I think you’re right, but it’s also true that it’s much easier to find the bad stuff. News in general reports bad news much much more frequently than good news, even though good news is happening too.

There’s a newsletter I subscribe to called Fix the News that only reports good news, and it’s kind of startling how major some of the stuff on there is each edition, things I don’t hear about at all outside of it.

So I think you’re right that people should try and seek out better stuff, but also I have a lot of empathy for not doing so because the machine wants us to be sad and hopeless, and you really have to try to avoid that trap.

I think it’s a reaction to feelings of powerlessness and frustration at the world. Social media is an easy way to get that energy out, even if it’s a very toxic way of doing it.

Major issues and inequality aren’t new, but our ability to get a 24/7 fire hose of info about it is. I don’t think anyone’s figured out how to healthily handle it yet. Consuming it all the time destroys our mental, but hiding under a rock isn’t great either I feel. I’ve been struggling to find that balance more and more these days.

I feel this. I’ve been feeling like I’m getting less and less enjoyment out of my time here. It’s hard to even think of another place to go though. Like you said every platform is a mess these days in one way or another it seems like.

I basically feel the same. Not sure if it’s just a side effect of how scary things are in the world right now, but I feel like the amount of escapist content has dropped a lot lately. By escapist I mean enjoyable things that aren’t focused on the real issues of the day. We all need that kind of thing to stay sane, and it’s in shorter and shorter supply on here I find.

The amount of politics leaking into every sub is also increasing rapidly it feels like. I block accounts that only ever post doom scroll content, but some of the bigger meme/entertainment posters have also started to mix in more politics and doom scroll lately.

I’d love to see more regular people on here with diverse interests, but I imagine it’s not going to increase due to the prevailing types of posts these days. I’ve honestly considered stepping away from here myself, but I don’t have another place in mind to go to yet.

Oil is also juice now? What else do you think is juice?

It’s been a couple of years since I was toddler enough to just put soap in my mouth.

I can’t believe how literate OP is for only being 4 years old!

I had no idea this was a local instance. Neat!

I think everyone’s friend just told them about it one day.

I’ve done this as best I can too. It was hard because I feel a need to be informed, but I came to the conclusion that being informed was actually only making me miserable, and didn’t actually spur any kind of action. It was actually the opposite because the fear machine kept me paralyzed with despair and cynicism.

I cut out as much as I can, and while things are still tough, I have more mental capacity to focus on what’s actually happening to me in the here and now.

You might know it already but I would recommend a free newsletter called Fix the News. It’s a roundup of only positive news, and not fluff either. It’s honestly done a lot to make me realize the endless bad news is a very narrow look at what’s happening in the world.

How are people finding these types or sites? I love the idea of it but I don’t understand how any of it gets discovered.

There’s a general strike on Friday? I’ll try to participate. I had no idea.

If you have access to ham hock, look up Congri. It’s a Cuban beans and rice dish that’s very cheap to make and quite tasty.

It might sound like more of a side, but I’ve found it’s plenty hearty enough for a meal.

I can see you’re in the UK, so this might be completely different for you, but another thing I’ve found lately is that chicken drumsticks are extremely cheap compared to every other cut of chicken. I can get about 8lbs of drumsticks for $8 from costco. I bake them, tear off the meat, and freeze it for use in whatever. I also save the bones so I can make chicken stock once I have enough.

Not sure if that will hold true across the pond, but I’ll throw it out there anyway just in case.

Edit: I realize you said no beans and rice, so I guess I’m not helping in that regard with this, sorry! 😅

I second this. As they say, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. It’s a lot less overwhelming to tackle problems in small pieces than by looking at everything at once.

I’m not sure what the issue is, but I don’t believe in shitting on people for asking questions. We all need help sometimes.

I see you calling out some of the people in this thread my comment was aimed at, so I think we’re on the same side.

As you can see, Lemmy has quite a few of these people, too.

This is something I would love to see added

Not a belief, but a confusion: I didn’t understand how maps with a “you are here” marker knew where you were. 😅