topic Terrified for America in Anxiety

Terrified for America

Doberman38 — Sat, 28 May 2022 00:51:15 GMT

Hi everyone.

The sharp rightwood turn and constant political chaos in America is really having a impact. I'm getting more and more worried that in the near future it will turn into a dictatorship, with political purges and another Holocaust. I thought things would have calmed down since the last election, but it seems it's just been getting worse and worse and I don't see any signs that this can be changed. I try to think that surely people won't let all that happen, but I'm really losing faith. I'm increasingly feeling like there's no point being optimistic. It is seriously distracting me and sucking out all my joy.

Terrified for America

Mark Z. — Sat, 28 May 2022 11:13:16 GMT

Hi Doberman38,

I agree with you, what has happened in US is a tragedy, it's so heartbreaking. But I believe this has also aroused reflection in American society, and things will gradually develop for the better.

We should be grateful to live in Australia, it's safe here.

Terrified for America

Petal22 — Sat, 28 May 2022 12:00:26 GMT

Hi Doberman38,

I’m sorry you are feeling this way.

But please try to remember that we can’t control what happens in life but we can always control how we react to it.

Thats where your power is.

Terrified for America

geoff — Sat, 28 May 2022 15:04:26 GMT

Hello Doberman, whatever happened in the USA is deplorable, losing the lives of young adolescents is unforgivable and for what reason.

We can't control what happens o/s but we have to make sure this type of event certainly doesn't here in Australia.

My thoughts are with all the families.

Geoff.

Terrified for America

Doberman38 — Sun, 29 May 2022 06:27:41 GMT

Thank you all so much, everyone.

I've significantly calmed down since the end of yesterday - I was getting an awful headache from all the worrying and that was a big signal to me that I had to give it a rest. I need to accept that it's absolutely useless to paralyse yourself with worry as it will do nothing to help, especially if it is over something that probably won't even happen.

I should also remind myself that I actually am doing something, however limited, by stressing to American friends the importance of engaging in societal pressure, such as protests and the like, to combat this stuff - so I (and pretty much everyone) are not really as powerless as we think we are.

I'm going to try to keep up my positive mindset 🙂

Terrified for America

HamSolo01 — Sun, 29 May 2022 07:33:33 GMT

Hi Doberman

I don't remember who it was who said this to me, but they made the point that the problems in the US arise there and therefore they will find a solution to it. Perhaps it is not the best counsel, however I do believe that it is something to consider.

As well as that, US has since its earliest days been a country of wild opposites.

Terrified for America

Aline SM — Mon, 30 May 2022 03:31:43 GMT

Hi Doberman38, I'm sorry that you're feeling like this and good on you for acknowledging it and sharing your worries. Sharing always helps us to get through!

One thing I realised is that there's a big difference between being informed of what is happening in the world and digging up every detail and information about it. I'm saying this because I used to get very anxious with all the bad and sad news until I realised I have no power over what's happening and worrying and knowing every little piece of information had its toll on me and that wasn't helpful to anyone - specially myself.

What helps me to deal with all these is remembering I want to know only enough to be informed and not living under a rock but not digging to deep. Also, I've made a pact to myself: for each bad news I read / see / listen, I need to see 3 good news. It's silly but it helps a lot to keep in perspective! Hope it helps you!

Terrified for America

missep123 — Mon, 30 May 2022 10:58:10 GMT

Hi Doberman38,

I also find it stressful to hear about what is happening in America. What is happening on the news can truly shock me sometimes. I really like what @Petal22 wrote about our power being in controlling our reactions as this is the only thing we can really control. I am so glad you have been feeling better and managing the feelings in your way!

We are definitely here for you and you are not alone!

Terrified for America

Mark Z. — Mon, 30 May 2022 12:47:23 GMT

Hi Doberman38,

Good to know that you've managed to find your way to calm down. And great awareness!

And yes, every positive try is meaningful. Maybe not just stress our American friends, but also giving them our emotional support. Us is a great country because of it's strong capability of self-reflection and self-evolution, they will learn lessons and change will happen.

Terrified for America

Resolute459 — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 03:31:07 GMT

You should worry but you aren't alone. America, right now, is and has been its worst more than ever. It is something I went through March 2020 and now I am hoping to be great never again. Oh, I talk big. And they stomp me out. You should try your GP, medication can be hard, but it helps.

Terrified for America

Mudpies — Sun, 26 Jun 2022 06:12:24 GMT

Something to remember is that in any political brouhaha, it's a breaking point of people who have been shouted down and ignored.

A lot of TV News programs and their ilk thrive on filling panels with extremely contradictory individuals, because it's quite dramatic and drives up the ratings. It seems to normalise the sort of caustic, ignorant, intolerant and argumentative attitudes we see reflected everywhere in the world at the moment. I would personally suggest avoiding TV news and reading it online (or in a newspaper), instead - much more pleasant to go at your own pace, without some arrogant, know-it-all presenter and their hand-picked antagonists telling you what you should think.

While we cannot fix the drama in America or anywhere else overseas, we can stop it happening here. How? By listening to one-another, and when we disagree, being careful to think our arguments through, ensuring we don't carelessly throw around labels and accusations that almost-always fan the flames of frustration or interrupt someone else while they're talking. Examples being statements like, "right wing extremists," "loony lefties", "tin-foil hat wearer". These, and more elaborate phrases like them, far from legitimately questioning someone's opinion, are merely thinly-veiled attacks of character.

A lot of people, through isolation, rejection and a host of other reasons, have wandered down the rabbit hole of fairly fringe ideologies (there's a lot of them, although the irony is those on the farthest ends of the political spectrum are more alike than they realise). Rejecting and looking down on these people will not make them 'wake up', so to speak. If anything, it only spurs further radicalisation with predictable results. More than anywhere else, participants of this forum know all too-well what it feels like to be ignored, treated like your problems are imagined. Let's not perpetrate it. It might just make the world a better place 🙂

Re: Terrified for America

Guest_1584 — Tue, 05 Jul 2022 22:56:21 GMT

l would've thought people would be a lot more saddened with Ukraine right now than worrying about the US as sad as their stuff is, it's mostly self inflicted. That place has always been an only in America thing and to this day l'm damned if l know why Australia seems so idolizing of the place or of allowing so much Americanism creep into our country and ways the way that it is these days. Why in Gods name would any Aussie, any country in fact want to take on anything American.

But yeah it is horrific what's been happening there but what gets out around the world isn't even a fraction of what really goes on there. There's been at least one shooting a day since that one that we don't even hear about, and something like 600 per yr, every yr, or something like that, look it up. And that's not including just their normal everyday murders, they're in the 100s of 1000s per yr,look those up to if you really wanna be shocked to the core. Sadly though, they make their bed, yaknow, just like they did with the worst Covid numbers in the world, and with everything else.lt's bc of the way they act, it's the people as much as their pollies l mean look at the way they acted through Covid, look at what they did when Trump was getting the boot, look at their crime, look at the 5 or 600 mass shootings they get a yr that the world doesn't hear about , look at how most of the population own guns. So as horrifying and sad as things that happen over there are, nothing will change bc it is the people as much as anything else.They don't want change it's their freedom as they call it just like being able to own guns normally used only in a war or the ways they acted during the worst pandemic in 100yrs.

So sorry op but l dunno how anyone falls for the rubbish that goes on over there tbh.

Re: Terrified for America

Fiatlux — Tue, 05 Jul 2022 23:52:03 GMT

Hi all,

I have mentioned previously that my daughter lives in the USA. Very near to D.C.

So you ask the Question, Why are we so close to America? Well, it’s English speaking, mainly white and mainly Christian. A bit like Australia. But I must say that every American that I have met are thoroughly decent, good people. Very polite and extremely nice. It’s hard not to like them. My US family are just lovely.

My daughter tells me that what we see is the extreme. That is not her every day reality. Yes, you need to be cautious and avoid the extreme at times but generally the majority are level headed. Normal people, just like her, an Australian.

However, Americans love their guns. I don’t know why, but it’s in their constitution. Unlike Australian kids, American kids learn their history and constitution thoroughly. So they grow up loving their Country and flag etc. They have had civil wars.

What part of American culture do we want to adopt? Nothing really.

I am a migrant to Australia, so grew up here but learnt very little about the History. I was taught to believe that nobody was here in 1788. What a massive lie that was.

Happy NAIDOC week to all. 🙏🏼🤗🫶🏻🪃

Re: Terrified for America

Guest_1584 — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 06:36:04 GMT

You must've went to the wrong school sorry . We were taught all about Australian history and First nation history very thoroughly . As far as Americans well , my ex has lived there 20yrs she's also in the airlines so she deals with 10s of 1000s of people from all over the world and what she tells me, is exactly what l see too.

But anyway , ea to their own .

Re: Terrified for America

Guest_1584 — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 06:45:54 GMT

ps , there's also one other very big thing about what your daughter might actually hear even living there. They don't even have or show all their murders and shootings on the news there, they don't in the UK either , unlike the Australia media whom seem so hell bent on forcing it all down our throats every night and that have just made our news here just too down right distressing to even watch any more. l've been watching news from all over the world for yrs , their news the way ea country presents it and the American news doesn't cover any of their crime at all , it's so common it's not even worth mentioning l presume . You can watch an hr of it every day until Christmas , try their different new's to not just one but still,mostly all you'll see is politics economy their latest tornadoes a few things going on around the world and that's about it.

Re: Terrified for America

Fiatlux — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 05:40:31 GMT

Hi randomx,

You are right about my lack of Australian education. I starting primary school in the very early 70's. So we still sang "God Save the Queen" as our National Anthem... that was the Australia I grew up in.

Re: Terrified for America

That Other Guy — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 05:44:42 GMT

America simply has too many murders to report them all, they just report the big ones.

Re: Terrified for America

Mudpies — Sat, 09 Jul 2022 07:38:23 GMT

I was at school in the 2000s. We didn't learn any Australian history, aside from white settlement beginning in 1788, the Stolen Generation and generally vaguely-implied shame that "we" had done something wrong in being here in this great place. If anything, we learned more about other countries than our own. My knowledge of Australia's history, its geography, Indigenous culture, the culture of the many groups that made up the later settlers ... practically nonexistent.

The perils of the 5 miles wide / 2 inches deep curriculum that changes with the weather. This is how you wander down the path towards extremism.