American politics, since despite trying my best to avoid the topic like the plague, it absolutely won’t leave my mind given the traumatic experiences I’ve had with the subject around my own family and especially in the furry fandom. It’s a really triggering subject to me since it’s pretty much the story of my life, given all the dehumanization, invalidation, gaslighting, mockery, and whatnot I’ve endured as an autistic.
Washington, DC, because America’s terminally-cancerous political “culture” and “system” have been really detrimental towards my mental health, and just even the slightest exposure to US politics gives me suicidal thoughts, since American politics has pretty much been the story of my life. Having a politician as a father who can’t shut up about the subject doesn’t really help in that regard, either.
I read about the former Connecticut U.S. Senator’s death in the Retro Swap gaming newsletter, given his role in creating the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). I didn’t agree with him on everything, though given things like what occurred in the 2006 midterm elections, I find his experience then relatable today, even more so in recent times. It seems that every American politician has “controversies,” “scandals,” or “skeletons in their closet” (but 99.99% of the time, such charges are from their political enemies within the government and media), and while I know he had his, I’m no different, and in most respects, he has a place in my heart. In pace requiescat.
Probably an overwhelming majority of American politicians, since most of them seem so sure of themselves, for better or worse (mostly the latter), whereas those in my country who are genuinely wise tend to harbor doubts.
What’s the thing you’re most scared to do? What would it take to get you to do it?
Probably give fuller attention to American politics. U.S. politicians actually behaving like civilized humans, and the media both acting like not everything is black and white and actually presenting genuine, objective, verifiable facts.
What do you complain about the most?
Bad mechanics and writing in whatever video games I play and America’s barbaric political culture.
What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?
I would be perfectly willing to do so, given that I was doing so in a genuinely stable, peaceful place, preferably anywhere outside the United States, given its toxic political culture and its adverse effects on my mental health, and I am not looking forward to the country’s elections this year or their aftermath. As the saying goes, “You can’t heal in the same environment that made you sick.”
However, I think the concept of quality versus quantity could easily apply to human lifespan, provided you’ve made a positive mark on the world even if you don’t live to ripe old age, and I feel I’ve contributed to the zeitgeist with my reviews of various media, chiefly video games, along with my anthro art. I’m certainly not suicidal, but I would accept dying young gracefully, provided I had good advanced knowledge, and would spend my remaining days doing what I have been the past few years, like enjoying my hobbies.
Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past? Why?
An equal time. The past in that I retain a lot of traumatic memories I absolutely can’t let go of no matter how hard I try, and the future in that there are tons of things I don’t look forward to, such as America’a 2024 elections and their aftermath, given my country’s toxic political culture and the media serving as a mouthpiece for all the ideological supremacism that envenoms United States politics. I try to stay in the present, but can’t, given my various mental conditions.
How have your political views changed over time?
I was far-right when I turned of voting age, and while I’m still fairly touchy about certain things, I suppose I’ve largely experienced a sense of ideological “woke” amidst America’s incredibly-toxic political climate, given the media and politicians seeing everything in black and white terms while completely ignoring the gray area, categorically refusing to compromise on anything, not respecting opposing opinions at all, gaslighting, dehumanizing one another, and so forth. Here’s my most recent result from politicalcompass.org:
Politics, particularly in the United States, due to the depiction by the media of everything being black and white, the dehumanization, the invalidation of various opinions, the cancel culture, the insensitive rhetoric, the belief by many activists, journalists, and politicians that certain demographics make themselves and others untouchable, and the bigger focus on the politicians themselves than the issues, which amounts to personality cults, and as a Christian, I find that a form of idolatry.
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