1/ We are in a civilizational catastrophe. Not just one, but a series of them. So much so that scholars and elder statesmen—all of whom are assuredly on the center and left—call it “permacrisis” and “polycrisis.”

theissue.io/untitled-38/ 2/ You see, we all know that we’re in a civilizational catastrophe right about now. All of us.

1/5: In the age of polycrisis and permacrisis, we often overlook how deeply it's changing us, from individuals to societies. Young people, stretched across generations, feel numb and overwhelmed, showing classic signs of trauma.

theissue.io/untitled-34/ 2/5: Trust in mainstream institutions is waning, leading to the rise of alternative figures and entities, some with alarming ideologies. The erosion of trust extends beyond politics to media and leadership.

1. If it feels like the world’s unravelling…that’s because it is. I know, I know, I’ve patented that line by now. Today, though, we’re going to discuss it in a little more detail. It’s a macro trend by now, that everyone should be thinking about. Let me put it more formally—we can call this one “global disintegration.”

theissue.io/macro-trends-w… 2. “Global Disintegration. The unravelling of modern, post-war institutions holding our world together.” That definition might sound dramatic, but the truth is you’ve already been alarmed by one aspect of this macro trend.

1/ Today we’re going to talk about the collapse of global democracy. Take a look at this chart; what does it show? 2/ There are charts, and there are charts. Those that tell the story of eras in history, point to great transformations, and illustrate great macro trends in our world.

1/ The majority of Americans are “cashflow negative.” 70% feel “financially traumatized.” Young people are “numb” and “can’t function.”

medium.com/p/2b902ad244c1 2. It’s in this sense that capitalism needs critical appraisal. When we see numbers like this, we’re all but forced to ask the question, at least if we’re thinking seriously, is this system working?

Here's the stark reality: When lunatics control your society, democracies shatter. From threats of shutdowns to horrifying, daily acts of violence, the message is this: "We can take everything away."

The perfect example? America, today. 1/7 The constant threats of government shutdown, with potentially another one looming next month? It’s not about demands. It's not even about tangible power. It’s a raw assertion of power—control for the sake of control. The message? We'll burn it down just to prove we can. 2/7

If someone told you HALF of our global economies would be destroyed due to climate change, would you believe them?

Well, the research doesn’t lie. We're on a collision course, and this is a data-driven reality check. 1/7 New research from a group that’s the antithesis of "alarmists"—The British Institute of Actuaries—just dropped a bombshell. They have zero motives to exaggerate.

Their take? We’ve SEVERELY underpriced climate risk. 2/7

Here's a startling fact: the first "global stocktake" on climate change just happened, and its conclusions are chilling.

Our planet? Off track. We're headed for a temperature rise of up to 2.6°C. A century's progress? Reversing. The age we're entering? Unimaginable to many. 1/7 Think 2.6°C isn't alarming? Brace yourself. As the planet warms beyond 1.5°C, massive parts will face lethal heatwaves. Healthy individuals could die within hours, leading to mass fatalities, especially where air conditioning is a luxury. 2/7

Hawaii in flames, 100 dead and counting. Thousands evacuated in Spain. Thousands of hectares of Portugal, on fire. The blazes in Canada? So far, they’ve destroyed an area the size of… Greece. Oh, and Greece? It’s on fire, too.

We're surrounded by megafailure. 1/7 How did we end up in this mess? A cascade of failures.

Extremism is on the rise, right-wing specifically. A failure of the right to rein in its worst, to offer less extreme views, to advance the wise. Conservatives' failure is the tip of the iceberg. 2/7

See that chart? That's the US suicide rate--and it's on a steep, steep rise.

Suicides in the U.S. are more common now than at any time since World War II. The growing despair of American life. Stressors are hitting from every angle, and we're only beginning to understand it. 1/6 Loneliness. The biggest predictor of suicide and a growing epidemic. Americans are incredibly isolated and it's only worsening.

Nearly half of all Americans report having fewer than three close friends. The erosion of social bonds and ties is a slow, ongoing catastrophe. 2/6

Wildfires are wreaking havoc through Hawaii. Billowing clouds of smoke and ash. People yelling "go, go, we can't do anything for her!" Others left for dead. People, jumping into the ocean  to survive.

Climate change is a civilizational emergency. 1/8
A shockwave is racing around the globe. Is this really happening? So hard, this fast? People sense something’s changed this summer. A phase shift. Not "a" heatwave, or "a" fire. We're talking continental, hemispheric, global scales. It's climatic future shock. 2/8

Our civilization has a Reality Problem. The right denies empirical facts; the center and left ignore historical truths. We say “climate change” instead of “global warming.” “Fake news” instead of “propaganda."

What happens when a society lies to itself? It can't function. 1/6 Not "propaganda" but "fake news." Not "fascism" but "nationalism." We refuse to call things what they are. Our language becomes stunted, self-coined, meaningless. It doesn't just hide the truth; it replaces it with illusion. It subtracts from reality. What can that lead to? 2/6

Remember when Covid hit, and “we were all in it together"?

Now? Covid isn't gone. But if you do take precautions, people will insult, mock, even harass you.

We learned something grim from the pandemic: People won't change a thing about their lives, even for their own good. 1/6 It took us millennia to discover scientific miracles like vaccines, masks, and sanitizers. Now we’re not using a single one. Meanwhile, Covid rages on — yet another wave’s arriving. The elderly, ill, frail, immunocompromised are... sacrificed to it. 2/6

Imagine a decade ago I told you, "Everything that can go wrong will go wrong. Climate change will accelerate, fascism will rise again. The economy will stagnate. A pandemic is coming. Oh and—have you heard of wet bulb temperature?"

You'd have laughed at me.

But here we are. 1/6 Our world economy, based on predatory capitalism, is an abject failure at this juncture in human history. Did it make us rich? Hardly.

America and China, the Great Consumer and Producer, face despair. The real beneficiaries? The ultra-rich, as the planet melts down to boot. 2/6

Call it the Great Gaslighting of the 2020s. "Climate change obsession's a mental disorder"? Meanwhile, the real world’s on fire. People are dying, and we're being told we care too much. The norm? Indifference. The message?

"Learn to live with it."

1/6 We're being gaslit to normalize the moral logic of fascism. Think about it. "Learn to live with it" = let the strong survive and the "weak" die.

That's the twisted logic we're up against. It's a message rotted to its core. 2/6

We need to talk about wet bulb temperature.

We're moving from the era of global warming to "the era of global boiling." In the not so distant future, we won't check just the temperature before we head outdoors — we’ll check the “heat index,” or the wet bulb temperature. 1/6 Wet bulb temperature: what is it? A new way to think about temperature. It factors in humidity. At a WB temperature of 50°C and 8 to 15% humidity, we hit the danger zone.

Places around the world are edging towards that limit. Already. 2/6

eand.co/are-we-beginni…

Everyone, meet 2023’s latest villain: the doomer. You see their pessimism ridiculed from the Guardian to the Washington Post.

But are they really wrong about the climate crisis, or are we just unwilling to face the magnitude of the problem? 1/6 The optimists tell us “We have the technology to solve climate change, we just aren’t applying it fast enough.”

But is this true? When they say ‘we have the tech’, they mean certain regions in rich countries have shifted to renewable energy. 2/6

Suddenly, this summer, the planet seems to be on fire. Marine heatwaves, wildfires, heat domes, and none as dramatic as what’s unfolding in Greece. Welcome to the Pyrocene, the first era of the Age of Extinction.

It’s the age of fire and it’s undeniably here. 1/6 On Greek islands, megafires are breaking out and tens of thousands rush to beaches for evacuation.

The images are haunting. Embers flying, air turning unbreathable, masses of confused and panicked people with nowhere left to go. This is a portrait of climate emergency. 2/6

The killing heat has arrived. People are literally being burned alive, collapsing on sun-scorched surfaces and dying from extreme burns because surfaces are just that hot.

Yes, really. This isn't dystopian fiction, it's our reality. And it's only going to get worse. 1/6 Wet bulb events are knocking on our door - a condition where the human body can't cool itself anymore. Just go outside, stay there for a couple of hours, and you…die. A prediction set for 2050, but we’re on the cusp this summer.

Why aren't we talking about this more? 2/6

Is this our first Extinction Summer? They're calling it a global heatwave. Temperature records are shattered. Floods roar globally, and so do wildfires.

There are 3 things everyone should understand right now about our civilization, its climate, and where we go from here. 1/6 One.

We're on the cusp of hitting climate tipping points. Everyone should know what climate tipping points are — critical thresholds in our climate system — and that it appears that we’re on the cusp of hitting some of them. 2/6

Image and more info: https://t.co/DGuLxMGDBbscience.org/doi/10.1126/sc…

We're in an era losing much, but let's talk about one: our humanity. We live in an age of inhumanity now. From profiteering to indifference, we're trapped in an epidemic of selfishness and greed.

And that's because we don’t know anymore how to respect our own humanity. 1/6 Our economy teaches us to dehumanize ourselves. It values us solely on the total sum of our productivity. If we're unprofitable, we're disposable.

CEOs out-earn workers by miles, while corporations fuel the living-cost crisis. 2/6