I'm contributing to the funk, and not in a James Brown kind of way.

I've got personal problems and money problems, add to this watching society unraveling in front of me like slow motion car accident.

It's sickening at times, often I have to remind myself "out of my control, don't worry about things you can't change" and then focus on the things I can can do to better my personal situation. Once I conquer my own problems, then I can worry about the other stuff.

Here is something to cheer everyone up, for a minimum of two years. The GOP is controlling the House, despite their many shortcomings. Yeah yeah they didn't win the Senate like everyone was led to believe, I get it. But, just think, what if they didn't get the House in the last election. Yeah, that's right. We would have been in true deep shit. The importance of this thing just cannot be overstated. It's second only to Trump winning the WH in 2016, imo.

Want to know who is not in a funk? My 4 year old. We played hotwheels yesterday and then we watched youtube videos of monkeys throwing poop. Oh Saturday, we went to a "touch a truck" event and he climbed all over a fire truck.

I think with the Internet, we are bombed with negativity constantly. Reading this post and then contrasting it with the life my 4 year old is living, I have come to realize that the Internet can be a bummer. I think we should all find a 4 year old and let them lead us for a day.

I’m actually feeling more hopeful about things than not too long ago. On a personal level, surgery (hernia) and the run up where I had to physically take it easy put me in a funk because I was unable to work out, cut firewood, etc. I’m medically cleared and back in the gym, cutting next winters firewood which I’ve been lucky enough to stumble across locally for as much as I have time to cut, split, and stack. I start back at my retirement job in a couple of weeks and am looking forward to getting paid to paddle and guide white water raft trips. My optometrist made some changes with my contact lenses set up that has my close up vision dialing in my sight picture and boosting my confidence in the process.

On the National level, the criminal Biden administration is feeling more pressure about the southern border, energy production, complicity in shady doings in Ukraine, and most damning, the lies and prevarications surrounding a democRAT driven attack on our country over Covid. The mandates, masking, and poisonous vaccines are for the most part going away. Anyone that still shrieks about reinstating them looks like the power hungry despots they truly are. I have to feel that the next presidential election will face a lot of coverage and scrutiny to make the obvious cheating that goes on that much more difficult to conceal.

I’ve decided to be a glass half full guy until something insurmountable comes up to change that.

Hope has become a casualty of disillusionment. I recall a time when the future seemed so bright, new inventions appearing almost daily, things that really made a difference in how one led one's life, in terms of opportunities to learn and grow. People living longer with ample opportunity for more fulfilling lives, terrible diseases being eradicated, almost nobody starving to death any more. Then it kind of turned sour with many faults being found in this new prosperity, pollution, moral decay, excessive materialism, financial collapses, drug addiction and associated crime. Perhaps it was just naivete, but the bright shining road to the future seemed suddenly full of potholes.

In truth, progress, especially "scientific" progress has never been greater than what we are seeing right now. Logically, it seems like this would reinforce a spirit of optimism, and hope. But, instead of striving for excellence in their own accomplishments, much of our youth appears to be more motivated to tear others down to a level where nobody stands out as special, so as to enforce that "we are all special" nonsense. Not everybody, but enough to foment the general malaise that Para describes in the OP.

Is this a natural and inevitable cycle of societal attitude? I suspect it is more likely a consequence of human nature than anything having to do with politics, religion, or any other "movement." That the later are more effect than cause, and therefore the cycle cannot be altered through those mechanisms.

I don't claim to have a recipe for "how do we get out of this mess?" but, hope, optimism, and the opportunity to realize positive outcomes from one's individual efforts have to be ingredients in it.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Our society is sick and miserable, and it seems like it's even seeping into this forum. We complain all the time, seem happy about very little, and even though there seems to be, in fact, very little to be happy about, I wish we could find a way out of this maze. Members seem to be posting less, and much of what is posted is unhappiness.

Hmmm... I'd thought I I seemed to be reading SF less than I had. Maybe that's so and maybe that's why?

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
You literally cannot get away from it unless you do as noted and become a hermit and/or ONLY speak with like minded people.

Wellll... I guess I kinda sorta have--to a degree. But, even that is no guarantee, because many like-minded people will relate to you all the ills of the world.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
Obviously social media is not only deeply penetrated but its spreading the poison.

I've only one social media account: Twitter. The vast majority of my follows are fitness coaches, golf coaches, and sports docs. The only two I can think of that don't fall into those categories are Elon Musk and Douglas Adams. Both very positive guys.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
College campuses are dead ...

Our entire "educational" system is lost. I've been saying so for years.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
As someone single I admit i use dating sites and they are also infected with this poison.

If, God forbid, I lost my wife, I'd resign myself to living the rest of my life alone. There's no way I'd attempt to re-enter the dating scene.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
Employers are equally penetrated by this sickness.

I'm lucky in this respect, having retired nearly six years ago. What with the woke crap, the Wu Flu crap, etc.: I'd be in a constant state of Annoyed, were I still employed.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
Democrat run cities are sliding into third world status ...

And they're taking their states with them.

I expected to live out the rest of my life in Michigan. Now I'm not so sure.

quote:

Originally posted by KMitch200:
In my humble opinion, the only way to stay sane in a world gone mad is to celebrate the good things around you.

And try not to dwell on the bad.

By way of a small example: Back in November I finally decided to get my health back on track. Been relatively successful, but, every time I start getting my training really ramped-up, something has come along to stall it again. First it was coldvidflumonia. Then it was a pulled back muscle. Now it's a (hopefully) minor surgery. But, instead of dwelling on the speed bumps I'm celebrating the progress I've made and reminding myself "This, too, shall pass."

After the disastrous 2020 election, I stopped, got off the merry go round. Months earlier, I got rid of my smartphone. After the shitshow that was the election, I stopped viewing my various forums, including this one. I stopped looking at various internet sites for news. I already stopped viewing cable/network news years earlier. For awhile, it was bliss, but it didn't last. Covid was still in full swing. Biden took over the WH and one didn't need the news to feel how shitty things were progressing. Months later, even though my personal life was just fine, I felt I needed to plug back in to know what is going on, I needed to know what kind of damage the enemy was heaping on to the country. I realized that walking around with zero clue of what is happening around me was something I'm not wired for. I have no regrets plugging back in, but unplugging from the information cycle was beneficial for a while. I still have no smartphone, that helps a LOT. At least with my desktop computer, I can get up and walk away from it, it's not in my hip pocket.

I was talking with a guy who worked in my building. A buyout was just announced and I asked him if he was going to take it.

He said no. He said he knew himself well enough that he needs structure in his life. Without it he was afraid he might find himself at loose ends. Having to get up and go into work was his safety net.

In a larger sense that's what we're missing in society. Where's the structure? Where are the redlines
that we all knew were there? Smash and grab was unthinkable. Doing so with no consequences even more so.

When there are no boundaries things quickly go sideways. It ranges from parents who used to impose restrictions on their kids to parents who let their kids do whatever they want. Run screaming around a restaurant today easily morphs into the same kids flipping the bird to a teacher who tries to maintain order in the classroom.

We all need structure and we all need consequences whether we know it or not. When the rules of the road become optional,the road becomes a metaphor for society at large.

We can laugh at reruns of Father Knows Best, but it was a world with boundaries and church on Sundays.

Its easy to be depressed when you watch on a daily basis the slow death of American ideals, history and justice.
And the constant erosion and disregard of our constitutional freedoms.
And common sense is no longer common.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: YooperSigs,

We are the meek and we shall inherit the earth. But it is proving to be a rough path to traverse. It's was more constrained before but now it's quite obvious who has the metaphorical mark (actually, sometimes literal) on their foreheads.

Regular readers of this forum know how I react when we have a thread which bodes well for us, shows positive things happening, be they big or small, and then a member will come in and shit all over it. They will tell us how that we're wasting our time celebrating or being happy, because it's all going to turn out in the worst possible way: our candidate is looking good, but don't be happy, because he will lose because the system is rigged; some disgusting criminal will be arrested, but don't be happy, because they'll end up getting off with, at most, a mere slap on the wrist. The list goes on. Anything which might give us a glimmer of hope, that shit needs to be stomped on ASAP, and it seems that these comments come always from someone evincing a world-weary wisdom, lecturing children who know nothing of the world.

It's old. It's tiresome beyond description, and it pisses me off to see members of this forum pull these stunts. From the rest of the world, I expect such deep cynicism, but it's counterproductive in this forum and I will be on that stuff in a heartbeat and tell the member to cut it out.

This is not a forum full of Pollyannas. We know what the world is and how the world works and what our prospects are for the future, but I'll not have any member running a white flag up the pole.

I'd like to see more members posting more things. Tell us about your interests. It doesn't always have to be either guns or politics. If you'll notice, there is far more activity these days in the Lounge than there is in other sections of the forum. We are more than a gun forum, and if we're not careful, gentlemen, content will dry up in this forum, and without new content, this place will become a desert.

Notice that at any given time, we have far more guests than logged-in members. A lot of those guests are not registered. I encourage them to register. I also encourage registered members who are not logged in, to log in and post about anything at all. To be clear, not all of it has to be "happy" stuff, because false "happy" can be just as depressing, but I do not for a second expect members to cease airing their complaints and grievances. It's just that we need to add some sugar to the spice.

And when I say "we" I do mean all of us, and that includes me as well. I need to quell my temper more and stop snapping at members. I managed to run off somebody this weekend who in reality, just needed a bit of guidance, but things that you cannot know about the situation frustrated me greatly. Had I walked away from the computer for an hour or so, I would have handled it differently. So, for those of you who feel I'm lecturing you, just realize that I am not setting myself apart from all the things I am saying. I make mistakes all the time, go overboard far too often these days.

The other day I was speaking on the phone with a forum member and the conversation turned to human nature and our futile efforts to consciously become better people. These kinds of changes, though our hearts may be in them, are almost always temporary and brief. Real change comes to a human being organically, over time, and most always without our awareness of it happening. You look back on who you were ten or twenty years ago and you see these changes in yourself, and you realize they happened naturally.

Again, I don't expect you guys to stop bitching, and I mean that. I do not expect this of myself, either, because I know who I am. I don't want us to turn into a bunch of everything-is-just-fine phonies. But, what we can do is to try to add some positivity to what we are doing now. Let's stop sinking this island of sanity with too much of the heavy stuff.

So, register, log in and post, and anyone who gets static from me for doing so, please feel free to point me to this post.

Submitted most sincerely to all who read this forum

I think there is deep and widespread disillusionment about everything we thought was stable bedrock of society. We believed that all the institutions generally were attempting to fulfill their stated mission. Despite individual instances of incompetence and greed, the institutions existed for public good.

Elected government, hospitals, the medical professions, oversight agencies (FDA, FBI, etc), universities, public schools, mainstream news, corporate management, financial markets, financial institutions, technology companies, the court system.

All are deeply corrupted. This realization of being badly betrayed leaves people uncertain about what to trust, so they retreat into their own cave where they feel some security.

We're in the middle of a huge societal change. 2020 will be one of those major markers in history where things will never be remotely the same after.

I believe there is great opportunity, especially for younger people with time and energy on their side. Those with good values and willing to seek success will have abundant avenues to seek their happiness. Not meaningless pleasures but deep satisfaction from lives well lived.

I agree fully with Fly-Sig.

Thank you for this thread.

Fly-Sig is right. I don't need to get deeper into what I think about what is going on than that.

Where I can, I'll try to add positivity.

Just for the record: Though the question wasn't asked: I am not in a funk.

True: I get discouraged, disgusted, annoyed, angry, etc. over much of what I see from "our" "leaders," both business and government, and from so, so many people, but, I'm what I think of as "an optimistic pessimist." That is to say I try to plan for the worst--I try to perceive the worst possible outcomes, but, I generally maintain a positive attitude--trusting it'll all work out all right in the end.

I'm reading a book, right now, entitled The Barbell Prescription: Strength Training for Life After 40. In it the author notes we live in an age where advancements in science, medicine, and nutrition should result in us living better lives, longer lives, than ever before, yet so many people die early of easily-preventable maladies. He points out it doesn't have to be this way. That they're essentially killing themselves.

I consciously choose not to kill myself, either mentally or physically.

The first taste for me was when Obama won the second term. Great turn-around when Trump won, but man have we seen some sh_t since before he was even sworn in.

I don't mind having a disagreement with someone over politics or culture, but some people on the news or social media are just too far gone. These people would have been rarely seen fringe, now they are everywhere and being affirmed on a regular basis.

I'll try to take great advantage of the Easter season as a time of renewal and hope.

Too many people just plain suck and because they probably won't stop sucking the future probably isn't bright enough to wear shades. We all know though that things could be worse and we sometimes need to remind ourselves of that. For myself, after 34 years of working in the same place and dealing with a workforce that's becoming unbearable, I'm kinda sick of it. I'm knocking on the door to retirement and even though financially I can go whenever I want I'm not sure when I'll be ready. My health is great, I love my wife, I do wish her health was a little better but she's generally ok. We're looking to kiss our Governor goodbye and selling the snowblower next year to head off to God's waiting room for a new beginning. Sometimes life sucks and sometimes is good. All we can do is roll with the punches and give thanks.

The left loves when everything is politicized because the passion for activism is on their side. The right jsut wants to b e left alone and live life without having to think too much about politics. It's the nature of conservatism. So when everything is political, the left has an advantage. They count on the right being demoralized.

I focus on the fact that this world is not my home. There is a spiritual battle going on for soul of the country. I think the tide is starting to turn in our favor.

It also helps to think about our history in a broader sense. We survived the Great Depression and the turmoil of the 1960’s. We will survive this current attack as well.

I have happy, healthy and well adjusted children who can take care of themselves. That makes me blessed beyond measure.

Not an option for everyone, but I suggest stop caring about the news, and swimming in the ocean every afternoon - best way for me to spend an hour out of every day