gloom

Sarcasm is my go-to way of being critical of things, but when those things are serious enough, sarcasm actually help normalize and perpetuate bad things. It’s more an escape valve for the impulse to resist than a mode of resistance. Cf: Zizek’s cyninicism as a mode of ideology.

So as a matter of hygiene, I’ve basically stopped being sarcastic about US politics. I’ll either say it straight or shut up. Being clever is counterproductive. 

This is why people who like what’s going on tend to say things like, “c’mon lighten up, you’re over-reacting, it’s not that serious. You’re being paranoid/hysterical.” Getting adversaries who are not at immediate risk to “lighten up” is a key tactic of apologists for authoritarian overreach.

Yes, it makes me less fun to have around, but that’s the cost of living in bad times.

Delver at contraptions.venkateshrao.com, running summerofprotocols.com, host of /gloom ☀️

Not even that

It’s doing it to soothe the hurt egos of a couple of moron billionaires and their stans

So...
Is the USA destabilising the world and trading trillions worth of intangibles for a few extra bucks + greenland?