To me that sounds like a mix of doomerism and accelerationism. If we don’t act things will definitely get worse - if we do they at least can get better or not as bad
Yes but fascism isn’t the cause, it’s a symptom. Fascism isn’t a new phenomenon in this world. We know what causes it. The same thing that caused it in Italy, is the same thing that caused it in Germany, is the same thing that’s causing it in Israel, and the same thing that’s causing it in America. You’re just prolonging the demise, and it’s a terrible place to be mentally.
There is one thing we (specifically US citizens) may luck out with this time. The economy which the fascists rulers and the whole current western social idea is connected to might collapse together with the AI bubble, which already shows symptoms of falling apart with major banks warning that the whole US economy is pumped up in a single idea, with only very few companies holding up that idea. Woule it crash it either sends the US into mega-fascism or acts as a catalyst for renewal, depending on how much the population clings to the old (studies show most reject this kind of turbocapitalism by now, in the US).
They’re not running trains on time to put it simply? Now the question is, will America become more fascist if/when things get worse, or America will get a max marginal rate of 92% again. What sounds more likely to you?
Fascism is capitalism in decay, revealing its core function: maintaining the dominion of wealth through physical force. When consent can no longer be manufactured for capitalist crimes, repression takes over. Fascism is the system functioning as intended: forcing consent when consent is no longer given.
MAGA is the fact that the american people understand that the system doesn’t work anymore and needs to be radically changed, they just don’t know how to change it to make it work again.
Somebody (Trump and his friends) take advantage of that by offering the people radical change, just in the wrong direction.
It’s not ideal for things to get worse, but in places like the US, that’s already out of our hands. The non accelerationists lost, and now we’re in freefall off the cliff. This freefall is temporary and will eventually end, but it’s too late to stop it. We had a second chance and blew it.
I know people hear me saying it’s too late for prevention and think “there is no hope; we can only have hope if the horrible future can be averted,” but I’m saying we can still have hope even in the worst of times. We can’t have hope that the organizations who let this happen will be able to save us, but we can have hope in good people being out there. We can have hope that individuals have kindness, that people themselves want a better future than we’re getting. We cannot expect the systems to choose a good future for us unless they’re dragged kicking and screaming.
The pre-existing systems were at one point ‘correctable’, ‘steerable’, at least potentially, away from the scenario we are now in.
Now, those systems are not fixable, they will either persist by destroying everything that is not part of them, or they will break.
So… yes, hope, in the survivalism sense, in the knwoledge that it didnt have to be this way, that another world is possible… but to see it, you have to survive the transition/collapse period, and then actually build that better world, not just be herded into the next dystopia.
Hope, it is the quintessential human delusion, simultaneously the source of your greatest strength, and your greatest weakness.
Nerd points for anyone who doesn’t need to look up the source to that quote.
Star Trek is the vibe I’m getting, but it could also be Stargate. I feel like it’s coming from some powerful villain who has respect for our strength, but not enough to think we can beat them. It could also be a cynical ally of some sort who doesn’t fully believe humanity can pull it off, but is convinced by a very good pep talk to gamble on their plan.
edit:
fuck, and I even made a meme of that scene recently. I guess it’s been a while since I watched it.
The word you are looking for is realism, being realistic, taking the whole current picture and context of human history into account.
Even if a magic snap of someone’s fingers poofed fascism out of the realm of things that can possibly exist in this universe, cool, awesome, we’re still looking at a few billion deaths in the next 25 - 50 years from climate change caused disasters, famines, economic collapse, massive migration crises, resource wars, etc etc.
Ok now unsnap those fingers and realize that fascism is the natural decay of capitalism as managed by democracy when the economy fails for most people.
We’ve hit the apex of industrial human civilization as we know it, its all downhill from here, maybe, maybe at some point roughly 75-100 years in the future, a much smaller human population than what presently exists will be able to pick up the pieces and begin some new kind of actual progress.
Or we Great Filter ourselves.
Or reality invents a magic mcguffin device like a compact, cheap to manufacture, over parity, safe for general use, nuclear fusion reactor, or something like that.
Tech progress costs money.
It is ultimately directed by those with money.
As things fall apart, don’t expect much revolutionary tech breakthroughs outside of applications toward surveillance, weaponry, and battlefield medicine.
To me that sounds like a mix of doomerism and accelerationism. If we don’t act things will definitely get worse - if we do they at least can get better or not as bad
Yes but fascism isn’t the cause, it’s a symptom. Fascism isn’t a new phenomenon in this world. We know what causes it. The same thing that caused it in Italy, is the same thing that caused it in Germany, is the same thing that’s causing it in Israel, and the same thing that’s causing it in America. You’re just prolonging the demise, and it’s a terrible place to be mentally.
There is one thing we (specifically US citizens) may luck out with this time. The economy which the fascists rulers and the whole current western social idea is connected to might collapse together with the AI bubble, which already shows symptoms of falling apart with major banks warning that the whole US economy is pumped up in a single idea, with only very few companies holding up that idea. Woule it crash it either sends the US into mega-fascism or acts as a catalyst for renewal, depending on how much the population clings to the old (studies show most reject this kind of turbocapitalism by now, in the US).
Not saying it’s likely, just that’s possible.
They’re not running trains on time to put it simply? Now the question is, will America become more fascist if/when things get worse, or America will get a max marginal rate of 92% again. What sounds more likely to you?
no, i’d say we don’t. or at least it’s not so clear to many people. mind explaining if it’s so obvious?
Fascism is capitalism in decay, revealing its core function: maintaining the dominion of wealth through physical force. When consent can no longer be manufactured for capitalist crimes, repression takes over. Fascism is the system functioning as intended: forcing consent when consent is no longer given.
MAGA is the fact that the american people understand that the system doesn’t work anymore and needs to be radically changed, they just don’t know how to change it to make it work again.
Somebody (Trump and his friends) take advantage of that by offering the people radical change, just in the wrong direction.
What are people supposed to do, have an Occupy Wall Street event?
As the father of fascism himself labeled it, fascism is the marriage of corporations and government.
It’s not ideal for things to get worse, but in places like the US, that’s already out of our hands. The non accelerationists lost, and now we’re in freefall off the cliff. This freefall is temporary and will eventually end, but it’s too late to stop it. We had a second chance and blew it.
I know people hear me saying it’s too late for prevention and think “there is no hope; we can only have hope if the horrible future can be averted,” but I’m saying we can still have hope even in the worst of times. We can’t have hope that the organizations who let this happen will be able to save us, but we can have hope in good people being out there. We can have hope that individuals have kindness, that people themselves want a better future than we’re getting. We cannot expect the systems to choose a good future for us unless they’re dragged kicking and screaming.
Very well said.
The pre-existing systems were at one point ‘correctable’, ‘steerable’, at least potentially, away from the scenario we are now in.
Now, those systems are not fixable, they will either persist by destroying everything that is not part of them, or they will break.
So… yes, hope, in the survivalism sense, in the knwoledge that it didnt have to be this way, that another world is possible… but to see it, you have to survive the transition/collapse period, and then actually build that better world, not just be herded into the next dystopia.
Nerd points for anyone who doesn’t need to look up the source to that quote.
Star Trek is the vibe I’m getting, but it could also be Stargate. I feel like it’s coming from some powerful villain who has respect for our strength, but not enough to think we can beat them. It could also be a cynical ally of some sort who doesn’t fully believe humanity can pull it off, but is convinced by a very good pep talk to gamble on their plan.
edit:
fuck, and I even made a meme of that scene recently. I guess it’s been a while since I watched it.
“Choice.”
“The problem is choice.”
Also, your attempts to summarize the… character of this character… interesting.
I would say he is certainly the first, but he is also the second, if you remember the end of the third movie.
… uh right yeah i… these movies are all basicslly core memories for me rofl. well, at least the first 3. and the mmo. and the other two games.
ok powering down nerd mode now lol.
Realism.
The word you are looking for is realism, being realistic, taking the whole current picture and context of human history into account.
Even if a magic snap of someone’s fingers poofed fascism out of the realm of things that can possibly exist in this universe, cool, awesome, we’re still looking at a few billion deaths in the next 25 - 50 years from climate change caused disasters, famines, economic collapse, massive migration crises, resource wars, etc etc.
Ok now unsnap those fingers and realize that fascism is the natural decay of capitalism as managed by democracy when the economy fails for most people.
We’ve hit the apex of industrial human civilization as we know it, its all downhill from here, maybe, maybe at some point roughly 75-100 years in the future, a much smaller human population than what presently exists will be able to pick up the pieces and begin some new kind of actual progress.
Or we Great Filter ourselves.
Or reality invents a magic mcguffin device like a compact, cheap to manufacture, over parity, safe for general use, nuclear fusion reactor, or something like that.
Tech progress costs money.
It is ultimately directed by those with money.
As things fall apart, don’t expect much revolutionary tech breakthroughs outside of applications toward surveillance, weaponry, and battlefield medicine.