We love looking backwards to try to get in touch with ourselves, our history, traditional ways of doing things. I think this is a noble pursuit but the pace of cycling through eras in the trend cycle for example has grown increasingly rapid to the point that it feels like weāre endlessly regurgitating everything all at once, without context.
Rediscovering the past can look like going back to pre-industrial ways of living which is a beautiful thing to strive toward. In a lot of ways, weāve also abandoned a lot of traditional ways of doing things in favor of methods that are easier, faster, and simpler, not necessarily better.
On the other hand, one of the three essential elements to fascism identified by Jason Stanley is invoking a mythic past to manufacture nostalgia for a more traditional, patriarchal, and racially pure past, which is I think what weāre seeing with a lot of people who romanticize 1950s Americana as some kind of utopian traditional society.
Carl Sagan said:
āIn general, human societies are not innovative. They are hierarchical and ritualistic. Suggestions for change are greeted with suspicion: they imply an unpleasant future variation in ritual and hierarchy: an exchange of one set of rituals for another, or perhaps for a less structured society with fewer rituals. And yet there are times when societies must change.ā
āAs a consequence of the enormous social and technological changes of the last few centuries, the world is not working well. We do not live in traditional and static societies. But our government, in resisting change, act as if we did. Unless we destroy ourselves utterly, the future belongs to those societies that, while not ignoring the reptilian and mammalian parts of our being, enable the characteristically human components of our nature to flourish; to those societies that encourage diversity rather than conformity; to those societies willing to invest resources in a variety of social, political, economic and cultural experiments, and prepared to sacrifice short-term advantage for long-term benefit; to those societies that treat new ideas as delicate, fragile and immensely valuable pathways to the future.ā
So I think we need forward-thinking transformational change, though it may not be as comfortable as nostalgiaā¦
Jan 15, 2025
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was just listening to sleep by godspeed you! black emperor and the monologue at the beginning really struck me with a lot i've been thinking about lately
about how america is a kind of corrosive force. its people (unless they're native americans who it actively seeks to eradicate) don't have any traditions, rituals, old knowledge passed down ā their ancestors may have had these, but everything was ironed out and forgotten when they had to assimilate, not into a dominant culture but into an absence of one
but little pockets of uniquely american experiences and stories have arisen in so many places and i'm really interested in finding them. like that monologue. but with the internet homogenizing culture those bubbles dissolve, and gentrification displaces the people who built them etc. it all feels like a drive towards nothing culture.
but i guess what i want to ask is, what's your culture? have you held on to something that's yours? made something new? how can we make sure these things aren't lost? do you have any links to videos/stories/media that this makes you think of?
Mar 18, 2025
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This question has been in the back of my mind for the past few years because when we talk about āgetting freeā we have to acknowledge that the bounds of the society weāve created arenāt free at all. Getting free means breaking from oppressive power structures, having the freedom to collaborate with others without pretense of capital, the freedom to imagine new systems of governance for ourselves with the ability to change with consensus and the ability for us as a peoples to live in the commons (that is this world) as good stewards to ourselves and nature~
I wonāt get into it too much but I highly recommend folks read David Graeber and David Wengrowās āHow to Change the Course of Human Historyā or any of the video essays by @Andrewismšæ to get a better idea of what Iām talking about āš¾
Apr 19, 2024
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So I have this theory that life tries to put things in order at one end of the pendulum swing, and at the other it fucking just goes wrecking ball. And while these energies are always at play in all systems, theyāre also evident over longer timeframes. Zeitgeist shit. Our culture (popular/socioeconomic/business) has been in a putting together swing for twenty thirty or so years and I think weāre into the backlash. Fuck your spreadsheet, itās time to remember what being an animal swinging an axe feels like And go from there
Oct 21, 2024
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āLife shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.ā
ā AnaĆÆs Nin
This is uncharacteristically raw and personal, even for me, and pretty heavy! I know many of you have seen me posting through it and I feel safe to talk about it openly now that Iāve safely landed at the start of my new life. Itās honestly even a little bit embarrassing but I think itās important to share.
Iāve never publicly mentioned it on here, but I have a husband; as of Friday, weād have been together for 11 years, and weāve been married for 3 years as of 2/22. I realize now that I wanted to explore what I looked like outside of my relationship with him because I had lost that. This is why PI.FYI has been so meaningful to me as a space to express myself and connect with peopleāto rediscover my voice.
I had been living a lie this entire time, to others but worst of all to myself. Heās been verbally and emotionally abusive, physically but without touching me, to the point that every day I spent with him I was in danger. Iāve been shrinking myself and walking on eggshells to avoid making him insecure and provoking his casual put-downs and fits of rage, while hanging on for dear life to the threads of good I could see.
Iāve wanted so badly to leave, more than anything, but I felt like there was no way out and that this was just something I would need to endure indefinitelyābut someone who is so very dear to me helped me see that I have wings to fly, not by acting as my savior but by reminding me of my own power. The emotional safety they built and the gentle care they showed me made me feel like I could open up to them. With their encouragement I was brave enough to tell the truth to my friends, my family, my boss, and they have received me with warm, loving and open arms and rallied to support and protect me. The financial andĀ logistical aspects were the most intimidating to me and itās going to be tough for a while but Iām going to be better than okay!
Now Iām opening up to you. This isnāt the only abuse Iāve suffered in my life, and my old therapist told me she believed it was my mission to share my strength and light with others to inspire them and show them that change is possible.
I hope that by sharing this, I can reach even just one person who is going through something similar and show that they are not alone, and they are not weak. People with certain backgrounds may be more vulnerable to abuse, but it can happen to anyone. It thrives in darkness, shame, and isolationāand breaking that silence is the first step toward freedom.
Leaving is the scariest thing I have ever done but I have so many angels around me, and I am endlessly grateful. Thank you for being here with me š
Mar 16, 2025
My dad teases me about how when I was a little kid, my favorite thing to do when I was on the landline phone with somebodyābe it a relative or one of my best friendsāwas to breathlessly describe the things that were in my bedroom so that they could have a mental picture of everything I loved and chose to surround myself with, and where I sat at that moment in time. Perfectly Imperfect reminds me of that so thanks for always listening and for sharing with me too š
Feb 23, 2025
Schedule sent my resignation email for the morning, effective immediately ā
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Feb 27, 2025