jthrash 2024-10-15 00:31:56

I understand the concern, but as I'm sure you know, being able to "tune out the news" during times like these is a bit of a privilege, not a right. If you have ANY ad-supported streaming service or, God forbid, watch YouTube with ads, and live in the US, it is simply a fact of life right now to be bombarded with the most insane political ads from both national and local campaigns when you're otherwise trying to relax and watch TV. Even after doing my duty and voting, I'm not spared from the rancor until after the votes are fully counted, possibly as late as mid-November. Combine this with many of my irl friends and co-workers being obsessed with watching and discussing the news and looking at polls right now (the latter of which has become a complete waste of energy as they've failed spectacularly to predict the final results since at least 2016, and are STILL only effective at getting the opinions of people who somehow only use landline phones and don't have Caller ID/scam screening in 2024).

In light of this, the worst thing I can do is let myself be alone with my thoughts and anxieties of potential worst-case scenarios right now. Drawing funny little apolitical sketches or improving my 3D modeling skills are the perfect escapes from all the bickering before Elections while giving me something I have control over in a seemingly-uncontrollable world. Same goes for video games and heavy exercise (e.g. running and weightlifting), though those have to wait until the weekend as I'm too tired to do either after work.

jthrash 2024-10-15 01:40:02

I wish it were that simple, but I did have to at least kind of care about how my vote may affect the rest of the continent and even the world regarding global issues like climate change when voting for President. One party, at the very least, acknowledges the effects that man-made pollution and over-reliance on fossil fuels can harm our health and potentially worsen natural disasters everywhere, the other doesn't, no matter how much hurricanes seem to hit "Red States" like Florida and North Carolina in particular. Countries like Ukraine, France, Japan and South Korea are counting on Kamala Harris being our next President while countries like Russia, China and North Korea are hoping we (or at least the small handful of "swing states"--again, the Electoral College makes it more needlessly complicated than just "the person with the most votes becomes President") are dumb enough to let Donald Trump near the nuclear launch codes AGAIN.

I'm cautiously optimistic, though, that at the very least we're all sick of politicians that whine and gripe all the time about meaningless "culture war" nonsense, as if we're mentally capable of dealing with the temper tantrums of powerful people and billionaires while dealing with our own personal issues for another 9 or so years, and will vote accordingly so that we can hopefully have a "boring" election again for the first time since 2012. Or at least finally be able to relax on odd-numbered years when we don't have major Elections.

jthrash 2024-10-15 15:07:29

Outside of some really minor local elections, it's far, far easier to tune out the news entirely on odd-numbered years (e.g. 2023 and 2025), because either major Presidential Elections or Mid-term elections (which I've learned the hard way do affect my life as much, if not more than whoever's President at the time) happen on even-numbered years. There's a reason I was much more "sane" and blissfully unaware of whatever was happening outside my own little world around this time back in 2023, and hopefully I'll feel the same in 2025.

Some people argue that "fighting for democracy" isn't just a once-every-four-years or once-every-two-years thing, I should be perpetually vigilant in the "fight," and those people can go pound sand. I get the intent of keeping politicians honest, but the whole point of voting for professionals that can clearly handle the pressures of this world better than I ever could is so they take care of the tricky stuff very few people actually understand (like the economy or diplomacy), while I can just focus on my own problems and my own duties. It's exhausting, though I imagine this comes across as a bit entitled for people who have no choice but to fight their governments every single day just to exist without people trying to oppress or hurt them.

jthrash 2024-10-15 22:51:07

Maybe I'm tired and it's getting late at night, but gotta be honest, I'm struggling to see your point in this one, I'm really sorry. I just want to draw funny escapist cartoons for Newgrounds and continue working at my day job while politicians at the very least stay out of the way of my life plans.

jthrash 2024-10-16 22:09:32

Is okay. Having friends that can "agree to disagree" with you is indeed a blessing.

jthrash 2024-10-18 18:08:25

I think I do have Asperger's Syndrome (a mild form of autism), so that could just be it, I'm just not the type of person who should be allowed to watch the news, read opinion polls, or anything that basically profits off of me being scared and anxious all the time. My therapist changed the diagnosis to "Generalized Anxiety Disorder," but in the past it was some form of autism.

Still, it is comforting in a way that perhaps my fear is overblown simply because I have some sort of condition that makes me stress more than most other people, shows that maybe I need to just change my attitude (which is far easier than trying to change the country or even the entire world). I have to keep reminding myself how ridiculous it is to even worry whether my vote will count when I've already cast my vote and city hall told me it was counted, meaning there's nothing more I can do. It's not the greatest movie ever, but I still think Pixar's Inside Out 2 is a great, simplified way of explaining how irrational and over-the-top our anxiety can get, and how gratitude for the good things in one's life can keep our anxiety from turning into full-blown panic.

And yeah, I suppose America's history and reputation may have made us more concerned about preserving democracy than countries that haven't had the privilege of experiencing "power to the people" at its best in its recent history. There have been actual good Presidents and politicians in my life that have made it easier for people like me to just focus on what we can control while they handle the BIG problems, so I suppose I'm more motivated to vote and hope for a better future when I have examples in the past where things were good. Hopefully Brazil and other South American countries can one day experience a similar joy of not feeling like one's own government is getting in your way.

jthrash 2024-11-04 21:26:23

I'm sorry you've been disillusioned by our system. I've gotten plenty of irl family and friends to vote, and despite what our corporation-owned media tries to push on us, I'm feeling more cautiously optimistic that we will FINALLY earn the right to, at the very least, just live our own lives without having to pay constant attention to whatever nonsense is happening in Congress or the Supreme Court, or worrying how any of that will affect our own lives. I'm not pushing anyone at this point.