I hear ya, and those thoughts are not unfamiliar to me. But I was having them in the 1980's, when Reagan was elected. He was HORRIFIC. A complete fucking muppet, owned by his handlers, and without a single idea in his empty actor head. He was the ultimate embodiment of everything that was wrong with America, because he was - literally - acting the role of President.

But hey, we also invented the internet and build the International Space Station, and cocaine became uncool again, and Elon Musk gave us all hope - and delivered! - and the water and air got better, and many species were brought back from the edge of extinction.

And here we are today.

I speculate that where you are in your life is the same place most everybody is at your point in life: You watched your parents drive a car and it seemed like the most magical thing ever, and then you learned how to drive, and slid off the road in the snow once, and now you are basically a good driver, and now you wonder about your tire tread depth and brake condition and you know you should get the car washed to save the paint job and get an oil change but you are gonna do it next week and what is that smell under the back seat? you really should take a look at that, but ...

Life gets more complex and nuanced as we get older. At around 30, people become fully present and aware of their surroundings and the world they live in, and the rose tinted glasses of youth finally come off.

And shit is fucked.

Because you know what? EVERYONE older than 30 knows that's exactly the age where you become an effective tool for them to use. Anyone younger is too flighty or idealistic, and doesn't have any money. Once people hit 30 or so, their frustrations with the lack-of-perfection in the world can be leveraged.

And now we have social media, to throw that into hyperdrive, and make this entire demographic despondent... so they don't exercise the power they have.

The Russian social media campaign that was so effective? It wasn't to elect Trump; they didn't give a fuck who won. They just wanted to make sure the loser - no matter which side lost - perceived that it was the democratic system of government that had failed.

And think honestly about what you think about our government, the Electoral College, gerrymandering, PACs, Citizen's United, Mar a Lago, etc....

See? The Russians won.

They WANT you despondent. They WANT you to tap out. They WANT you to be on social media constantly consuming the bullshit.

What they DON'T want, is you to be talking to people at your local coffee shop, or hardware store, or volunteering to do a park cleanup, and going on vacation to one of our incredible national parks... because when you do that, you realize that The News is not valuable or relevant, and - in actual fact - Trump has been entirely ineffective.

What in your life has changed since the orange shitgibbon took office? Can you still vote? Can you still own a gun? Can you still get your meds? Is gas a reasonable price? Has the cost of milk gone up to $20 per carton? Are the shelves at the grocery store bare? Has Ikea stopped selling furniture? Is Elon Musk still building promises in the sky? Are there animals in our forests?

We love you Q.

You are a fantastic and thoughtful member of this community, and your posts and genuine nature are always a good read. You give me hope for the future, just by being you.

And being YOU is the most rebellious thing you can do today.