“Although these costs are not as high as in dictatorships like Russia—where critics are routinely imprisoned, exiled or killed—America has, w/stunning speed, descended into a world in which opponents of the government #fear #criminal investigations, #lawsuits, #TaxAudits & other punitive measures & even #Republican politicians are, as one fmr #Trump admin ofcl put it, 'scared' out of their minds 'about death threats.'”
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH), a massive biomedical-research funder that also employs thousands of scientists at its own laboratories, 
is “totally broken and non-functional right now”,
according to a principal investigator at the NIH who asked for anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the press.
“We can’t #hire people. We can’t #recruit people. We can’t #talk to people on the outside. We cannot #travel,” they say.
Other government scientists, say that they can’t afford #publication #fees or the #supplies they need to process lab samples.
At the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
— which monitors Earth’s oceans and atmosphere and provides weather forecasting services
— some scientists cannot do fieldwork because many of the contractors they have historically worked with have been #furloughed.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Government Efficiency, effectively run by billionaire Elon Musk, has been sowing #fear among federal workers with its visits to various agencies, threatening possible workforce cuts and more.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01245-2
Ever wonder what turns off FEAR in your brain? If you’re struggling with #anxiety help may be on the way as MIT scientists have now identified the brain chemistry and pathways involved in moderating #fear - “Dangers come but dangers also go and when they do, the brain has an “all-clear” signal that teaches it to extinguish its fear. A new study in mice by MIT neuroscientists shows that the signal is the release of dopamine along a specific interregional brain circuit. The research therefore pinpoints a potentially critical mechanism of mental health, restoring calm when it works, but prolonging anxiety or even post-traumatic stress disorder when it doesn’t.”
#psychology #MentalHealth #PTSD
https://picower.mit.edu/news/dopamine-signals-when-fear-can-be-forgotten
Hearts 
and Minds 
Preface: Fuck the Fascists. I've tried to relate nuanced #occult concepts so everyone can relate to without a full thesis or book list. There is a very delicate #nuance here that I must underline: 
️
️I'm saying don't focus on the certainty, but it's okay to discuss and prepare for the possibility. ️️
With the possibility of fascist's coming to kill us, it calls up the occult truth "energy flows where attention goes" (co-opted by many)
I caution us all not to focus on the *certainty* they are going to kill us, and instead more on the #Queertopia and what that looks like. By focusing on their end goal and validating it you lend them some of the power of your belief to the #egregore (entity of group belief) they are creating, doing some of their work for them. #Fear is as potent a manifester as joy or hope.
HOWEVER, acknowledging that is what they are TRYING (not succeeding in), we can speak of it, prepare appropriately, and fight against it without feeding our energy to their demon. While it's true the #fascist #egregore has real power and is a very real danger, I believe we should focus just as much, if not more, of our thoughts on what the #Queertopia looks like, in a much detail as possible, and feed energy to that by talking about it and taking action as if it is a certainty. This will allow us to meet our days with #presence, #power, and #joy, be visible in that, and make the most of the moments we have with our loved ones.
This is NOT to say you should act like nothing is wrong and be complacent and "behaved", rather be fully present in the moment you are in, acknowledge the danger without accidentally or subconciously repeating their bad energy to those close to you or feeding it energy.
Focusing on the end goal is crucial, bc focusing on how exactly the goal will be achieved (#magically and energetically speaking, certainly practical steps are important) will fizzle, and focusing on disaster will beget it. #NonToxicPositivity
I risk writing this because the fascists have some occult folks on their side as well helping to manifest this horror. I encourage you to speak up if you have a different perspective.
When it is appropriate and in balance with our lives: open that box in our hearts where the #resistance fighter lives 
, observe good op-sec 
(use #Signal, #Tor, and #Tails; never divulge personal info while annoymized), and bring the fight to them, this is an asymmetric war for hearts and minds. 
We Have A Dictator -
Don’t Doubt It and Don’t Get Used to It
https://www.thestranger.com/news/2025/04/29/80036027/we-have-a-dictator
“Contrary to popular belief, [#courage] is not the absence of #fear; it's the decision to move alongside it.”
- @Daojoan
https://www.joanwestenberg.com/there-is-no-right-time-there-is-only-now-plus-courage/
Well, crying came from this worldly fear of not being able to earn a living (I can't but lets not give up hope) if working a full 8 hours (rather than the usual 4) plus some stress equals full on fatigue and feeling sick, for several days, calling in sick to work (thank god for the library's sick hotline and bevy of on-calls). How can I step up and contribute more, working more hours, while my partner is much older than me and also in pain, and neither of us have "retirement" or a way to not just grind ourselves into.... Also our house is high maintenance with critters, and the age and decrepitude of it (poverty, lack of help)---- I fear I will become a detriment to our relationship. It's complicated. Being out of commission puts stress in the household.
Anyway, it was brief, sort of a thought snowballing while doing dishes this morning. It' passed. I'm not depressed.
Probably not hormonal, and if it is, it just amplifies reality. Makes we wish for a super simple life, UBI, and a way of existing, where my own cruddiness doesn't affect anyone else.
A super quick poem, prompted by fellow Substack writers this week about our greatest fears.
Meanwhile, in other news... note the #volatility index aka #fear index. This #criminal #administration is #destroying wealth, decimating lives of #middleclass #American families residual those living off their life's savings and investments. #impeach and #convict this #felon now.
#Trump’s tactics have spread #fear & created a showreel of social-media-ready highlights for the White House. But they have not brought #ICE much closer to delivering the “millions” of deportations…Trump has set as a goal.
“We need more money,” #TomHoman, Trump’s “border czar,” told Miroff in an interview. “We won’t fail if we get the resources we need.”
Day 18 cont 
“Multiple #FederalPolice officers now flank #Albanese and #Dutton at press conferences. They’re not worried about the questions – both men mangle the English language enough to defuse any threat they may pose.
The police are concerned about the #PhysicalThreat. The person willing to shout angrily, to get in the face of the men vying to be the next PM, to win a few minutes of fame on #SocialMedia for their cause. Or, to the most #extreme end, something much worse.”
“It followed an incident on Sunday when about 30 people dressed in black, their faces obscured with #hoods and stockings, stood outside the #Melbourne office of #Liberal senator #JamesPaterson and chanted racist #slogans.”
#AusPol / #extremism / #propaganda / #slogan / #PhysicalAction / #fear / #Labor / #Colition <https://archive.md/xwLAi> / <https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/i-ve-followed-our-leaders-for-10-elections-now-society-is-getting-angrier-20250416-p5ls81.html> (paywall)
I think its time #Ofcom started regulating local #news sites so they do not randomly insert articles from other areas and keep the error to get "engagement" (maybe fine them the ad revenue from the misplaced article?) - no one has been shot dead in #Ipswich, this happened up North and all this does is increase #fear of #crime
(I'm not suggesting reducing genuine local crime reporting, this is a vital part of #journalism - and all the other articles are from the expected areas)
Day 16 cont 
“Many lament a lack of long-term #PoliticalVision and express #fear for the #future. They question where the bold and #BravePoliticians are, who are willing to make hard decisions for the #LongTerm betterment of the #nation.”
#AusPol / #politics / #prosperity / #policy / #Labor / #LNP / #Liberal / #Nationals <https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-13/abc-your-say-federal-election-politicians-with-vision/105164874>
"I do not fear being alobe, my dear; I fear being in a room full of people I cannot trust"
Lemmy K.
General Stanley McChrystal: "Fear isolates. It pushes us into ideological bunkers, surrounding us only with those who think like us. And when fear festers, it mutates. What begins as anxiety turns into resentment. Resentment hardens into hatred. Hatred strips away our ability to see others as people. The result is a society riven by suspicion and hostility."
#fear #psychology #politics #behavior #sociology #hate
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/13/opinion/mcchrystal-fear-america.html
If she's from the maid service, why is she hiding under the bed? Because she got greedy, and had visions of actually paying her rent for once. When the door opened unexpectedly, she was filling a freezer bag with cash, and now she's going to be paying it with her ass...
♬ 
