--let's envision every element of the worst-case scenario. Let's say we fail to hold an election that's widely viewed as free and fair, and the US descends into chaos and violence.
What's the very worst thing that could happen? Be detailed and plausible. What will *you do* if this happens? What's your plan?
The theory is that envisioning the worst case scenario, in detail--and then making a plan to cope with it--will diminish your anxiety.
The idea is that the most anxiogenic state is the vague sense of dread that accompanies feeling you have no control over a future you can't predict.
So describe the worst-case scenario, as far as you're concerned, then tell me how you plan to cope with it.
This can include--as it does, in my case--the fear that representative democracy will be discredited for millennia as a form of government; it can include--as it does, in my case--the fear that our instability will tempt hostile nations to test our security commitments,
and that this will quickly escalate into a nuclear exchange.
I haven't quite worked out my plan yet, but maybe knowing how you plan to cope with this will give me a few good ideas.
So what will we do, my fellow Americans? There's no legitimate president or chain of command; Americans are fighting Americans in the street, and half the country has disappeared in a nuclear war. Do we just ... give up?
Is it over? Did you say "over?"
Who's with me in deciding that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth--and we will figure out how, somehow?
Who's with me in establishing an American government in exile, if need be?
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