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Dahlia Lithwick writes of “years of doomerism and nihilism…foisted on the country by a determined and omnipresent sense that MAGA was not just inevitable but undefeatable (even in defeat)”
“Experts on authoritarianism have been warning for years that fostering hopelessness, powerlessness, and political depression is a deliberate tactic of most totalitarian leaders”
THIS
I keep saying: Despair is surrender. Cynicism is surrender. Nihilism is surrender. 
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/07/harris-trump-2024-kamala-vibes-trumpism-loses.html
@inthehands
Maybe I've been guilty of pushing despair. That's not what I was going for. I saw too many complacent people, and I was trying to get across to people that the situation was very serious and warranted more than just going along with the status quo.
But despair is a tool of authoritarians.
Hope is an important counter to despair, and thus important to anyone who wants to oppose authoritarianism.
@tofugolem
Despair is not the same as alarm, and I don’t think raising the alarm necessarily cultivates hopelessness. But it can, and we do need to be careful how we do it.
@inthehands
I've been accused of doomerism multiple times while trying to raise the alarm.
@tofugolem
Indeed, and I think I’ve been guilty of it when trying to raise the alarm.
There is no clear line between alarm-raising and doomerism, and the line is different for different people. It’s tricky. It’s work.
@inthehands @tofugolem I think there’s also some value in being able to share despair with others, to a reasonable degree. It feels so much lonelier and more hopeless if everything seems wildly fucked and you aren’t even allowed to express that. Or if you can only criticize things if you have a suggestion to neatly solve the problems yourself.
Despair can form a basis of community. It just needs to be balanced with the belief that things *can* be different.
@inthehands @tofugolem
Sometimes the difference between raising an alarm and doomerism is providing any action that can lead away from doom. Starting down the happier path is an act of hope.
@dontreportme @inthehands @tofugolem
Yes, this. Just pointing out the danger is perceived as doomerism.
OTOH, pointing out
1) Danger approaching;
2) But we can stop it;
3) Here's how to help!
all in one paragraph
is a lot more likely to be received well. Not always, but more likely.