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As a young American, how do I motivate myself to work? It feels like the entire system is a scam and it's pointless to even try. (lemmy.world)

submitted 9 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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It feels all but certain that I won't be able to enjoy a prosperous life or get to retire. All of the wealth is going straight to the top. All of the opportunities to move up in the world are being rug-pulled. All of the federal agencies that help keep us safe and healthy are gone. The social safety net is getting flushed down the toilet. We will live in disease and squalor, and the most vulnerable of us will die.

Because I dared to not be a sociopath, I and anyone else who voted for sanity will be deemed enemies of the state and hunted down - which won't be hard, because it would be trivial to build the most robust surveillance state in human history if it doesn't exist already.

I myself have disabilities (which I don't think qualify for benefits) that make it hard, but not impossible, to find a job. The problem is that I just can't bring myself to do it because I don't get what the fucking point is anymore. I have to work so hard to get out of this rut just for some fascist fuck to kill me or toss me into a torture facility before I can even experience life on my own.

Have you been in a similar headspace and were able to escape it? If so, what snapped you out of it?

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 hours ago (1 children)

You are not wrong. It’s a very unfair world we have build. And a lot of people are struggling even though there are plenty of resources to make sure every single person on earth could have their needs met and the opportunity to live a meaningful life.

BUT we have to dare to hope. Because otherwise we just give up and the people on top is counting on that. ”We have the power and there is nothing you can do about that”. I think David Graeber is one of the most hopeful people to read:

“Hope is a tricky business among intellectuals and activists. Cynicism, though it’s often inaccurate about both human nature and political possibilities, gives the appearance of sophistication; despair is often seen as sophisticated and worldly-wise while hopefulness is seen as naive, when the opposite is not infrequently true. Hope is risky; you can lose, and you often do, but the records show that if you try, sometimes you win.

His essay Despair Fatigue opens: “Is it possible to become bored with hopelessness?”

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/nov/07/david-graeber-optimistic-anarchist-rebecca-solnit

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 hour ago

I like this sentiment. Hope is also very important in my life. In my darkest times, there was always hope to cling to. It wasn't always realistic and most of it has failed. Some have succeeded though and I am in a much better place now.

However, it is important to learn that failure is a good thing. Society has imprinted in most of us that failure is bad. It is not. Failure is a way to learn. Without failure you cannot learn and you cannot grow.

For this same reason it is perfectly fine for hope to fail. You can learn from that and adjust your hopes and expectations accordingly within the scope of you values.