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  • jeanoappleseedjeanoappleseed@vivaldi.net
    Apr 20, 2025, 7:52 PM

    I am finding it very hard to know out what to do re: the political mess this US is in.

    If I donate to a single election candidate, I start getting dozens of unwanted emails and texts for other candidates and even projects not related to elections at all. Plus I find many emails and texts asking for money are deceptive and exaggerating many things (I know that’s hard to believe with exaggeration not being needed in 99.9% of cases).

    I certainly do not feel like signing petitions. Putting our info and then it being sent to far right folks? That seems #1 totally ineffective. (Orangeade won’t care that people sign petitions.) I think they are more likely to be used as lists of people to harass or persecute or even prosecute! for being antigovt… Ironic when it’s traitors in power dismantling the govt.

    I can’t watch the shit show. I just can’t. I know I should want to be informed but I’m either informed and it disables me in my day-to-day life. Or I try to be productive but must ignore all that’s going on.

    I can donate to assistance organizations like Planned Parenthood but those are just bandaid on a patient that is terminal.

    I’m really at a loss as to what to do. We could eventually leave the country, as we have options, but frankly I’d rather just die before then. What’s going on is debilitating for me.

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Replies

  • Flaming ZamboniNead@vivaldi.net
    Apr 20, 2025, 7:59 PM

    @jeanoappleseed The struggle is real. Save your money for you and yours. You might/will need it in the future. Politicians - no matter who- have plenty of funds to do their thing. Look for ways to resist and help without depleting your own resources/finances. Keep it simple. Look out for number 1 (or 2+).
    Stay the course. There is power in numbers and not necessarily monetarily.

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  • Kevin Davypathfinder@beige.party
    Apr 20, 2025, 8:23 PM

    @jeanoappleseed
    The ultimate act that, perhaps, the majority could do, is to simply create a safe space. Ultimately, what will save the US is not just the big and the bold steps, but all the quiet safe havens and mutual support. Communities and the people must become stronger than the hate and remember that society is about caring and not control.

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  • jeanoappleseedjeanoappleseed@vivaldi.net
    Apr 20, 2025, 8:32 PM

    @pathfinder In a way that’s what I’m trying to do. Do things locally. Do things that aren’t directly related to politics like supporting businesses impacted by the January wildfire here. I shut down neighbor’s homes natural gas after they texted me they’d forgotten after evacuating. Then I helped them with their pilot lights (water heater mainly) when they returned. Politically speaking I’m not sure what to do. But I’m usually good at helping my neighbors as I’m more knowledgeable on house and gardening stuff than many of them are. The other day, after I found out my heart regurgitation had improved and its size was starting to return to normal, while walking out I saw a homeless woman with a cute dog that was sticking to her side as she jaywalked across a major artery and I asked her about her dog and gave her $50 as I happened to have cash on me, a rare occurrence. I feel now I’d like to identify someone like that, first hand, who needs cash AND will not use it for drug or alcohol. Like for a dog. Money is needed to feed them.

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  • Kevin Davypathfinder@beige.party
    Apr 20, 2025, 8:37 PM

    @jeanoappleseed
    In all the ways that matter, you are doing as much by helping others, as you would be on the front line throwing bricks. Reminding the world that it doesn't have to accept the hate, or live by it, is just as important.

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  • Different Thanguyjantic@infosec.exchange
    Apr 20, 2025, 8:26 PM

    @jeanoappleseed I feel very similarly about a lot of those things. One thing I've done is to make some email addresses I can control, for petitions because I hate the massive flood of candidate spam, too.

    Hypothetically speaking, I'll have an email address like guyjantic-petitions@whatever.com and use that if I make donations or sign petitions (which I don't think is super helpful unless the signatures are physical, but IDK). Then all the candidate spam goes to that email and I can just ignore it forever if I want to.

    That doesn't address your other major issues, which I have, too. I don't have any great advice for those, I guess.

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  • jeanoappleseedjeanoappleseed@vivaldi.net
    Apr 20, 2025, 8:39 PM

    @guyjantic Thank you. You are right that I should use a different email address. Will do that in future as well as change my phone # to my Google voice phone #.

    Something I’m trying to do also in case shit ever hits the fan in a much bigger way is to use a VPN to express opinions but I find it hard to do because it affects my connection a great deal. But if I had a complete array of accounts etc all done from the vpn it’d probably be safer long term. Right now I have to go back and forth

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