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Working on a book that explains how we came to this moment of dysfunction, chaos, and suffering. Some of the causes are becoming increasingly clear, and, for the first time, I'm starting to have some hope as to how we can change things and get moving in the right direction. 1/
It should come to no surprise that the main problem is the myth of America that has taken hold, the narratives that perpetuate which hide what's actually happening in place of simpler explanations and actual progress. We're stuck, way stuck, in a knot of myths and narratives. 2/
These narratives are, no surprise, based so much in the perpetuation of white supremacy and the controlling of populations by means of pitting them against one another while avoiding actual populism and progress. They've been sold for generations. 3/
Over time these myths and narratives have been adopted by historians, public figures, and mass media as readily-acceptable stories of how history has worked. They hide the truth however, and as we get further lost in them they lose meaning as they contradict each other. 4/
An example: In the 90's Bill Clinton was a moderate Democrat leading the New Democrats, a version of centrist Republicans. It should have been the moment of bipartisanship the GOP dreamed of. Instead, they turned him into a socialist for votes. Their principles withered. 5/
Because Republicans cast Clinton as a socialist demon, their actual principles, which he held to, became meaningless. They only held their narrative, which spun off into conspiracy fevers that lead to things like Trump and QAnon and the like. 6/
The problem is that these myths have been perpetuated by mass media that churns them out and repeats them. This happens every night on the news, in our movies, our shows, our advertisements. All of it. And with each repetition they become stronger and lose meaning. 7/
The point is this. We have come to view politics in this country as a spectacle, a television show beyond our control. As a result, our politicians and institutions have become characters with little responsibility to our wants or desires. 8/
We're watching this Trump debacle and waiting on them to take care of it, for the media to take care of it, but literally everyone profits off the dysfunction of his spectacle. They have no economic reasoning whatsoever to stop Trump. He honestly does help them. 9/
We, as citizens, have to take some collective action to begin using the economic models as a mode of change. We need to form consumer unions where we withdraw support in the form of our money from companies that perpetuate this and media that perpetuates it. 10/
By not clicking on articles, by not turning on telecasts, we need to send a message that we demand better coverage of news and politics. We need to demand context and historical background, because that's what's been held from us. 11/
The explanations for why we've arrived at this point are out there, but education has been gutted, academia has been walled off by conservatives. We're unable to piece things together because those things are scattered. It's all there...it just takes motivation. 12/
If we were to demand more diverse voices in our news, if we were to demand history and context versus the SportsCenterization of politics, if we could break the cultural hegemony, then we could start to actually piece together where we are and how we got here. 13/
The bad news is that corporations and corporate news aren't going to do this out of the good of their hearts. There has to be an economic incentive and there has to be economic consequences. Trump and his brand of politics won't go away if there aren't. 14/
But if we reassert ourselves beyond social media, which is just a pressure release valve, and actually push our collective thumb on the scale, then things might actually change. But it's going to take tons of personal effort, discipline, and organization. 15/
The only answer is for citizens to cast off the illusion that we are powerless and politics is just a television show. Once we do that, this entire thing can change. But if we keep believing we're separated from power and are powerless, there's no telling where this will go 16/16
