The Impending Doom Economy:

How to survive the media propaganda, collective turmoil, and ultimately the "end of the world."

Turns on TV. “CNN tonight — Russia launches a full scale attack on Ukraine.” Changes channel. “Fox News is live with our war correspondet on the scene as Russia begins a bombing campaign in Kyiv.” Changes channel. “This is MSNBC — We have the latest news from the front lines.” Turns off TV. Opens Twitter. “Putin doesn’t want NATO so close to his borders, no wonder he’s doing what he’s doing.” Scrolls down. “I stand with the people of Ukraine.” Scrolls down. “LOLZ WWIII here we come.” Scrolls down. “Putin is a magician. He cured COVID in just a few short days.” Turns off Twitter. Takes a deep breath, sighs, and looks off into the distance. … Do you ever feel like you’re being manipulated? Like you’re being emotionally programmed to react in a certain way. Feel a certain way. Express yourself in a certain way. To the point where you’re not even sure what opinion is yours, what you actually believe, or even who you are. Don't worry... You are being manipulated. Our Current State Each time you use your thumb to flick your phone, your emotions change in an instant. You land on a silly cat video that makes you chuckle. Next you’re on footage of exploding rockets. Next you’re onto highlights from your favorite sports team. And then you land on COVID death statistics. These rapid emotional changes alter your inner biochemistry in seconds. Because of this, you’re put into a state that is easily controlled. And programmed. How? In this state of constant fluctuation, our emotional bodies can become confused and overwhelmed. As a result, you are pushed into the base human emotion — fear. In the past, fear was a friend. It didn't linger. Instead, it saved us from immediate danger. Warned us not to venture into the dark. Or try to attack the hungry predator. But things have changed. Or as Edward O. Wilson, American biologist, researcher, and theorist put it, “We have created a Star Wars civilization, with Stone Age emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology.” This mismatch of ages has left us confused and easily led. As our lives have grown from hunter gatherers to sedentary lifestyles full of opulence, fear now cripples us. “No passion so effectually robs the mind of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear”, wrote 18th century philosopher Edmund Burke. The question then becomes…besides a fluctuation in emotion, how are you being manipulated? The Golden Age of Propaganda “We don't do propaganda so you believe something. We do it so you believe nothing.” Unlike anytime before in the history of humanity (that we are aware of — there is growing evidence that advanced civilizations existed in the distant past) we now have technology that can connect us all in an instant. Through these channels of information you are constantly fed news (with an emphasis on eye-catching headlines) that feed your fear cycles. Much of the information is construed, altered, and sometimes even outright lies. Doesn't it seem like the media now works in conjunction with the government to feed you propaganda in order to push forward their personal agendas? There might be a reason for this... Did you know — around Christmas time in 2017, President Obama signed into action the Counter Disinformation and Anti-Propaganda Act. In 2017, Aaron Kesel wrote for wearechange.org “the law will allow the government to crack down with impunity against any media outlet it deems ‘propaganda. The next piece of the legislation will provide substantial amounts of money to fund ‘counter propaganda,’ to make sure the government’s approved stories drown out alternative media and journalists who question the status quo. In other words the stage is now set for the U.S. government to legally crack down on every media outlet that they deem to be ‘foreign propaganda.” Have you noticed a shift in media reporting around this time? It seemed to have flipped from the most trusted voices into the biggest narrative pushers. A coincidence? Maybe… But you might be interested in a very recent example of how an agenda changes the narrative… Check out the differences in reporting a few years ago as opposed to now:

vs. now:

What is the truth between the two sets of articles? It doesn’t matter. The truth can be altered. Changed. Twisted. As long as it pushes the agenda further. Or as George Orwell stated, “Political language … is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appeareance of solidity to pure wind.” **Very important side note**: These articles are to only point out how the narrative changes to suit the needs of the current time. It in no way excuses Putin, his actions against Ukraine, or the Ukrainian people. More on this in a bit… The next logical question is — why? What is the point? The Impending Doom Economy As we’ve already discussed, fear is the baseline of humanity. It is being spread through propaganda. It is being spread quicker than any other time in human history. And in order to do so, the truth no longer matters as long as it pushes forward the agenda. What everyone is now possibly feeling is a continuous sense of impending doom. Whether it’s a new pandemic, a world war, nuclear war… It all serves the same purpose. The point to all of it? From what I can tell (don’t take my word for it, start reading/researching yourself) is multifaceted. Two obvious reasons are as follows: 1. To sell you things. It’s not a secret, major marketing companies and large corporations use fear to sell. They spend a ton of $$$ to make you afraid of a situation, a disease, loss, going broke, etc, and then they sell you the cure. Why? Because it works. It’s as simple as that. With an entire world population underneath the hypnotists’ spell of fear, you can sell a whole bunch of stuff to a whole bunch of people. Fear is the driving force behind the economy of impending doom. 2. For control. It seems our society is moving towards a new direction. What is that direction? Will it be a good thing? It’s yet to be seen. And I don’t really want to jump down any conspiratorial rabbit holes lol. But there is a simple fact we all must be aware of: a population under fear is a population under control. Happy, content, peaceful people naturally don’t need anything from the outside world. They are perfectly fine living their lives. As a result, they are impossible to control. Impossible to push towards a new direction. And if you have an agenda you want to see come to fruition, then you can’t have happy, content, peaceful people — they will simply ignore your agenda and keep on living. So, what can be done about all of this? How to Survive It All With Practical Wisdom Remember way back in the beginning of this newsletter when I said not to worry about being manipulated? There was a reason for that. You can choose not to be manipulated. What follows is a compilation of ideas, techniques, and attitudes you can use in your daily life to live a more courageous, free existence. And that’s the point to all of this… To be free in your thoughts, in your actions, to break free from the programming, and in turn help others live better lives. As always — take what works for you and leave the rest. 1. Know you’ve being lied to. This is the biggest shift you can take. Simply know you are never told the entire truth. The entire story. Everyone has an agenda they’re pushing. Whether you agree with them or not. Let it all go. This shift in awareness can and will have the most profound effect on your entire being. 2. Stick to the basics. What do you know to be true?

• Peace Above All. Innocent people should never be bombed no matter what side of the conflict. We should always stand up for peace in the face of aggressive forces — whether it’s Russia in Ukraine, the US and other countries in Yemen, Syria, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, or even Israel against Palestine or vice versa. Whenever countries go to war, the innocent citizens suffer. Not the politicians or billionaires who push for it.

• Your health is a priority, do what makes you feel better. Exercise. Eat right. Get plenty of sunshine. Commune with friends and family. Laugh. Play. HAVE FUN.

• Your local community is important. Get involved with people around you. Create social groups. Attend new classes. Make friends.

• Seek first-hand accounts. When I was in school we had a tier to the level of sources we used for research. There were third-hand accounts, second-hand accounts, and first-hand accounts. Most of the news is from third or second hand accounts. They are full of bias and twisted truths. Always seek first-hand accounts or at least second-hand accounts for your research. Head directly to the investigative journalist's site. Try to find videos from people within a country. Hear arguments from both sides. And just sit with the information without judging it at once.

3. Practice a stress relief tool. I know I always push meditation. But that’s only because it has had such a profound effect on my everyday life. Sit quietly for just 10 minutes a day for the next 90 days and see what happens. In addition, there are plenty of other tools you can use: yoga, journaling, walks in nature, even church if you’re religious. Find what you like and continue with the practice. 4. Help others feel better If other people around you are being affected by everything that’s going on, find ways to make them smile instead of arguing who’s right or wrong. As a result, you’ll smile more too. 5. Cut Your Screen Time in Half It is easy to continuously scroll on your phone without even realizing 20 minutes has passed. Raise your awareness to stop this from happening. You can even use certain app blockers on your phone to set time limits on social media. Less time on a screen allows your mind to clear itself out. And you'll be happier because of it. 6. Create, create, create The world needs more creation, less destruction. We need people who are willing to share their stories. Write inspiring poetry. Paint beautiful pictures. (send in any submissions when you do!) By doing so, you’ll end up realizing — you’re no longer controlled. And even more interesting, you’re not just creating art to share... You're creating a world you want to live in. Talk soon. -DJ