Sorry about the trash title, couldn’t think of something more elaborate or appropriate. Also sorry if this isn’t the best place to pose this question.
So, given the state of world affairs right now, with the decoupling from US currency, soaring prices, impending recession, possible open war, etc., I want to ask fellow US comrades as well as comrades living in other countries like the UK who will be seriously impacted by this: How do you intend to survive the oncoming possible collapse?
As we all know, any time there is any sort of crisis, the wealthy are completely unaffected and the burden always falls entirely on working class people. Starvation, homelessness, increased violence, looting, etc. will affect everyone. My household has what would normally be a comfortable income and already this shit is starting to affect us. Or at least that is what the growing empty spaces in our fridge and pantry are telling us, and our electricity bill which doubled since two months ago despite the wattage being about the same.
While the collapse of western hegemony will be good for the world at large, collapse doesn’t mean disappearance. After all, the Spanish Empire did not suddenly vanish from the world stage just because they lost sea dominance, the United States still might survive as an independent, reactionary, nuclear armed, ultra-conservative, capitalist, shit hole where now the poor are significantly poorer and all those troops stationed overseas are granted law enforcement rights domestically or whatever.
And sorry my post is so US-centric, but I can only reasonably speak to local conditions and not as much those of other western nations. I’m interested in what those comrades have to say though for sure! While there are certainly differences in local material conditions there are also a lot of similarities, as well as solutions that can apply to multiple problems.
I know (or at least sincerely suspect) that it won’t be some world ending apocalypse or whatever doomers will have you believe, but innocent working class people will die.
So the question again is: How do you intend to survive the oncoming possible collapse, and possibly even help others?
Got to remember that there’s going to be a whole lot of fascism before there’s a collapse. The problems arising from the US and friends being unable to exploit foreign peoples is gonna start getting solved in the short term by turning the exploitation inwards. Things like anti-abortion laws and the increasing funding for the police are just the begninning for making it easier to turn people into criminals to strip them of their rights.
It’s gonna be easier to bring people into class consciousness but it’s also going to be a lot more dangerous too. People are going to have to choose either “solidarity and mutual aid” or “everyone-for-themselves-fuck-you-got-mine,” and that’s gonna be a huge factor on how quickly you move past Fascism. Unfortunately, from what I’ve seen of American culture there’s going to be an overwhelming amount of people opting for the latter.
I think that’s something alot of people don’t grasp (and I myself am just coming to terms with). It isn’t going to be pretty, nor a grand show with a crescendo. It’s going to be, like my other comment said, a slow decline in just about everything.
I live in America (I cease to call myself “American” anymore, lol) and you’re totally right. It’s been historically proven, most recently by the COVID crisis, that there is an absolute disregard for human life in pursuit of individuality; a truly horrific thing to see.
Honestly, the US has been steering into that fascism skid since Reagan.