Keep Calm and Carry On
Once upon a time, there was a huge world war. The bad guys—and we can all agree that Nazis (who were fascists) are bad guys—wanted to extend their control to all of Europe, including the countries of Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. (If you think that they didn’t succeed at least in part, you should check out the history of the Channel Islands, which are UK territory that was in fact occupied by the Germans.)
The powers that be in the UK did their best to enlist the aid of the United States, and to fight off Nazi occupation. But just in case of occupation, they had posters printed up that said KEEP CALM & CARRY ON.
Those posters were not actually pasted up all over the place, because despite the Blitz, the Nazis didn’t manage to occupy the United Kingdom.
KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON
Here is what those posters actually looked like.
As I posted a couple weeks back, the White Male Patriarchy that is trying to foist its plans on us is very much counting on you to feel defeated, lose hope, and stay home on election day. You can read that post here.
Keep calm and carry on.
I believe that history is echoing itself these days, and that there are folks who really would like ultra right-wing (aka fascist) leaders to take over. Heck, there is even a blueprint written by the Heritage Foundation and adopted by the GOP presidential campaign to get rid of most of the protections in our country, as well as most of the safety nets. They include the widely publicized attacks on reproductive rights (including birth control and IVF), abolishing no-fault divorce as well as many consumer protections (including the FDIC, which makes sure banks don’t speculate with your money and insuring your accounts, as well as getting rid of environmental protections), and getting rid of things like Social Security, Medicare, and many veterans’ programs. Dissidents (those who oppose the GOP candidate) will be rounded up and jailed or sent to “camps”, as will refugees who enter our country, and possibly a large number of immigrants already in the US.
(Thes programs are called Project 2025 and Agenda 47, but I am well aware that if they are not victorious in this year’s elections, they will just keep moving the plans to the next one. The GOP is good at the long game, and has always favored wealthy white men and Big Business, and these are now their unmasked end game.)
Now, the Republican National Convention Is underway, talking about how they want to implement some or all of the policies I’ve listed above, in addition to whatever else it is that they get up to. I can’t tell you for certain because I won’t watch it: I value my peace too much.
Which brings me to my main point: As fascists attempt to turn our country into a White Christian Nationalist nation headed by a dictator/king, we need to KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON.
That does NOT mean that we need to put our heads in the sand and deny what is going on in front of our eyes. What it does mean is that we need to protect our own peace so that we have the ability and power to stand up to what is going on.
KEEP CALM
How to keep calm:
Limit your consumption of news, especially if it’s from a 24-hours news channel. They are driving outrage as a way of upping the number of eyes on their channels. I know the old adage is that “sex sells”, but fear also sells, and they are masters at it.
Moderate your social media consumption. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t be on social media, but do what you can to avoid “outrage farmers” on there: the folks who post to start arguments or get you upset are better off being blocked than interacted with. Use the “following” feeds, where you only see things posted by people who you CHOSE to follow. Mute or block folks you no longer want to see in your feed. That allows you to see as many cat or dog videos as you like, without having to read screeds or rage-bait.
Get outside when you can. If it is environmentally safe for you to do so (air quality, not dangerously hot, etc.), spend at least 15 minutes each day outside. This is better still if you can do it somewhere where you can see trees, plants, and sky.
Meditate if you can. It doesn’t have to be a big thing. Heck, it can even be as small as three deep breaths. Breathe in deeply through your nose, hold at the top for a sec, then sigh it out through your mouth. Just three of those big breaths can be enough to (a) get more oxygen into your body (b) get lots of carbon dioxide out (it builds up when you feel stressed) and (c) break any mental spiral you might be in at the moment. You can do this sitting quietly with your feet on the floor, lying down, or even standing in line at the grocery store. Just focus on those three big inhales and sighs.
Lower your anxiety using any of the techniques found in many of my prior blog posts. Start with this one entitled “Breathe. Just breathe” and roll forward. Or read this post about the uncertainty principle from 2020. Or get yourself a copy of my ebook, Lower your anxiety, which is a 54-page e-book containing 17 tips to help you reduce your anxiousness, along with a self-coaching exercise and journaling pages. It’s on sale for $15.
carry on
“Carrying on” is used here to mean go about your life. In the original UK posters, the phrase was probably intended to remind folks to keep a stiff upper lip, but what I am advising is that you go out and live your life without worry, as much as you possibly can.
In Timothy Snyder’s book, ON TYRANNY (which is a great resource for current times), the first “lesson” is DO NOT OBEY IN ADVANCE. That means that you don’t capitulate unless you have to. (You can watch and listen to Timothy Snyder explain this here.)
A real-life example: If you know that your company is thinking about requiring folks to return to the office full-time, and you’ve been working from home and enjoy that, don’t go into the office until you actually have to.
“How can we dance when our earth is turnin’? How can we sleep while our beds are burnin’?”
We’ve all been going about our “normal” lives for most of our lives, right? This is a good time to keep on doing just that. Keep calm, and carry on as normal. Because if you are allowing others to take your peace, to hijack your mind (basically), then you are ceding part of your life and your will to the folks who want to make your life unhappy.
If the bad guys can make you unhappy, they are already winning. They are sapping your energy and strength, and making it more likely that you will give up and comply.
So go about your life for now, knowing that you are not bowing your head or giving in. Have a plan to vote in the fall. Read up on Project 2025/Agenda 47, and make sure the people you know and love are aware of what is in it, too. The end game of those projects/agendas is to further make it easy for the fabulously wealthy to be even wealthier and not face any consequences if they decide to cut corners or step on others.
A list on how to carry on:
Find out about the issues in this year’s election.
Make a plan to vote.
Check (and re-check) your voter registration, since there have been a lot of statewide efforts to reduce the number of registered voters
Pick one or two candidates or issues to focus on, if you want to feel involved in the political process. Don’t make yourself nuts trying to stay on top of everything.
Dance like nobody’s watching, love the people you love, eat things you love,avoid the news and such if it’s sapping your energy or upsetting your peace of mind.
“Make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it” as Taylor Swift says in “You’re on your own, kid” and remember that you are not, in fact, on your own, kid.
Sending you big love.
