Your Power

 

Trust your own feelings, experience and senses. Don't allow others to tell you what is real or not real. Despite what dear leader Donald says the economy is sputtering. Tariffs are an added expense, full stop. That added expense will indeed be passed on to you and me. Other countries do not pay tariffs, consumers do. All the tariff drama creates uncertainty and business does not like uncertainty. There will be no rush to rebuild a great manufacturing base here in the USA. Let's be clear, those days are gone. What the politicians will not tell you is automation has replaced most jobs now, not just cheap overseas labor. With the rise of artificial intelligence, more and more jobs will be replaced by machines. Longing for a mythological past will only exacerbate our problems. We are going to need new leadership with a focus on solving real problems and the long-term future. Lies and propaganda can only go so far. Your power lies in learning how to recognize fact from fiction.

Something that sounds too good to be true usually is not true at all. Check around.  Whatever you do, don't rely on one source of news. Find out about the same story from as many different points of view as possible. It is only going to become more and more difficult to discern fact from fiction as time goes on. All of us will have to learn to find our own honest and reliable sources for news. The lines between fiction, fantasy and reality will only become more opaque as AI created content becomes more realistic. Our best defense is to question everything.You can trust a source but don't forget to verify it with another source or better yet sources.

One of the first questions you should always ask is “Why are you telling me this?” Who benefits and who does this hurt should be your next questions. Don't allow those in power to suddenly change the subject or engage in what aboutism. We are not talking about what's so and so did way back when, that's irrelevant. We must collectively hold their feet to the fire. It is also important to remember whatever is in the news may only be serving as a distraction. In other words, what is not in the news that should be and why? Again, who benefits? Always be skeptical of breaking news.

In a new cycle driven by profits and not truth where views and clicks drive advertising dollars accuracy often gets sacrificed for first. An outrageous or sensational story should immediately be treated with skepticism. Check back on that story after several days to get an idea of what really happened. Also, take a break. Authoritarian types thrive on your endless attention and exhaustion. It is a good idea to look away from time to time. Your power lies in deciding what is important for you and letting the rest go by the wayside. Don't let the relentless lies, propaganda and posturing wear down your resistance. Our current mess was not created in a day, nor will it be solved in a day. Think long term and pace yourself accordingly.