War anxiety, please someone provide some insight

[Panicpro]

I am terrified again about a big war breaking out. I can’t bear to really read into it, but I’ve heard Trump is pulling out of a nuclear agreement with Russia and this could lead to conflict. I also read somewhere that things are worse than the Cold War. I can’t eat, sleep or barely breathe because I’m panicking so much. Can someone give me some insight? Is this likely to become a massive issue?

[ankietyjoe]

If reading about it is causing you anxiety, then stop reading about it.

[PWO_Nathan]

Hello,

Sorry to hear you are suffering.

I disagree with the above, avoiding reading doesn't help IMO as you will just build scenarios in your mind. Believe me I know, I suffered as you do for quite a while. More so being ex-forces.

I invited you to read the following:

https://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=217005

and

https://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=216307

Try not to worry, everytime something happens the media elite spout the WW3 line purely as it drives traffic to their site (which gets them money from advertising on it).

As I say continually. We are still here.

[FrankT]

Well of course things are worse than they were during the Cold War! Brazil elected a fascist, global warming is on the rise, Europe wants to censor the internet, and Trump wants to strip transgender rights. I think a little spat with Russia is the least of our worries!

[MyNameIsTerry]

Well of course things are worse than they were during the Cold War! Brazil elected a fascist, global warming is on the rise, Europe wants to censor the internet, and Trump wants to strip transgender rights. I think a little spat with Russia is the least of our worries!

I remember the fall of the Berlin Wall. Stripping of transgender rights, which have only started becoming their rights in recent years, is very unlikely to compare to what people suffered before the fall. There is still a way to go with their rights, they're really early on with it compared to the larger players in LGBT and gaining pace now. (This is not to say stripping of their rights isn't vile but it is much more minor than many events in history and I fear it is being seen as having a greater impact due to the media frenzy and there needs to be balance in understanding it otherwise anxiety will skew it further)

Brazil elect a fascist. Can we counter that one in recent times by looking at what has happened to Venezuela? How does Brazil compare to North Korea?

Remember Tiananmen Square? What about China's ongoing human rights abuses?

What about the turbulent Middle East?

Remember Rwanda?

Remember Yugoslavia?

Remember apartheid?

How about Myanmar? They've been abusing their people for many years?

The rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan? Those guys have been around for some time.

Two Gulf Wars, Vietnam, Korea, The Falklands, etc before getting into the earlier ones.

It goes on. That's the point though, the media whip up a frenzy but looking at the world has it ever been any different?

[jray23]

Good post Terry. There's always crazy stuff going on and quite frankly regardless of what the news media wants you to think, the world is actually getting better as we move forward through the decades.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2017/11/30/why-the-world-is-getting-better-why-hardly-anyone-knows-it/#47203e9b7826

And also quite frankly, the idea of the U.S. going to war with Russia is downright ludicrous. Trump isn't that stupid, and besides, why would he fight the country that helped him get elected??? There's a better chance of a 2nd American Civil War right now (still super low chance) than there is of fighting Russia.

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[FrankT]

Well... I mean, that's good to know.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Good post Terry. There's always crazy stuff going on and quite frankly regardless of what the news media wants you to think, the world is actually getting better as we move forward through the decades.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2017/11/30/why-the-world-is-getting-better-why-hardly-anyone-knows-it/#47203e9b7826

And also quite frankly, the idea of the U.S. going to war with Russia is downright ludicrous. Trump isn't that stupid, and besides, why would he fight the country that helped him get elected??? There's a better chance of a 2nd American Civil War right now (still super low chance) than there is of fighting Russia.

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That's a very useful, fact driven, summary, jray. We often don't realise this with the constant bombardment of "everything's getting worse" by much of the media. We can overreact to change, to a shift in our freedoms, yet we are still moving forward by generations.

[mark84]

Panicpro, I believe you're in Australia too, I'd say that's an extremely safe country to be in,your advanced, wealthy and really well located. Plus no one could possibly attack the country that made Neighbours!

[MyNameIsTerry]

Well... I mean, that's good to know.

It's not to say you aren't right to take an interest in the world and see negative changes, Frank. I think we are just concerned that the media love to whip it up and forget about yesterday and how that can be quite triggering for someone who's anxiety is obviously connected to this stuff.

[FrankT]

Do you think it might be related to the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine in the 80s?

[MyNameIsTerry]

Possibly for the US. For the UK it's because we have lost control of our media. They get away with pretty much anything.

But I doubt the powers that be are as concerned with what scares the population as they are with how deep the media dig into the affairs of the powerful.

Society has also greatly changed. I can't imagine entire magazines following around the vacuous morons we have these days.

And the 24/7 news culture which has introduced little additional news compared to endless speculation and opinion pieces, many presented as fact.